Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin-led DMK regime on Friday presented its Budget 2025-26 in the Assembly, a full-fledged exercise ahead of the state election next year, and made big allocations for its flagship welfare schemes including the fare-free bus travel scheme for women and announced one per cent reduction in registration fee for immovable assets registered in their name.
Noisy scenes were witnessed in the Assembly as the main opposition AIADMK walked out after attempting to raise alleged graft in state-run liquor corporation TASMAC vis-a-vis the Enforcement Directorate searches over the Rs 1,000 crore ‘scam’.
Leader of Opposition, Edappadi K Palaniswami told reporters that his party asked the DMK government to own up moral responsibility for the TASMAC ‘scam’ and “tender resignation,” and staged a walkout on the issue.
Presenting the Budget, finance minister Thangam Thenarasu said women using fare-free bus services has risen to 65 per cent from 40 per cent. “On an average, 50 lakh women travel daily in the buses run by State Transport Undertakings, leading to a total of 642 crore trips so far. Notably, a study by the State Planning Commission revealed that women save an average of Rs 888 per month due to this initiative. For the year 2025-26, the government has allocated a subsidy of Rs 3,600 crore for the scheme in the Budget Estimates,” he said.
Thennarasu announced that the government is working to fill “40,000 more positions” within the current financial year.
Further, he announced that the registration fee for all immovable assets, including houses, plots and agricultural lands, valued up to Rs 10 lakh will be reduced by one per cent when registered in the name of women, from April 1, 2025.
A major initiative that provides access to bank loans of up to Rs 10 lakh, along with a 20 per cent subsidy to elevate one lakh women as entrepreneurs will be undertaken.
Twenty lakh college students will be provided with a tablet or laptop, based on their preference, over the next two years and Rs.2,000 crore will be allocated for this scheme in 2025-26.
A new airport at Rameswarm, expedition of work to establish a new airport at Parandur, a satellite city near the state capital with world class amenities and restoration of Earned Leave Surrender System for government employees were among the announcements he made.
The minister’s budget speech went on for 2 hours and 38 minutes. On the “Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thittam” of Rs 1,000 monthly assistance for 1.15 crore women, he said Rs 13,807 crore has been allocated and announced that women, who are eligible but have not yet received the assistance, will soon get opportunity to apply. He announced 10 more ‘Thozhi’ working women’s hostels at a cost of Rs 77 crore; already 13 hostels are functioning. The Chief Minister’s Breakfast Scheme will be further expanded and Rs 600 crore has been allocated.
Further, the minister said that under the ‘Samagra Shiksha’ scheme, the state government has been successfully implemented various student welfare schemes for the past seven years.
“Notably, initiatives such as the Ennum Ezhuthum Thittam to ensure foundational literacy, special education for differently-abled children, transport allowances for students from remote areas, salary for teachers, guidance for higher education to shape students’ future, art festivals to nurture unique talents, educational tours and infrastructure development, including internet facilities in schools, are in progress”.
However, the union government has withheld the approved amount of Rs 2,152 crore to Tamil Nadu, citing the State’s non-acceptance of the Centre’s National Education Policy, which includes the three-language policy. Despite this, keeping in mind the welfare of students, the state government has allocated funds, including salaries of teachers, from its own resources to ensure that the education of government school students remains unaffected, even in the slightest way, he said.
“Even at this critical juncture, the people of Tamil Nadu have wholeheartedly rallied behind the chief minister for upholding the dignity of the State by standing firm on the bilingual policy, even at the cost of foregoing two thousand crore rupees,” the minister said.
A sum of Rs 3,500 crore for one lakh new houses under the Kalaignar Kanavu Illam scheme, Rs 2,200 crore for the CM’s Rural Roads Development Scheme, Rs 88 crore for ‘sponge parks’ in Chennai, which will help groundwater recharge and fight against flooding, were among the allocations.
Detailed project reports for the metro rail projects on the Avinashi Road and Sathyamangalam Road routes in Coimbatore, estimated at Rs 10,740 crore, and for the Thirumangalam–Othakadai corridor in Madurai, estimated at Rs 11,368 crore, have been submitted for equity contribution from the union government. Construction work in both the cities will commence as soon as the approval is granted.
To transform the Coimbatore region, known for its excellence in engineering and foundry industries, into a modern industrial hub, semiconductor manufacturing parks will be established in Sulur, Coimbatore, spanning 100 acres, and near Palladam, covering an extent of 100 acres, Thennarasu announced.
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