Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi, on Wednesday, 5 January, made his first address to the Tamil Nadu Assembly while the principal opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) staged a walkout and boycotted his speech to target the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)
Just after the arrival of the Governor, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) members walked out of the House protesting against pending approval of the anti-NEET Bill which was passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly in 2021. VCK is an ally of the ruling DMK.
AIADMK Attacks DMK On Various Issues, Later Walks Out of the House
As soon as Governor Ravi began his address, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) E Palaniswami stood up and started reading out from a prepared text to target the DMK on various issues including on the law and order front. The AIADMK members were on their feet during this time and later walked out of the House.
The Governor, in his address, appreciated the concentrated efforts of the state government in its COVID-19 fight and vaccination drive and asked the public to extend their cooperation. He also outlined various initiatives and policy priorities of the government, including on the health sector, economy and inter-state water disputes.
He further told the Assembly that Rs 543 crore has been received since the DMK government assumed office and that Rs 541.64 crore has been spent towards COVID-19 related activities. Mentioning the Tamil Nadu government’s ‘Makkalai Thedi Maruthuvam’ scheme, he stated that the Rs 257 crore-worth novel scheme has benefitted nearly 42 lakh people.
The Governor also added that the government has been urging the Union Finance Ministry and GST Council to continue GST compensation till 2024, as it is coming to an end this year. “A detailed action plan ‘Towards One Trillion Dollar Economy’ is underway to realise the CM’s vision to make Tamil Nadu a ‘One Trillion Dollar Economy’ by the year 2030,” he said and added that two new policies – ‘Tamil Nadu Export Promotion Strategy’ and ‘Tamil Nadu FinTech Policy’ – have been launched.
Text Books to be Translated to Tamil to Help Tamil Medium Students
Speaking about the language Tamil, Governor Ravi said that 100 textbooks in various subjects in professional courses were being translated into Tamil, in a bid to help students studying in Tamil medium. “To bring drop-out children back to school, a GPS enabled mobile application and with 80,000 surveyors drawn from various departments, 1,73,792 children have been identified and successfully enrolled in age-appropriate classes,” Ravi said.
As per a recent directive of the state government, the invocation song to mother Tamil, "Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu," was rendered by trained singers, and the Governor ended his speech with Mahakavi Bharathiyar’s words “Vazhiya Senthamizh! Vazhga Natramizhar! Vazhiya Bharatha Mani Thiru Nadu!”
(Published in arrangement with The News Minute)
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