Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Wednesday sounded a wake up call to the Centre to take steps to end the sufferings of the internally displaced Tamils in Sri Lanka.
“At a time when we are celebrating our Independence Day, I urge the Centre to take steps, at least now, to ensure the safe return of the Tamils living in camps in Lanka and to ensure equal rights to them on par with the Sinhalas,” the CM said while delivering her address after hoisting the Tricolour at Fort St George. Jayalalithaa has been repeatedly raising her voice in support of the Sri Lankan Tamils and urging the Centre to take concrete steps to end the problems faced by the Tamils there.
The CM has announced a substantial hike in the pension and medical allowance meant for freedom fighters.
The hikes were effected as a mark of respect for the freedom fighters on the occasion of Independence Day, the CM said. The pension for freedom fighters would go up from Rs 5,000 to Rs 7,000 per month while the medical allowance would be increased from Rs 100 to Rs 500 per month. Similarly, the family pension for their legal heirs has been increased to Rs 3,500 from the earlier Rs 2,500.
Welfare measures
Highlighting the welfare measures of the government, the CM said that during the 2011-12 period, electric fans, mixers and grinders were distributed to 25 lakh family card-holders. As many as 35 lakh families would benefit from the scheme this year, she said.
Similarly, construction of 60,000 houses under the solar power green house scheme were in the final stages, Jayalalithaa said. This year too, 60,000 houses, with each costing Rs 1.80 lakh to build, would be constructed under this scheme.
Steps were also being taken to construct 1 lakh houses for those affected by cyclone Thane. Under the Tamil Nadu Village Habitation Improvement Scheme, the CM said, Rs 680 crore was allocated for providing basic amenities in 25,335 habitations in 2,020 village panchayats. For the current year, Rs 750 crore has been allocated, she added.
In her 20-minute speech, she highlighted the achievements of the 15-month-old AIADMK government. From the 76 lakh metric tonnes in 2010-11, food grain production in the State has shot up to 106 lakh metric tonnes in 2011-12, she said. On the Kuruvai crop, she said that cultivation has come down due to Karnataka’s failure to release TN’s due share of Cauvery water. “But, with supply of three-phase power for 12 hours to farmers in Cauvery delta, Kuruvai was cultivated in 1.37 lakh acres,” she said.
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