TN govt replaces schemes, projects of its predecessor

The Tamil Nadu state government led by J Jayalalithaa has decided to replace some of the social welfare schemes and infrastructure projects initiated by the previous DMK government.

These include the state government-sponsored insurance scheme, housing scheme and metro rail project.

In his speech, which was read out by the Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker D Jayakumar at the 14th state Assembly session on Friday, Tamil Nadu Governor Surjit Singh Barnala said the new government's intention was to provide good healthcare for the people.

“The existing insurance scheme, which was introduced by the DMK Government in the name of Kalaignar Insurance Scheme, does not address the demand of the people fully. So it has been decided to replace it with a new scheme.” The scheme in question was introduced by the DMK Government in 2009 and Star Health and Allied Insurance Company (Star Health).

The other scheme which will be stopped is Kalaignar Housing Scheme. Instead, it has been decided to introduce a Green Housing Scheme with solar power.

The AIADMK government has now said that the previous government's scheme has several complaints and the cost of construction rose by 2-3 times.

The previous government allocation of Rs 75,000 per unit is not viable for a rural family and it is increasing their debt burden, due to which in various places the scheme did not pick up.

As part of the new scheme, the government will construct and deliver 300 sft house at a cost of Rs 1.8 lakh for rural poor.

Jayalalithaa has also shown a red flag to the metro rail project. The new government plans to increase public transportation to 46 per cent by 2026 from the current 27 per cent.

“The new government has formulated a multi modal transport system for Chennai. It has been decided to implement mono rail,” the Governor said.