PMK promises liquor ban if it wins Tamil Nadu polls

The PMK on Thursday promised a total liquor ban and cancellation of licenses of all distelleries in Tamil Nadu if it comes to power in the poll-bound state.

However, the party, a staunch advocate of liquor prohibition, said in its election manifesto that it would allow sweet toddy tapping.

The party also said it would ban genitically modified crops and promised to give Rs.100,000 worth of freebies per year per family under education, agriculture and health heads.

"As the needs of education, medical treatment and agriculture will be provided free, each family can save over Rs.100,000 per year. This, they can consider as freebie," the manifesto said.

This a departure from traditional election promises made by the ruling AIADMK and opposition DMK which had distributed consumer durables like mixer/grinder, fan, laptops and televisions among voters.

The PMK, however, said journalists will get 90 percent subsidy for buying laptops.

The PMK has promised doubling of allocation for education, provision of free school education, fixing of school fees and payment of the same by the government to private schools.

It said that government schools will be upgraded and reforms will be introduced in eduction system.

For the agriculture sector, the PMK promised free seeds, fertiliser and farm motors and writing off of farm loans.

It also promised one tractor to each local body for farmers and setting up of agricultural special economic zone in each district.

The PMK is contesting the May 16 assembly polls on its own, projecting party founder S. Ramadoss' son and former union minister Anbumani Ramadoss as the chief ministerial candidate.

The other promises of the party include:

- Lok Ayukta Act and bringing chief minister and other ministers under its ambit

- Right to Public Services Act

- Yearly publication of assets details of chief minister and other ministers

- Yearly review of each minister's performance

- Tiruchirapalli as second capital of the state

- Scheme for creating over one crore jobs

- Tamil Nadu as an international logistics hub

- Scrapping of five percent value added tax on sugar

- Cash assistance to handicapped and unemployed.