Leader of the Opposition and the AIADMK’s interim general secretary, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, on Monday dismissed Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan’s observation on the reduction of revenue deficit after the DMK assumed power.
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Addressing the media after staging a walk-out, Mr. Palaniswami said that unlike the last year of the AIADMK regime when there was “a huge revenue loss and steep rise in expenditure” which were caused by the COVID-19, there was not much adverse impact of the COVID-19 on the finances of the State after the DMK came to power in May 2021. There had been a rise in tax revenue even though the government did not spend money for the schemes it announced. “Actually, the revenue deficit should have been brought down to nil,” he said.
Mr. Palaniswami criticised the DMK government for increasing the property tax rate and power tariff, which should be regarded as the “gift” of the 23-month-long regime to people. He wanted to know what recommendations were made by a committee of international experts to improve the finances of the State and which of the recommendations were implemented by the government.
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The AIADMK leader asked what would be the conditions that would determine beneficiaries of the ‘Magalir Urimai Thogai’, the State’s universal basic income scheme for women, even though, at the time of Assembly election, the ruling party had assured the people that all women-headed households would get ₹1,000 per month.
Youth Welfare and Sports Development Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin should be “given Nobel Prize for having revealed the secret” behind NEET (National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test) which was the continuance of legal battle. “This was what we, while in power, did,” Mr. Palaniswami observed.
Describing the State budget as one that “will not please” people, the AIADMK’s former coordinator O. Panneerselvam said even the third budget of the DMK government did not have “schemes for livelihood opportunities” for the people.
Referring to the Finance Minister’s remark that the amount of revenue deficit for the current year, as per revised estimates, would be lower by ₹5,000 crore than the level of the pre-COVID year of 2019-20, Mr. Panneerselvam, who held the Finance portfolio nearly 10 years during the AIADMK regime (2011-21), said this was because of revenue increase during the post-pandemic period, savings achieved by effecting six-month delay in announcing dearness allowance hike for the government staff and less expenditure arising out of not promptly filling vacancies in the government.
Adverting to this year’s announcement regarding the procurement of 1,000 buses and renovation of 500 old buses at a cost of ₹500 crore, he wondered the fate of the previous year’s announcement on the purchase of 2,213 BS-VI new diesel buses and 500 new electric buses. It was disappointing to note that the budget did not talk of the implementation of the old pension scheme for employees of the State Transport Corporations (STC) and DA hike for retired employees of the STCs.