The Tamil Nadu assembly elections are fast approaching and evidence of this was on display as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented her Budget for 2020-21 in the Parliament on Monday. The Union government announced a slew of measures for the state — from multiple roadways costing the exchequer over Rs 1 lakh crore to exclusive projects for Tamil Nadu's coastal districts which includes a Seaweed park.
Several of the projects announced by the Finance Minister focussed on Chennai city itself. This included the construction of phase two of the Chennai metro railway of 118.9 km at a cost of Rs 63,246 crore. Two expressways connecting Chennai have also featured in the Budget. The first is the Bengaluru – Chennai Expressway that is expected to cover 278 km. It is expected to be initiated in the current financial year.
The second is a more controversial project — the Chennai-Salem corridor which has already faced immense backlash from farmers, environmentalists and activists. Despite the protests however, the Union government's inclusion of the project signifies intention to carry on with it.
Overall, 3,500 km of National Highway works in the state of Tamil Nadu has been proposed with an investment of Rs 1.03 lakh crore. These include the Madurai-Kollam corridor, Chittoor-Thatchur corridor. Construction will start next year.
Chennai and Tamil Nadu as a whole has been given special attention under the Budget allocated for fisheries projects.
The Finance Minister stated, "I am proposing substantial investments in the development of modern fishing harbours and fish landing centres. To start with, five major fishing harbours – Kochi, Chennai, Visakhapatnam, Paradip, and Petuaghat – will be developed as hubs of economic activity. We will also develop inland fishing harbours and fish-landing centres along the banks of rivers and waterways."
She further stressed on seaweed farming as an emerging sector with potential to transform lives of coastal communities. "It will provide large scale employment and additional incomes. To promote seaweed cultivation, I propose a Multipurpose Seaweed Park to be established in Tamil Nadu," said the Minister.
According to reports, 1,500 tonnes of naturally produced seaweed is collected annually in Tail Nadu. The state has also already signed a Memorandum of Understanding with three private companies for collecting seaweed produced by farmers between Pudukkottai and Ramanthapuram.
The Finance Minister also announced a new voluntary scrappage policy. This is meant to phase out old vehicles and additional details are to be given later. The policy, which is long awaited by the automotive industry, is significant to Tamil Nadu which reportedly has a large market for commercial and personal vehicles. In addition to this, it is home to several manufacturing plants in this industry.
And sticking to tradition, the Minister ahead of announcing the tax Budget, offered a Thirukkural as a way of explanation for the decisions to be read out. As Parliamentarians from across the country looked on, she said -
இயற்றலும் ஈட்டலுங் காத்தலும் காத்த
வகுத்தலும் வல்ல தரசு
(Iyatralum Eetalum Kaathalum Kaatha
Vaguthalum Vala Tharasu)
Explaining the lines, she said “a king is he who treasures gains, stores up, defends, and duly for his kingdom's wealth.”
(With inputs from Bharathi SP)