Tamil Nadu: PM Talks Development, CM Politics At Chennai Event

PM Narendra Modi was in Tamil Nadu to inaugurate 5 development projects and lay the foundation stone for 6 more projects worth Rs 31,530 crore.

On his way to the launch event, he was greeted by thousands of people gathered on the street to catch a glimpse of the prime minister.

At the event, Chief Minister M K Stalin, during his address, listed out demands of his government from the Centre. His demand included retrieving Katchatheevu island from Sri Lanka, which was ceded by then prime minister Indira Gandhi in 1974.

He said that the share of Tamil Nadu in GDP is around 9.22 per cent, while its share in Central taxes is only 6 per cent. Therefore, in the spirit of true cooperative federalism, more funds and schemes must be allocated to the state. He asked for GST dues to be paid to the state as well as demanded exemption from NEET.

The Chief Minister also indulged in language politics, raising the topic of Hindu imposition in his speech.

Prime Minister Modi, in his speech however, called the Tamil language eternal and Tamil culture global. He spoke about the multitude of efforts being made by the Centre government to preserve and propagate the Tamil language. He said, “In January this year, the new campus of Central Institute of Classical Tamil was inaugurated in Chennai. The new campus is fully funded by the Union government. It is equipped with a spacious library, seminar hall and multimedia hall. A Subramania Bharati chair at Banaras Hindu University was recently announced. Since it is located in my constituency, the joy was extra special.” He added that the New Education Policy promotes higher learning in local languages and would be beneficial for youth from Tamil Nadu.

BJP Tamil Nadu President K. Annamalai criticised CM Stalin for his appalling conduct. He said, “Our CM was expected to show grace, but he ended up disgracing himself.”