AIADMK criticizes Tamil Nadu government over rising debt

Chennai: A debate in the state assembly revealed sharp disagreements between the DMK and the AIADMK regarding the rising debt in Tamil Nadu. The AIADMK, the main opposition party, criticized the government for its handling of the economy and its goal of reaching a one trillion economy. AIADMK MLA Pon Jayaseelan pointed out the state's high debt burden, estimated at 3.7 lakh rupees per person. He highlighted that the previous AIADMK government had implemented several welfare schemes, such as free laptops and a gold for marriage scheme, despite facing natural disasters and the pandemic. Jayaseelan expressed concern over the current government's borrowing plans, which aim for a total debt of 5 lakh crore. He urged the government to take action to alleviate people's financial burdens. The laptop scheme became a contentious topic. Jayaseelan accused the DMK of halting the program, which had previously benefited 52 lakh students. Law Minister Regupathy defended the DMK, claiming that it was the AIADMK that stopped the scheme, and noted that the AIADMK only identified beneficiaries for the gold program during a limited time without distributing benefits. Deputy Leader of the Opposition R B Udayakumar also contributed to the debate, attributing delays in the laptop scheme to production issues and stating that delays in the gold scheme were due to problems in gold mines during the pandemic. He questioned the fairness of blaming the DMK for the stalled programs.