Chennai, Aug 20 (IANS) The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly will on Thursday take up the demands for grants of the Food and Consumer Protection and Cooperation departments, continuing a series of departmental debates that have highlighted the priorities of the new government.
The members of the ruling party and the Opposition will discuss the functioning of the two departments. Food and Consumer Protection Minister Venkataramanan and Cooperation Minister Gandhiraj will reply to the issues raised by legislators before announcing new schemes.
The debate is expected to focus on the public distribution system, availability of essential commodities, consumer grievance mechanisms, functioning of fair-price shops and measures to control prices.
Members are also likely to raise issues concerning cooperative banks, credit societies, crop loans and financial assistance to farmers and weaker sections.
The session has already witnessed detailed discussions on the demands for grants of several key departments.
Health and Family Welfare, Revenue and Disaster Management, Water Resources, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, and Tourism and Culture have come under scrutiny. Ministers responded to constituency-specific demands.
During Wednesday’s proceedings, Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay intervened following an exchange between DMK legislator I. Periyasamy and Rural Development Minister N. Anand.
The government maintained that development funds would be distributed fairly and that projects would be implemented without political discrimination. Since assuming office in May, the Vijay government has announced a series of welfare and development measures.
Its revised Budget proposed additional revenue mobilisation, school modernisation and the extension of the Chief Minister’s Breakfast Scheme to students in Classes 6 to 8. The annual health insurance cover available to eligible families has also been raised from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 25 lakh. The government has announced relief for cooperative borrowers, including a full waiver for eligible loans up to Rs 75,000 and additional concessions for loans between Rs 75,000 and Rs 1 lakh.
It has also highlighted investment commitments secured at the investors’ conclave, rural development spending, anti-drug initiatives and skill training programmes for students and young people.
Opposition members, however, have questioned the government over its finances, tender procedures and the pace of implementation. Thursday’s debate is therefore expected to provide another test of the administration’s welfare claims and its ability to effectively address concerns affecting consumers, farmers and cooperative institutions across the state.
–IANS
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