Tamil Nadu which is reeling under one of the harshest power crisis was looking forward to get 450 MW power from the Kudankulam Nuclear power plant. But, the commissioning of 1,000 MW unit of the plant would be delayed by a month. This announcement came on the eve of the second anniversary of the Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK Government.
The State is facing a peak hour deficit of 4000 MW with all districts other than Chennai going without power for more than 12 hours a day.
Widespread corruption, official apathy to the problems of the people and severe power shortage made people vote out the Karunanidhi-led DMK Government in 2011.
Though Karunanidhi had played all cards to woo the voters, power shortage antagonised the people. Free colour TVs distributed by the then DMK Government found their way to neighbouring Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.
“What is the use of a TV set if there is no power for 18 hours a dayIJ” asked Saravanan, a labourer, who sold the free colour TV to a roadside eatery in Kerala.
Most of the factors which had led to the downfall of DMK Government continue to loom even on eve of second anniversary of AIADMK Government. Many industrial units which provided jobs to hundreds of thousands of people have closed down because of the power crisis.
There is a marked lethargy among the bureaucracy. Frequent shuffling and dropping of Ministers have led to a sense of despondence and dejection among the ministerial colleagues of Jayalalithaa. But, they are not willing to open up for fear of losing their chairs.
“The anger of the people who voted out the Karunanidhi Government has not yet subsided. Whatever goodwill earned by Jayalalithaa has been dissipated over the last two years. The common man is asking what happened to the promises made by her during the election campaignIJ” said Gnani Sankaran, political commentator.
The power shortage is not of Jayalalithaa’s making. The DMK Government which was in power from 2006 to 2011 did not take up major power projects which were initiated by the Jayalalithaa Government which reigned Tamil Nadu during 2001 to 2006. This ended up in Tamil Nadu not getting the power surrendered by Delhi in 2012. Tamil Nadu would come under the national grid only by June 2014.
The AIADMK Government will be remembered for instilling the fear of law in the minds of trouble makers and anti-social elements. The way she handled the recent agitation and vandalism by the PMK workers was well appreciated by the people. Though the State underwent an unprecedented drought in 2012, the Jayalalithaa Government took prompt measures in taking up relief measures.
“No other State Governments have handled drought relief measures as effectively as the Tamil Nadu Government. The people could face the drought only because of the precautionary and preventive steps taken by the Government,” leader of the central team said after a stock taking visit to Tamil Nadu.
The Vision Tamil Nadu 2023 Document, a strategic plan for infrastructure development of the State, prepared by the Chief Minister herself stands as a question mark.
“Tamil Nadu will be amongst India’s most economically prosperous States by 2023 achieving a six-fold growth in per capita income over the next 11 years to be on par with the Upper Middle Income countries globally,” says Vision Document released by Jayalalithaa in 2012.
The world class infrastructure, which includes roads, hospitals, total sanitation, housing, education and urban transport require more than Rs 15 lakh crore over the next 10 years.
The elegantly bound copies of the Vision Tamil Nadu Document remain as the benchmark for all development initiatives. But even after 12 months of its release, the hopes and dreams remain in paper itself. Roads in the capital city of Chennai remain in a pathetic state even after promises by Mayor Saidai Doraisamy
One cannot ignore the steps initiated by the AIADMK Government over the last two years to make life easy for the poor man. The Amma eateries which serve idli @ `1 and sambar rice at `5 per plate are revolutionary steps. Equally important are 15 different varieties of fried rice served as part of the noon meal scheme in Government run schools. The number of students dropping out of schools has also come down.