TN Govt to gift gold, cows under new welfare push

The Tamil Nadu government led by Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay has set aside more than Rs 1,000 crore to distribute gold coins, gold rings and milch cows to beneficiaries across the state, fulfilling a key election pledge made by the ruling TVK party earlier this year.

The allocation was announced by Finance Minister N. Marie Wilson while presenting the TVK government's first budget on Wednesday, August 5.

Under the "Annan Seer" scheme, newly married women will receive an eight-gram gold coin along with a silk saree from the Chief Minister, who Wilson said regards every woman in the state as part of his own family. The scheme has been allotted Rs 812 crore in the revised budget estimates.

A separate initiative, the "Thai Maaman Thanga Mothiram Thittam," will provide a one-gram gold ring to every child born in a government hospital, at a cost of Rs 560 crore. Wilson said the scheme was designed to strengthen maternal and child healthcare, which he described as a core pillar of the state's public health system.

Citing figures from the National Sample Registration System, Wilson said Tamil Nadu's infant mortality rate stood at 11 per 1,000 live births, among the lowest in the country, a trend he attributed to sustained public health interventions. 

He added that nearly all deliveries in the state, 99.9 per cent, now take place in hospitals, with over half occurring in government facilities. The gold ring scheme, he said, was intended to further encourage institutional deliveries and reduce out-of-pocket healthcare costs for families.

The budget also introduced the "Vetri Magalir Goat Rearing Scheme," offering a full subsidy for five goats or sheep to destitute widows, deserted women, transgender persons and persons with disabilities. The scheme, budgeted at Rs 110 crore, is expected to benefit around 30,000 people.

Assistance for fishing families during the lean season was raised from Rs 6,000 to Rs 7,000 per family, a move that will cost Rs 135 crore and benefit 1.93 lakh families. An additional Rs 12 crore was earmarked as interest subsidy for deep-sea fishing boats equipped with modern processing facilities.

Under a scheme to support rural women through dairy farming, free milch cows will be given to 10,000 eligible women annually at a cost of Rs 57 crore. 

The Animal Husbandry, Dairying, Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare Department has been allocated Rs 4,880 crore overall. Wilson noted that Tamil Nadu remains among the top states nationally in milk production and procurement, and said the cattle distribution scheme was aimed at boosting output while supporting rural women's livelihoods.

On urban transport, the budget provides for the procurement of 1,000 new air-conditioned electric buses for Chennai's Metropolitan Transport Corporation under the Gross Cost Contract model, along with Rs 500 crore for electrical and mechanical infrastructure at bus depots.

(With PTI inputs)