Chennai, In a bonanza to Tamil Nadu MLAs, Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Wednesday announced official vehicles and a monthly allowance of ₹one lakh each to address public grievances in their respective constituencies.
His announcement made ruling TVK legislator K Sindhu break into rapturous glee, singing a song in praise of Vijay and thanking him for the gesture.
In order to support administrative tasks and vehicle maintenance, the government will provide an allowance of ₹75,000 per month, including fuel and driver costs, and ₹25,000 per month to hire a personal assistant to help manage constituency work, the CM said.
Deep Dive
What is the purpose of the new vehicle and allowance scheme announced for Tamil Nadu MLAs?
How much monthly allowance will Tamil Nadu MLAs receive for vehicle maintenance and personal assistance?
Why did Chief Minister Vijay feel the need to provide official vehicles to MLAs?
"These measures are aimed at reducing the economic burden on the MLAs, improving transparency, and ensuring that government services reach the grassroots level without corruption. Appropriate amendments will be made to formalise these directives," Vijay said amidst loud thumping of tables in the House.
Making an announcement under Rule 110 in the Assembly, Vijay said the new support measures consisting of a vehicle and an allowance for the MLAs will help them travel across their constituencies to address public grievances and monitor government projects without depending on others.
Vijay's announcement prompted TVK MLA Sindhu to break into an impromptu song.
{{/usCountry}}Vijay's announcement prompted TVK MLA Sindhu to break into an impromptu song.
{{/usCountry}}The chief minister, Speaker J C D Prabhakar and the MLAs were pleasantly surprised and smiled when the nervous first-time MLA from Gudiyatham constituency sang in a mellifluous voice.
Vijay turned to look at the "singer-legislator" and could not restrain himself from smiling at the musical expression when she sang a few lines of the song 'Koduthathellam Koduthaan," from the 1964 movie Padagotti, starring yesteryear icon and late CM M G Ramachandran .
The philosophical song on divine equality was sung by T M Soundararajan and penned by lyricist Vaali.
Later, the Speaker clarified that the chief minister's announcements applied to all the MLAs in the 234-member House.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.