DMK cries foul in Pongal gift, OPS calls it clerical mistake

“In the Assembly, Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam submitted that Rs 2,019.11 crore have been sanctioned towards providing cash support of Rs 1,000 per ration card to celebrate Pongal. But ahead of Pongal, the AIADMK announced that a sum of Rs 1,985 crore is sanctioned for the scheme, there is lack of transparency in the fund allocation,” DMK leader K Ponmudi told reporters after raising the issue in the Assembly.

“Even if 100 per cent distribution is done covering the entire 2.01 crore cards the state requires only Rs 2,001 crore and not Rs 2019 crore. About Rs 25 crore have been added to the scheme and still there are people complaining about non-distribution of Pongal gift,” Ponmudi explained. Further, the AIADMK had also informed the Madras High Court that the scheme covers only those coming under below poverty line and these are contradictions, the former education minister said.

Responding to Ponmudi, Deputy CM Panneerselvam clarified that the number of ration cards in Tamil Nadu is 2,01,09,100 and this had been rounded off to 2.01 crore in the notification creating confusion. This is a clerical mistake and I thank the Opposition for pointing it out, he said ending the controversy raked by the DMK.

Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam on Thursday said despite a slew of new projects announced in the budget, allocations for ongoing schemes have not been cut and asserted that steps were afoot to lower revenue deficit.

Listing several new schemes like 2,000 solar power motors for farmers, Panneerselvam, who holds the finance portfolio, told the state assembly that the budget pegged the revenue deficit at Rs 14,314 crore, down from Rs 19,319 crore as per the revised budget estimates of 2018-19.

In the 2019-20 budget presented on February 8, Panneerselvam had announced 36 new schemes worth Rs 20,000 crore.  Also, the budget was prepared keeping fiscal deficit within the three per cent threshold of Gross State Domestic Product.

«We have carefully projected that the State›s Own Tax Revenue will only be 13.25 per cent for 2019-20,” he said winding up general discussions on the budget.  The government was leaning more on SOTR growth to cut revenue and fiscal deficits and have brought down borrowings.  “We have projected a net borrowing of only Rs 43,000 crore against the net borrowing ceiling of Rs 51,800 crore for 2019-20,” he said.

Taking on DMK chief M K Stalin for dubbing the budget as “useless,” (outside the House), he said the Leader of Opposition had viewed the annual financial statement with “hate,” and that was why he had reacted in such a fashion.