The Tamil Nadu government, led by Chief Minister Vijay, on Wednesday announced a series of welfare measures covering maternity benefits, legislators' allowances, milk procurement, medical education and healthcare infrastructure.
Among the key decisions, the state government announced that women employees in government service will now be eligible for 365 days of maternity leave for a third child. The move brings maternity leave for the third child on par with the entitlement available for the first two children.
The announcement, however, drew criticism from DMK spokesperson TKS Elangovan, who said Tamil Nadu had historically been among the states that actively promoted family planning and encouraged families to limit themselves to two children.
"Tamil Nadu is the first state to follow family planning in a restricted sense. That is why we stopped at two children. It is better to have only two children in a family, which will help the family and enable the parents to bring up their children," Elangovan said.
He questioned whether the decision indicated a departure from the state's family planning approach and said the policy could be interpreted as an indication that the government was moving away from the two-child principle.
"But if they are having a third child, it means they are abandoning the family planning programme. I don't understand the meaning of this. This government does not want family planning. That is the only thing I can infer from this," he said.
The state government also announced a package of enhanced benefits for Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs). Under the new measures, cars will be provided to all MLAs at government expense.
In addition, the monthly vehicle allowance for every MLA has been increased to Rs 75,000, while the assistant allowance has been fixed at Rs 25,000 per month. The government has also decided to substantially increase health insurance coverage available to MLAs under the government scheme, raising the limit from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 25 lakh.
The announcements were made under Rule 110 and cover several sectors, including dairy, medical education, healthcare infrastructure and health insurance.
As part of the measures for the dairy sector, the government has announced an increase in the milk procurement price from Rs 38 to Rs 41 per litre. The state government estimates that the decision will result in an additional expenditure of Rs 30 crore per month and Rs 360 crore annually.
The increase is expected to benefit more than 3.16 lakh milk producers across Tamil Nadu. Alongside the procurement price hike, the government has also decided to raise the government incentive for milk producers from Rs 3 to Rs 5 per litre.
In the healthcare and medical education sector, the government has allocated Rs 351 crore to expand student admission capacity in government medical colleges and allied institutions. A total of 6,098 additional seats will be created to strengthen the pipeline of healthcare professionals.
Also read: Naidu announces BVLOS certification, new drone incentive scheme
The expansion includes 660 additional B.Sc Nursing seats, 1,925 seats in nursing colleges and schools, 2,778 seats across 12 paramedical courses and 735 additional seats in medical courses. The government has also announced the establishment of seven new government nursing colleges.
Another major healthcare initiative is the proposed establishment of a 400-bed multi-speciality hospital in Perambalur at an estimated cost of Rs 300 crore. The facility is intended to provide advanced medical treatment and strengthen healthcare infrastructure in the region.
The government has also proposed a major enhancement to the Chief Minister's Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme, increasing the annual treatment coverage limit from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 25 lakh.
In addition, specialised medical and surgical services for transgender persons will be made available under the scheme at hospitals in Chennai, Stanley, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Chengalpattu, Thiruvarur, Karur and Kanyakumari.
Taken together, the measures announced by the Tamil Nadu government seek to improve the incomes of milk producers, expand opportunities in medical and nursing education, strengthen public healthcare infrastructure, enhance insurance coverage and widen access to specialised healthcare services across the state.
Follow us
