The Finance Minister of Tamil Nadu PTR Palanivel Thiagarjan not only questioned the credentials of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his economic policies but also arrogantly asked if those in the Centre are economic experts with double Ph.Ds and Nobel Prize to listen to them on the question of freebie culture bringing down the economy of the country.
He also went on to add that out for ₹1 rupee that Tamil Nadu gives to the treasury of the nation it hardly gets 30 paisa back. This is a oft repeated comment made not only by PTR but also his fellow Dravidian Stockists in media and public platforms.
PTR has time and again maintained that the state of Tamil Nadu contributes not less than ₹1,10,000 crores to the national exchequer through various taxes and in return gets hardly ₹35,000 crores back.
PTR’s statement must be taken with a pinch of salt since he assumes that he can weave a fake narrative by only considering Central government’s transfer to the state government under the head of tax devolutions.
But there are several factors which need to be kept in mind while we arrive at the conclusion regarding the contribution by the Central government to states.
There are 3 things which need to be considered:
1. Transfers from Central Government to state under various heads
2. Development Funds particularly regarding infrastructure
3. Direct Benefit Transfer to the people of the state
One of the allegations that the PTR and the DMK Government keeps on the central Government is that there is unidirectional downward trajectory in allocation of revenue and proportion of the revenue allocated to Tamil Nadu and similar states has decreased significantly ever since Modi came to power in 2014 which is far from the truth.
Tax devolution had increased by 91% in NDA 1 Government compared to UPA 2 and Grants had increased by 171%. In fact, in the FY 2021-2022 the Tax devolution has increased by 50.2% compared to the previous financial year. Financial Grants has also increased by 19% this year compared to the previous year.
In the interest of the economy of the state it would be prudent on the Finance Minister of Tamil Nadu to focus on fiscal discipline instead of blaming the central government for lack of allocation of financial resources.
Infrastructure Development In Tamil Nadu Under Modi
Ever since 2014 the infrastructure development is happening at a rapid pace all over the country. Tamil Nadu is seeing unprecedented growth in the development of infrastructure be it in the construction of National Highways or new railway lines or in the development of ports and waterways. A partial list of development projects would reveal that NDA Government has either spent or allocated over ₹2.49 lakh crores for the infrastructure projects in Tamil Nadu.
Direct Benefit Transfers To The People Of Tamil Nadu From The Central Government
Former Prime Minister Late Rajiv Gandhi made a startling revelation four decades back that out of every ₹1 spent for the welfare of people by the government hardly 15 paisa reaches the beneficiary. In order to end this malaise Modi government gave a push to digital economy and direct benefit transfer which has ensured that corruption by middlemen is eradicated to a large extent. People of Tamil Nadu have been greatly benefited by the various schemes of Modi which ensured that farmers receive ₹6000 directly into their bank accounts in 3 instalments every year, low interest loans are available to the entrepreneurs and street vendors, subsidized LPG connections are given to women, etc. It has been observed that Tamil Nadu tops in availing PM Mudra loans for entrepreneurs every year from the time of inception. Over 4 crore people have benefited from the various schemes.
In order to reduce the hardships of the poor people during the COVID induced lockdown periods Modi Government launched the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana through which food grains were supplied free of cost to people. Tamil Nadu received 45 lakh metric tonnes of rice worth ₹15,075 crores as on April 28, 2022 and the scheme will continue till September 2022.
Hence it is crystal clear that Tamil Nadu Government and people receive far more than what PTR falsely claims as injustice to the people of Tamil Nadu.
In the last 15 months PTR has put the economy of the state in a mess as various parameters indicate that Tamil Nadu is approaching bankruptcy. Hence it is imperative on the part of Finance Minister to stop indulging in mere rhetoric on his family and his overseas education credentials and instead start focusing on delivery as a state Finance Minister lest he would drive the state to the situation of Lehman Brothers which went bust during his tenure in that firm.
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DMK Fin Min PTR Should Shut Up And Do Some Actual Work Instead Of Indulging In False Bravado
The Finance Minister of Tamil Nadu PTR Palanivel Thiagarjan not only questioned the credentials of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his economic policies but also arrogantly asked if those in the Centre are economic experts with double Ph.Ds and Nobel Prize to listen to them on the question of freebie culture bringing down the economy of the country.
He also went on to add that out for ₹1 rupee that Tamil Nadu gives to the treasury of the nation it hardly gets 30 paisa back. This is a oft repeated comment made not only by PTR but also his fellow Dravidian Stockists in media and public platforms.
PTR has time and again maintained that the state of Tamil Nadu contributes not less than ₹1,10,000 crores to the national exchequer through various taxes and in return gets hardly ₹35,000 crores back.
PTR’s statement must be taken with a pinch of salt since he assumes that he can weave a fake narrative by only considering Central government’s transfer to the state government under the head of tax devolutions.
But there are several factors which need to be kept in mind while we arrive at the conclusion regarding the contribution by the Central government to states.
There are 3 things which need to be considered:
1. Transfers from Central Government to state under various heads
2. Development Funds particularly regarding infrastructure
3. Direct Benefit Transfer to the people of the state
One of the allegations that the PTR and the DMK Government keeps on the central Government is that there is unidirectional downward trajectory in allocation of revenue and proportion of the revenue allocated to Tamil Nadu and similar states has decreased significantly ever since Modi came to power in 2014 which is far from the truth.
Tax devolution had increased by 91% in NDA 1 Government compared to UPA 2 and Grants had increased by 171%. In fact, in the FY 2021-2022 the Tax devolution has increased by 50.2% compared to the previous financial year. Financial Grants has also increased by 19% this year compared to the previous year.
In the interest of the economy of the state it would be prudent on the Finance Minister of Tamil Nadu to focus on fiscal discipline instead of blaming the central government for lack of allocation of financial resources.
Infrastructure Development In Tamil Nadu Under Modi
Ever since 2014 the infrastructure development is happening at a rapid pace all over the country. Tamil Nadu is seeing unprecedented growth in the development of infrastructure be it in the construction of National Highways or new railway lines or in the development of ports and waterways. A partial list of development projects would reveal that NDA Government has either spent or allocated over ₹2.49 lakh crores for the infrastructure projects in Tamil Nadu.
Direct Benefit Transfers To The People Of Tamil Nadu From The Central Government
Former Prime Minister Late Rajiv Gandhi made a startling revelation four decades back that out of every ₹1 spent for the welfare of people by the government hardly 15 paisa reaches the beneficiary. In order to end this malaise Modi government gave a push to digital economy and direct benefit transfer which has ensured that corruption by middlemen is eradicated to a large extent. People of Tamil Nadu have been greatly benefited by the various schemes of Modi which ensured that farmers receive ₹6000 directly into their bank accounts in 3 instalments every year, low interest loans are available to the entrepreneurs and street vendors, subsidized LPG connections are given to women, etc. It has been observed that Tamil Nadu tops in availing PM Mudra loans for entrepreneurs every year from the time of inception. Over 4 crore people have benefited from the various schemes.
In order to reduce the hardships of the poor people during the COVID induced lockdown periods Modi Government launched the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana through which food grains were supplied free of cost to people. Tamil Nadu received 45 lakh metric tonnes of rice worth ₹15,075 crores as on April 28, 2022 and the scheme will continue till September 2022.
Hence it is crystal clear that Tamil Nadu Government and people receive far more than what PTR falsely claims as injustice to the people of Tamil Nadu.
In the last 15 months PTR has put the economy of the state in a mess as various parameters indicate that Tamil Nadu is approaching bankruptcy. Hence it is imperative on the part of Finance Minister to stop indulging in mere rhetoric on his family and his overseas education credentials and instead start focusing on delivery as a state Finance Minister lest he would drive the state to the situation of Lehman Brothers which went bust during his tenure in that firm.
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