Stalin handed over 50 electric autos to women members of urban Self-Help Group on behalf of the Environment and Climate Change department.
Credit: X/@Udhaystalin via PTI Photo
Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin presented 100 pink autos to women beneficiaries on behalf of the state social welfare and women empowerment department at a function held at the Nehru Indoor stadium on the occasion of International Women's Day.
He announced that new working women's hostels (Thozhiyar Viduthi) would be built at a cost of Rs 72 crore in Kancheepuram, Erode, Dharmapuri, Sivaganga, Theni, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Ranipet, and Karur districts.
The hostels with 700-bed facility will have many amenities including biometric entry, Wi-Fi facility, purified drinking water, and 24-hour security, the Chief Minister said.
He handed over 50 electric autos to women members of urban Self-Help Group on behalf of the Environment and Climate Change department.
Later, he interacted with the beneficiaries.
Also, Stalin inaugurated the credit linkage scheme for Rs 3,190.10 crore meant for 4,42,949 women members of 34,073 SHGs across the state and provided bank loans worth Rs 366.26 crore to 46,592 women SHG members from Chennai, Chengalpattu, Kanchipuram and Tiruvallur districts on the occasion.
He presented the Avaiyar Award for 2025 to former Vice Chancellor of Mother Teresa Women's University Yashoda Shanmugasundaram, and state Girl Child Protection Day awards to Kanyakumari district collector Azhughu Meena and Kancheepuram district collector Kalaiselvi Mohan, respectively for their outstanding work.
Speaking on the occasion, Stalin said women should be given due respect in all places, be it in politics or at work.
In a video message on Women's Day, Stalin listed out the various welfare initiatives rolled out by the DMK government for women empowerment in the state, including the Rs 1,000 monthly aid scheme.
He announced that women SHG members could carry upto 25 kg of the products they make in government buses for free of cost. Women will be given preference for extending loans through the cooperative banks. They would be provided a five percent discount on Co-Optex products and a ten percent reduction in service charges at e-service centres, he said.