1 crore women to get Rs 1,000 per month: TN CM Stalin

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Monday said as many as 1 crore women, including street vendors, fisherwomen, construction workers, and housemaids, will receive Rs 1,000 per month as “rightful money” as the state government prepares to roll-out one of the biggest cash transfer schemes.

In a statement in the Assembly, Stalin said the scheme was named as Magalir Urimai Thogai(Rightful Money for Women) only because the government wanted to recognize the sacrifices made by women in running their respective families. Talking in detail about the scheme, Stalin said the new programmee is modelled on the lines of Universal Basic Income which is being implemented in several countries.

“Such a scheme has been implemented in several countries among particular communities on a pilot basis. Researchers have found several changes in the economic condition of people who benefitted from the scheme. It was found that women use the money to buy medicines and spend on education. Some even start small businesses,” Stalin said.

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He also said the impact of the scheme in Tamil Nadu will be huge as the state has seen several improvements by empowering women through various schemes in the past. As a debate enrages on how “eligible” women will be chosen for the scheme, Stalin said Rs 1,000 will be transferred directly to the beneficiaries who are people like fisherwomen, construction labourers, women working in small shops and maids who work in more than one house.

“As many as 1 crore women will be benefitted from the scheme,” Stalin said, adding that the state budget has allotted Rs 7,000 crore for implementing the scheme from September 15, 2023. The scheme is a major poll promise of the DMK.

In the budget speech, Finance Minister P T R Palanivel Thiaga Rajan said the operational guidelines outlining the eligibility to avail the benefits under this scheme will be evolved and released soon.

Officials said the government has formulated guidelines to identify the beneficiaries for the scheme after a detailed study of the socio-economic status of people in the state. They added that the government went through records and financial status of individual families to arrive at the beneficiary list which is likely to be announced soon.