Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami announced in the assembly on Wednesday that the salaries of the state MLAs has been increased from Rs 55,000 per month to Rs 1.05 lakh per month. The pension of the MLAs has also been enhanced from Rs 12,000 to Rs 20,000 per month.
Besides, the MLA Local Area Development Fund has also been increased from Rs 2 crore to Rs 2.5 crore.
Decision Draws Flak, Called ‘Poorly Timed’
The hike in salaries comes at a time of agrarian distress in the state. It comes on the same day that farmers took to the streets in Jantar Mantar, New Delhi to demand loan waivers. Jantar Mantar was crowded with young children, the youngest being 3 years old, carrying ashes of their fathers. The move also drew criticism from the DMK, who slammed the decision. Senior party leader TRB Raja said, “I'll spend the hike in my constituency. This is AIADMK' s strategy to keep their flock together”.
Senior politician Yogendra Yadav and former cabinet secretary TSR Subramanian, in a News18 discussion, criticised the decision calling it “poorly timed” and “hypocritical.”
On Monday, around 100 farmers from the crisis-hit state who had suspended their 41-day protest in Delhi, following assurances from the government in April 2017, turned up at Jantar Mantar again to press for their demands.
They want adequate compensation for agricultural produce, crop insurance to individual farmers and linking of rivers to address issue of water crisis.
The protesting farmers in Delhi are now also objecting to the MLAs pay hike, saying, “We are abandoned by our Netas”.
P Ayyakannu, President of the National-South Indian Rivers Linking Farmers Association, who is leading the protest, said the farmers had decided to continue their protest for at least 100 days, braving the monsoon.
“Both state and Central governments did not fulfil the promises they made to us. They had assured us that our mortgaged jewellery would not be sold. However, banks have started selling the jewellery. Now, they are going to sell our land as well,” Ayyakannu told said.
“We had no option but to restart our protest as the Centre and Tamil Nadu governments have breached our trust. Due to water crisis and drought in the state, farmers are under a huge financial burden. We are almost destroyed. We do not care if we die protesting here.”
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