Tamil Nadu Budget 2025-26 to be presented by Thangam Thennarasu today. Here is what is expected

Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu will present the state budget for 2025-26 on Friday amid the ruling DMK’s war of words with the BJP-ruled centre. This will be fifth Budget of the present DMK government since led by Chief Minister MK Stalin since storming to power in 2021. 

The Budget speech will begin at 9.30 am in the Assembly Hall of the Assembly-cum-Secretariat complex at Fort St. George campus in Chennai.

This will be Thennarasu’s second Budget after he was made the Finance Minister in a Cabinet shuffle in May 2023. Thennarasu presented his first Budget in February last year.

Later in the day, the Tamil Nadu assembly’s Business Advisory Committee would meet and decide on the duration of the Budget session likely to begin on March 17. 

On March 15, state Agriculture Minister MRK Panneerselvam would present the Agriculture Budget. 

The state government would also present the advance demands for grants for 2025-26 and the final supplementary demands for grants for 2024-25 in the Assembly on March 21.

The alleged lack of allocation of funds or major project for Tamil Nadu in the Union Budget for 2025-26 may come in for discussion in the Assembly . The sentiments of political parties over the National Education Policy (NEP) and related issues such as Samagra Shiksha and PM Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) are likely to echo in the Tamil Nadu assembly too during the Budget session.

The Budget assumes significance as Tamil Nadu is going to polls next year. It is also coming at highly charged political atmosphere in the state over two contentious issues – the three-language row and delimitation. 

Amid a fierce language tussle with the Centre, the Stalin government replaced the Devanagari rupee symbol ‘ ₹’ with a Tamil letter in its logo for the budget 2025-26, sparking a political row. 

The logo for the budget, released by the government on Thursday, carried ‘ru, ‘ the first letter of the Tamil word ‘Rubaai, ‘ which denotes the Indian currency in the vernacular language.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman  strongly condemned the DMK government’s act and asked them why they did not protest back in 2010 when the symbol was officially adopted by the Congress. 

Many announcements expected

A number of crucial announcements are likely to be outlined in today’s budget, especially in the social sector on which the state government has been increasing the expenditure and other sectors, as Tamil Nadu would face the Assembly election in 2026. 

An announcement regarding the Magalir Urimai Thogai scheme may be expected, since Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin recently hinted to expand the schemes to benefit more women. Under this scheme, the DMK the government provides financial assistance of   ₹1,000 every month to the women residents of Tamil Nadu

The ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government is eyeing the upcoming Assembly election on the language row and constituency delimitation exercise.

The opposition parties, especially the AIADMK and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have been targeting the state government on the alleged deterioration of law and order and ‘mounting debts’ and they are likely to raise these issues during the Budget session.

Live Streaming of Budget in Chennai

Greater Chennai Corporation has arranged to screen the Budget presentation at about 100 locations in the city including the Chennai Central Railway Station, Koyambedu Bus Terminus, Marina Beach, Pondy Bazaar Road, and Thiruvanmiyur Beach.

The live telecast commences from 9.30 am. The Agriculture Budget will also be streamed on LED screens.