Chennai Apr 26 PTI Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Tuesday announced a solatium of Rs 10 lakh to the kin of Vignesh who allegedly died in police custody recently on humanitarian grounds and assured that the probe in the case will be thorough and fair Also he informed the Assembly that the government would bear the medical expenses of Suresh who was arrested along with Vignesh for allegedly consuming ganja on their possession by the Secretariat Colony police on April 18 Responding to the call attention motion moved by Leader of Opposition AIADMK K Palaniswami and other parties in the Assembly seeking justice to Vignesh who had died on April 19 the Chief Minister said the duo were stopped by the police at Kellys during a routine vehicle check When Vignesh did not give a proper reply the police checked the auto-rickshaw in which he came and found ganja and liquor bottles in the vehicle the Chief Minister who holds the police portfolio further said Immediately both youngsters were asked to go the police station for enquiry But Vignesh refused and attempted to attack the police with a knife However the police overpowered him and took the duo to the police station after seizing the contraband and liquor bottles in their possession It was found that Suresh had 11 criminal cases while Vignesh faced two Both were given breakfast on April 19 But Vignesh developed vomiting and seizure He was rushed to government hospital where he was pronounced brought dead by the doctors Stalin said Police registered a case of suspicious death and a police sub-inspector a constable and a home guard personnel were suspended in connection with the incident The case was transferred to the Crime Branch CID police for further investigation This government is taking all legal steps in connection with the custodial death the Chief Minister said and added whether his DMK is in power or not the party is firm that deaths in police custody should be probed thoroughly and that appropriate action should be taken against those who are responsible The case will be investigated thoroughly The DMK is committed to getting the accused involved in the case punished and the DMK will stand with the oppressed and ensure justice Stalin said and announced the immediate disbursement of a solatium of Rs 10 lakh to the family of Vignesh The government would bear the medical expenses of Suresh he said PTI JSP HDA

Chennai Apr 25 PTI People wearing masks in public places must be ensured vaccination coverage including administering booster dose should be stepped up Chief Minister M K Stalin told the district Collectors on Monday in a virtual meeting The government machinery should be prepared to face any kind of situation the Chief Minister advised Collectors and top State officials amid concerns over emergence of a fourth COVID-19 wave The Chief Minister addressed the officials through vide-conferencing from the Secretariat here Pointing to a rise in virus cases during the past one week in Maharashtra Delhi and Uttar Pradesh he said that according to experts a new sub-variant of Omicron strain was behind the spike All of us should be prepared to face any kind of situation and that is my appeal he told the Collectors and senior officials Reiterating that vaccination is the biggest weapon against coronavirus Stalin said it should be our paramount duty to see to it that all eligible persons are vaccinated Of the 633 crore eligible population 7475 per cent of them have received two doses 915 per cent the first dose and 4166 per cent the booster dose he said There are 148 crore people who have not received the second dose of the vaccination Also 1168 lakh people though eligible have so far not opted for the boosterprecaution dose It is a challenge to ensure that such people are duly vaccinated in the coming weeks he said and underscored the importance of preventing deaths due to the virus while making sure that economic growth was not hindered and peoples livelihood avenues are not affected You should ensure people wearing mask in public places and in locations where people congregate in large numbers The Chief Minister said all the government departments district Collectors and officials should take all the necessary steps towards ensuring COVID-appropriate behaviour like use of mask PTI VGN NVG NVG

Chennai Apr 23 PTI Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Saturday urged the Supreme Court collegium to ensure that the principle of social justice is followed in appointment of judges to the High Courts and Supreme Court Underscoring the long pending request to constitute a Bench of the Supreme Court at Chennai Stalin said people of southern states now had to visit New Delhi to get justice The Chief Minister was addressing an event held at the Madras High Court in which Chief Justice of Supreme Court N V Ramana presided In the appointment of judges to the High Court and Supreme Court the Honourable Collegium may kindly ensure that the principle of social justice along with other parameters for appointment is followed In this way I consider that the principle of inclusiveness would be ensured in higher judiciary Stalin said The Chief Minister also requested that the official language of the state Tamil be allowed to be used in the High Court of Madras This is a long pending and important request of the people and legal community of the State Already 4 states--Rajasthan Uttar Pradesh Bihar and Madhya Pradesh use their official languages in their respective High Courts he said The chief minister said these were the requests on behalf of the Tamil Nadu government and the people and expressed confidence that the judges would certainly consider all the requests favourably Today we have an excellent judicial system headed by our Chief Justice of India As the guardian of the Constitution the Indian judicial system has performed very well and is held in high esteem by the people of this country Stalin said Judges of the apex court Justice V Ramasubramanian and MM Sundresh Chief Justice Madras High Court Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari Law Minister S Regupathy and Advocate General R Shunmugasundaram participated In the event Justice Ramana laid the foundation stone for construction of a 9-storied administrative block in the High Court campus at an estimated cost of Rs 2024 crore He also inaugurated combined court buildings and judicial officers quarters in Namakkal and Villupuram districts built at a cost of Rs 2070 crore Stalin inaugurated the first Commerical Court at Egmore here constructed at a cost of Rs 150 crore and gave away welfare assistance of Rs 7 lakh each to 5 families of deceased advocates from TN Advocates Welfare Fund marking the launch of distribution of benefits to the kin of 467 departed advocates The Chief Minister also handed over a Government Order to Justice Ramana and Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari allocating 424 acre to the judiciary to set up courts in Chennai Stalin presented to Justice Ramana a book A Dravidian Journey-Glimpses into Tamil Nadus Transformation to a Post-Agrarian Society authored by J Jeyaranjan Vice-chairman Bar Council of India S Prabakaran Chairman of Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry P S Amalraj took part in the event PTI VGN SA SA

Chennai Mar 30 PTI Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Wednesday presented cash awards to the tune of Rs 675 lakh to nine people including three farmers in recognition of their contribution to sericulture in the State The awards were given away on behalf of the Sericulture Department at the Secretariat here The first prize for the best sericulture farmer carries a purse of Rs one lakh Rs 75000 and Rs 50000 to the second and third farmers Accordingly P Chinnan of Theni district K Bhobalakrishnan of Tirupur and C Kamalam of Namakkal district received the awards Similarly the best automatic silk reelers awards were given to R Perumal Rs one lakh of Tirupur C Sekhar Rs 75000 of Krishnagiri district and J Ramashankar Rs 50000 of Tirupur district Three best multi-end silk reelers awards were presented to M Jayavel Rs one lakh and J Vedavalli Rs 75000 of Dharmapuri district and A Venkatachalapathy Rs 50000 of Krishnagiri district Minister for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises T M Anbarasan Chief Secretary V Irai Anbu Handlooms Handicrafts Textiles Khadi Department Principal Secretary Dharmendra Pratap Yadav and Director of Sericulture K Santhi were among those present on the occasion Tamil Nadu produced 1834 metric tonnes of raw silk during 2020-2021 and stands third in the country in the production of bivoltine raw silk by producing 1754 metric tonnes among mulberry silk- producing States PTI JSP NVG NVG

Chennai Mar 30 PTI Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Wednesday handed over 1370 desktop computers presented by information technology major Infosys aimed at benefitting students studying in schools run by the Greater Chennai Corporation As part of launching the scheme Stalin gave away six desktop computers to students at a function held at the Secretariat here on Wednesday The 1370 desktop computers would benefit 28000 students studying in schools run by the Greater Chennai Corporation and encourage them towards self-learning an official release said As part of boosting digital technology copies of the Tamil Nadu Telecom Infrastructure Policy 2022 Tamil Nadu Data Policy 2022 unveiled by the government in January were handed over to the Chief Minister by the Minister for Information and Technology Mano Thangaraj on the occasion Chief Secretary V Irai Anbu Information technology principal secretary Neeraj Mittal and senior government officials were present on the occasion PTI VIJ VIJ SS SS

Chennai Mar 20 PTI Over 70000 new jobs that were available in more than 500 leading companies are up for grabs at a mega employment fair inaugurated by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin near here on Sunday Stalin presented job offers to 20 aspirants as part of kicking off the event that was held near the city and organised by the labour welfare and skill development department an official release said Job aspirants from the city and also hailing from neighbouring Chengalpet Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts took part in the programme in which more than 500 leading private companies were taking part These companies have announced 73950 vacancies and Chief Minister M K Stalin handed over appointment orders to 20 job seekers as part of launching the event the release said Speaking on the occasion Stalin said the vision of the DMK government was to create employment opportunities based on educational qualification and skill of a job aspirant That is the objective of this government That is why we are enhancing the school and college education thereby honing the students skill enabling them get job offers based on their education he said The Chief Minister noted that soon after DMK assumed office in May 2021 250708 job seekers attended 36 mega job fairs and 297 job camps conducted by 5708 companies As many as 41213 people received job offers of which 517 were persons with disabilities PwD I am happy to give away appointment orders during this job fair which is being conducted for the first time he said The Chief Minister also requested his cabinet colleague and Minister for Labour Welfare and Skill Development C V Ganesan to conduct such mega job fairs in all the districts of the state Stalin also appealed to candidates who have secured jobs in the fair to keep enhancing their skill levels so as to progress in their career He also requested those candidates who have not received any job offers to develop necessary skills to get placed Referring to the Naan Muthalvan I am first scheme launched by him earlier this month he said such a scheme was launched with the initiative to hone the educational skills knowledge talent and efficiency of 10 lakh youth annually The special quality of the scheme is that it will help identify the unique talent of a student and further hone their skills It will also guide the students to choose what where and how to study he said Meanwhile the release said special measures were taken in association with the district administration and police department to serve the job seekers with disability who were interested in taking part in the job fair On the occasion Stalin also launched a television programme in the government-run Kalvi TV that would offer training to candidates interested in taking up competitive examinations the release said Minister for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises T M Anbarasan and a host of senior government officials took part in the inaugural function the release added PTI VIJ VIJ HDA HDA

Chennai Mar 20 PTI Over 70000 new jobs that were available in more than 500 leading companies are up for grabs at a mega job fair inaugurated by Chief Minister M K Stalin near here on Sunday Stalin presented job offers to 20 aspirants as part of kicking off the campaign that was held near the city organised by the labour welfare and skill development department an official release said Job aspirants from the city and also hailing from neighbouring Chengalpet Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts took part in the event in which more than 500 leading private companies were taking part These companies have announced 73950 vacancies and Chief Minister M K Stalin handed over appointment orders to 20 job seekers as part of launching the event the release said Special measures were taken in association with the district administration and police department to serve the job seekers with disability who were interested in taking part in the job fair According to the release 36 mega job fairs were conducted in which 41213 job seekers received employment offers since May 2021 On the occasion Stalin also launched a television programme in the government-run Kalvi TV that would offer training to candidates interested in taking up competitive examinations the release said Minister for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises T M Anbarasan Minister for labour welfare and skill development department C V Ganesan and a host of senior government officials took part in the inaugural the release added PTI VIJ VIJ HDA HDA

Chennai Feb 24 PTI Rich tributes were paid to Tamil Nadus former Chief Minister and iconic leader J Jayalalithaa on her 74th birth anniversary on ThursdayThe state government led by secretary of Tamil Development and Information Department Mahesan Kasirajan and Director of DIPR V P Jeyaseelan paid floral tributes to a portrait of the six-time Chief Minister kept at her decorated statue on Kamarajar Road hereAIADMK leaders O Panneerselvam partys coordinator and K Palaniswami co-coordinator led the party in paying floral tributes to their leader whom they fondly address as Amma and Puratchi Thalaivi revolutionary leaderJayalalithaa February 24 1948 - December 5 2016 was instrumental in ensuring 69 percent reservation in Tamil Nadu Her numerous welfare initiatives such as Amma canteen Amma pharmacy and gold for Thali mangalsutra for poor women free laptop for students to name a few were a spontaneous hit among the peopleRecalling her often quoted catchphrase I am because of the people I am for the people Makkalal naan makkalukkagave naan Palaniswami called upon the party members to take a pledge to fulfill the aspirations of the revolutionary leader Meanwhile the AIADMK members elected in the just concluded urban civic polls in the state dedicated their victory to the late Chief Minister Party members distributed sweets and organised Annadhanam to mark the occasionTamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai AMMK general secretary T T V Dhinakaran and her former aide V K Sasikala were also among those who paid floral tributes to the leaderHer Poes Garden residence here sprang to life today with her niece and nephew J Deepa and Deepak paying floral tributes to a decorated portrait of Jayalalithaa PTI JSP ROH ROH

Chennai Jan 30 PTI Two men were killed and two others sustained injuries in a mishap at a firecracker unit in Virudhunagar district of Tamil Nadu and Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday ordered a solatium of Rs 3 lakh each to the families of the deceased workers The two workers were killed on Saturday night due to an accidental explosion and blaze at a fireworks manufacturing facility in Nattarmangalam village of Virudhunagar district Conveying his condolences to the bereaved families and expressing grief Stalin ordered an ex-gratia of Rs 3 lakh each to the families of the two workers Arumugam and Kubendran who were killed in the mishap an official release here said The Chief Minister ordered best treatment to the two injured workers at a government facility Also Stalin announced an assistance of Rs 1 lakh to one of the two workers Deivendiran who sustained severe injuries and is being treated at a government hospital in Madurai The financial assistance would be provided from the Chief Ministers Public Relief Fund to the beneficiaries PTI VGN HDA HDA

Chennai Jan 30 PTI Governor R N Ravi and Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday paid floral tributes here to Mahatma Gandhi on his death anniversary with the latter urging the people to take a vow that there is no place in the Indian soil for Nathuram Godses heirsRavi and Stalin paid floral tributes to a decorated portrait of the father of the nation placed close to a life size statue of Gandhi on the Marina beachfront hereIn a tweet Stalin urged people to take a pledge on the death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi to uphold unity by nurturing love and brotherhood and let us take a vow that there is no place in the Indian soil for Godses heirs and their evil thoughts The Chief Minister did not explicitly name anyone in his postRavi also paid floral tributes to Gandhiji at the Raj Bhavan here and administered a pledge against untouchability and observed 2-minute silence as a mark of respect along with students from the institutions of Harijan Sevak Sangh and Raj Bhavan staffers and officialsOn the occasion Ravi hailed Mahatma Gandhi for his charismatic leadership to the freedom movement unwavering commitment to truth non-violence and dedication to serve the Scheduled Castes and downtroddenThe Govenror urged the people to pledge themselves on this day for adhering to his principles and rendering selfless service to promote fraternity in our society in strengthening and taking our nation on the progressive path a Raj Bhavan release saidThe Governor interacted with students and presented them with Mahatma Gandhis autobiography and sweets He advised the authorities to arrange for career counselling for students to enable them to decide on options after completing schoolingLed by Stalin Ministers Chief Secretary V Irai Anbu and top government officials took a pledge against untouchability on Saturday at the Secretariat here on the eve of Gandhijis death anniversary which is observed as Martyrs DaySimilarly senior government officials including district collectors administered the pledge against untouchability to government staff across Tamil Nadu on the Martyrs Day eveGandhi was assassinated by Nathuram Godse on January 30 1948 and the nation paid homage to the father of the nation on his 74th death anniversary PTI VGN ROH ROH