Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Tuesday told the Assembly that the beneficiaries of the special financial assistance of 2,000, announced for those living below the poverty line, will receive the money in their bank account by the end of the month.

Responding to a complaint from S. Austin, a DMK legislator from Kanniyakumari, that civic amenities were in bad shape, the Chief Minister said instructions had been given to District Collectors to see to it that any shortcomings in the provision of civic amenities were addressed immediately.

A Deputy Collector had been posted for every two or three panchayat unions to monitor the provision of services such as street lights and drinking water, he said.
Financial allocation

Pointing out that the districts of Namakkal, Salem, Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Tiruvannamalai, Vellore, Tiruvallur and Villupuram were reeling from drought due to the failure of the northeast monsoon, the Chief Minister said adequate financial allocation had been made for the districts and a direction issued to the Collectors concerned to ensure the supply of drinking water.

When the DMK MLA raised concern over the financial health of the government, Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam told him not to worry, as borrowings will not, under any circumstances, be allowed to exceed the permissible limit of the debt-Gross State Domestic Product norm of 25%.

Mr. Panneerselvam justified the practice of taking loans which, he said, were being used for asset creation, which in turn generated profits.