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New Indian Express
26-05-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Power demand rises in Tamil Nadu, but only 39 of 216 substations set up in three years
CHENNAI: Even as power demand keeps rising in Tamil Nadu, the state has managed to build only 39 new substations in various voltage levels like 765kV, 400kV, 230kV, 110kV and 66kV in the past three years. In 2021 the former electricity minister (V Senthil Balaji) had announced that the government would build 216 new substations of various capacities. According to the policy note of the Energy department for 2025-26, the total number of substations in four voltage categories (765kV, 400kV, 230kV, and 110kV) increased from 1,063 in 2022 to 1,102 by March 2025. Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) Chairman and Managing Director J Radha Krishnan said that setting up new substations depended on the financial situation of the board, and acquiring land, especially for 400 kV substations, has become a major challenge. Nearly 15 acres of land is needed for 400 kV substations. He said that despite the challenges, the department has managed to get land in delta districts and also in Ambattur for 400 kV substations. He added that land has also been identified in Sengipatti near Thanjavur and a few other locations. 'We are planning to build 71 new substations in the coming months as part of the centre's Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme. In the first phase, we will require an amount between Rs 1,000 crore and Rs 1,500 crore,' he said.
Time of India
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Caste, corruption and coalition: How elections are fought and won
If Indian politics is a theatre, Tamil Nadu is a multiplex. Where cigarette flicks and dark glasses are the perennial symbols of style and substance, sycophancy does a tandava over psephology. And with the players ensconced in the ministerial thrones in Delhi, it is no longer just a southern delight. Arun Ram, Resident Editor, The Times of India, Tamil Nadu, who alternates between the balcony and the front row, says it incites as much as it excites. During the intervals, he chews on a bit of science and such saner things. LESS ... MORE Most Indian elections centre around three 'C's — caste, corruption and coalition. The Tamil Nadu assembly election of 2026 won't be different. And the winner will be the one who plays the three cards strategically, not always overtly. The two big players – DMK and AIADMK – which have their roots in an ideology that spoke of a casteless society, have been adept at political calculations based on caste. BJP is catching up. PMK and VCK have vanniyars and dalits as their vote base. NTK, the perennial loner, has made inroads into some dalit pockets, but Tamil sub-nationalism remains its core slogan with a limited appeal. DMK has made a head start on the caste front with the recent cabinet shuffle. The removal of V Senthil Balaji and K Ponmudy was inevitable given the potential harm they posed to the party, and M K Stalin used the opportunity to 'balance' his cabinet ahead of the polls. S S Sivasankar being given the additional charge of electricity was one way of placating vanniyars. S Muthusamy, who gets back the revenue-rich excise portfolio, hails from the gounder community (to which AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami and former BJP state president K Annamalai belong) that has considerable electoral say in the western districts. R S Raja Kannappan, a Yadava, has been moved to the forest ministry, making available the dairy ministry for the reinduction of T Mano Thangaraj, who can reach out to Christian Nadar voters in the south. AIADMK, which has been doing a balancing act, with gounders and thevars in leadership roles, too has enough representation from all castes to be fielded in the next election. BJP leader Amit Shah is known for his mastery of what is euphemistically called social engineering. So, it wasn't a surprise that when the party decided to move Annamalai out of the state party chief's post, the first choice became Nainar Nagenthran, an influential thevar and a former AIADMK minister from Tirunelveli. Dalits, who constitute more than 20% of the state's population, haven't been able to consolidate as a political force; what's left after divisions between sub-castes and supporters of different parties have aligned with VCK, making Thol Thirumavalavan a crucial ally of DMK. PMK, which has its prime vote base among vanniyars who constitute around 12% of the population, may not have many options than go with NDA as Thirumavalavan wouldn't be part of an alliance that includes PMK. The internal power struggle between its founder S Ramadoss and his son and party president Anbumani Ramadoss has diminished its bargaining chips. Coming to the next 'C', corruption is an issue that every opposition party loves as a poll plank. Though corruption in govt hasn't reduced, DMK has so far been able to dodge charges against some of its ministers. While the governing party may keep the tainted ministers out of the fray, silently communicating that the cases against them are from their alleged past deals and not during the present tenure, corruption may not become the deciding factor unless Enforcement Directorate succeeds in building a case out of the alleged `1,000-crore Tasmac scam and provide admissible evidence against any of the incumbent ministers. The third 'C' can work as a double-edged sword for major parties, especially DMK. As long as it is an electoral alliance, parties are happy with it; once it becomes a proposal for a coalition govt, worry lines show. In 2021, DMK won 133 of the 173 seats it contested, allowing it to form the govt on its own. If its tally falls below the 118-mark in the 234-assembly in 2026, coalition will cease to be a sweet word for Stalin. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
New Indian Express
10-05-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Underground Drainage works in KVV, Thudiyalur to be completed by September 2026
COIMBATORE: The long-pending Underground Drainage (UGD) project in added areas of Kavundampalayam, Vadavalli, Veerakeralam, and Thudiyalur (collectively referred to as KVV and Thudiyalur) has reached 42% completion, officials from the Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage (TWAD) Board said. The project, which has been progressing at a snail's pace, is now expected to be complete by September 2026. Launched on May 8, 2023, the Rs 935.92-crore project was inaugurated by Municipal Administration, Urban and Water Supply Minister KN Nehru and former Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji. Initially estimated at Rs 860.80 crore, the project cost was later revised to the current figure. Of the total cost, Rs 774.72 crore is being funded through loans and grants, while Rs 96.08 crore is contributed by the local body. Sources said that the scheme implemented by the TWAD Board on behalf of the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC), is designed to serve 12 full wards and parts of two other wards. Based on the 2011 census, these areas have a population of over 2.05 lakh. The sewage generation is projected to be 28.29 million litres per day (MLD) at present, possibly rising to 49.18 MLD in the future. Despite the project's importance, progress has been sluggish. Residents and daily commuters have been grappling with dug-up roads, traffic diversions, and dust pollution due to the ongoing works. Many have expressed frustration over the inconvenience caused. When contacted, a senior TWAD Board official acknowledged the initial delays but assured that the project is now on track. "The work is being carried out in full swing now. Although we faced a few hurdles in the middle, all issues have been sorted out and work is being expedited," the official told TNIE. Presently, 40% of total project funds have been utilised. With over a year remaining for the targeted completion date, officials are hopeful of meeting the deadline, promising significant improvement in sewage infrastructure for these fast-growing suburbs of the city.
News18
28-04-2025
- Politics
- News18
Tamil Nadu Cabinet Reshuffle: Mano Thangaraj Takes Oath As Minister In Stalin's Government
Agency: PTI This comes a day after Tamil Nadu Ministers V Senthil Balaji and K Ponmudy resigned on Sunday, in the wake of the court cases against them. Padmanabhapuram DMK MLA T Mano Thangaraj was on Monday sworn-in as minister, and re-inducted in the M K Stalin-led Tamil Nadu cabinet in a minor reshuffle post the resignation of two senior ministers. Governor RN Ravi administered the oath of office to Thangaraj, who was removed as Milk and Dairy Development minister in the previous rejig of the cabinet. Incidentally he was allotted the same portfolio on Monday. The event also saw Chief Minister M K Stalin and Governor Ravi meet for the first time post the DMK government securing a favourable verdict in the Supreme Court against the latter delaying assent to various Bills adopted in the state Assembly. The CM and Governor shook hands and exchanged pleasantries. Deputy CM Udhayanidhi Stalin, senior minister Duraimurugan among others attended the swearing-in. The Raj Bhavan later said that Thangaraj has been allotted Milk and Dairy Development. The Governor approved the subject allocation on the recommendation of the CM, an official release said. On Sunday, Tamil Nadu Ministers V Senthil Balaji and K Ponmudy resigned, in the wake of the court cases against them. Senthil Balaji, facing ED probe in a cash-for-jobs scam in an earlier AIADMK regime, had been asked by the Supreme Court last week to make a choice "between post and freedom" as it had warned him of cancelling bail if he did not step down as minister. Ponmudy, a senior DMK leader, had courted a major controversy recently over his Shaivite-Vaishnavite remarks made in the context of a sex worker, drawing widespread criticism, even as the Madras High Court later initiated proceedings on its own on the matter. The portfolios held by Balaji– Electricity, Excise and Prohibition, had been allotted to SS Sivasankar and S Muthusamy, respectively. Ponmudy's Forest and Khadi portfolios will be handled by RS Rajakannappan, who was hitherto the Dairy Development minister. Further, the Governor had accepted the CM's recommendation to include Thangaraj in the cabinet. He represents the Padmanabhapuram Assembly constituency in Kanyakumari district and had been the IT Minister when the DMK assumed power in 2021. First Published:
New Indian Express
26-04-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Bill to amend Goondas Act introduced in TN Assembly to punish those who dump medical waste into state
CHENNAI: Law Minister S Regupathy on Saturday introduced a Bill to further amend the Goondas Act, 1982, to punish those who dump bio-medical waste into Tamil Nadu from the neighbouring States. Accordingly, the Minister introduced a Bill to amend the Tamil Nadu Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Cyberlaw offenders, Drug offenders, Forest-offenders, Goondas, Immoral Traffic Offenders, Sand-offenders, Sexual-offenders, Slum-grabbers and Video Pirates Act, 1982, commonly known as the Goondas Act, 1982. It is also known as Act 14 of 1982. This Act allows the state to detain individuals without trial, preventing them from engaging in "dangerous activities prejudicial to the maintenance of public order". Though the Agenda of the State Assembly for April 26 mentioned that Minister for Electricity, Prohibition and Excise, V Senthil Balaji, would introduce the above amendment Bill, Law Minister S Regupathy introduced it. It assumed significance since there are expectations that Balaji may step down as minister within a day or two, according to the recent verdict of the Supreme Court. On the objectives and reasons for the amendment, the Bill said Chief Minister MK Stalin, while moving the demand for grants for the police department for 2024-2025, announced that to control the activities of persons indulging in economic offences, they will be detained under the above Act and it would be amended suitably. 'Further, the improper disposal of bio-medical waste poses grave risks to public health and the environment. There are frequent complaints about the dumping of such waste in Tamil Nadu from the neighbouring States. The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court in its order dated November 15, 2023, observed that it is the right time to book the violators of the Bio-medical Waste Management Rules, 2016 by bringing suitable amendments,' the Bill added. The Bill also said the Indian Penal Code, 1860, and the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, were repealed and re-enacted as the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, respectively. Hence, certain consequential amendments are required to be made in the said Tamil Nadu Act 14 of 1982.
