A health volunteer testing blood pressure under the Makkalai Thedi Maruthuvam scheme in Madurai.
| Photo Credit: G. Moorthy
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Saturday (January 24, 2026) said that even the Union government had adopted several schemes of the DMK government, and expressed surprise that Governor R.N. Ravi, who had criticised the State government, was unaware of this.
“Union Home Minister Amit Shah presented an award for the performance of the cooperative sector in Tamil Nadu. In all, Tamil Nadu has received 65 awards from the Union government. Yet, the Governor continues to criticise our government. This only reflects his vision — a damaged vision,” he said.
Replying to the Governor’s address in the Assembly, Mr. Stalin said that Tamil Nadu had witnessed no communal violence, caste clashes, or gang violence. “This is the achievement of the Dravidian Model government. Officials from other States visit Tamil Nadu to study its schemes,” he said.
The Chief Minister said the State’s Health and Family Welfare Department had won the U.N. Interagency Task Force Awards (UNIATF) for 2024 in the category of Ministries of Health for its flagship scheme, Makkalai Thedi Maruthuvam.
“Tamil Nadu, which was ranked last in 2018, has emerged as the Best Performer State among startups. It is topping the Export Preparedness Index with 80.89 points and is also a leading State in electronics goods manufacturing, accounting for 41.23 per cent,” he said.
Mr. Stalin added that there were 20 Ramsar sites in Tamil Nadu and that the State had secured second place in the country in the production of oilseeds, groundnut, sugarcane, and maize.
He explained that the government had maintained law and order, with data indicating a substantial reduction in murders, murders for gain, robberies, and sexual assaults compared with the previous regime. “Tamil Nadu is the State that has recorded the highest number of tourist arrivals, and it has also received geographical indication tags for 60 products,” he said.
Mr. Stalin said that 1,724 days had passed since he became Chief Minister, during which he had participated in 8,685 events, signed 15,117 files, and toured districts outside Chennai on 173 occasions.
Published – January 24, 2026 01:27 pm IST
