CHENNAI: Dismissing opposition claims of the increasing debt burden of the state government, Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday said that the DMK government has brought down debt growth substantially in the last four years, and the loans being availed of are an investment for the future generation.

Answering a question about the budget in his ‘Ungalil Oruvan’ video series, Stalin said, “If the criticisms are constructive, we can consider them. But when they make negative criticism just for the sake of it, it only shows their malice towards the state government.” Stalin pointed out that between 2011 and 2016, the debt growth stood at 108%. This went up to 128% from 2016 to 2021. But after the DMK government assumed office, the debt growth was brought down to 93%.

To a question about his tweet on using Tamil letter ‘’ in place of the rupee symbol that hit the headlines across the country, Stalin said, “We placed Tamil letter ‘’ to demonstrate our commitment to the language policy. That’s all. But those who dislike Tamil have made that a big news.”

“The union finance minister, who was silent on my demands in the past, has responded to that. She has used ‘’ in many of her posts (on social media). In all, the TN budget and Tamil language have become a hit at the national level,” he added.

On the question of how TN differs from other states on debt issue, the CM said, “The recent economic survey showed that the debt (to GSDP ratio) of TN is within the limits. There is no government which does not borrow. Whether we spend these loans properly is what is important.”

Adblock test (Why?)