It may be surprising to find the verses of modern poet Piramil – “A feather from the wings writes the life of a bird in the unending pages of air” – in a State Budget. But Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu recited the verses to underscore the importance of conservation of nature and the environment while presenting his first Budget on Monday.
In fact, the Budget was loaded with literary and historical references and quotes of scholars, drawing the attention of the DMK government’s allies and critics alike. BJP legislator Vanathi Srinivasan, though critical of the Budget, appreciated the beauty of the language and quotes used by Mr. Thennarasu to pep up his speech.
Mr. Thennarasu began his speech with the Tirukkural couplet – “Where king is easy of access, where no harsh word repels, that land’s high praises every subject swell” – and wound it up with the Purananuru poem that a king should take care of his subjects like a mother who cares for her children.
The touches given by Finance Secretary T. Udayachandran were unmistakable throughout the Budget speech, which explained how the Mullaperiyar Dam, the lifeline of southern Tamil Nadu, was constructed based on a proposal worth ₹87 lakh sent to the British government in 1894 by Col. Pennycuick, the then PWD Secretary of Madras Presidency. It also acknowledged the pioneering schemes of the Justice Party and past DMK governments that laid the foundation for the development of Tamil Nadu. There were references to the allocation of ₹647 lakh for the construction of the Mettur Dam during the Prime Ministership of the Raja of Panagal, of the Justice Party, in the then Madras Presidency exactly 100 years ago.
It also appropriately quoted poet Subramania Bharati when there was a reference to the rivers of Tamil Nadu.
Mr. Thennarasu found it ideal to use the words of Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen while announcing Tamil Nadu’s achievements.
“Tamil Nadu is one of the States that had achieved rapid progress within a relatively short period despite starting from appalling levels of poverty, deprivation and inequality. Tamil Nadu initiated bold social programmes and has some of the best public services among all Indian States, and many of them are accessible to all on a non-discriminatory basis,” he quoted Dr. Sen as saying.
On Tuesday, Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare M.R.K. Panneerselvam drew heavily on ancient Tamil literature while presenting the Agriculture Budget. Its impact was felt when Speaker M. Appavu remarked that the Minister seemed to have become a Tamil scholar.
