Stalin government drops official rupee symbol from state budget
What's the story
The Tamil Nadu administration, led by MK Stalin, has replaced the rupee symbol with the Tamil letter 'Ru' in the state budget.
State Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu will present the budget for the fiscal year 2025-26 at the assembly chamber of the state Secretariat.
The 2025-26 Budget session will be live screened at 100 places in Chennai on Friday.
Statement
'We will prioritize Tamil'
DMK leader Saravanan Annadurai, speaking to News18 about the change said, "We have put the Tamil word for Rupees. This is not a showdown, there is nothing illegal about it. We will prioritize Tamil."
"I just asked them to promote Tamil properly. Tamil Nadu is continuously performing well in the education sector-People are not migrating to North India...they are going to the US and the UK. BJP is not able to digest this," he added.
Symbol
Rupee symbol was adopted in 2010
The rupee symbol (₹) was adopted by the government of India on July 15, 2010, after it held a design contest for the same on March 5, 2009.
The winner, D Udaya Kumar's design, has parts of both the Devanagari letter 'छ' (ra) and the Latin capital letter 'R' without its vertical bar.
The parallel lines at the top are said to reflect the tricolor as well as an equality sign, symbolizing the country's desire to minimize economic disparities.
NEP
NEP a saffron policy: Stalin
The big change comes amid an ongoing row between the Stalin government and the Centre over the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) in the state.
On Wednesday, he renewed his attack on the NEP, saying that it was a "saffron policy" aimed at developing Hindi.
He slammed the BJP for seeking to consolidate power in northern states via a proposed delimitation exercise. Such moves could endanger TN's educational progress, Stalin warned and vowed his party would fight back.
Policy critique
NEP accused of undermining reservation and social justice
Tamil Nadu's refusal to adopt NEP 2020, particularly the three-language policy, has resulted in the Centre withholding ₹573 crore in education aid under the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA).
On Monday, Lok Sabha proceedings were suspended for approximately 30 minutes after DMK members objected to Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's allegations that the Tamil Nadu government was "dishonest" in implementing the PM Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) project.
Funding dispute
Stalin accuses Pradhan of withholding funds
After the allegations, Stalin sought clarity on the release of funds collected for TN students.
He accused Pradhan of "blackmail" by threatening to hold back funds, calling him "arrogant" and "acting like a king."
Defending the NEP and PM-SHRI scheme, Pradhan accused the Tamil Nadu government of spreading a "false narrative" to mislead people for political gain. He urged the state government to put students' interests above politics.