Summary:
Chennai, Sep 11 (PTI) No scheme would stop with mere announcement and each and every plan would be given priority by him and implemented, Chief Minister M K Stalin said here on Saturday launching the Rs 1,000 monthly incentive programme for temple priests.
Review meetings shall be held periodically and he would monitor ministers and officials vis-a-vis implementation of schemes that have been announced, he said.
Lauding Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Minister P K Sekar Babu for launch of the incentive scheme in a week following its announcement in the Assembly, Stalin said Babu made an unprecedented 120 announcements on fresh initiatives in the Assembly, which was a big achievement.
A slew of initiatives are going to be implemented, including new temple cars and setting up of colleges under the auspices of the HR and CE department and housing for priests and other temple personnel, he said.
The "golden times" of the HR and CE department would dawn in a few months and "we are going to see it" with the implementation of all the initiatives that have been announced, he said.
Among such initiatives is the monthly incentive of Rs 1,000 for priests serving in 12,959 temples covered under a scheme (Oru Kala Poojai Thittam) that ensures pooja for a single time in a day, entailing an additional outgo of Rs 13 crore every year.