From a 2000-acre global city near Chennai to ₹3,500 cr housing scheme: Key highlights from Tamil Nadu Budget 2025-26

Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu presented the MK Stalin government’s budget for 2025-26 in the legislative assembly on March 14, amid the ruling DMK’s war of words with the BJP-ruled centre. This is the fifth Budget of the present DMK government since it stormed to power in 2021.

The Budget assumes significance as Tamil Nadu goes to the polls next year. It also comes amid a highly charged political atmosphere in the state over two contentious issues: the three-language row and delimitation.

On Thursday, the Stalin government sparked a row when it replaced the Devanagari rupee symbol ‘  ₹’ with a Tamil letter in its logo for the budget 2025-26. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman condemned the act and asked the DMK why it did not protest in 2010 when the Congress officially adopted the symbol.

Here are the key highlights from the Tamil Nadu Budget 2025-26:

₹3,500 Cr for a housing scheme

The budget has allocated ₹3,500 crore for the ambitious Kalaignar Kanavu Illam housing scheme, which will provide one lakh new houses to underprivileged citizens across the state. The scheme, named after former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, is aimed at ensuring affordable housing for low-income families.

Tamil language and literature promotion 

The Finance Minister announced that 500 selected Tamil books will be translated into other languages through the State Textbook Corporation.  Book fairs will be organized in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Thiruvananthapuram, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur, he said,

He also announced that a World Tamil Olympiad will be held annually. Also, ‘Agaram’ – a language museum – will be established in Madurai.

2000-acre Global city near Chennai

The Finance Minister said that a new global city of over 2000 acres near Chennai will be developed. This will have schools, colleges, private enterprises, and other infrastructure. Housing facilities will also be made, wide roads, and parks and other leisure will also be created, he said.

CM Breakfast Scheme to be expanded

The Finance Minister said the DMK government will extend the Chief Minister’s Breakfast Scheme to government-aided schools in urban areas, ensuring more students receive nutritious morning meals. As part of this, ₹600 crore has been earmarked to benefit 3 lakh students.

₹20,000 for gig workers

The Finance Minister said that a gig workers welfare board has already been created in Tamil Nadu. The DNK government will soon  launch a program to extend ₹20,000 to gig workers to buy e-scooters for their work, he said. 

Expanding archaeological excavations

The Finance Minister said that excavations will be conducted at eight sites in Tamil Nadu, including Keeladi, Telunganur, Vellalur, Adhichanur, Manikollai, Karivalamvanthannallur, Pattanamarudhur, and Nagapattinam.

Tamil Nadu will also undertake excavations in Palur (Odisha), Venki (Andhra Pradesh), and Maski (Karnataka), he announced in the budget speech on Friday. 

Reclaiming temple properties

The Finance Minister said that to protect and reclaim temple properties, the Tamil Nadu government has made significant efforts, resulting in the retrieval of 7,327 acres of land, 36.38 lakh sq ft of plots and 5.98 lakh sq ft of buildings.  The total estimated value of these properties stands at ₹7,185 crore, he added.

“Additionally, restoration work for 84 temple tanks (Thirukkulams) has been carried out at a cost of ₹72 crore. The Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department’s publishing division has also reprinted and released over 216 rare books,” the minister said.

“For the 2025-26 financial year, ₹125 crore has been allocated for renovation and conservation works in temples that are over 1,000 years old,” he said. 

Chennai Metro Rail Extension and Rapid Transit System

The Finance Minister said that In this budget, ₹3,000 crore has been allocated for the Magalir Vidiyal Payanam Bus Travel Scheme, ₹1,782 crore for student bus fare subsidies, and ₹1,857 crore for diesel subsidies. “Overall, a total allocation of ₹12,964 crore has been made for the transport sector in this budget,” said the finance minister.

He added that detailed project reports have been prepared for the extension of the Chennai Metro Rail network. From Chennai Airport to Kalaignar Centenary Bus Terminus in Kilambakkam (15.46 km) at an estimated cost of ₹9,335 crore. From Koyambedu to Pattabiram via Avadi (21.76 km) at an estimated cost of ₹9,744 crore and from Poonamallee to Sunguvarchatram via Thiruperumbudur (27.9 km) at an estimated cost of ₹8,779 crore.

These detailed project reports will soon be submitted to the Union Government to secure capital funding contributions, he added.

The feasibility of implementing a Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) and a Semi High-Speed Railway in Tamil Nadu will be explored to enhance connectivity and reduce travel time between major cities and urban centers, the minister said in his budget speech.