Tamil Nadu Government to Provide Pongal Gift Hampers Tokens Five Days Prior to the Festival

Chennai, Dec 23 (NationPress) The Tamil Nadu government is set to distribute tokens for the collection of Pongal gift hampers five days before the festival, as announced by Additional Chief Secretary J. Radhakrishnan on Monday.

This year, the Pongal festival, one of the most important celebrations in Tamil Nadu, will take place on January 15.

As part of the festive celebrations, the state government will provide gift hampers that include free dhotis, sarees, and cash for family cardholders throughout the state.

Last year's gift hamper comprised one kg of brown rice, one kg of sugar, a whole sugarcane, and Rs 1,000 in cash.

There are high expectations from the public regarding this year’s hampers, with Chief Minister M.K. Stalin anticipated to make an official announcement soon.

During a press briefing, Additional Chief Secretary Radhakrishnan mentioned that steps are being taken to procure the necessary items for the hampers, including rice, sugar, and clothing.

The distribution is scheduled to commence five days before Pongal to ensure timely delivery. This year's monetary gift of Rs 1,000, along with a package of 21 essential items for the festival such as rice, sugar, tamarind, and sugarcane, is designed to lessen the financial burden on families, enabling them to celebrate without extra costs.

In the past, the distribution of Pongal hampers through ration shops has faced criticism due to inefficiencies in reaching the intended recipients.

To tackle this issue, the government is contemplating a transition to direct bank transfers for the cash portion of the gift.

This approach guarantees that family heads receive the monetary gift directly in their active bank accounts, contingent upon maintaining a minimum balance.

However, if complications arise with bank transfers, the funds will be distributed through ration shops, as has been the traditional method.

To avoid overcrowding, the government plans to issue special tokens to ration cardholders.

The Tamil Nadu government has also commissioned the production of 1.77 crore dhotis and a corresponding number of sarees for the 2025 Pongal festival.

The Handlooms, Handicrafts, Textiles, and Khadi Department has allocated Rs 100 crore for yarn procurement and wage payments to the weavers involved in this initiative.

It has been decided to produce 1,77,64,476 sarees and 1,77,22,995 dhotis through state-run cooperative societies.

These items will be distributed to ration cardholders and beneficiaries of the Old Age Pension Scheme. The production cycle for 2024-25 will utilize cotton yarn, while polyester yarn will be introduced for 2025-26.

This initiative is set to benefit 63,000 power looms across the state.

Compared to last year’s output of nearly one crore dhotis and 1.24 crore sarees, this year sees an increase of 77 lakh dhotis and 53 lakh sarees.