Tamil Nadu Prepares for Pongal with Enhanced Bus Services and Gift Hampers

Chennai, Jan 5 (NationPress) With the celebration of Pongal, Tamil Nadu’s most prominent festival, scheduled for January 15, the State Transport Corporation will deploy 15,000 special buses for those traveling back to their hometowns during the holiday period.

The special bus services will commence from January 10 and continue until January 13. To prevent undue fare hikes by private bus operators, the Tamil Nadu Transport Department has established 30 inspection teams.

These teams are set to begin inspections throughout the state this week. In instances of violations, they have the authority to impose fines, confiscate buses, and temporarily revoke operating permits.

Out of the 15,000 special buses scheduled, 12,000 will operate from Chennai to various locations, supplementing the existing 2,092 buses that run daily.

Travelers can catch these buses at the terminals located at Kilambakkam, Koyambedu, and Madhavaram.

As the festival draws near, all trains departing from Chennai to southern districts are fully booked, and bus reservations are surging.

Officials report that more than 75,000 reservations have already been secured, with numbers anticipated to rise significantly starting January 6.

Public holidays for Pongal have been announced from January 14 to 16, resulting in a six-day break, including the weekend on January 18 and 19.

A meeting led by Transport Minister S.S. Sivasankar on January 6 will conclude the arrangements for the special bus services, with an official announcement expected to follow.

Pongal, recognized as one of Tamil Nadu’s most important festivals, also involves the state government distributing gift hampers to those holding ration cards.

These hampers generally contain dhotis, sarees, and essential items, allowing families to celebrate without financial pressure.

This year's gift hamper is expected to include Rs 1,000 in cash, one kilogram each of rice, sugar, tamarind, and sugarcane, in addition to 21 essential festival items.

To improve the efficiency of previous distributions, the government is contemplating direct bank transfers for the cash component.

If challenges arise with bank transfers, funds will be disbursed through ration shops as per tradition.

To manage crowding during distribution, special tokens will be allocated to ration cardholders.

The Tamil Nadu government has set aside Rs 100 crore for the production of 1.77 crore dhotis and an equal number of sarees.

These will be distributed to ration cardholders and those benefiting from the Old Age Pension Scheme.

The government has also opted for cotton yarn for the 2024-25 production cycle and plans to introduce polyester yarn for the 2025-26 cycle.

This initiative supports 63,000 powerlooms across the state.

In comparison to last year’s output of one crore dhotis and 1.24 crore sarees, this year will witness an increase of 77 lakh dhotis and 53 lakh sarees.