CM Vijay to launch 1-gram gold ring scheme, a key TVK poll promise, on Monday

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay will launch the Thaaimaman Thanga Mothiram Thittam on Monday, under which the government will provide a one-gram gold ring to babies born in state-run hospitals. He will launch the scheme at the Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai and present gold rings to 25 newborns, sources said on Sunday.

The scheme will give each eligible newborn delivered at a government hospital a one-gram, 22-carat gold ring. Mothers of the newborns must be permanent residents of Tamil Nadu. It was earlier scheduled to be launched on September 15, the birth anniversary of late Chief Minister CN Annadurai, but was postponed due to Vijay's overseas trip to London.

Arriving by special flight, Vijay will inaugurate the scheme at the GRH auditorium. He is also scheduled to visit the maternity ward to personally present rings to infants born on the day. The gold rings will be given to beneficiaries when they are discharged from hospitals.

The state government has allocated an annual outlay of Rs 755.83 crore for the scheme, and 1.28 lakh gold rings have been made ready in the first phase. The government said in a press release that the rings will carry unique serial numbers and will be distributed in tamper-proof packaging.

The scheme will be implemented across the state, except in areas under the Maduranthakam and Dharapuram Assembly constituencies, where bypolls are scheduled on October 6.

Eligible beneficiaries must be registered under the Pregnancy and Infant Cohort Monitoring and Evaluation system and have a Reproductive and Child Health ID. Government sources said the scheme would increase public trust in government healthcare services and promote safe delivery practices in hospitals.

According to the government, around 7.80 lakh children are born in Tamil Nadu every year and, as per the National Family Health Survey-6, 99.9 per cent of these deliveries take place in healthcare institutions.

Of these, around 4.20 lakh deliveries, or 53 per cent, take place in government hospitals, with 90 per cent of government institutional deliveries happening at Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Neonatal Care centres.

A specialised monitoring committee headed by the respective district Collector has been formed in every district to oversee local implementation, inventory tracking and transparency in distribution.

Work orders have been issued to Joyalukkas and Kalyan Jewellers to supply the one-gram gold rings under the Thaaimaman Thanga Mothiram Thittam, a key pre-poll promise of the ruling TVK. A Government Order on the scheme's implementation was notified on June 23.

Later in the day, Vijay will declare open the renovated Gandhi Memorial Museum and inspect its facilities. Though not officially confirmed, he is also expected to visit the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple, which recently underwent consecration.