SIVAKASI WEATHER
Tamil Sizzles Into LS With a Bang on Fireworks Issue

09-08-2014
9th August 2014

Courtesy: The New Indian Express

Tamil Sizzles Into LS With a Bang on Fireworks Issue

NEW DELHI: Members of the Lok Sabha on Friday received a pleasant surprise when the Minister of State for Commerce responded in Tamil to a supplementary question in Tamil by AIADMK member T Radhakrishnan. This was perhaps the first time a minister has spoken in Tamil during Question Hour.

Radhakrishnan, a first-time MP from Virudhunagar, had raised the issue of illegal transportation of Chinese crackers to India, which is affecting the massive Sivakasi fireworks industry. He wanted to know from the Commerce Minister what action the Centre has taken, as Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the issue.
Seeking the speaker’s permission to speak in Tamil, Sitharaman said the letter has been received by the government. “The letter sent by Puratchi Thalaivi Amma has been received. Necessary action will be taken in response,” she said, as members of the Treasury benches thumped the desks. Finance minister Arun Jaitley, who was occupying a front row seat, was seen smiling.

Raising the important question related to the livelihoods of over two lakh workers in Sivakasi, Radhakrishanan, who hails from Anaiyur Panchayat in West Sivakasi, said that fireworks are being illegally transported from China to India through the land and water routes.

“They are brought through Nepal also. There is a substantial loss of revenue to the Union government besides affecting the lives of workers,” Radhakrishnan had said in Parliament.


News & Events
top