Farmers criticise government’s decision to provide cars to MLAs

Farmers criticise government's decision to provide cars to MLAs Updated – August 21, 2026 07: 32 pm IST – TENKASI.

Key points

• Instead of waiving crop loans, the Tamil Nadu Administration is providing cars to 234 MLAs which will cost ₹219.96 crore.
• Carrying posters that criticise the Tamil Nadu government's decision to offer cars with drivers to all 234 MLAs, farmers submit petition to Tenkasi Collector Ranjeet Singh on Friday.
• The State Administration was keen on gifting cars with drivers to all 234 MLAs and an assistant.
• They remarked the farmers are facing nature's fury like drought and downpour and man-made disasters like fertilizer and pesticide rate rise making agriculture a gamble.
• "The TVK government should fulfil its poll promise of crop loan waiver instead wasting its precious resources for buying cars for MLAs, " they remarked.

Carrying posters that criticise the Tamil Nadu government's decision to offer cars with drivers to all 234 MLAs, farmers submit petition to Tenkasi Collector Ranjeet Singh on Friday. Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT.

For context, the TVK government's decision to purchase cars for 234 MLAs of Tamil Nadu came in for sharp criticism during the farmers' grievance redress gathering held here on Friday.

As the session commenced with District Collector Ranjeet Singh in chair, a section of the farmers were seen carrying posters that squarely criticised the Tamil Nadu Government's decision to provide cars with drivers to all 234 MLAs.

"Instead of waiving crop loans, the Tamil Nadu Administration is providing cars to 234 MLAs which will cost ₹219.96 crore. Waive the crop loans first and dump the plan to gift cars to MLAs, " remarked the posters in the hands of the farmers as they submitted a petition to Mr. Ranjeet Singh demanding crop loan waiver.

They remarked the farmers are facing nature's fury like drought and downpour and man-made disasters like fertilizer and pesticide rate rise making agriculture a gamble. Nevertheless, the Tamil Nadu Administration was not concerned regarding the farmers' welfare and no step had been taken to waive crop loans to all farmers.

Meanwhile, the State Administration was keen on gifting cars with drivers to all 234 MLAs and an assistant. It would cost more than ₹219 crore.

For context, the farmers raised a range of problems including crop loss caused by wild animals, diversion of wild streams flowing from the Western Ghats to the irrigation tanks for creating artificial waterfalls in the private resorts etc.

"The Collector should take concrete steps to address these problems, " they remarked.

For now, farmers criticise government's decision to provide cars to MLAs remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.