Green Tamil Nadu Mission
- Context: Under the Green Tamil Nadu Mission (GTM), over 24 crore Palmyrah seeds have been planted across Tamil Nadu.
About Green Tamil Nadu Mission
- Green Tamil Nadu Mission was announced in the Tamil Nadu Budget 2021–22.
- The mission aims to increase the forest and tree cover of Tamil Nadu from about 23.7–23.8% to 33% of the State’s geographical area.
- The target year for achieving this increase is 2030–31, as per the Government of Tamil Nadu’s vision.
- Under the mission, the scheme “Rehabilitation of Coastal Habitats through formation of Bio-shields” is being implemented.
- The scheme covers all coastal districts of Tamil Nadu.
- The implementation period of the coastal bio-shield scheme is 2023–24 to 2025–26.
- Bio-shields are being created using Casuarina, Palmyrah, Cashew and Mangroves, along with restoration of seagrass and coral reefs.
- The scheme is funded by the Department of Environment and Climate Change, Government of Tamil Nadu.
- The objective of the scheme is to prevent and mitigate natural disasters such as cyclones, tsunami and coastal erosion.
- Tamil Nadu plans to contribute to creating an additional carbon sink of 2.5–3 billion tonnes by 2030.
- This contribution forms part of India’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement.
Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thittam
- Context: Tamil Nadu government launched the second phase of the Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thittam on December 12.
- 94 lakh additional women have been included, bringing total beneficiaries to 1.30 crore.
About Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thittam
- Tamil Nadu Chief Minister on September 15, 2023, launched the Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thittam in Kancheepuram.
- This was launched on the occasion of the birth anniversary of former Chief Minister and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) founder N. Annadurai.
- Each beneficiary receives a monthly ₹1,000, credited directly to their bank accounts.
- The Tamil Nadu government will incur an expenditure of ₹12,000 crore annually, to implement this scheme.
- Similar programmes have been launched in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Puducherry, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, and Sikkim.
Cervical Cancer Vaccination Scheme in Tamil Nadu
- Tamil Nadu Chief Minister will launch an HPV vaccination programme next month to prevent cervical cancer.
- 38 lakh girls across Tamil Nadu will be covered under the scheme.
- Target group: Girls aged 9–14 years studying in government and government-aided schools.
- The programme will be implemented for the first time in India at the State level.
- First phase to be rolled out in four districts: Ariyalur, Perambalur, Tiruvannamalai and Dharmapuri.
- About 27,000 girls will benefit in the first phase.
- Each beneficiary will receive two doses of the vaccine.
Tamil Nadu’s Economic Growth
- Tamil Nadu ranked first among Indian States with 16% economic growth in 2024–25.
- This has been stated in the report titled ‘Statistics on Indian States’ released by the Reserve Bank of India.
- Tamil Nadu’s GSDP increased from ₹26.89 lakh crore (2023–24) to ₹31.18 lakh crore (2024–25) at current prices.
- The State has retained the top growth position for three consecutive years.
- Tamil Nadu has retained the top position for three consecutive years, surpassing industrialized states like Gujarat, Karnataka, and Maharashtra.
- Tamil Nadu’s GDP rose from ₹20.72 lakh crore (2021–22) to ₹31.18 lakh crore (2024–25).
- State-wise GDP Rankings (2024-25)
- Maharashtra: ₹45.31 lakh crore (largest economy)
- Tamil Nadu: ₹31.18 lakh crore
- o Uttar Pradesh: ₹29.78 lakh crore
- o Karnataka: ₹28.83 lakh crore
- o Gujarat: ₹26.72 lakh crore
- Tamil Nadu’s per capita income rose from ₹2.42 lakh (2021–22) to ₹3.62 lakh (2024–25)
- Tamil Nadu ranks third in per capita income among States.
- o Top per capita income States: Telangana: ₹3.87 lakh (1st) & Karnataka: ₹3.80 lakh (2nd)
- Delhi (UT) recorded the highest per capita income at ₹4.93 lakh.
Adichanallur
- Context: The Madras High Court has ordered that no sand mining be permitted anywhere near the Adichanallur archaeological site, citing the need to protect its heritage value.
About Adichanallur
- Adichanallur is one of India’s oldest Iron Age archaeological sites, noted for extensive urn burials and early cultural evidence of South India.
- Situated in Thoothukudi district, Tamil Nadu, on the banks of the Thamirabarani River, near Srivaikuntam.
- Located about 24 km from Tirunelveli and close to the ancient port town of Korkai (mentioned in Sangam literature), indicating maritime links.
- Chronology: Carbon dating (2019) places the artefacts between 905 BCE and 696 BCE, making the site older than Keezhadi.
- First excavated by Jagor (1876) and later extensively by Alexander Rea (1899–1904).
Major Archaeological Discoveries:
- Large number of urn burials, skeletal remains, pottery, and iron and bronze artefacts.
- 169 burial urns were unearthed during the ASI excavations (2004–05).
- Early excavations revealed gold diadems, pottery, weapons, and over 4,000 antiquities.
