CHENNAI: Actress Trisha Krishnan was seated in the front row next to the family of Tamil Nadu chief minister C Joseph Vijay at the state government’s Independence Day event on Saturday, alongside Vijay’s parents.Trisha, dressed in a yellow saree, was seen in the audience during the celebrations. She also saluted Vijay during the parade.This is not the first time Trisha has been seen at a high-profile event alongside Vijay’s family. A similar moment was witnessed at his swearing-in ceremony in May, when she was seated in the front row at Chennai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.The seating comes as Vijay delivered his maiden Independence Day address as chief minister from the Fort St George premises, where he hoisted the national flag and addressed the state.In his speech, Vijay assured cooperation with the Union government on administrative matters but asserted that his government would oppose any policies that go against the state’s rights. He said eliminating corruption is equivalent to freedom and claimed his government has prevented “government revenue going to private individuals,” with continuous action being taken against graft across departments.Without naming anyone specifically, Vijay said forces working against his government would be defeated and conspiracies against his regime thwarted.He announced that the gold ring gift scheme (Thaimaan Thanga Mothiram Thittam) for newborns in state-run hospitals will launch on September 15 — the birth anniversary of Dravidian icon CN Annadurai — at a cost of Rs 755.83 crore. His government, he said, is continuing and expanding welfare schemes inherited from previous AIADMK and DMK regimes, including Amma Canteens and the school breakfast plan.Vijay also announced hikes in welfare payouts: Financial assistance for the wedding of ex-servicemen’s daughters (up to two daughters) will rise to Rs 50,000 from Rs 25,000; monthly assistance for differently-abled ex-servicemen and their kin will increase to Rs 7,000 from Rs 5,000; and pensions for freedom fighters and their families will rise to Rs 23,000 and Rs 12,500, respectively.He credited his government’s formation to Tamil Nadu voters who, he said, “broke caste and religious considerations, rejecting money and muscle power” to deliver a people-centric, social justice-oriented mandate.
