Chennai: Chief Minister M K Stalin has announced ‘Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu,’ an invocation sung in praise of Mother Tamil, as the State Anthem and directed that the song should be sung in all functions instead of playing the recorded version.
In a statement here, he said all should stand up when the 55-secondĀ song was sung, while exempting differently-abled people from it.
He also said a Government Order has been issued to this effect stating that the Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu should be sung by trained people before the start of any functions in all the educational institutions, universities, government offices and State government undertakings.
The decision comes in the backdrop of the Madras High Court recently ruling that ‘Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu’ is only a prayer song and not a National Anthem and hence, there was no need for everyone to remain in standing posture when it wass rendered.
Meanwhile, Stalin on Friday visited the Tholkappiya Poonga (Adyar Eco Park) in Chennai and reviewed the restoration work under way. The park is named after Tholkappiyam, the most ancient Tamil grammar text.
Stalin reviewed the ongoing eco restoration work on the Cooum and the Adyar being carried out by the Chennai Rivers Restoration Trust (CRRT) and other government departments.
He reviewed the proposals to undertake river basin eco restoration work on the Cooum, the Adyar, Buckingham Canal and the Ennore estuary at a cost of Rs 2,773.49 crore.
These eco restoration work is to be taken up along with Public Works and Water Resources Departments, the Greater Chennai Corporation, the Directorate of Municipal Administration, the Commissionerate of Town Panchayats, the Directorate of Village Panchayats, the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) and the Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board.