Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Friday said he decided to move the then Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan to the IT portfolio — a decision that was hotly debated since it was made after a controversial audio was released by BJP Tamil Nadu president K. Annamalai — so that he can implement changes in that Ministry too just as he did in Finance.
Speaking at Umagine 2024, a two-day technology and innovation summit in Chennai, Mr. Stalin said, “He [Dr. Thiaga Rajan] performed very well as the Finance Minister and laid the path for many changes. I changed him [to IT] to ensure that he can bring in similar changes in the IT Ministry just as he had changed the Finance Ministry. I am sure that under his leadership, Tamil Nadu’s economic growth and jobs will improve because of IT. He is performing well in his role as IT Minister. Umagine is a testament to that,” the Chief Minister said.
Crediting former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi for accurately predicting the future of the IT industry 25 years ago, Mr. Stalin said Karunanidhi had inaugurated the IT corridor between 1996-2001. “Tamil Nadu has managed to stand first in India in IT. In 1997, the Tamil Nadu government was the first to create an IT policy in India, a separate department and a task force was set up. TIDEL park, the country’s first IT park, was set up in 2000. All these achievements belong to Kalaignar. This is why we call him the sculptor of modern Tamil Nadu,” he said.
