CHENNAI: Immediately after swearing in as Tamil Nadu chief minister, C Joseph Vijay on Sunday said his govt would fulfil promises made to the people in a phased manner, but added that his first step would be to release a white paper on the state’s finances to ensure transparency.Speaking after taking oath as chief minister, Vijay said his govt assumed office at a time when Tamil Nadu was burdened with debt exceeding Rs 10 lakh crore.“I want to release a white paper explaining the exact condition of the Tamil Nadu govt. I want this to be a transparent govt. I want to openly tell you the situation of the govt today and then take things forward from there. That is the first thing I want to do,” Vijay said.Soon after assuming office, Vijay signed three key announcements. The govt ordered 200 units of free electricity once every two months for domestic consumers using up to 500 units in a two-month billing cycle. It also approved the formation of the “Singapen” Special Task Force aimed at women’s safety through preventive and protective measures. In another move, the govt ordered the creation of anti-narcotics units in all cities and districts to detect drug-related offences and take action against offenders.“I will be very strict about women’s safety. From today itself, I will take every necessary step to control the drug culture,” Vijay said. Calling his govt a “new beginning”, he added, “A new era of real secular social justice starts now.”Vijay also said there would be no tolerance for corruption in his administration. “As I said earlier, I will not touch even a single paisa of public money. I do not need it,” he said, asking those in govt with intentions of misusing power to “erase that thought right now”. He added, “There will be only one centre here — the centre formed under my leadership,” ruling out multiple power centres within the administration.The chief minister thanked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, CPM leaders including M A Baby and P Shanmugam, VCK chief Thol Thirumavalavan, and other alliance leaders for supporting the formation of his govt.
