Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh on Saturday flayed the DMK for protesting against the Union Budget and said the allocation for Tamil Nadu was several times more than what the state received when the party was part of the UPA regime.

Pointing out that the DMK had no locus standi to protest, he advised the ruling dispensation to utilise the funds earmarked for the state, especially for projects like the Deep Sea Mission.

"The Budget on the whole is very futuristic keeping in mind Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision for 2047. There's a huge emphasis on startups, employment, and women-led development," Union Minister of State for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences Jitendra Singh said.

The Angel tax was removed and the space sector has now been opened up for public and private partnership. India's space economy will grow five times in the next ten years, Singh said while speaking at a programme on the Union Budget 2024 held under the aegis of TN BJP's Thinkers' Cell, here.

The Central Minister said Tamil Nadu was getting its due share in the Budget but the state government was "unresponsive." "It is unable to utilise the funds earmarked in the Budget," he said and added the allocation under the flagship Deep Sea Mission was underutilised in Tamil Nadu which has a vast coastline and excellent marine resources.

He advised the DMK not to politicise things by staging protests but to ponder over the extent of allocations made for the state under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rule.

"The allocation for Tamil Nadu for railways was Rs 6,362 crore under the BJP rule compared to a mere Rs 879 crore for the sector when DMK was part of the UPA II. Why are you protesting when the Budgetary allocation has increased now?" he asked.

Also, Tamil Nadu received six Vande Bharat express trains, and 77 railway stations in the state have been identified under the Amrit Bharat Station scheme. "All these because Modiji is fond of Tamil Nadu, its people and culture. It was his idea to conduct Kashi Tamil Sangamam. Why did this not happen when the DMK was part of the UPA? Is not the DMK more Dravidian than the BJP or is the BJP more Dravidian?" Singh asked.

He accused the DMK of creating divisions among the people on the basis of region, religion and caste and pointed out that the Budget catered to all sections of people in the country and even the Congress could not criticise it.

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