Guv says TN 'going south' on all fronts in unusual R-Day address

State in 'declining position' as destination for businesses, drug menace on the rise, he says

- EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @Chennai

GOVERNOR R N Ravi has leveled various charges against the state government in his customary Republic Day address. Sources said perhaps it is the first time in history that a governor in the country is making accusations against the government in the R-Day address.

In his address, the governor said key indicators of the state are worrying and that Tamil Nadu is on a 'declining curve'. He alleged the autonomy of the universities in state has "eroded to such an extent that it is not the university syndicates but the state secretariat that runs the varsities."

Citing the absence of vice chancellors in many universities, Ravi said the status of the curriculum and syllabus of the varsities, which should be under the purview of university academic councils, are now being dictated by the State Government Council for Higher Education.

The governor also alleged "an increasing menace of drugs", citing reports indicating the presence of powerful drug syndicates, linked to international cartels, operating in the state. "While some drug dealers have been arrested, the kingpins remain elusive," he said and warned that the escalating drug trade poses a serious threat to the future generation.

Ravi said he is "concerned over the continued dehumanisation of Dalits in Tamil Nadu" and added reports of caste-based discrimination, including instances of Dalits being denied access to public spaces and subjected to physical violence, have been alarmingly frequent.