Finance Minister N. Marie Wilson presented the TVK government's maiden Tamil Nadu Budget for 2026-27, allocating ₹44,527 crore for school education, launching the ₹2,000 crore Vetri Laptop Scheme, and setting a target of a $1.5 trillion economy by 2036.
Tamil Nadu Finance Minister N. Marie Wilson presented the CM Vijay-led TVK government's first full Budget for 2026-27 in the Legislative Assembly on Wednesday, laying out a roadmap built around education, women's and youth welfare, infrastructure and AI-enabled governance, while acknowledging the state's finances are "in the red." Ahead of the presentation, CM Vijay met with Wilson and senior officials at the Secretariat to finalise Budget preparations.
Education emerged as the Budget's biggest focus. Beyond the ₹44,527 crore for school education and ₹8,393 crore for higher education, the government announced ₹300 crore this year (of a ₹2,132 crore total programme) to modernise 3,734 government schools, and ₹139 crore for the "Super Clean, Super Campus" initiative covering 10,000 schools with daily cleaning, drinking water and toilet maintenance in its first phase. The Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Model Schools scheme will establish free residential schools for Classes IX-XII at an initial cost of ₹125 crore, and 5.32 lakh Class 11 students will receive bicycles with helmets and water bottles under the "Puthiya Payanam Puthiya Vegam" scheme (₹277 crore). Wilson also formally urged the Central Government to restore medical admissions based on Class 12 board exam results.
On AI and skilling, TN SPARK — the Tamil Nadu School Programme for Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Knowledge of online tools — currently active in 5,000 government schools, will expand to 2,600 more in 2026-27. A new AI and Machine Learning trade will be introduced across 50 Government Industrial Training Institutes at a cost of ₹10 crore, expected to train 24,000 students over five years, alongside an AI Industry Development Programme partnering with institutions like IIT Madras to skill five lakh youth by 2031.
| Scheme | Allocation |
|---|---|
| Annan Seer Thittam — gold coin & silk saree for eligible brides | ₹812Cr |
| Gold ring assistance for newborns | — |
| Vetri Magalir Goat Rearing Scheme (5 goats, ~30,000 beneficiaries) | ₹110Cr |
| Singappen Women Empowerment Scheme (SHG loan target) | ₹38,000Cr |
| Vettri Veedu Scheme (70,000 permanent houses) | ₹3,500Cr |
| Fishermen lean-period assistance (₹6,000→₹7,000/family, 1.93L families) | ₹135Cr |
| Welfare of Persons with Disabilities Department | ₹1,485Cr |
| ↳ incl. AI-assistive devices (up to 50%, up to ₹30,000/person) | — |
| Youth Welfare & Sports Development Department | ₹1,051Cr |
The government also revived the free milch cow distribution scheme, one of former CM J. Jayalalithaa's signature rural welfare programmes, alongside the new goat-rearing initiative for vulnerable women. Assistance for upgrading a temporary house to a permanent one was raised from ₹3.10 lakh to ₹5 lakh.
The Budget allocates ₹21,524 crore for Roads and Highways and ₹14,984 crore for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare, including ₹7,432 crore in electricity subsidies for farmers. On technology, the government announced "Arivagam," billed as India's first dedicated AI and Innovation city, alongside plans to declare Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli a Space Industrial Investment Zone, and confirmed the Tamil Virtual Academy will develop a Tamil-language AI model. An Integrated Court Complex housing 160 courts will come up at Broadway, Chennai, at an estimated cost of ₹1,375 crore, with ₹10 crore allocated for preliminary work this year.
On the fiscal side, Wilson said Tamil Nadu's debt had doubled over the past five years and the state was paying heavy interest on its borrowings, describing the treasury as "overburdened with debt." The government plans to raise an additional ₹16,000 crore in revenue — ₹15,000 crore through revenue-enhancement measures and ₹1,000 crore via a cess on liquor production — and will constitute a Revenue Enhancement Committee to identify further measures. Wilson also credited CM Vijay with ending the practice of "cut" in government tenders awarded to favoured contractors.
The Youth Welfare and Sports Development Department received ₹1,051 crore, funding the Tamil Nadu Rural Sports Competition (₹42 crore), upgrades at the Tamil Nadu Physical Education and Sports University (₹2 crore), and a plan to introduce one hour of structured sports and physical exercise daily after school hours in government and government-aided schools, alongside neighbourhood sports facilities in every block and urban local body. On road safety, the government announced the Safe Roads Mission along with a "Namma Salai" mobile app letting citizens photograph potholes and road defects for authorities to act on, backed by ₹330 crore split between the Chief Minister's Accident Relief Fund (₹200 crore) and the Road Safety Fund (₹130 crore), with AI-based speed and traffic enforcement also planned.
CM Vijay also chaired a high-level review meeting in preparation for the Agriculture Budget, to be presented by Agriculture Minister Vinoth on Thursday. The Thaimaman Seer Thittam, one of the TVK government's flagship welfare initiatives, is set to launch on September 15.
Tamil Nadu Budget N. Marie Wilson Vetri Laptop Scheme CM Vijay August 5, 2026