Farmers will enjoy sojourns abroad, ration shops in the state will do a Grofers -delivering rice and sugar to your doorstep -and the state government will empty out its coffers so your monthly fuel bill doesn't dig a hole in your wallet. That is, if the Captain's word becomes law.
While parties like DMK and PMK are trying to woo the electorate by promising to ban 'thanni' (liquor shops) and providing clean 'thanni' (drinking water) to people, DMDK has its own unique goodie bag for the people of Tamil Nadu this time round. And it doesn't really matter if its promises have economists and social analysts scratching their heads.
In Vijayakanth's promised land, petrol price will be fixed at Rs 45 and diesel price at Rs 35. While the sound of it might delight the populace, economists are still racking their brains how it can be done.
"Even if they reduce the sales tax to zero, petrol price won't come down to Rs 45. And doing that would be suicidal as petrol, next to liquor, is the single largest tax earning commodity in the state," says R Srinivasan, associate professor in econometrics, Madras University . "Also, people should understand that the petrol marketing companies are owned by the central government and they fix the price based on the crude oil price, and then there is also excise and customs duty, which the state government doesn't decide."
To tax their already weary brains, Vijaykanth has come up with another assurance -the income of a family in each of the 12,620 villages in TN will be increased to Rs 25,000 per month. "To ensure that, at least one member of each family should be provided an office assistant job and how would you create so much employment?" says Srinivasan.
He has more joys in store for the rural population -5,000 farmers will be sent abroad every year to learn latest techniques in farming. And just in case the urban business houses feel left out, the Captain has magnanimously promised to give permission to shops like Nalli's and Pothys to open in other states and countries. And never mind the fact that they have never needed permission from the state government to set up shop elsewhere.
While the DMDK is yet to officially release its manifesto, the party's Facebook page has been regularly posting the Captain's promises. The most recent announcements include giving fisherfolk aged 60 and above Rs 2,500 every month, which it said will benefit 10 lakh fisherfolk.
Do these outlandish poll promises really woo voters? Social scientists like Bernard D'Sami say that manifestos reflect the party's ideology and the values they stand for. "A manifesto is a combination of many things, doables and those that are not achievable," says D'Sami, Loyola Institute for Social Science, Training And Research, adding that he doesn't think manifestos will affect the party's performance in the elections. "Parties make tall claims, but people do know what is deliverable and what is not."
A R Venkatachalapathy , professor and historian at Madras Institute of Development Studies, feels that people don't take manifestos seriously. "Some crucial points are highlighted, for instance freebies, and that reassures its vote bank and may have an impact on undecided voters."
While parties like DMK and PMK are trying to woo the electorate by promising to ban 'thanni' (liquor shops) and providing clean 'thanni' (drinking water) to people, DMDK has its own unique goodie bag for the people of Tamil Nadu this time round. And it doesn't really matter if its promises have economists and social analysts scratching their heads.
In Vijayakanth's promised land, petrol price will be fixed at Rs 45 and diesel price at Rs 35. While the sound of it might delight the populace, economists are still racking their brains how it can be done.
"Even if they reduce the sales tax to zero, petrol price won't come down to Rs 45. And doing that would be suicidal as petrol, next to liquor, is the single largest tax earning commodity in the state," says R Srinivasan, associate professor in econometrics, Madras University . "Also, people should understand that the petrol marketing companies are owned by the central government and they fix the price based on the crude oil price, and then there is also excise and customs duty, which the state government doesn't decide."
To tax their already weary brains, Vijaykanth has come up with another assurance -the income of a family in each of the 12,620 villages in TN will be increased to Rs 25,000 per month. "To ensure that, at least one member of each family should be provided an office assistant job and how would you create so much employment?" says Srinivasan.
He has more joys in store for the rural population -5,000 farmers will be sent abroad every year to learn latest techniques in farming. And just in case the urban business houses feel left out, the Captain has magnanimously promised to give permission to shops like Nalli's and Pothys to open in other states and countries. And never mind the fact that they have never needed permission from the state government to set up shop elsewhere.
While the DMDK is yet to officially release its manifesto, the party's Facebook page has been regularly posting the Captain's promises. The most recent announcements include giving fisherfolk aged 60 and above Rs 2,500 every month, which it said will benefit 10 lakh fisherfolk.
Do these outlandish poll promises really woo voters? Social scientists like Bernard D'Sami say that manifestos reflect the party's ideology and the values they stand for. "A manifesto is a combination of many things, doables and those that are not achievable," says D'Sami, Loyola Institute for Social Science, Training And Research, adding that he doesn't think manifestos will affect the party's performance in the elections. "Parties make tall claims, but people do know what is deliverable and what is not."
A R Venkatachalapathy , professor and historian at Madras Institute of Development Studies, feels that people don't take manifestos seriously. "Some crucial points are highlighted, for instance freebies, and that reassures its vote bank and may have an impact on undecided voters."
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