Chennai, May 4: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K.Palaniswami on Friday announced a travel allowance of second class train fare for Tamil Nadu students appearing for the NEET medical entrance exam outside the state.
In a statement issued here, Palaniswami said the government would pay second class train fare (for those travelling by bus an allowance not exceeding second class train fare) and a cash allowance of Rs 1,000 for Tamil Nadu students who have to travel outside the state for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET).
He said the government would also pay the travel fare for one person who accompanies the student.
Palaniswami said the eligible students can get the sum from the Principal Education Officer in their district through their school headmaster as an advance or claim the same on their return by submitting the necessary bills.
He said the assistance will be provided based on the copy of the NEET Hall Ticket and the identity card issued by the school as proof.
Several students from Tamil Nadu have been allotted exam centres in Kerala and Rajasthan.
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Bhopal: Kunwar Vijay Shah, a minister in the Mohan Yadav-led Madhya Pradesh government, has stirred controversy with a provocative statement made during a public event. Without naming Indian Army officer Colonel Sofia Qureshi, the minister made remarks that have drawn criticism for being communal and derogatory in tone.
Addressing a gathering, Vijay Shah claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had taken a symbolic step to avenge the mistreatment of Indian women by sending "a sister from their community" to confront those responsible. His reference, believed to be directed towards Colonel Sofia Qureshi, suggested that the officer was sent on a military aircraft to retaliate against Pakistan-based terrorists for previous attacks and alleged atrocities.
“The Pakistanis had stripped people from our country. The terrorists said ‘tell Modi we have killed Hindus and stripped them’. That’s why PM Modi sent their sister in an army plane to teach them a lesson,” Shah said in his speech.
He further added, “Those who had destroyed the vermilion of our sisters, we sent their own sister to beat them. Modi could not remove thier clothes, so he sent their sister – from their caste and community – to take revenge and strip them.”
The minister also praised the Prime Minister’s leadership, saying only someone with a "56-inch chest" could take such decisions. “Modi said he would reduce them to dust. The terrorists were sitting in their homes and they were beaten. We are proud that Narendra Modi is our Prime Minister and that we are safe under his leadership,” Shah said.
The remarks have sparked outrage on social media, with many calling them insensitive, communal, and disrespectful to the armed forces. Critics have pointed out that using the identity of a decorated army officer to make political or communal statements is inappropriate and undermines the professionalism of India’s defence forces.
There has been no official response from Colonel Sofia Qureshi or the Indian Army regarding the remarks.
This is a BJP MLA from Madhya Pradesh, Kunwar Vijay Shah.
— Roshan Rai (@RoshanKrRaii) May 13, 2025
In this speech referring to Colonel Sofia Qureshi , he is saying that “ Modiji sent the Pakistanis their own sister to teach them a lesson”
Colonel Qureshi made India proud, roared like a lioness for India and this the… pic.twitter.com/EBHuQ3ycvd