Pongal 2026: Tamil Nadu CM Stalin announces Rs 3,000 cash gift for rice card holders

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday announced a cash gift of Rs 3,000 for the harvest festival Pongal for rice category ration card holders and for all families residing in rehabilitation camps for Sri Lankan Tamils.

Ahead of Pongal, the state government will distribute a festival gift hamper through Public Distribution System (PDS) outlets. The hamper will include one kilogram each of rice and sugar, one sugarcane, along with the Rs 3,000 cash assistance for each family holding a rice ration card. In addition, beneficiaries will also receive a dhoti and a saree, the chief minister announced.

According to an official government release, the cash assistance and festival hamper are intended to enable people to celebrate Pongal in a grand manner. The statement said Pongal is a festival celebrated by the Tamil people since times immemorial.

The government had announced a few days ago that the Pongal gift hamper distribution would benefit more than 2.22 crore rice card holders across the state, in addition to inmates of rehabilitation camps for Sri Lankan Tamils.

The combined expenditure for the Pongal gift hamper and cash assistance is estimated at approximately Rs 6,936.17 crore, the statement said.

The state government also highlighted the increase in Pongal cash assistance over the years. The harvest festival cash support has now been raised to Rs 3,000 per family, which the government said is the highest amount so far. During the 2011–16 AIADMK regime, the Pongal cash assistance stood at Rs 100.

The Pongal cash dole was later increased to Rs 1,000 during the 2016–2021 AIADMK regime. The government noted that there were also some years during which no cash assistance was provided for the festival.

In 2021, when Edappadi K Palaniswami was the chief minister, the Pongal cash assistance was increased to Rs 2,500, which at that time was the highest payout for the festival. The year 2021 was also an election year, similar to the present year.