Tamil Nadu Elections 2026: ₹2000 for women, houses for needy, free bus rides for men — AIADMK announces 5 key promises

The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) announced five key election promises on Saturday. The party promised ₹2,000 to all ration card–holding families, free bus travel and the 'Amma Two-Wheeler' Scheme, among other schemes and benefits, if it wins the Tamil Nadu Elections 2026.

As per AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami's statement shared by news agency ANI, the first phase of the party's election promises includes:

1) Women’s Welfare (Kulavilakku Scheme): Under the Kulavilakku Scheme, a financial assistance of ₹2,000 will be provided to all ration card–holding families. This amount will be credited directly to the bank account of the woman head of the family.

2) A free bus travel scheme will be implemented for men travelling on city buses. The existing free bus travel scheme for women on city buses will continue without interruption.

3. Amma Illam Scheme: For those who do not own a house in rural areas, the government will purchase land and construct concrete houses for them. In urban areas, the government will purchase land and construct apartment buildings, which will be provided free of cost, to those who don't own a house.

Moreover, according to local media Dinamani, the AIADMK promised that when sons of Scheduled Castes living in the same house get married and move into separate homes, the government will purchase land and build concrete houses for them.

4. While the Union government announced an increase in the 100-day employment scheme to 125 days, this rural development scheme will be further enhanced to provide 150 days of employment.

5. Amma Two-Wheeler Scheme: Under this scheme, Amma two-wheelers will be provided to 5 lakh women, with a government subsidy of ₹25,000 per beneficiary.

The announcement was made on the occasion of the late Chief Minister MS Ramachandran’s (MGR) 109th birth anniversary.

According to local media, Palaniswami's proposals outlined a series of proposals that appeared to mirror and expand the current Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government’s welfare schemes.

This AIADMK's Amma Illam Scheme proposal is currently being implemented by the DMK government under the Kalaignar Housing Scheme.

Tamil Nadu Elections 2026

Tamil Nadu will go to the polls in 2026. With the 2026 Assembly elections approaching, political activity in Tamil Nadu has intensified.

The AIADMK has renewed its alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after severing ties in 2023. The AIADMK-led NDA aims to reclaim power after 2021, despite its subdued performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Meanwhile, the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) faces the task of retaining power but enters the contest with confidence following its strong performance in the 2024 parliamentary polls.

Earlier, Edappadi Palaniswami claimed that the NDA will "win big in 2026 elections," while alleging that "sexual assaults are happening under the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) regime".

Tamil Nadu is scheduled to hold elections in the first half of this year.