Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK chief M.K. Stalin. File
| Photo Credit: S.S. Kumar
DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Tuesday (March 24, 2026) said preparedness for the impact of the ongoing conflict in West Asia cannot be outsourced to the people, and questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi whether he was prepared to protect the people.
“Preparedness cannot be outsourced to the people. Prepared for what — leadership, or its absence? Who is expected to be prepared — the Union government or the people of the country?,” Mr. Stalin wrote in a post on X.
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On Monday, while briefing the Lok Sabha on the steps taken by his government to secure India’s energy needs, Mr. Modi said the country should be prepared and united. He also said the impact of the West Asia war is likely to be felt for a long time.
“You say that just as we prepared for COVID-19, we must also be prepared for the impacts of a West Asia war. As soon as the situation in West Asia escalated and its effects began to be felt, I wrote to you on March 11, urging to ensure the uninterrupted supply of gas cylinders for all purposes, rescue people from Tamil Nadu stranded in Gulf countries, and revise limits on the supply of gas to power stations,” Mr. Stalin said.
Following this, on March 12, Opposition parties staged a protest within the Parliament premises to convey the seriousness of the situation to the Union government, he said.
“On March 14, without waiting for your response, as a responsible State government, we conducted a high-level review and announced measures to handle the gas shortage, including a subsidy of ₹2 per unit for the additional electricity consumption when hotels and cloud kitchens switch from LPG to electric stoves, subsidised loans for MSMEs to purchase electric stoves and heaters, and an exemption for industries from obtaining TNPCB clearance to use alternative fuels,” he said.
Mr. Stalin pointed out that even then, he had asked the Union government what steps it would take to safeguard the interests of the people, but there was no response, he said and pointed out to the protest by the Secular Progressive Alliance on March 15 across Tamil Nadu, condemning the BJP government at the Centre for functioning without preparedness.
“After all this, you advise that people must be prepared. Before asking people to be prepared, are you prepared to protect them? What precautionary measures have you taken to safeguard the people of India from the impacts of the West Asia war?” Mr. Stalin questioned.
Published – March 24, 2026 01:11 pm IST
