All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam General Secretary, J Jayalalithaa kicked off the party's campaign for the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections with a promise of introducing prohibition in stages.

Addressing a rally at the Island Grounds, where she introduced the AIADMK candidates contesting from Chennai and its neighbouring districts, she said it would be impossible to implement prohibition at one go as alcohol sales have been on for an entire generation since 1971.

Jayalalithaa also pegged her pitch for coming back to power on the promise of more development schemes, welfare measures and social security. After she had come to power in 2011, she had implemented all the election promises and these will continue once the people vote for her, she said.

Launching a strident attack on the opposition parties, particularly the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and its leader, M Karunanidhi, she said it was the DMK which had lifted prohibition in Tamil Nadu in 1971. At that time he had not even heeded the advice of senior statesman, C Rajagopalachari, who had implored him not to lift prohibition.

Prohibition had been introduced first in Salem in 1937 and expanded till total prohibition in 1948.

The DMK and its leader, who has on various occasions spoken in favour of liquor sales, were least qualified to talk about prohibition, she said.

Jayalalithaa said she had thought long and hard about stopping liquor sales. But, it can happen only in stages. If the people voted her back to power, the number of liquor shops and working time would be reduced, bars attached to the shops will be closed and rehabilitation centres opened as a prelude to prohibition, she said.

She also listed out the welfare measures by her government since 2011 including supply of free rice and subsidised dhall over the public distribution system, distribution of free household appliances, laptops and livestock, an expanded health insurance system apart from pensions for the destitute and maternity schemes.

Her government had introduced subsidised canteens, pharmacies and sale of low priced cement, salt and packaged water. It had also tackled the 30 per cent power shortage in the state that resulted in extended power cuts to households and industry. Tamil Nadu is a power surplus state now, she said.

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