#DMK2016 will establish enquiry into flood and will start "Vanigar" SHGs for small businesses growth. https://t.co/hg0MlVL4fj

Revisiting the catastrophic December 2015 Chennai floods that brought untold destruction to lives, homes, and commercial enterprises, M.K. Stalin pledged that a DMK administration would institute a comprehensive judicial commission of inquiry. The probe would fix institutional accountability for the man-made tragedy, specifically investigating the unannounced midnight discharge of water from the Chembarambakkam reservoir. He stressed that administrative complacency and criminal negligence had submerged entire neighborhoods, destroyed life savings, and paralyzed thousands of small retail businesses, street vendors, and commercial establishments without receiving adequate disaster compensation.

To revive shattered livelihoods and foster grass-roots economic resilience, Stalin announced a dedicated initiative to establish specialized self-help groups for traders, known as Vanigar self-help groups. These groups would provide small merchants with low-interest institutional microcredit, working capital grants, and subsidized insurance protection against future climatic hazards. Stalin emphasized that local retail merchants form the vibrant backbone of neighborhood economies and deserve targeted state patronage during crises. By combining transparent administrative accountability with practical financial rehabilitation schemes, Stalin promised to secure urban commercial livelihoods, protect small shopkeepers, and modernize disaster mitigation infrastructure to prevent similar tragedies.