Madurai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay launched the Thai Maaman Gold Ring Scheme at Government Rajaji Hospital on Monday, presenting one-gram gold rings to newborn babies and meeting their families during a visit that drew crowds across the city.
Wearing a white veshti and shirt, CM Vijay began the distribution on stage by placing rings on the fingers of three babies as their mothers sat beside him.
He asked the mothers to sit on chairs and carefully placed the rings on the babies’ fingers before wishing them.
He then stepped down from the stage to meet 12 other families seated with their infants in the auditorium.
CM Vijay handed over rings, held several babies in his arms and spoke to their parents.
Some parents asked the Chief Minister to name their children.
Vijay accepted their requests, held the infants and repeated each name three times, following the traditional naming practice.
He also posed for selfies and shook hands with mothers who approached him.
The Chief Minister later visited the hospital’s Integrated Child Development Ward, where he presented rings to 10 more babies.
Doctors were present as he spent time with the children and shared lighter moments with their parents.
The ceremony marked the launch of the government programme to provide a one-gram gold ring to babies born in government hospitals.
The distribution at Rajaji Hospital was the main event of CM Vijay’s Madurai visit.
The Chief Minister arrived from Chennai at Madurai airport at around 11 a.m., where hundreds of party cadres gathered to welcome him. As his convoy travelled towards the hospital, supporters and residents lined major junctions, cheered and showered flowers on the vehicles.
On reaching the Government Rajaji Hospital, CM Vijay got out of his vehicle and walked to the venue amid cheers. He paused several times to greet people along the way, including hospital employees, and posed for photographs with some of them.
Nurses and paramedical staff stationed at various points on the hospital premises also greeted him, taking pictures on their phones as he passed. Inside the hospital, the attention turned to the newborns and their families as CM Vijay distributed the first rings under the scheme.
(IANS)
