Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami announced in the assembly on Wednesday that the salaries of the state MLAs have been increased from Rs 55,000 per month to Rs 1.05 lakh per month, as per a report in News 18.
The pension of the MLAs has also been enhanced from Rs 12,000 to Rs 20,000 per month.
Besides, the MLA Local Area Development Fund has also been increased from Rs 2 crore to Rs 2.5 crore.
While the hike in salaries comes at a time of agrarian distress in the state, analysts say that it is unreasonable to expect corruption to go down if legislators are not paid their market value.
Meanwhile, distressed farmers in the state have been protesting for farm loan waivers due to the crippling agrarian crisis.
On Monday, around 100 farmers from the crisis-hit state, who had suspended their 41-day protest in Delhi, following assurances from the government in April this year, turned up at Jantar Mantar again, to press for their demands.
They want adequate compensation for agricultural produce, crop insurance to individual farmers and linking of rivers to address issue of water crisis.
The protesting farmers in Delhi are now also objecting to the MLAs pay hike, saying, "We are abandoned by our Netas".
P. Ayyakannu, President of the National-South Indian Rivers Linking Farmers Association, who is leading the protest, said the farmers had decided to continue their protest for at least 100 days, braving the monsoon.
"Both state and Central governments did not fulfil the promises they made to us. They had assured us that our mortgaged jewellery would not be sold. However, banks have started selling the jewellery. Now, they are going to sell our land as well," Ayyakannu told IANS.
"We had no option but to restart our protest as the Centre and Tamil Nadu governments have breached out trust. Due to water crisis and drought in the state, farmers are under a huge financial burden. We are almost destroyed. We do not care if we die protesting here."