Chennai, Sept 2026 : Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay will launch the Thaimaman Gold Ring Scheme on September 28, under which every eligible child born in a government hospital will receive a one-gram gold ring.
The Chief Minister chaired a review meeting at the Secretariat on Friday to assess preparations for the launch and implementation of the welfare initiative, according to an official statement.
The state government said it has been giving priority to strengthening maternal and child healthcare through a range of measures, including financial assistance for pregnant women, free delivery and newborn care, emergency obstetric services, nutritional support and advance planning for institutional deliveries.
The Pregnancy and Infant Cohort Monitoring and Evaluation (PICME) software is also being used for integrated monitoring of pregnant women and infants. These initiatives have contributed to improvements in Tamil Nadu’s maternal and child health indicators, the government said.
The Thaimaman Gold Ring Scheme was announced with the objective of strengthening public confidence in government healthcare services and honouring newborn children. The initiative also draws from the traditional role of the maternal uncle, or thaimaman, in Tamil culture.
Under the scheme, all eligible babies born in government hospitals on or after June 22, 2026, will be provided a one-gram gold ring. The government order authorising the scheme was issued on June 23.
Tamil Nadu records around 7.80 lakh births annually, while nearly 99.9 per cent of deliveries in the state take place in hospitals, according to the National Family Health Survey-6. Government hospitals account for around 4.20 lakh deliveries, representing approximately 53 per cent of the total.
Nearly 90 per cent of deliveries in government hospitals are conducted at Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care centres. The government said these figures underline the important role played by the public healthcare system in ensuring safe deliveries and healthy newborns.
To ensure transparency and security, every gold ring distributed under the scheme will carry a unique serial number and be supplied in tamper-proof packaging.
The government has procured 1.28 lakh gold rings in the first phase of the scheme. Mothers who are permanent residents of Tamil Nadu will be eligible for the benefit, subject to registration on the PICME portal and possession of a Reproductive and Child Health identification number.
Special arrangements have been made at 107 designated hubs for distributing rings to children born between June 22 and the formal launch of the scheme. Each hub will cater to up to 100 children every day from September 28.
After the launch, eligible newborns will receive the gold rings at the time of discharge from government hospitals, according to the official statement.
