Sharing the dais with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, Sasikala in her first major media event since her elevation, lit the lamp to mark its formal inauguration.
She, however, did not make any formal speech.
Sasikala, appointed to the party's top post on December 29 following the demise of her predecessor J Jayalalithaa, was also seen turning emotional when a photo tribute was paid to the late Chief Minister, with whom the AIADMK leader shared a 33-year friendship.
Sasikala, who has been described by Jayalalithaa as her "Udanpirava sagothari" (sister but not of blood relation), was seen wiping her eyes as the short presentation ended.
Also Read
Sasikala then left due to her other commitments while Panneerselvam stayed back.
She during a brief talk with an English news channel said that late Chief Minister had lots of affection for the media and would have participated in this event.
Paneerselvam told the channel that India Today magazine was objective in its news reports.
He lauded Jayalalithaa's contribution to the development of Tamil Nadu and said her vision will be taken forward.
Earlier, Sasikala shared the dais with Panneerselvam and Aroon Purie, Chairman & Editor-in-Chief of the India Today Group, which is jointly organising the event with Puthiya Thalaimurai Tamil channel.
(REOPENS MDS1)
In his address, Panneerselvam claimed that Tamil Nadu has registered the strongest and most consistent economic growth among all states and due to the efforts of Jayalalithaa, the state is second in the country in terms of economic prosperity.
It is leading in a number of industries like textiles, leather, automobiles and auto components, heavy and light engineering, electronics manufacture, Information Technology and Information Technology enabled services, and healthcare, Panneerselvam claimed.
He recalled that Jayalalithaa as the Chief Minister had launched the ambitious 'Vision 2023' development project in 2012 and said, "This remains our blue print for action."
"The goal is to ensure that Tamil Nadu's per capita income reaches that of countries of upper middle income group by 2023. People must have access to infrastructure and services comparable to the best available anywhere in the world," the Chief Minister said.
Implementation of more than 100 of the 217 projects and programmes identified under the Vision Tamil Nadu 2023 has already commenced, Panneerselvam said.
"Our efforts will be to not only retain Tamil Nadu's lead in the sectors that it is strong in, but also to make a breakthrough in emerging and sunrise sectors," he said.
Panneerselvam said Jayalalithaa was a strong votary of preserving the autonomy of states.