THOUSANDS of women in India's Tamil Nadu state have been offered free boob jobs because "poor people also have a right to look beautiful".

The impoverished southern Indian state will now offer cosmetic breast surgery free of cost to all women with priority given to the poorest.

2 The free breast implants will be for cosmetic as well as medical reasons Credit: Alamy

The state has previously provided thousands of disadvantaged people with goats, laptops and bicycles among other items.

Dr C Vijayabaskar said: "If a poor woman desires to look beautiful, we will support her financially.

"Whether they require medical procedures or beauty treatment, it will be free."

Tamil Nadu is ranked among the top states in India's public healthcare system, compared with ailing government-run facilities in many other parts of the vast country.

2 Critics say the money should be better spent treating serious illness Credit: Alamy

But critics of the new scheme said the state government is wasting public money on cosmetic surgery instead of spending money on treating serious ailments.

"It is sad that we are now focusing on beauty instead of life-saving surgeries," Dr S. Elango, a former public health official in Tamil Nadu, told the Times of India newspaper.

Cosmetic breast surgery is becoming increasingly popular in India, but private hospitals charge anywhere between £2720 for a procedure - a year's wage for most Indians.

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More than 90,000 such procedures were carried out in the country in 2016, according to the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, up from 50,600 in 2010.

The Tamil Nadu scheme was launched at a state-run clinic in state capital Chennai, with a promise to soon expand it to other districts of the state.

Woman ashamed of 'fallen souffle' boobs after having Botched surgery

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