Tamil Nadu on Sunday released its vision document for ways and means to achieve the target of being a $1 trillion economy by 2030. The document highlights the areas which the State government should focus on to achieve the ambitious target. The State government also released the Semiconductor and Advanced Electronics policy 2024 to attract companies to invest in semiconductor & advanced electronics manufacturers in the State.
Chief Minister MK Stalin released both the documents and were received by Union Commerce minister Piyush Goyal at the two-day Tamil Nadu Global Investors Meet 2024.
“Our aim is to have inclusive growth across the State. This is one of the reasons that the industries are being set up across the State,” he said in his address. The State government is preparing youngsters in the State to meet the needs of the industries. The State is one of the most preferred and most welcomed destinations in attracting investment, he said.
MoUs exchanged
Leading companies like Tata Technologies, VinFast of Vietnam, Pegatron, TVS Group, Mitsubishi, Hyundai and Ashok Leyland on Sunday exchanged MoUs with the Tamil Nadu government.
VinFast will invest ₹16,000 crore to set up an integrated electric vehicle factory in Thoothukudi while Tata Electronics will invest ₹12,082 crore to expand its facility at Krishnagiri. Pegatron will invest ₹1,000 crore and TVS will invest ₹5,000 crore for its expansion plans.
While Hyundai signed an MoU to invest ₹6,000 crore, Qualcomm inaugurated a new design centre set-up at a cost of ₹172 crore in Chennai.
Union Minister Piyush Goyal in his remarks said Tamil Nadu aspires to reach $1 trillion by 2030 with 18 per cent growth every year. This will drive the country’s people and industries, leading to new jobs, new work opportunities, and youngsters aspiring for big goals in life.
The Chennai Trade Centre, where the event is hosted, is a model of the partnership between the State government and the Centre. This spirit of collaboration, cooperation, and competition among states will drive economic growth and prosperity for the people of India, he said.
Number one
Tamil Nadu’s Industries Minister TRB Rajaa said the State, which is the second largest economy in India, is number one in many sectors. “We are the most industrialised state in India with over 45,000 factories, Tamil Nadu is a manufacturing powerhouse. We are number one in automobile and automobile component manufacturing. We are also number one in tyre manufacturing, and the country’s top electronics manufacturer contributing to over 30 per cent of India’s exports,” he said.
Last year, we did $5.6 billion of electronic exports, and this year, we have already crossed that number. Tamil Nadu is also the number one electric vehicle manufacturer in India producing nearly 70 per cent of all EV two-wheelers that are sold in India, and around 40 per cent of the EV four wheelers sold in the country.
“We are the country’s number one leather manufacturer and emerging as a world leader in the non-leather sector. We are number one in R&D, enabled by the fact that we produce the highest number of research scholars, especially women. Tamil Nadu is also number one in filing patents. This speaks volumes on the availability of talent pool,” he said.
The minister said nearly 43 per cent of all the women working in India are from Tamil Nadu.
Bhavish Agarwal, Founder of Ola Electric, said three years ago the company started to bring the EV revolution to India. Then, the company envisioned making India and Tamil Nadu a global EV hub. Today, the company has come a long way to make that vision a reality, he said.
“We were able to set up our factory - called the Future Factory - within eight months - starting the construction in February 2021 and completing it in October the same year, and setting a benchmark in the industry. This is possible only in India, and in Tamil Nadu,” he said.
“This is India’s decade and it is our destiny to make the country an economic superpower. We are committed to building a robust EV ecosystem,” he said.
Ola is building the largest EV hub in Tamil Nadu with a vision to set up manufacturing facilities including India’s first and world’s largest giga factories with a envisioned capacity of 100 giga watt at full capacity, he added.
Venu Srinivasan, Chairman Emeritus, TVS Motors, said the GIM is a landmark and flagship programme that has driven investment in Tamil Nadu, creating large-scale employment and meeting the aspirations of the people in the State. “Tamil Nadu is one of the best performing states in the country,” he said.
CII President R Dinesh said Tami Nadu has become the key industrial destination in the country. The government is rightly focussing on creation of jobs, he said.
Sajjan Jindal, the chairman of Indian steel-to-power conglomerate JSW Group said the ambitious target of Tamil Nadu will be well achieved due to the State’s robust policy framework; exceptionally skilled workforce and world-class infrastructure; and reliable and renewable power supply.
Across decades, there has been consistency in the governance and unwavering support for the industries, irrespective of changes in the political leadership. This is what I find to be the most unique trait of doing business in Tamil Nadu, he said.
