‘Rising’ Tamil Nadu outpaces peers with 16% growth rate, says RBI data
Ranks fourth in per capita income; Minister credits welfare schemes for top performance
CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu registered the highest Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) growth among major states in 2024-25, expanding by nearly 16 per cent over the previous year, outpacing Maharashtra and Gujarat, according to the latest Reserve Bank of India report.
The report, ‘Handbook of Statistics on Indian States, 2024-25’ released by the RBI revealed that Tamil Nadu also posted a sharp rise in per capita income, strengthening its position as one of the country’s high-income economies.
The GSDP at current prices increased from Rs 26.88 lakh crore in 2023-24 to Rs 31.18 lakh crore in 2024-25, marking a year-on-year rise of 15.98 per cent. This continues a consistent upward trend over the past three years, with Tamil Nadu recording growth of 14.47 per cent between 2021-22 and 2022-23, and 13.34 per cent between 2022-23 and 2023-24.
Among the large States, Karnataka registered growth of 12.77 per cent in 2024-25, while Maharashtra grew by 11.70 per cent. Uttar Pradesh expanded by 12.69 per cent. Gujarat’s latest GSDP estimates were not published in the current release.
Tamil Nadu’s per capita income also rose sharply to Rs 3,61,619 in 2024-25 from Rs 3,13,329 in 2023-24, an increase of 15.41 per cent. The State now ranks fourth nationally in per capita income among units with available data, behind Delhi, Telangana and Karnataka. Karnataka recorded Rs 3,80,906 and Telangana Rs 3,87,623.
The State’s per capita income has shown steady improvement across all three years under review: 13.59 per cent growth in 2022-23, 13.83 per cent in 2023-24 and 15.41 per cent in 2024-25. The trend mirrors the acceleration in overall economic expansion during the same period.
Maharashtra, despite having the largest GSDP in absolute terms, reported slower growth compared with Tamil Nadu. Karnataka saw consistent double-digit performance but remained behind Tamil Nadu in 2024-25 in terms of the pace of expansion. Uttar Pradesh registered particularly strong growth between 2022-23 and 2023-24 but moderated in 2024-25.
Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu on Saturday said Tamil Nadu securing the highest GSDP growth among major States was a moment of great pride, while Industries Minister TRB Rajaa said, "This growth is happening in parallel with some of the largest welfare schemes the State has ever rolled out. You called them 'freebies', we said they are economic enablers. This is proof."