TN Rising event in Madurai bags investment, jobs

MADURAI: In a statement event that amplified the DMK’s and its government’s development vs communalism politics narrative, which coincided with the row over lighting the lamp at Deepathoon (a stone pillar) atop Thiruparankundram hill, Chief Minister MK Stalin launched the fourth edition of TN Rising conclave, where the government inked deals worth several thousand crores with industries, released a new policy on toy manufacturing, and kick started works on a new industrial park, in Madurai on Sunday.

In all, 91 MoUs were signed during the conclave, together entailing an investment of Rs 36,660 crore and have the potential to generate 56,766 jobs.

The big ticket ones were with Reliance Industries (Rs 11,760 crore investment, 7,000 jobs) to establish integrated bio-energy plants; SFO Technologies (Rs 2,270 crore, 5,500 jobs) to set up PCB and electronic components manufacturing unit in Theni; and Pei Hai Group, Taiwanese non-leather footwear maker (Rs 720 crore investment, 15,000 jobs) to establish a manufacturing facility at the upcoming Sipcot Melur Industrial Park.

After coming to power in 2021, his government devised new strategies to restart Tamil Nadu’s economy after the slump it faced during the previous AIADMK regime, Stalin said, adding that the efforts paid off in the form of investments from various countries, including the US, Germany, the UK, Spain, the UAE, Singapore, and Japan.

“Under this Dravidian model regime, 34 lakh jobs were created through investment projects worth Rs 11,84,00,000. About 80 per cent of MoUs have been realised. No other state except Tamil Nadu has created such an output. Our goal is not just to sign MoUs on investment projects, but to ensure that jobs materialise," said the Chief Minister.

Noting that investments won’t come just because the Chief Minister sought them, Stalin said it is based on factors such as industrial policy, availability of human resources, infrastructure, administrative skill and sustainability criteria. “Investors prefer Tamil Nadu to start new ventures after considering all these parameters,” he said.