Tamil Nadu, Karnataka will be $1 trillion economies in 2 yrs, says Amitabh Kant: Report

Karnataka and Tamil Nadu will become $1 trillion economies over the next two years said former CEO of Niti Aayog and India's G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant, according to media report. He said that the southern states in the country's ambition to grow to a $5 trillion economy.

Amitabh Kant was speaking at India Today Conclave South 2023 in a session on the role of southern states in 'Make in India.’

He said that the states will be key drivers at the 'forefront to really drive India's growth.'

"Tamil Nadu and Karnataka will be $1 trillion economies in another two years. So, India's ambition to be a $5 trillion economy and then a $10 trillion economy, a lot of that will have to be driven by the southern states," said Kant.

South India contributes to around 30 per cent of the nation's GDP, and the per capita income of southern states is significantly higher than other parts of the country, said Amitabh Kant at the meeting.

He said that Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka, and Kerala are examples of states in the nation's southern region that have excelled in several areas.

“Tamil Nadu, for example, has excelled in manufacturing; it is the most outstanding skilled labour available in terms of cutting-edge sectors. Then there is Telangana, which has excelled in the pharmaceutical sector. Almost 35-40 per cent of India's pharma products come from there,” he said.

He said that Kerala has excelled in travel and tourism and has created a ‘brand for itself’, while Karnataka has been the services centre for India for almost 2-and-a-half decades and has driven India's services economy he added.

He said that how Andhra Pradesh, which has excelled in the manufacturing and pharmaceutical industries, is now positioned for significant growth in renewable and green energy areas.

"These states have truly demonstrated outstanding work and human development indices, so the quality of life and the social indicators in health, education, and nutrition have all been very high. Compared to the rest of India, they have been way ahead," he said.

"This really shows the work done over several years. Despite changes in government, the consistency of policy on social development has really yielded results in these states," Kant added.