CHENNAI: Two southern states -- Tamil Nadu and Karnataka -- ranked in the top five in the industry sector, according to the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) 2023-24 released on Wednesday.
The survey was carried out to ascertain growth achieved by states in total number of factories, fixed capital, total persons employed, output and gross value added (GVA) categories. The field work for the survey was carried out from October 2024 to June 2025.
While Tamil Nadu excelled in all the above mentioned areas, Karnataka ranked in the top five in fixed capital outlay, total persons employed and Gross Value Addition (GVA).
Tamil Nadu topped in the number of factories with 15.43% of the total 260,061 factories located in the state. Andhra Pradesh ranked fifth in this category.
Tamil Nadu also topped in terms of the number of people employed in its factories, accounting for 15.24% of employment. Karnataka with 6.29% has been ranked fifth. According to the survey, there are 19.6 million persons employed in different industries including auto, pharma, base metals, chemicals, food processing and textiles. The survey also said 57 lakh new jobs were created in the sector between 2014-15 and 2023-24.
Tamil Nadu and Karnataka’s investments are also very high in the fixed capital category. Out of Rs 46.24 lakh crore investment in fixed capital, Tamil Nadu invests 8.09% and Karnataka 6.11%.
Tamil Nadu (10.26%) and Karnataka (7.47%) ranked third and fourth, respectively, in the GVA. The total GVA as per the survey is Rs 245.83 lakh crore.
Tamil Nadu's top ranking in the total number of factories and employment indicates the state’s ability to retain its workforce by providing jobs in different sectors like textile, automobile, electronics, among others.