TN makeover to kick-start growth
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami’s ongoing two-week tour to the UK, US and UAE signals his emergence as a leader in his own right. The overseas trip, the first made by a TN chief minister in many decades, is aimed at attracting foreign investments and helping kick-start new businesses in the state. This also comes close on the heels of the Global Investors Meet (GIM) held in Tamil Nadu in January this year.
Tamil Nadu has seen impressive growth over the years, backed by excellent social indicators and availability of skilled workforce. Earlier, investment came to the state, irrespective of whether its leaders travelled the world. But over the years, competition has increased. Telangana, for instance, which is only five years old, has adopted a single-minded focus on improving its ease of doing business. Global investment meets, regardless of how much of investment is finally realised, are now the norm. In this context, it may no longer be enough for a leader to wait for investment to come to their state.
While Palaniswamy’s tour is taking place amid Brexit and the signs of another global recession that will obviously affect investment opportunities, it could also be argued that he has taken a step in the right direction. He has set an example for leaders to work harder to raise the state’s profile. Criticism from the opposition DMK notwithstanding, Palaniswamy’s trip is probably necessary in the face of an economic slowdown that has affected Tamil Nadu’s automobile industry.
On the first day of his visit to London, Palaniswami signed three key partnership agreements in the health sector, showcasing Tamil Nadu as the medical capital of the country. The chief minister’s return will give us a broader understanding of his vision. But we can say that the AIADMK grass-roots worker, by deciding to step out of his comfort zone, has come of age.