Chennai: Chairman of Prime Minister’s economic advisory council S Mahendra Dev on Monday said contribution of Tamil Nadu for the growth of the nation was important as it was one of the fastest growing economies. He said achieving a ‘one trillion dollar economy’ was possible by 2033-34 if TN continues to register a 9% real growth every year.Dev was speaking at a seminar on ‘Tamil Nadu’s growth and employment agenda on the journey towards Viksit Bharat @2047’ held at Lok Bhavan. “Tamil Nadu should have a plan for 2047. They have fixed a $1.5 trillion economy as a target for 2036. The growth should not only be on per capita income, but also on aspects such as employment. The state’s contribution to achieve Viksit Bharat is important as it is one of the fastest-growing economies in the country,” Dev said.He said that sustaining a higher growth rate is important. “Earlier, Tamil Nadu maintained 10% average growth between 2005 and 2011 but it fell to around 6% between 2012-13 and 2022-23. Then in the past two years, the growth rate rose once again. In 2024-25, the state registered an 11% growth in real GDP. Estimates of 2025-26 show that the state is continuing to grow at 13-15% in nominal rates and 10-11% in real terms,” Dev said.Citing the study of renowned economist C Rangarajan and K R Shanmugm, Dev said that if TN continues to register a 9% real growth every year, the state would become a $1 trillion economy by 2033-34. “Achieving a $1.5 trillion economy will be possible after a few years,” he said.He added that the state has high youth unemployment — higher than the national average. “The youth unemployment rate in Tamil Nadu is 14% while the national average is 9.9%. This is because there are more educated youth in the state. In a state where there are less educated youth, the unemployment is low because they will run tea shops (for employment). But in Tamil Nadu, educated youth will wait for better jobs and hence the unemployment is high among youth in TN,” Dev said.Earlier, governor Rajendra Arlekar said TN should also witness good growth for India to grow. “We need a Viksit TN for a Viksit Bharat. We have to work towards it by forming a framework for development,” Arlekar said.
