Tamil Nadu Tourism

Out of the states in India, Tamil Nadu ranks fifth in terms of the size of its economy. Tamil Nadu is also the most urbanized area in India. The economy of Tamil Nadu is unique in the sense that it has a network of over 100 industrial parks which are offer developed plots to those wishing to start new businesses. The state is also successful in spreading out the economy, unlike many states in India where all the economic resources are concentrated in one area. Tamil Nadu has always had an economy centered around agriculture, and today leads India in agricultural production. Water from rivers such as the Kaveri, Tamaraparani and the Vaigai, as well as the monsoons provide the water that is needed to sustain the industry. Tamil Nadu leads India in production of sugar cane, corn, oil, and rye and is second in rice production.

Economy and Investing in Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is full of windmills which supply India with more than half of it’s wind-created electricity. The government of Tamil Nadu runs a large company compromised of a paper mill and a watch manufacturer. This company, which sells watches under the name Titan, is the sixth largest manufacturer of watches in the world.

Tamil Nadu Economy and Investing
The city of Tirupur is the largest garment exporter in India and is sometimes referred to as the “Textile Valley of India.” The nearby town of Karur produces over three hundred million dollars in home linens such as bed sheets and tablecloths. Several cities in Tamil Nadu are known for their handloom sarees. These are sold throughout India.

The city of Chennai is nicknamed the “Detroit of Asia” because it is a large manufacturer of automobiles. Hyundai, Ford, BMW and Mitsubishi cars are all manufactured here. Also manufactured in Chennai are tanks, railway cars and tractors.

Tamil Nadu produces its own electricity and relies heavily on wind power. They actually produce more electricity they can use, and are one of the few states in India who is able to sell electricity to other nearby states.

Tamil Nadu also has a large cement industry, a bus building industry that supplies most of the buses used in south India, and has started working in electronics manufacturing as well.

Although Tamil Nadu has a number of excellent industries, the individual purchasing power of its households is less than other states in India. There is a large amount of poverty due to relatively low wages being paid to workers. There are also less affluent people in Tamil Nadu compared to other Indian states. Unfortunately, Tamil Nadu also has a higher cost of living than many other states in India which causes a double burden on people in the lower income levels. Tamil Nadu also has a high unemployment rate.

There is some belief that the government of India discriminates against the state of Tamil Nadu because it is a non-Hindu state. Some believe that several billion rupees (the currency used in India) of wealth belonging to Tamil Nadu is transferred to Hindu states.

The textile industry plays a significant role in the Indian economy by providing direct employment to an estimated 35 million people, and thereby contributing 4% of GDP and 35% of Gross Export Earnings. The textile sector contributes to 14% of the manufacturing sector. The city of Tirupur (Coimbatore district), in Tamil Nadu is the largest garment exporter in India and sometimes referred to as Textile valley of India. In 2004, the export turnover from the town was more than Rs.50,000 million ($1,100 million). Some 7,000 garment units in the town provides employment opportunity to 1 million people. 56% of India’s total knitwear exports come from Tirupur. The Export Import Policy of 2002-2007 acknowledges Tirupur for its contribution to the export efforts. Next to Tirupur, the town of Karur generates around $300 million a year in foreign exchange through home textile exports such as bed linens, kitchen linens, toilet linens, table linens and wall hangings. Madurai and Kanchipuram is very famous for handloom sarees. This handloom sarees are on sale all over India. Tamilnadu, Karnataka, and Kerala are the main states for wholesale sarees. This sarees manufacturing raw materials are purchased from Salem and Coimbatore.

Electronics manufacturing is a growing industry in Tamil Nadu. Companies like Nokia, Flextronics, Motorola, Foxconn and Dell have chosen Chennai as their South Asian manufacturing hub. Products manufactured include circuit boards and cellular phone handsets.Ericsson also has a Research and Development facility in Chennai.

The town of Sivakasi is a leader in the areas of printing, fireworks, and safety matches. It was fondly called as Kutty Japan or “little Japan” by Jawaharlal Nehru. It contributes to 80% of India’s production of safety matches as well as 90% of India’s total fireworks production. Sivakasi provides over 60% of India’s total offset printing solutions and ranks as one of the highest taxpaying towns in India. Sivakasi also is a 100% employed town, putting it in the company of very few towns in India.

Knowledge Process Outsourcing:
Chennai is also the preferred destination for companies outsourcing their high-end knowledge intensive operations. Testimony to this is the presence of major market research companies such as Frost & Sullivan and equity research companies such as Irevna in Chennai. This is the next high growth area that Chennai is witnessing.