Chennai, Nov 2 (IANS) Tamil Nadu’s former Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu has expressed concern over the state’s economic performance, citing slower growth in Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue than neighbouring southern states and accusing the TVK government of allowing its growth momentum to weaken.
In a statement, Thennarasu said Tamil Nadu, which had ranked among India’s leading states in economic growth, was witnessing a sustained decline under the present administration, and urged the government to recognise the warning signs reflected in the revenue figures.
According to the figures cited by him, Tamil Nadu recorded GST revenue growth of just 3 per cent in October. In comparison, Andhra Pradesh registered 24 per cent growth, Kerala 23 per cent, Karnataka 18 per cent, and Telangana 14 per cent.
Thennarasu said the contrast between Tamil Nadu’s performance and the double-digit growth recorded by its neighbours raised concerns about the direction of the state’s economy. A state that had previously been at the forefront of economic expansion was now lagging, he alleged.
The former minister also drew a distinction between tax receipts linked to imported goods and revenue generated by production within Tamil Nadu.
He said taxes collected on certain major imported commodities had contributed to a marginal increase in overall revenue. However, he maintained that this increase should not obscure what he described as a decline in tax revenue from the state’s own production.
With his criticism centred on the underlying sources of revenue, rather than the overall collection figure alone, Thennarasu argued that weakening revenue from domestic production should be treated as an indicator of broader economic stagnation. He called on the government to take note of this trend while assessing the state’s economic health.
His statement placed the October GST figures at the centre of his criticism of the administration’s economic management, highlighting both the gap with neighbouring states and the composition of Tamil Nadu’s tax receipts. While the overall collection showed a slight increase, Thennarasu’s contention was that revenue supported by taxes on imports did not adequately reflect the condition of production within the state. He urged the government to view the figures as a warning about the economy’s underlying performance, reiterating his concern that Tamil Nadu was losing the position it had held among the country’s economically stronger states.
–IANS
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