DMK Minister for Industries, Investment Promotion, and Commerce, TRB Rajaa, has praised Devendra Fadnavis, the Chief Minister of Maharashtra from the BJP, as an “amazing gentleman” and expressed his deep respect for him while participating in the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
TN Industries Minister is pitching Tamil Nadu to investors at the World Economic Forum. He says he is happy as long as the investment stays in India. He mentioned, “If I am going to fight for an investment and Maharashtra is trying to pull it for Maharashtra, and I’m trying to pull it into Tamil Nadu, I don’t mind as long as it comes and stays in India. We are all fighting together for India. We don’t want to lose out to Vietnam, Indonesia, or Malaysia. That’s the whole story when we are aggressive.”
While sharing the stage with Fadnavis, Rajaa praised India’s growth story and called Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu the double engine. He said, “Honorable Chief Minister, it is an honor to share the stage with you, sir, the secretary, other chief ministers, and all officers here. Amazing people from all over India. It is a huge honor to be here today, especially at this opening. I’ll tell you what happened last year. Last year, we took Davos by storm, and it was just an India show. I think RIF thought that we need to put an end to this and bring them all together in one space, otherwise they are going to run out of space because it was India everywhere. So the world is seeing where India is growing, and it’s amazing to see the growth story we are experiencing together. The number one state, the number two state, and I’m not agreeing with you on that. I still think Mumbai is just beating us with numbers anyway. This right here is the double engine that’s running in India. This year, the double engine is powering India, it is a train of unstoppable growth story.”
Rajaa further praised Fadnavis in a statement, “I have great respect for him; he is a people’s leader, just like our leader MK Stalin. They are always on the ground, with the people and Chief Minister also had done that in Maharashtra. This goes as you said learning from each other.”
TN Industries Minister pitching Tamil Nadu to the investors at World Economic Forum #WEF2025 in 🇨🇭Davos. Says he’s happy as long as the investments stays in India’s as they compete. He’s sharing the stage with Maharashtra CM Mr. Devendra Fadnavis and other dignitaries!! pic.twitter.com/xzoIryXiM5
— Chennai Updates (@UpdatesChennai) January 21, 2025
In a bid to attract international investments, six Indian states—Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, and Kerala—are fiercely competing for attention at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, from 20 to 24 January 2025. The event, which draws global leaders and investors, provides these states a platform to showcase their investment potential.
Several prominent political figures, including CMs Devendra Fadnavis, Chandrababu Naidu, and Revanth Reddy, are set to promote their states at the prestigious venue. The WEF features two India pavilions, one representing the central government and the other dedicated to the six states, which will occupy separate floors in the second pavilion. Key leaders attending include Nara Lokesh and T.G. Bharath from Andhra Pradesh, T.R.B. Rajaa from Tamil Nadu, Suresh Kumar Khanna from Uttar Pradesh, and P. Rajeev from Kerala. Maharashtra and Telangana have ambitious goals, with Maharashtra aiming to sign MoUs worth ₹7 trillion and Telangana targeting ₹1 trillion in investment.
Among the competing states, Andhra Pradesh is sending the largest delegation of 20 members and has allocated around ₹15 crore for its pavilion, themed “Sunrise State Andhra Pradesh.” Chief Minister Naidu is expected to hold 19 high-level meetings, including discussions with heads of state. Additionally, Andhra Pradesh’s IT Minister Nara Lokesh will conduct 50 bilateral meetings, focusing on sectors like IT, petrochemicals, food and beverage, and pharmaceuticals.
Telangana is promoting its “Telangana Rising 2050” initiative, which aims for balanced development across the state. “Telangana will be divided into three distinct clusters to ensure growth beyond just Hyderabad,” explained Jayesh Ranjan, the state’s Special Chief Secretary for Industries, Commerce, and IT. Kerala’s delegation of six members will focus on sectors such as IT.
Tamil Nadu, on the other hand, is launching a global campaign under the slogan #BullishOnTN. During the four-day event, the Tamil Nadu delegation has scheduled 50 meetings with potential partners, aiming to foster deeper ties with global leaders. “Our commitment to policy continuity ensures that MoUs are executed effectively, with streamlined approvals and an ideal ecosystem for industries to thrive,” stated Arun Roy, Tamil Nadu’s Industries Secretary.
(With Inputs From Business Standard)
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