'Tamil Nadu converted nearly 74% of MoUs into project in five years': DMK minister TRB Raaja

Industries Minister T R B Raaja said CM M K Stalin has been clear from day one that the focus should be only on the quality and locations of jobs, not on raw investment numbers alone.

Chennai: As many as 867 of the 1,179 MoUs signed after the DMK government assumed office in May 2021, have been realised into projects, achieving a whopping 73.53 per cent conversion rate, Tamil Nadu Industries Minister TRB Raaja said on Thursday.

Raaja, making a presentation on the investments that Tamil Nadu attracted from May 2021 to February 2026 at the first-ever Conversion Conclave, said Chief Minister MK Stalin has been clear from the beginning that the focus should also be on the quality and location of jobs, not on raw investment numbers alone.

The conclave, attended by industrialists and diplomats based out of Chennai, comes just two months before the state goes to polls, with the DMK set to make Tamil Nadu’s growth and investments it attracted in the last five years, as a key poll issue.

Of the 1,179 MoUs signed, 867 have been converted into actual investments with projects in advanced stage – of this, 35.11 per cent are already operational.

“The conversion rate is 73.53 per cent. The conversion of MoUs signed during the CM’s foreign visits to actual projects is 69.56 per cent, with 26.08 per cent of them already operational,” Raaja said. He added that no other state in India has had the courage or capability to hold a conversion conclave to prove the transformation of MoUs into realworld investments.

As far as the Global Investors Meet (GIM) 2024 is concerned, Raaja said that of the 631 MoUs signed, as many as 527 are in advanced stages, making the conversion stage 83.52 per cent.

At the conclave, Stalin laid the foundation stone for 71 projects, at an investment of Rs 36,968 crore that will provide jobs for 60,823 people, and inaugurated 52 projects worth Rs 31,934 crore, creating employment for 82,664 people. He also oversaw signing of an MoU with Bharat Biotech for establishing a biosciences park in Kanchipuram district at a cost of Rs 5,000 crores.

The minister also cited Union Government EPF data to back the state's claims, noting that 29.63 lakh jobs have been created in the state recently, with a total potential of 36.52 lakh jobs arising from current investments.

Stalin said the state's economic growth has significantly outpaced the national average with a growth rate of 11.19 per cent and spoke about the speed with which the MoUs have been converted into projects.

“Vinfast was inaugurated within 16 months of laying the foundation stone and same is with Tata Motors JLR. We take great care to convert MoUs into projects and we are also focussing on inclusive distributed growth,” the CM added.

The minister also cited Union Government EPF data to back the state's claims, noting that 29.63 lakh jobs have been created in the state recently, with a total potential of 36.52 lakh jobs arising from current investments.

In his speech, Stalin said the state's economic growth has significantly outpaced the national average with a growth rate of 11.19 per cent and spoke about the speed with which the MoUs have been converted into projects.

“Vinfast was inaugurated within 16 months of laying the foundation stone and same is with Tata Motors JLR. We take great care to convert MoUs into projects and we are also focussing on inclusive distributed growth,” Stalin added.