Overview
- Speaking at IIT Madras’ PanIIT Tech4Bharat 2026, R. N. Ravi said Tamil Nadu has slipped to sixth in attracting private investment as Hyderabad and Telangana intensify competition.
- He noted the state produces over 200,000 engineers and more than 6,500 PhDs annually and has the country’s highest higher-education enrolment, yet investor interest remains weak.
- He attributed the slide to “visible and invisible” costs of doing business and said ideas are incubated locally but companies scale elsewhere.
- He said MSMEs and startups are not expanding as expected, with existing firms also hesitant to grow within the state.
- Citing 2025 MoUs, he said about 25% went to Andhra Pradesh and 12% to Odisha, while Tamil Nadu’s share was below 5%, and he urged upgrades in state-run education quality.