AIADMK chief flags low GST growth and warns of industrial shift in Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu's GST collections grew only 3% last month, far below the national average, prompting AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami to voice concern on Monday. In a social media post he highlighted that the state's inflation rate is higher than the all‑India figure and accused other states of diverting industrial projects, a scenario he likened to a scene in a feature film starring Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay. Palaniswami asked how GST could rise without industrial progress that creates jobs, lifts gross domestic product and boosts per‑capita income. He recalled that Guidance Tamil Nadu, the single‑window agency for investment promotion set up under former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, has been "ruined" by the current TVK‑led government. ## Context GST is a central tax that supplies a major share of state revenues; a slowdown in its growth can signal weakening economic activity. Higher inflation and loss of industrial projects can further dampen future tax collections in Tamil Nadu.