Chennai, Dec 17 (PTI) Tamil Nadu minister Thangam Thennarasu on Wednesday accused the Union government of shifting the financial burden onto states with the changes in a proposed new rural employment initiative seen as a replacement to the existing MGNREGA.

Addressing reporters here, the state Finance minister said Tamil Nadu's Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) has risen from Rs 26.88 lakh crore in 2023-24 to Rs 31.11 lakh crore in 2024-25, reflecting a growth rate of 16 per cent.

Targeting the Centre, he said the state government has pointed out many times that the former was continuously reducing its contribution in various schemes.

"The contribution of the Central government is reducing… now if they put it as 60 per cent state government, 40 per cent Centre, our financial burden increases," Thennarasu said, replying to a query on Centre's Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Aajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025, (VB-G RAM G), apparently seeking to replace the UPA era MGNREGA.

The opposition parties, including the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu have expressed concern over replacing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

Calling Tamil Nadu's GSDP growth a "very significant, special peak", Thennarasu said the government was working towards the massive goal of reaching a USD 1 trn economy by 2030, which was possible due to the new industrial policies of the "Dravidian Model government" led by Chief Minister M K Stalin.

Thennarasu also said high growth had been sustained for three consecutive years, citing real growth rates, including the 13.34 per cent in 2023-24.

He highlighted the role of industry, stating that in four years the value added by manufacturing had doubled from Rs 1.46 lakh crore.

Tamil Nadu had "achieved a very large progress in the manufacturing sector today", backed by over 40,000 factories providing jobs to around 27.7 lakh people.

The minister noted that the construction and infrastructure sectors contributed 15.93 per cent to growth in 2023-24 and 11 per cent in 2024-25, while services accounted for about 53 per cent of Gross Value Added and registered real growth of 11.3 per cent in 2024-25.

Stressing that exports were crucial to the USD 1 trn target, he said investment promotion drives led by the chief minister had yielded 1,016 MoUs worth Rs 11.40 lakh crore, promising around 34.85 lakh direct and indirect jobs.

In electronics exports, he said shipments had risen from USD 1.86 bn in 2021-22 to USD 14.65 bn in 2024-25, adding that exports had "increased approximately sevenfold in three years".

Linking growth with welfare, Thennarasu cited flagship schemes such as the monthly honorarium of Rs 1,000 to women as examples of how development indices were being improved.

He pointed out that Tamil Nadu's Gross Enrolment Ratio in higher education stood at 47 per cent compared to the all-India average of 28.4 per cent.

On fiscal management, the minister said the government had kept the debt-to-GSDP ratio around 26 per cent in 2024-25, down from 27 per cent in 2021-22, and said it would be contained within three per cent of GSDP by 2025-26.

Rejecting criticism that Tamil Nadu was leading in borrowings, he said, "we are keeping the fiscal deficit within three per cent… we are borrowing only within the limits recommended by the Finance Commission." PTI JR JR SA

Union changes to rural employment funding shift fiscal burden to states under proposed VB-GRAM-G replacement. Proposed replacement of MGNREGA by the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Aajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025 would reduce central financing and impose a larger share of rural employment funding on states, with a 60% state-40% central split, thereby shifting fiscal burden to state governments.