Should Tamil Nadu get a second capital? Is capital city Chennai getting congested? The Madurai West district AIADMK has resolved that temple city Madurai should be made second capital of Tamil Nadu and has asked Chief Minister Edappadi Palanisami to decide on the same. What is of significance is that the Revenue Minister of the state, RB Udayakumar, was presiding over the meeting that passed this resolution.
The resolution says that a state like Gujarat has two capitals and Andhra Pradesh is set to have three capitals. It also reminded that countries like South Africa too have two capitals.
Two important ministers in the cabinet- RB Udayakumar, and Co-operation Minister Sellur K Raju, both from Madurai- have endorsed the resolution.
“If Madurai is declared as the second capital, the southern districts will grow, this will provide opportunities for economic growth, industrial development and growth in employment,” Udayakumar said.
The resolution also points out the facilities already available in Madurai - the Madras High Court Branch in Madurai, the international airport, very good state highway infrastructure, upcoming AIIMS hospital and its proximity to the Thoothukudi port that lies 150 kilometers away.
Sellur K Raju meanwhile said that Chennai might be the state capital but Madurai continues to be the capital for politics. “It was MGR’s wish to make Madurai the second capital. It was for this reason that the World Tamil Conference was held here, Jayalalithaa often made her politics related decisions in Madurai. The Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister must therefore do the needful to make Madurai the second capital. Developmental plans must be made keeping Madurai in focus,” he said.
It is to be noted that MG Ramachandran, the former Chief Minister of the state had in 1981 endorsed Tiruchirapalli or Trichy to be made the capital of Tamil Nadu. Citing drought and lack of water resources in Chennai, MGR had advocated for the change. This had received huge criticism with DMK chief Karunuanidhi saying that MGR had no real intention of shifting the capital, but was merely using it as a diversionary tactic. Read this article.
