‘Biggest contributor to country’s development’: Amit Shah hails southern states

Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu said the Southern economy could reach $10 trillion by 2047 while Telangana Deputy CM Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said his state sought no special privilege but only its fair entitlement through the legal mechanisms already established with respect to Krishna waters.

(From left) Chief Ministers D K Shivakumar (Karnataka), N Chandrababu Naidu (Andhra Pradesh), C Joseph Vijay (Tamil Nadu) and V D Satheesan (Kerala) at the 31st Southern Zonal Council meeting in Chengalpattu, near Chennai, Thursday. (ANI)

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Shah, in his address, sought to underline that the southern region was key to the development of the country and had always contributed to each sector such as literature, Research and Development (R&D), space, IT, AI, industrial development and agriculture.

Shah said that the entire development journey of South India was based on three pillars — high literacy rate, trained manpower and technical expertise in the utilisation of deep seas, which had made South India “the biggest contributor to the country’s development.”

Shah said that the whole of India needed to learn from the south with regard to innovation and revenue generation. In addition to underlining Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day message — that what has not been achieved in the last seven decades, must be accomplished in the next five to seven years — Shah said that every state needed to contribute in this regard.

Home Minister Amit Shah at the Southern Zonal Council meet in Chengalpattu, Thursday. (ANI)

Reiterating that the southern states were “the main pillars of the country’s progress”, Shah said their progress depended on water. Whether it is agriculture, industry, healthy citizens or the environment, water is, he said, “the soul of this region in all these four areas.”

Observing that protecting the interests of one’s state was not wrong, he, however, said that if the process results in states being deprived of water for years, while it simply flows into the sea, “then no actual interest is being served.”

He said that linking major rivers, from the Brahmaputra to the Kaveri and Godavari, could ensure that India faces no water shortage for the next 100 years.

In this regard, Shah emphasised the need for the early resolution of pending water-related issues concerning southern states through joint meetings involving the ministries concerned, the Inter-State Council, and the respective states which, the MHA stated, the southern states agreed with through “mutual dialogue and constructive solutions.”

Regarding issues concerning the division of assets and liabilities between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, both states agreed to resolve these matters in consultation with the Ministry of Home Affairs, the MHA added.

Asking for special attention to malnutrition and stunted growth, Shah said it appeared to be snowballing into “a national problem”, underlining that the fight against the former was initiated by Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, which was eventually accepted across the country.

Kerala

CM Satheesan said Kerala wanted state-specific premiums to be fixed for Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (instead of a uniform national premium), the eligibility to be aligned with the National Food Security Act database, and the Central share to be revised to reflect the actual expenditure incurred on centrally-sponsored families. He also wanted auctioning of mineral blocks along Kerala coast to be put on hold.

Karnataka

Karnataka CM Shivakumar said the success of southern states in population control must not be allowed to diminish their political representation. He also urged the Centre to reconsider the recently passed Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026.

Tamil Nadu

CM Vijay conveyed the state’s concerns on delimitation and stressed that the existing freeze on the number of Lok Sabha seats should continue, a minister in his government said. On the Mullaperiyar Dam controversy, he asserted Tamil Nadu’s position regarding increasing the dam’s storage height.

Andhra Pradesh

Stating that the southern economy could reach $10 trillion by 2047, CM Naidu sought more cooperation among states in the region. He also urged the Centre to expedite resolution of bifurcation-related issues.

Telangana

On the issue of Krishna waters, Deputy CM Vikramarka said, “The State’s approach is that established adjudicatory mechanisms must be respected.” Telangana reiterated that it retains lower-riparian rights over surplus waters.

(With inputs from ENS in Thiruvananthapuram, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, and PTI)