The South states contribute to one-four of India’s GDP that also runs the country. From greater economic progress, employment opportunities, good infrastructure, higher industrialisation, education and human development index to more progress and per capita GDP, the South does it all to run the country.
But, the Centre has always remained unjust to the region. All the Southern states combined contribute more than double to the Centre’s revenues than the Northern States. Development politics and the presence of regional parties in the South is also one of the reasons for such economic progress in the Southern part of India, compared to the Northern belt which is still getting its act together. According to economists, North Indian states get 2.5 times more than what the South gets despite contributing the most to India’s growth.
For instance: While Tamil Nadu gets 40 paise for every rupee it generates for the Centre, Uttar Pradesh gets Rs 1.8 per rupee. One astounding example that shows the injustice meted out to South is the allocation of funds for urban development in Delhi alone by the Centre which was Rs. 20,000 crore in 2016. Meanwhile, this is more than what Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Amaravati, Chennai and Kochi got. Despite all these South Indian cities being top job creators, they have not received the required boost from the Centre.
According to a study quoted by the Hindu Business Line: The simple average per capita income at 2011-12 prices for the five southern States of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana was about ₹1,18,070 in 2016-17. In comparison, the per capita income in Uttar Pradesh was about a third of that at ₹38,965 and in Bihar, a little over 20 per cent of the southern average, at ₹25,950. This indicates a stark difference.
While any government at the Centre promises and reiterates the idea of Cooperative Federalism time and again, it hardly implements it when it comes to the Southern States. So, does that mean that the leaders from all Southern States should form a collective and exert pressure on the Centre? May be. But, for starters, all the leaders should first unite and recognise it rather than get into political fights and mudslinging, to demand the South’s rightful share.
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