Economy of South India - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Economic and demographic indicators
Parameter	South India	National
Per capita net state domestic product Net domestic product The net domestic product equals the gross domestic product minus depreciation on a country's capital goods.Net domestic product accounts for capital that has been consumed over the year in the form of housing, vehicle, or machinery deterioration... (SDP)
Percentage share in total FDI Foreign direct investment Foreign direct investment or foreign investment refers to the net inflows of investment to acquire a lasting management interest in an enterprise operating in an economy other than that of the investor.. It is the sum of equity capital,other long-term capital, and short-term capital as shown in... approved (1993–2003)	5.48	NA
Average annual growth of SDP	5.6	5.6
Percentage of population below poverty line	17.41	26.10
Percentage of urban population	32.82	27.81
Percentage of households with electricity	89.32	67.9
Literacy rate	72.87	61

The Economy of South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...

is largely agrarian, dependent on monsoon

Monsoon

Monsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...

s, as are most people in India. Some of the main crops cultivated in South India include rice

Rice

Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...

, sorghum

Sorghum

Sorghum is a genus of numerous species of grasses, one of which is raised for grain and many of which are used as fodder plants either cultivated or as part of pasture. The plants are cultivated in warmer climates worldwide. Species are native to tropical and subtropical regions of all continents...

, and ragi. South India was and still is the "promised land" as far as spice cultivation is concerned. Areca

Areca

Areca is a genus of about 50 species of single-stemmed palms in the family Arecaceae, found in humid tropical forests from Malaysia to the Solomon Islands. The generic name Areca is derived from a name used locally on the Malabar Coast of India....

, coffee

Coffee

Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...

, pepper

Black pepper

Black pepper is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit, known as a peppercorn when dried, is approximately in diameter, dark red when fully mature, and, like all drupes, contains a single seed...

, tapioca

Tapioca

Tapioca is a starch extracted Manihot esculenta. This species, native to the Amazon, Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, and most of the West Indies, is now cultivated worldwide and has many names, including cassava, manioc, aipim,...

, and cardamom

Cardamom

Cardamom refers to several plants of the genera Elettaria and Amomum in the ginger family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to India and Bhutan; they are recognised by their small seed pod, triangular in cross-section and spindle-shaped, with a thin papery outer shell and small black seeds...

are widely cultivated on the Nilgiri Hills and Kodagu

Kodagu

Kodagu , also known by its anglicised former name of Coorg, is an administrative district in Karnataka, India. It occupies an area of in the Western Ghats of southwestern Karnataka. As of 2001, the population was 548,561, 13.74% of which resided in the district's urban centres, making it the least...

. But frequent droughts in Northern Karnataka, Rayalaseema

Rayalaseema

Rayalaseema is a geographic region in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India. It includes the districts of Anantapur, Chittoor, Kadapa, Kurnool. These Telugu speaking districts were part of Madras Presidency until 1953 when Telugu speaking districts of Madras presidency were carved out to form...

and Telangana

Telangana

Telangana is a region in the present state of Andhra Pradesh, India and formerly was part of Hyderabad state which was ruled by Nizam. It is bordered with the states of Maharashtra on the north and north-west, Karnataka on the west, Chattisgarh on the north-east and Orissa to the east...

regions are leaving farmers debt-ridden, forcing them to sell their livestock and sometimes even to suicides. Scarcity of water has been a major problem for past few years in these regions along with cities like Hyderabad.

Education

Education

Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...

is highly valued in the south Indian community, and is seen as a gateway to a better livelihood. Many of the nation's most prominent physicists and mathematicians have been South Indians. Kerala

Kerala

or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....

, while possessing a literacy rate above 98% also has the highest unemployment rates in India. The population growth rate of these states is also beginning to decline.

Information Technology

Information technology

Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...

is a growing field in South India. Bangalore

Bangalore

Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...

is India's Information Technology hub, and is home to over 200 software companies. It is often referred to as the Silicon Valley of India

Silicon Valley of India

The Silicon Valley of India is a nickname of the Indian city of Bangalore. The name signifies Bangalore's status as a hub for information technology companies in India and is a comparative reference to the original Silicon Valley, based around Santa Clara Valley, California, a major hub for IT...

. Chennai

Chennai

Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...

and Hyderabad also known as HITEC City

HITEC City

HITEC City stands for Hyderabad Information Technology Engineering Consultancy City, a major technology township which is at the center of the information technology industry in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India....

are also key IT hubs along with Bangalore

Bangalore

Chennai houses the automobile manufacturing giants in the country. More than 65% of heavy vehicles produced in the country, such as cars, buses, lorries, trains and bicycles, are produced in Chennai, and it is referred to as the Detroit of Asia. The manufacturing units of BMW

BMW

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...

, Flextronics

Flextronics

Flextronics International Ltd. is an electronics manufacturing services provider that offers services to original equipment manufacturers . It also provides supporting supply chain services, including packaging and transportation throughout the world, as well as design and after-sales...

, Motorola

Motorola

Motorola, Inc. was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, which was eventually divided into two independent public companies, Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions on January 4, 2011, after losing $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009...

, Dell

Dell

Dell, Inc. is an American multinational information technology corporation based in 1 Dell Way, Round Rock, Texas, United States, that develops, sells and supports computers and related products and services. Bearing the name of its founder, Michael Dell, the company is one of the largest...

, TVS

TVS

-Television, Tele-Networking:* TVS Electronics, Computer peripherals manufacturing company from India* TVS Motors, motor manufacturing company from India* TVS, aka Television Sydney, free TV channel in Sydney, Australia...

, Mitsubishi

Mitsubishi

The Mitsubishi Group , Mitsubishi Group of Companies, or Mitsubishi Companies is a Japanese multinational conglomerate company that consists of a range of autonomous businesses which share the Mitsubishi brand, trademark and legacy...

, Ford

Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...

, Hyundai

Hyundai

Hyundai ) is a global conglomerate company, part of the Korean chaebol, that was founded in South Korea by one of the most famous businessmen in Korean history: Chung Ju-yung...

, Nokia

Nokia

Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki...

and Saint Gobain

Saint Gobain

Saint Gobain , also known as Goban, was an Irish Benedictine monk and spiritual student of Saint Fursey at Burgh Castle, Norfolk, England. Born in Ireland. Little else is known of Gobain except that he would have accompanied Fursey on his travel to France where they lived as hermits in the forest...

are some of the international players in Chennai. Chennai ranks first in producing heavy vehicles.

Madurai region

Madurai

Madurai is the third largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It served as the capital city of the Pandyan Kingdom. It is the administrative headquarters of Madurai District and is famous for its temples built by Pandyan and...

in Tamil Nadu is the source of nearly 35% of India's cotton production. Erode

Erode

Erode is a city, a municipal corporation and the headquarters of Erode district in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu.It is situated at the center of the South Indian Peninsula, about southwest from the state capital Chennai and on the banks of the rivers Cauvery and Bhavani, between 11° 19.5"...

and Tirupur

Tirupur

Tiruppur pronounced as is a textile city located on the banks of Noyyal River. It is also called Dollar city. It is the administrative headquarters of the Tiruppur district. It forms a part of the ancient Kongu Nadu region of South India, where its people were the first to establish territorial...

(Textile Valley of India) are the largest producer of cotton vests in India; it exports much of its production to South East Asian countries.

The city "Cotton City" Coimbatore

Coimbatore

Coimbatore , also known as Kovai , is the second largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a major commercial centre in Tamil Nadu and is known as the "Manchester of South India"....

and the Textile city Erode

Erode

. Erode is also known as the Turmeric City, since it holds the Asia's largest market for Turmeric.

Currently Guntur

Guntur

Guntur , is a city and a municipal corporation in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, located to the north and west of the Bay of Bengal. It is approximately to the south of the national capital, New Delhi and south east of state capital, Hyderabad. Guntur is the fourth largest city in Andhra...

district port NizamPatnam

Nizampatnam

Nizampatnam, also known as Petapolly , is a seaport town in Andhra Pradesh state of southern India. Nizampatnam is located in Guntur District, of which it is a mandal, in the delta of the Krishna River, which empties into the Bay of Bengal...

is being built up to implement this plan; the Czech

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

company Skoda

Škoda Works

Škoda Works was the largest industrial enterprise in Austro-Hungary and later in Czechoslovakia, one of its successor states. It was also one of the largest industrial conglomerates in Europe in the 20th century...

is investing Rs 10,000 crore

Crore

A crore is a unit in the Indian number system equal to ten million , or 100 lakhs. It is widely used in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan....

in the project.

Kerala

Kerala

or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....

is the richest among the south Indian states due to its vibrant service sector. Kerala also ranked as the best in Human Development Index and life standard of the people. The high standard of living of Kerala on a lower income level compared to western countries is known as "Kerala Phenomenon" or Kerala model

Kerala model

The Kerala model based on the development experience of the southern Indian state of Kerala, refers to the state's achievement of significant improvements in material conditions of living, reflected in indicators of social development that are comparable to that of many developed countries, even...

of development by experts.

There is also a large amount of disparity within Southern India. As IT companies have entered the economic arena, their high level of pay has raised the economic standing of young and educated professionals, while the poor has become less and less able to afford basic necessities. It is not uncommon to see the shacks of homeless people propped up against the buildings of large multinationals. The poor, unable to afford sending their children to school, remain in a cycle of life completely separated from that of this more affluent upper class.

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh's gross state domestic product

Gross domestic product

Gross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....

is the third largest in India. Agriculture has been the chief source of income for the state's economy. Two important rivers of India, the Godavari

Godavari River

The Godavari is a river that runs from western to southern India and is considered to be one of the big river basins in India. With a length of 1465 km, it is the second longest river in India , that runs within the country and also the longest river in South India...

and Krishna

Krishna

Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...

, flow through the state. Rice

Rice

, tobacco

Tobacco

Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

, cotton

Cotton

Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....

, mirchi, and sugarcane

Sugarcane

Sugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall...

are the local crops

Agriculture

Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...

. The state has also started to focus on the fields of information technology

Information technology

and biotechnology

Biotechnology

Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts. Biotechnology also utilizes these products for manufacturing purpose...

.

Hyderabad, the capital of Andhra Pradesh, is the fourth-largest cosmopolitan city in India, rich in culture, enduring history and industrial growth.

Hyderabad beat IT heavyweight Bangalore to bag the Fab City project, which will host India's first major silicon chip manufacturing facility.
It is due to the Governments Unique FDI Policies and the City Infrastructure.

The advent of information technology growth in India, the so-called "Blue Chip Revolution", has fostered the growth of Hyderabad's economy. The city is sometimes referred to as "Cyberabad" because of the large number of IT firms in the city. Andhra Pradesh has witnessed a major jump in software exports. Hyderabad's IT export revenue was Rs. 81,450,000,000, an increase of 62% from fiscal 2004. For Andhra, fiscal 2004 is particularly significant as the 62% growth in exports in fiscal 2005 was almost double the 37% it grew in 2003–2004. Other cities such as Vizag and Vijayawada

Vijayawada

Vijayawada is the third largest city in Andhra Pradesh, India, located on the banks of the Krishna River and bounded by the Indrakiladri Hills on the West and the Budameru River on the North. The city is located in the Krishna District, about from the state capital Hyderabad.Vijayawada literally...

have shown growth in IT exports on an annual basis. Vizag's contribution was Rs 700,000,000, while it was Rs 240,000,000 from Vijayawada.

State-owned APSRTC Bus Service entered Guinness World Record for owning the largest fleet of buses IN 1999.

AP is one of the largest producers of rice (considered the 'Rice bowl of India'), Chilly, turmeric in India.

The government has initiated the Rajiv-Internet Village. Its plan is to establish broadband network across the state by connecting Districts with 10 GB/s and up to Mandals with 1 GB/s and up to villages with 100 MB/s bandwidth within June 2007.

Several Indian research institutes and companies are located in Hyderabad such as: 'NIN - National institute of Nutrition', 'NGRI-National Geographical Research Institute', CCMB- Cente for Cellular & Molecular Biology, NRSA, ICRISAT, BHEL, BDL, DRDL, DRDO, ECIL, NGRS, NHI, TIFR, IICT.

Infosys Technologies have signed a MoU Andhra for the expansion of its presence in Hyderabad. It is planning to ramp up headcount to 25,000 with an added investment of Rs. 1250 crore

Karnataka

Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...

's net state domestic product

Net domestic product

The net domestic product equals the gross domestic product minus depreciation on a country's capital goods.Net domestic product accounts for capital that has been consumed over the year in the form of housing, vehicle, or machinery deterioration...

of $47 billion. Between 1992-2002, Karnataka attracted the fourth highest total Foreign Direct Investment

Foreign direct investment

Foreign direct investment or foreign investment refers to the net inflows of investment to acquire a lasting management interest in an enterprise operating in an economy other than that of the investor.. It is the sum of equity capital,other long-term capital, and short-term capital as shown in...

approvals in India, to the tune of Rs. 21,566 million

Million

One million or one thousand thousand, is the natural number following 999,999 and preceding 1,000,001. The word is derived from the early Italian millione , from mille, "thousand", plus the augmentative suffix -one.In scientific notation, it is written as or just 106...

.
Karnataka accounts for one third of India's Information technology exports. For the year
2006, the state is expected to bring in 37% of all IT revenues amounting to 37,000 crores ($8.2 billion). Nearly 35% of IT companies and 40% of bio-technology companies are based here.
Agriculture in Karnataka, like most of India, employs 80% of the population. Agriculture and its allied activities account for 49% of the state's income. The coastal plains of Karnataka, which include Uttara Kanara and Dakshina Kanara are cultivated with rice and sugarcane

Sugarcane

. Coffee

Coffee

and Tea

Tea

Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...

are also grown on the slopes of the Western Ghats in the district of Kodagu

Kodagu

, Chikmagalur and Hassan

Hassan district

Hassan is a district in Karnataka state, India. The district headquarters are Hassan.Hassan district was the seat of the Hoysala Empire which at its peak ruled large parts of south India from Belur as its early capital and Halebidu as its later capital during the period 1000 - 1334 CE...

. Karnataka produces 70% of India's coffee, of which about 50% is exported. The black soil in the northwest of the state, is hospitable for the growth of cotton

Cotton

, onion

Onion

The onion , also known as the bulb onion, common onion and garden onion, is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. The genus Allium also contains a number of other species variously referred to as onions and cultivated for food, such as the Japanese bunching onion The onion...

, course cereal

Cereal

Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...

, sunflower

Sunflower

Sunflower is an annual plant native to the Americas. It possesses a large inflorescence . The sunflower got its name from its huge, fiery blooms, whose shape and image is often used to depict the sun. The sunflower has a rough, hairy stem, broad, coarsely toothed, rough leaves and circular heads...

and peanut

Peanut

The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume or "bean" family , so it is not a nut. The peanut was probably first cultivated in the valleys of Peru. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing tall...

s.

The forests of the Malnad

Malnad

Malenadu is a region of Karnataka state in South India. Malenadu covers the western and eastern slopes of the Western Ghats, roughly 100 kilometers in width. Malenadu covers portions of the Shimoga, Chikmagalur, Uttara Kannada, Kodagu and Hassan districts....

region produce timber

Timber

Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...

, bamboo

Bamboo

Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....

and sandalwood

Sandalwood

Sandalwood is the name of a class of fragrant woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood in-situ, essential oils are also extracted...

. Karnataka is the only exporter of sandalwood in the country. Most of the world's sandalwood oil is produced in Karnataka.

All of India's gold

Gold

Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...

comes from the Kolar

Kolar

Kolara is a city in the South Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Kolar District. It is known for being one of the gold mining sites in India....

district of Karnataka. Karnataka is also rich in minerals which form the bulk of the raw materials for iron

Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...

and steel

Steel

Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...

industries in the state such as the one at Bhadravati. All of India's Iron ore comes from the
Malnad region.

The first power station in Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

was set up in Karnataka at Shivanasamudra in 1902 to produce hydroelectric

Hydroelectricity

Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...

power. Karnataka has 18 power stations which generate annually 16,513 million units. The state, however generates insufficient power and is forced to buy electricity from neighboring states.

Bangalore

Bangalore

, the capital of Karnataka, is home to several public sector undertaking aircraft companies, such as Hindustan Aeronautics Limited

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited based in Bangalore, India, is one of Asia's largest aerospace companies. Under the management of the Indian Ministry of Defence, this state-owned company is mainly involved in aerospace industry, which includes manufacturing and assembling aircraft, navigation and...

(HAL), HMT Hindustan Machine Tools , Bharat Heavy Electronics Limited (BHEL), National Aeronautics Limited and also Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). Bangalore, often referred to as the Silicon Valley of India has the largest number of international and local Information Technology and business process outsourcing (BPO)

Business process outsourcing

Business process outsourcing is a subset of outsourcing that involves the contracting of the operations and responsibilities of specific business functions to a third-party service provider. Originally, this was associated with manufacturing firms, such as Coca Cola that outsourced large segments...

companies in the country. A number of "IT Parks" have been set up by the Karnataka State Electronics Development Corporation Limited (KEONICS) including Bangalore's "Electronics City" and IT parks in Mysore, Mangalore

Mangalore

Mangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, and is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western...

and Hubli. Bangalore is also home to prestigious higher institutes of learning such as the Indian Institute of Science

Indian Institute of Science

Indian Institute of Science is a research institution of higher learning located in Bangalore, India. It was established in 1909.-History:After a chance meeting between Jamsetji N...

(IISc) and the Indian Institute of Management (IIM Bangalore).
One of the largest SEZ's in India, the ONGC SEZ is coming up at Mangalore, which is currently the second fastest growing non metro in the south following Coimbatore .The total investment in the ONGC SEZ is expected to cross 100,000 crores. At least three IT SEZ'S are coming up in Mangalore with companies like TCS,Wipro,,Lotus and others investing up to more than 3000 crores and creating 67,000 jobs in Mangalore over the next three years. in 2 or 3 years 11 shopping malls will be seen in Mangalore including the current 3 malls. Mangalore is also attracting investment in the Hospitality sectors with companies like the Maurya and Leela Group investing in the region. Udupi the temple city is contributing towards the higher education with large number of professional colleges in Manipal

Manipal

Manipal is a university town situated in the state of Karnataka in India. It is a suburb within Udupi city and is administered by Udupi City Municipality. It is located in the rocky hinterland of the Malabar Coast of south west India, about 8 km from the Arabian Sea...

. It is also the home of the famous software company Robosoft Technologies

Robosoft Technologies

Robosoft Technologies is an Indian information technology company which provides software product development services. Robosoft was founded in 1996 by Rohith Bhat, who established the company to develop software products for the Mac market...

Kerala

Kerala's

Kerala

or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....

economy is predominantly agrarian. In terms of industrialisation, Kerala lags behind many of the Indian states, but in terms of Human Development Index

Human Development Index

The Human Development Index is a composite statistic used to rank countries by level of "human development" and separate "very high human development", "high human development", "medium human development", and "low human development" countries...

and life standard of the people, Kerala is ahead of most other states in India. In fact, in certain development indices it is on a par with some of the developed countries. This peculiar paradox is often termed as the "Kerala Phenomenon

Kerala model

" or Kerala model

Kerala model

of development by experts.

Kerala follows a socialist welfare economy. Kerala's emphasis on social welfare also resulted in slow economic progress. There are few major industries in Kerala, but the per capita GDP

Gross domestic product

is higher than the national average. Remittances from Keralites working abroad, mainly in the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

, makes up a large share in Kerala's Gross Domestic Product.

However, today, the state is emerging as a future IT center of India, owing to its high internet connectivity (undersea cable landing points at Kochi), along with skilled labour. The government has established two IT Parks in the state are Technopark

Technopark Kerala

Technopark is a technology park in Thiruvananthapuram , Kerala, India. The park is dedicated to IT ventures. It is the first and largest technology park in India....

in Trivandrum and Infopark

InfoPark, Kochi

Infopark, Kochi is an information technology park situated in Kakkanad, a suburb of the city of Kochi, India. Established in 2004 by the Government of Kerala, Infopark is spread over a campus with more than of built up area, housing over 75 companies which employ around 15,000 professionals...

in Kochi. The Technopark

Technopark Kerala

Technopark is a technology park in Thiruvananthapuram , Kerala, India. The park is dedicated to IT ventures. It is the first and largest technology park in India....

at Trivandrum is the third largest IT park in Asia, and the largest in India. In addition to Inforpark in Kochi, an IT park named as Smartcity

SmartCity, Kochi

SmartCity Kochi is a planned IT township to be constructed in Kochi, Kerala in India. Smart City Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd. is a joint venture company formed to develop the Kochi Smart City project. Government of Kerala , TECOM Investments , a subsidiary of Dubai Holding are the main investors of...

by Dubai Internet City is under construction. Upon completion it is expected to create 90000 jobs and will be the largest IT Park in the country. Kochi is a safe natural harbour, and hence one of the most important ports of India. A new International Container Transshipment Terminal

International Container Transshipment Terminal, Kochi

The Kochi International Container Transhipment Terminal , locally known as the Vallarpadam Terminal , is a container trans-shipment facility which is part of the Kochi Port. It is the only trans-shipment port in India, and is situated in Kochi, in the state of Kerala.Being constructed in three...

is commissioned at Vallarpadam

Vallarpadam

Vallarpadam is one among the group of islands, that form part of the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. It is situated in the Vembanad_Lake known here as Lake of Kochi and has a population of over 10,000...

, which is expected to be a major transshipment port in India. In addition, the construction of the proposed mega Deep Water Container Transshipment Port at Vizhinjam near Trivandrum is expected to boost up the economy of the state.

Agriculture is still the most predominant economic activity in the state. Coconut

Coconut

The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...

, tea

Tea

and coffee

Coffee

are grown extensively, along with rubber

Rubber

Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined...

, cashew

Cashew

The cashew is a tree in the family Anacardiaceae. Its English name derives from the Portuguese name for the fruit of the cashew tree, caju, which in turn derives from the indigenous Tupi name, acajú. It is now widely grown in tropical climates for its cashew nuts and cashew apples.-Etymology:The...

and spices. Spices commonly cultivated in Kerala include pepper

Black pepper

, cardamom

Cardamom

, vanilla

Vanilla

Vanilla is a flavoring derived from orchids of the genus Vanilla, primarily from the Mexican species, Flat-leaved Vanilla . The word vanilla derives from the Spanish word "", little pod...

, cinnamon

Cinnamon

Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several trees from the genus Cinnamomum that is used in both sweet and savoury foods...

and nutmeg

Nutmeg

The nutmeg tree is any of several species of trees in genus Myristica. The most important commercial species is Myristica fragrans, an evergreen tree indigenous to the Banda Islands in the Moluccas of Indonesia...

. Much of Kerala's agriculture is in the form of home gardens

Home gardens

Home gardens, also known as forest gardens, are found in humid areas. They use inter-cropping to cultivate trees, crops, and livestock on the same land...

Unemployment is typically high in Kerala,though a recent study by centre for development studies in trivandrum have shown unemployment rate down to 9%.Traditional low-wage cottage industries such as the processing of coconut

Coconut

fiber and cashew or weaving employ most workers. More than a fourth of Kerala's workers provide service.

Kerala boasts an Indian Institute of Management at Kozhikode

Kozhikode

Kozhikode During Classical antiquity and the Middle Ages, Kozhikkode was dubbed the "City of Spices" for its role as the major trading point of eastern spices. Kozhikode was once the capital of an independent kingdom of the same name and later of the erstwhile Malabar District...

. One of the major ship building yards of India is in Kerala at Kochi. The Southern Naval Command of India has its headquarters in Kochi, and the Southern Air Command Head Quarters is in Thiruvananthapuram

Thiruvananthapuram

Thiruvananthapuram , formerly known as Trivandrum, is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala and the headquarters of the Thiruvananthapuram District. It is located on the west coast of India near the extreme south of the mainland...

(Trivandrum). There are three international airports in Kerala. They are Trivandrum, Cochin

Cochin International Airport

Cochin International Airport is an international airport located in Nedumbassery, a suburb on the outskirts of the city of Kochi about northeast of downtown Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. It is the busiest and largest airport in the state of Kerala...

and Kozhikode

Calicut International Airport

Calicut International Airport , also known as Karipur Airport, is an International Airport serving the city of Kozhikode , Kerala, India. The airport is located in Karipur, Malappuram district about from the Kozhikode Railway Station and from the city of Malappuram, with the closest railway...

. Cochin International Airport

Cochin International Airport

is the first International Airport in India that has been built with private participation, without the Central Government's stake.

Kerala is also one of the tourist hot-spots of India. It was proclaimed as one of the ten paradises on earth by the National Geographic traveller. The state has also won a large number of awards for its Ecotourism

Ecotourism

Ecotourism is a form of tourism visiting fragile, pristine, and usually protected areas, intended as a low impact and often small scale alternative to standard commercial tourism...

initiatives. Its tourism logo and slogan have global Superbrands

Superbrands

The Superbrands organization is an independent arbiter on branding. Its membership programmes pay tribute to the world's leading brands, as selected by experts and consumers. The organization also publishes a series of brand-focused books and publications...

status.

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...

's net state domestic product

Net domestic product

is the second largest in South India and is the fifth largest in India. It is second industrialised state in India next to Maharashtra. It ranks second in per capita income (2004–2005) among large states. It ranks third in foreign direct investment (FDI)

Foreign direct investment

approvals (cumulative 1991-2002) of Rs.225,826 million ($5,000 million), next only to Maharashtra (Rs.366,024 million ($8,100 million)) and Delhi (Rs.303,038 million ($6,700 million). The State's investment constitutes 9.12% of the total FDI in the country. According to the 2001 Census, Tamil Nadu has the highest level of urbanization (43.86%) in India, which accounts for 6% of India’s total population and 9.6% of the urban population. It has 10 corporation cities, namely Chennai

Chennai

, Madurai

Madurai

, Coimbatore

Coimbatore

Coimbatore , also known as Kovai , is the second largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a major commercial centre in Tamil Nadu and is known as the "Manchester of South India"....

, Trichy, Salem, Tirunelveli

Tirunelveli

Tirunelveli , also known as Nellai , and historically as Tinnevelly, is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the headquarters of the Tirunelveli District and the sixth biggest city in Tamil Nadu...

, Erode

Erode

, Tirupur

Tirupur

, Vellore

Vellore

Vellore It is considered one of the oldest cities in South India and lies on the banks of the Palar river on the site of Vellore Fort. The city lies between Chennai and Bangalore and the Temple towns of Thiruvannamalai and Tirupati...

and Thoothukudi

Thoothukudi

Thoothukudi , also known as Tuticorin, is a port city and a Municipal Corporation in Thoothukudi district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thoothukudi is the headquarters of Thoothukudi District....

.

Tamil Nadu has most number of engineering Institutions in India. Chennai is referred as the Gate way of South India. Chennai is the Second leading Software exporter in India. Companies such as Cognizant, Covansys, Xansa

Xansa

Xansa plc, trading as Xansa, was a British outsourcing and technology company, and was quoted on the London Stock Exchange until 17 October 2007 when the purchase of Xansa by Steria was completed and the company was delisted. Its headquarters were in Reading, Berkshire, England, and it had a major...

, Verizon, iSoft

ISOFT

iSOFT is an international supplier of software applications for the healthcare sector. Its products are used by an estimated 13,000 organisations in 40 countries for managing patient information and healthcare services. Its headquarters are in Sydney, Australia.iSOFT was founded in 1996 as a...

, Ascendas and many others are Chennai based companies in India. Infosys

Infosys

Infosys Limited, formerly Infosys Technologies Limited is a global technology services company headquartered in Bangalore, India. It is the second largest IT exporter in India with 133,560 employees as of March 2011. It has offices in 33 countries and development centers in India, China,...

has set up India's largest software development centre to house 25,000 software professionals at an estimated investment of Rs 1,250 crore

Crore

A crore is a unit in the Indian number system equal to ten million , or 100 lakhs. It is widely used in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan....

(Rs 12.5 billion

1000000000 (number)

1,000,000,000 is the natural number following 999,999,999 and preceding 1,000,000,001.In scientific notation, it is written as 109....

) in Chennai. Unlike other States in India the state has many software tier II cities such as *Salem, Coimbatore

Coimbatore

Coimbatore , also known as Kovai , is the second largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a major commercial centre in Tamil Nadu and is known as the "Manchester of South India"....

, Trichy, Madurai

Madurai

and Tirunelveli

Tirunelveli

. Chennai has become the most preferred BPO hub in India and South Asia. Chennai is sometimes referred to as the "Health Capital of India" or the "Banking Capital of India", having attracted investments from International corporations and the World Bank

World Bank

The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...

and it is called as Detroit of Asia.

Tamil Nadu has a network of about 110 industrial parks/estates that offer developed plots with supporting infrastructure. Also, the Government is promoting other industrial parks like Rubber Park, Apparel Parks, Floriculture Park, TICEL Park for Biotechnology, Siruseri IT Park, Agro Export Zones among others.

The heavy engineering manufacturing companies are centered around the suburbs of Chennai. Chennai boasts presence of global car manufacturing giants like Ford

Ford Motor Company

, Hyundai

Hyundai

Hyundai ) is a global conglomerate company, part of the Korean chaebol, that was founded in South Korea by one of the most famous businessmen in Korean history: Chung Ju-yung...

, BMW

BMW

Mitsubishi

Komatsu

orKomatsu is a multinational corporation that manufactures construction, mining, and military equipment, Industrial equipments such as press machines, lasers, and thermoelectric generators.Its headquarters is at 2-3-6, Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo, Japan...

now Nissan, and Renault

Renault

Renault S.A. is a French automaker producing cars, vans, and in the past, autorail vehicles, trucks, tractors, vans and also buses/coaches. Its alliance with Nissan makes it the world's third largest automaker...

as well as home grown companies like MRF

Madras Rubber Factory

Madras Rubber Factory, popularly known as MRF, is a major tyre manufacturing company located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.The name was later changed as "Manorama Rubber Factory". MRF is mainly involved in making vehicle tyres. It is India's largest tyre manufacturing company, and among the dozen...

, TI Cycles of India

TI Cycles of India

TI Cycles of India is a bicycle manufacturer based in India. Established in 1949 by the Murugappa Group and Sir Ivan Stedeford of Tube Investments Group in UK, TI Cycles is the maker of brands like Hercules, BSA and Philips cycles. It has manufacturing plants at Ambattur near Chennai, Nasik in...

, Ashok Leyland

Ashok Leyland

Ashok Leyland is a commercial vehicle manufacturing company based in Chennai, India. Founded in 1948, the company is one of India's leading manufacturers of commercial vehicles, such as trucks and buses, as well as emergency and military vehicles. Operating six plants, Ashok Leyland also makes...

TVS

and Mahindra and Mahindra. Chennai is also home to one of the Indian Institutes of Technology

Indian Institutes of Technology

The Indian Institutes of Technology are a group of autonomous engineering and technology-oriented institutes of higher education. The IITs are governed by the Institutes of Technology Act, 1961 which has declared them as “institutions of national importance”, and lays down their powers, duties,...

, IIT Madras.The Koyambedu Bus Stand(Asia's largest bus stand) operated by CMDA is the first bus stand in India to get (The Global Positioning System) which will use sensors to track vehicles on the move.

Kalpakkam

Kalpakkam

Kalpakkam is a small town in Tamil Nadu, India, situated on the Coromandel Coast 70 kilometres south of Chennai. A conglomerate of two villages and a DAE township, it is about 55 km from Thiruvanmiyur....

nuclear power plant, Neyveli Lignite Corporation

Neyveli Lignite Corporation

Neyveli Lignite Corporation Limited is a government-owned lignite mining and power generating company in India. NLC operates the largest open-pit lignite mines in India, presently mining 24 MT of lignite and has an installed capacity of 2490 MW of electricity per year. It also supplies a large...

, and the Narimanam natural gas plants provide sources of fuel and energy for the nation. 55% of electricity

Electricity

Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...

from wind power

Wind power

Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, windmills for mechanical power, windpumps for water pumping or drainage, or sails to propel ships....

produced in India from wind mills comes from Tamil Nadu. The Kalpakkam Mini Reactor(Kamini) is the only U-233fueled operating reactor in the world. Coimbatore

Coimbatore

Coimbatore , also known as Kovai , is the second largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a major commercial centre in Tamil Nadu and is known as the "Manchester of South India"....

is known for its textile factories, engineering firms, automobile parts manufacturers, health care facilities, educational institutions, and pleasant weather. Coimbatore is called as Manchester of South India. Now, most of the Indian Software companies have started their development centres in Coimbatore. 76% of India's total textile market is from Erode

Erode

(Tex-City or Loom-City of India) and 56% of knitwear exports come from Tirupur

Tirupur

. The town of Sivakasi

Sivakasi

Sivakasi is an active town and a municipality in Virudhunagar District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the capital of India’s firecracker industry with about 8,000 factories, big and small, producing 90 percent of the total fireworks output.It is also known as "kutti japan" meaning "small...

is the leader for Printing, Fireworks, Safety matches Production in India. It contributes to 80% of India's total Safety Matches Production ,90% of India's Total Fireworks Production and 60% of India's Total Offset Printing Solutions and ranks as one of the highest Tax payer towns in India. Tamil Nadu is leading producer of kambu, cholam, ground nut, oil seeds and sugarcane in India.

Biovalleys in Tamil Nadu include Biotechnology Incubator Park Near Chennai, Women's Biotechnology Park Kelambakkam, Medicinal Plants Biotechnology Park, Madurai, Marine Biotechnology Park, Madapam

Madapam

Madapam is a village and panchayat in Narasannapeta mandal in Srikakulam district, Andhra Pradesh, India.Vamsadhara paper mill is located at village Madapam.Balivada Kantha Rao, famous Telugu writer of short stories and playwright is born in this village...

and Bioinformatics and Genomics Centre (BGC), Chennai

External links

Salem Development Works-Discussion Forum

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Andhra Pradesh

Karnataka

Kerala

Tamil Nadu

See also

External links