Chamber welcomes shipbuilding policy, flags missing infra push for Madurai

Madurai: The Agri and All Trade Chamber has welcomed the announcement in the 2026-27 Tamil Nadu Interim Budget that a Tamil Nadu Shipbuilding Policy will be unveiled, expressing confidence that it would create new opportunities for MSMEs and start-ups.Chamber president S Rethinavelu said the policy, along with the ongoing establishment of a shipbuilding yard at Tuticorin with an investment of Rs 5,200 crore, will boost industrial growth. "With this progressive step, Tamil Nadu is poised for greater economic advancement, having already recorded double-digit growth," he said.
He also commended allocations for education and skill development, including Rs 48,534 crore for school education and Rs 8,505 crore for higher education, as well as the establishment of 38 new arts and science colleges. However, Rethinavelu said several long-pending infrastructure demands critical to Madurai's growth were not addressed. Describing Madurai as the gateway to south Tamil Nadu and a key cultural, tourism and medical tourism hub, he said the city "did not get what it deserves" and called for a comprehensive development package to ensure balanced regional growth. He noted the absence of announcements on the proposed multi-modal integrated bus terminal ("Bus Port") and a large convention and exhibition centre on the lines of those in Chennai and Coimbatore. He urged the government to address these demands during the budget debate. On the Agriculture Interim Budget, Rethinavelu said the allocation of Rs 47,248 crore represented only a Rs 1,500 crore increase from the previous year and lacked notable new schemes. Commenting on the Rs 374 crore earmarked for riverfront development along the Cauvery, Vaigai, Noyyal and Thamirabarani rivers, Tamil Dasan, convenor of the Madurai Nature Culture Foundation, said the funds would be better utilised to strengthen underground drainage systems and sewage treatment plants to prevent wastewater discharge into rivers, rather than on beautification works. M Rajan, founder of the Vaigai Nadhi Makkal Iyakkam, welcomed the Rs 498 crore allocation for desilting works in major river basins, including the Vaigai, but called for focused attention on desilting the Vaigai and its channels within Madurai city. "We have been requesting comprehensive desilting for years, but it has not been fully carried out," he said.