“With the advent of Artificial Intelligence and automation we are starting to see a change in the nature of white-collar work which is reflected through the number of start-ups registered quadrupling from under 3,000 to 12,000 in the last four years,” said Minister for Information Technology and Digital Services Palanivel Thiaga Rajan.
Speaking at the inauguration of the 8th edition of Connect Madurai 2025 organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here on Friday, he said, “The amount of investment in them has gone up till seven billion dollars and the valuation of them has increased up till 30 billion dollars.”
In the current fragmented world due to various factors like hyper globalisation, more regional and bilateral trade, domestic market and its application was a huge asset, he noted.
“In a brief reflection of the place where the expo is organised we could understand its glorious past which is the cradle of civilisation. Through the excavations we conduct every year in Keeladi, we find many amazing things about our own culture, engineering, art, language, among others,” he observed.
But, over the years, though Madurai has not kept pace with its own past, recent organisations like CII, Yi (Young Indians), women forums, having taken up the job of bringing together talents and resources were very encouraging for the city’s development, Mr. Palanivel Thiaga Rajan noted.
Reading through the various investment projects and proposals, it could be said that there was a lot of headroom for more investments and implementations. “Even though we have not kept up the pace, we as a government have done a decent job. Through firms like HCL and other international companies in Madurai, we have done an excellent work,” he added.
Recalling an agreement between a polytechnic college in his constituency and ‘Forge’ company under Tamil Nadu Innovation Initiatives (TANII) when he was the Minister of Planning and Development, Mr. Palanivel Thiaga Rajan noted, “It is more of a frustration than pride, as the initiative, which was announced three years ago and was implemented two years ago, is being realised only now.”
Jagdeep Singh Deo, Deputy Chief Minster, Penang, Malaysia, said that his place, which was producing 7.5% of the semi-conductors used in the world, would provide a conducive environment for industries and companies.
He welcomed the Indian government and companies for workers’ training programme which, he said, would enable them to get skilled for the various industrial needs.
Rajesh Kumar Pathak, Secretary, Technology Development Board, Ministry of Science and Technology, delivering special address, said that it was a great opportunity for them to work together with CII in bringing varied and plenty of technological innovations to the people of Tamil Nadu.
Ashwin Desai, Chairman, CII Madurai Zone, said the eighth edition of the expo in Madurai was a special one for the entire team as it has featured some of the unique products and companies from across the State and country.
Hari Thiagarajan, former Chairman of CII Tamil Nadu, who delivered the special address, said it was an honour to be part of the team which had attempted to organise something very important for the current time.
S.M. Manikandan, Chairman, CII Madurai IT/ITES and Electronics Taskforce, delivered the theme address.
Published – November 28, 2025 08:49 pm IST
