Madurai as Tamil Nadu’s second capital? The jury’s still out

Tamil Nadu’s Minister for Revenue and Disaster Management RB Udhaya Kumar did surprise us all last week by demanding a second capital of Madurai for the state. “If Madurai is declared as the second capital, the southern districts will grow,” he was quoted as saying.

The minister has written to the CM Edappadi K. Palaniswami and Deputy CM O. Panneerselvam requesting to raise the status of the state’s cultural capital. Backing Udhaya is his colleague and Cooperation Minister Sellur K Raju. Both ministers are from Madurai.

Analysts are unclear about the motive behind the assertions of two ministers. The polls for the 243-member Assembly are due next year. And the most significant aspect of these polls would be that these will be fought in the absence of two rival stalwarts – Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi. So, who or which issue would be the centre of contention is still very hazy, given the grim COVID situation in the state.

In that context, many, including the main opposition DMK, say the two ministers have only sought to divert the attention of the people reeling under the impact of the deadly infection. But there are others who see some merit in the demand. They say Madurai is Tamil Nadu’s second biggest corporation and has the third largest population. The city is also an IT and education hub. Making Madurai the second capital, they say, would bring in massive investment and create thousands of jobs.

The critics of the Madurai move cite the Andhra Pradesh-Telangana example: Andhra’s first-time CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy is considering three ‘capitals’ — Visakhapatnam and Kurnool along with Amaravati. A dream project of former CM Chandrababu Naidu, Amaravati lost out after Naidu was ousted in the Assembly polls.

In a meeting with his Telangana counterpart K Chandrasekhar Rao, Reddy was cautioned about the agitation by farmers of Amaravati protesting against the move. The farmers had donated lands during the previous Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government led by N Chandrababu Naidu for the development of the capital city.

Analysts say as the rejuvenated DMK led by MK Stalin jumps into the fray, he would surely take on the government and its ministers for making “far-fetched” suggestions at a time when people’s lives are at stake and the administration has “nothing” to show off by way of its track record in combating the pandemic.