TN: A gift of history & geography, squandered by politics

Tamil Nadu’s progress: Beyond Dravidian rule

South India, especially Tamil Nadu (TN), is projected as a progressive, economically strong region, thanks mischievously to Dravidian rule since the late 1960s. The purpose of this article is to set the record straight.

Let’s be honest. The region’s relative success isn’t due to the performance of the Dravidian parties, surely not due to DMK in any measure. It is despite them.

The real credit goes to history, geography, and the resilience of its people.

Perhaps, ADMK can claim some credit, thanks to MGR; he was at least sincere to the cause of the poor, though ADMK, as a party, wasn’t above board when it came to high levels of corruption.

A legacy of natural and historical advantages

Long before independence, South India had inherent advantages.

Its long coastlines along the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal, and Indian Ocean gave it access to global maritime trade. Ports like Madurai, Musiri, Mamallapuram, and Masulipatnam were already buzzing centres of commerce, trading with Rome, Arabia, China, and Southeast Asia.

Unlike North India, which was repeatedly destabilized by foreign invasions, from Turks to Mughals, South India enjoyed relative political stability.

In fact, North India shielded South India substantially from the barbaric invaders, though unintentionally.

This allowed South India to preserve its culture, institutions, and economic continuity. So, South India owes a lot to North India, if at all.

Empires such as the Cholas, Cheras, Pandavas, Pallavas, and the Vijayanagar dynasty had robust administrative systems and vibrant trade networks. These laid a strong foundation for what would become a thriving society.

Colonial infrastructure: A double-edged windfall

The British made Madras (now Chennai) a key administrative and military hub. That gave the region early access to Western education, law, and governance.

Missionary schools played a major role in spreading education across castes, rural communities, and women, long before social justice became a political slogan.

Railways, ports, administrative training, and a functioning bureaucracy became part of the South’s foundation.

This is not to praise the British for what they gave us. But for foreign invasions, India would have very likely achieved much more on its own.

The unsung heroes: People, not politicians

Let’s not be fooled. The credit for South India’s progress goes to its history, geography and people, surely not its post-1960s governments.

At least the Congress rule under Kamaraj made some genuine contributions without large-scale and widespread corruption.

Some teachers who still work with sincerity, parents who make sacrifices, particularly those from poor and disadvantaged families, and their children who succeed through sheer grit are the real champions. But sadly, they are all exceptions, not the rule.

Most children today are being failed by a broken system. Multiple studies show that even middle school children in Tamil Nadu struggle to read primary school-level Tamil, let alone English. Similarly basic arithmetic is a challenge too.

And yet, politicians parade the success stories of a handful of poor children who crack the IAS as if that justifies the colossal failure of the education system. Most children get left behind, and no one talks about them.

Even worse, drug culture is spreading in schools, and it’s not just being ignored; it’s being tacitly or actively promoted by elements within Dravidian parties, particularly the DMK.

This is not just a failure; it’s a betrayal of the gullible people.

BJP’s missed opportunity

While Dravidian parties use empty symbolism and propaganda to cover up institutional decay, the BJP too has its significant blind spots.

Its obsession with promoting Hindi as the sole national and link language is not just counterproductive; it’s handing over rhetorical weapons to the Dravidian lobby on a silver platter.

India’s strength lies in its diversity, not in linguistic uniformity. Less than 50% of Indians speak Hindi.

Countries like Russia, Korea, or Japan can’t be used as examples; they are linguistically homogenous. India is not.

Our embrace of English has opened the global economy to millions of Indians. Undermining that in favour of Hindi will hurt the very inclusivity and progress that the BJP claims to promote.

Leaders like Annamalai understand this reality. Deep down, he knows that Tamil pride and Indian unity can co-exist.

But he is being held back, boxed into the party’s national narrative rather than being empowered as a genuine regional leader. Otherwise, the BJP would have squandered a great leader in the making.

BJP should make an unequivocal announcement in the parliament that English and Hindi will both be national and link languages for ever, and regional languages will dominate in their respective regions.

Then only Annamalai can deliver. BJP must trust him, not just use him.

There is no point in blaming only the people of Tamil Nadu when the BJP is equally to blame for its Hindi and North India-centric obsession.

Fresh ideas will win Tamil Nadu for the BJP, not just charismatic faces.

Will Tamil Nadu wake up?

Tamil Nadu started its journey with the wind at its back: history, geography, trade, colonial infrastructure, hardworking people, and social reform.

But that early momentum is now being squandered by politics that thrives on identity obsession, historical distortion, and glorified mediocrity.

North India, once ridiculed for lagging, is now beginning to catch up, thanks to development-focused governance, despite historical and geographical disadvantages. UP, MP, and Gujarat are examples.

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu risks becoming a museum of past glory and present stagnation.

The Dravidian parties will continue feeding us grandma stories to distract us. But remember: every election lost to Dravidian parties is another generation betrayed.

People of Tamil Nadu, wake up. Its failure is not by the politicians; it’s by us.

Note:
1. Text in Blue points to additional data on the topic.
2. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of PGurus.

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