Data | Uneven progress: Stark inter-district disparities in Tamil Nadu Premium
The Hindu
While Tamil Nadu leads in most socio-economic indicators compared to other States, development is confined to certain pockets
Tamil Nadu is a standout performer along many socio-economic indicators compared to most States. It features among the three best States in terms of the share of women who ever attended school, a low infant mortality rate and a low share of stunted children. It leads the country in terms of gross enrolment ratio in higher education.
These numbers are part of the long-standing argument that the southern States generally perform better than other States, especially those in the north. While the argument holds merit, an analysis of district-level data shows that development is restricted to certain pockets of Tamil Nadu. The differences between advanced districts such as Chennai, Kanniyakumari and Coimbatore and relatively poor districts such as Ramanathapuram, Pudukkottai, Ariyalur, and Perambalur are vast in many of the socioeconomic indicators considered for this analysis.
This is the first story in a series of Data Points exploring inter-district disparities in southern States. In this edition, Tamil Nadu’s district-wise variations are analysed across eight indicators.
Chart 1 | The chart shows the share of households that used clean fuel (electricity, LPG/natural gas, biogas) for cooking in 2019-21.
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Close to 98% of households in Chennai used clean fuel compared to Pudukkottai’s 42%. The western districts — Coimbatore, Erode, Tirupur (>95% usage each) — were better off compared to many southern/eastern coastal districts such as Tiruvarur, Pudukkottai, and Nagapattinam (
Chart 2 | The chart shows the share of households that used an improved sanitation facility in 2019-21.