Tamil Nadu launches CSR matchmaking portal and AI-led land-use data platform

Chennai

Tamil Nadu on Monday unveiled two digital platforms aimed at aligning private capital with government priorities and embedding data more deeply into long-term planning, signalling a push towards technology-driven development governance.

Udayanidhi Stalin, who is also ex-officio vice-chairman of the State Planning Commission, launched the Tamil Nadu Corporate Social Responsibility (TNCSR) web portal—branded Mission Inaippagam—and the TiNAI–Tamil Nadu Land Use Information System (TNLUIS) at the Secretariat.

The CSR portal, announced in the 2024–25 Budget, has been developed by the State Planning Commission with support from the United Nations Development Programme. Designed as a matchmaking interface, it seeks to align corporate social responsibility spending with the state’s development priorities by bringing government departments, companies and civil society organisations onto a single digital platform.

Officials said the objective is to move CSR activity away from fragmented, stand-alone projects towards coordinated interventions that are easier to plan, execute and monitor. By mapping CSR proposals against government-identified needs, the platform aims to improve targeting, reduce duplication and enable the sharing of best practices and innovation across sectors.

According to data from the Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs, nearly 80–85 per cent of CSR spending in Tamil Nadu is concentrated in Chennai and Coimbatore. A senior official in the planning department said the state was keen to ensure more equitable geographic distribution of funds and prevent CSR allocations from being confined to a narrow set of sectors. The portal will function as an advisory and awareness platform, guiding companies on Sustainable Development Goals while creating space for smaller departments and underserved regions. Tamil Nadu currently ranks fifth nationally in CSR spending, reflecting its large industrial base.

The second platform, TNLUIS, marks a parallel push to strengthen evidence-based policymaking in land and resource management. Funded at ₹1.5 crore under the Tamil Nadu Innovation Initiative, the portal has been developed by the Tamil Nadu Land Use Research Board, drawing on over five decades of land-use research and datasets from multiple government departments and institutions.

The system integrates geospatial technology with artificial intelligence-driven analytics, offering more than 50 analytical tools across nine thematic areas, including heat stress, urban expansion patterns, groundwater and surface-water availability, soil degradation and future land-use projections.

Describing it as a significant step towards data-led governance, a planning department official said TiNAI functions as an advanced digital-twin platform that integrates sectoral GIS datasets with an AI interface. The system is expected to support evidence-based policymaking across urban planning, climate resilience, water management and infrastructure development, while also aiding academic research and long-term planning.

J Jeyaranjan, Executive Vice-Chairman of the State Planning Commission; Pradeep Yadav, Additional Chief Secretary to the Deputy Chief Minister; Sajjansingh R Chavan, Secretary to Government, Planning and Development Department; and Sudha Ramen, Member Secretary (FAC) of the State Planning Commission, were present at the launch.