Invest in Bengal sans fear, militant trade unionism is matter of past, says CM

MUMBAI: Inviting industrialists to invest in Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said the focus of her government would be on industrial development for which packages would be drawn up and militant trade unionism was a matter of the past in the state. She stated that Bengal was now the ideal destination for investment.

While addressing the Young Presidents Organisation (YPO) here on Wednesday evening, she urged industrialists to “invest in Bengal without fear”.

Dispelling the doubt of the industrialists about the poor work culture in Bengal due to trade union activities which plugged the development of the state during the Left Front regime, the Chief Minister assured them that the industrial scenario in Bengal had completely changed over the years as militant trade unionism did not exist anymore. “We do not encourage strike and hartals in industries which was almost a daily affair in the Left regime

and it has not taken place since Trinamool Congress formed the government in 2011,” Banerjee said in the meeting.

She has also highlighted the initiatives taken up by her government to help industrialists and entrepreneurs in all sorts of ways if they want to invest in Bengal. Elaborating about the scope of investment in the state, she has highlighted the state’s GSDP that witnessed growth even during the Covid pandemic.

“Our state is number one in imparting social justice. Now our target is industry. More importance will be given to it now. Packages for the industry will come”, she said, adding that Bengal would be the new industrial destination

in the country.

The Chief Minister, who had announced making Bengal number one in industry, invited all to attend the forthcoming Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS), which will be held on April 21 and 22.

Banerjee also shared her political journey with the leading industrialists where she mentioned how Trinamool Congress emerged as “real Congress” in Bengal because Congress was not fighting against the Left.

While interacting with the entrepreneurs and industrialists in the meeting in the country’s financial capital, Banerjee stated that there were scopes to invest in sectors including leather, information technology, tourism, hosiery and food processing. She also stated about the state’s success in becoming number one in the MSME sector in the country and also informed the industrialists about the state’s recent policy of reducing the requirement of land to 5 acre to set up an industrial park.

She has also clearly stated that getting land to set up industry was not at all an issue in Bengal as a land bank had been maintained by her government.

Chief secretary HK Dwivedi, who is accompanying the Chief Minister in Mumbai, also detailed the state’s initiatives in terms of ensuring more investment.

This conference was attended by top industrialists from Kolkata including the chairman of RO-SG Group Sanjiv Goenka, Chairman of the Ambuja Neotia Group Harshavardhan Neotia and Luxmi Group MD Rudra Chatterjee. Goenka stated before the industrialists in the YPO meeting that his group has invested Rs 20,000 crore in Bengal without any issues and she is a chief minister with heart.