West Bengal woos industry from state

Vijay C Roy

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Chandigarh, November 3

After Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, West Bengal is all set to woo the industry from Punjab. Ahead of “Bengal Global Business Summit, 2023”, scheduled to be held on November 21-22 in Kolkata this year, the state government, as a prelude to the summit, organised an interactive session with industry stakeholders in Mohali to explore trade and investment opportunities in the state.

Freight corridor coming up

• The Amritsar-Kolkata freight corridor is coming up and is in the final stages, says Bengal CM Mamata’s Adviser
• It will connect two states with longest freight corridor in the country to move goods in a seamless manner

Highlighting the significant opportunities for businesses in Punjab to expand through engagements with Bengal, Amit Mitra, Principal Chief Adviser to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the Finance Department, West Bengal, said, “The Amritsar to Kolkata freight corridor is coming up and is in the final stages. It will connect two states with longest freight corridor in the country to move goods in a seamless manner. Also, the GDP of Bengal in 2023-24 will be Rs 17.5 lakh crore to Punjab’s GDP of near about Rs 7 lakh crore; so there is an immense opportunity for businesses in Punjab to expand.”

Talking of the two states, he said, Punjab’s achievement is wheat, and it can feed the whole country while Bengal’s contribution is in terms of rice as it is the largest rice producing state. Bengal is the second largest producer of fruit and vegetables and that is why the ITC has 19 plants in West Bengal as it gets the required raw material.

In the context of manufacturing, he said Bengal had the largest rail manufacturing at Titagarh, known for making wagons and Metro coaches.

Nikhil Nirmal, MD, West Bengal Small Industries Development Corporation Limited, said from web-based single-window support system to institution mechanism for grievance redressal, to setting of industrial parks, the government was offering all assistance to the industry.