Kolkata, 12 June (H.S.): West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday asserted that industrialisation can be achieved without forcible land acquisition or incidents like the Nandigram firing, while indicating that his government would make industrial growth, employment generation and economic revival key priorities in the state.

Addressing a press conference at the Biswa Bangla Convention Centre in New Town, Adhikari said the state government would pursue a “three-pronged strategy” to strengthen the economy, reduce unemployment and accelerate industrial development. He also suggested that the upcoming state budget would reflect the government’s focus on investment and industrial expansion.

Criticising previous administrations, the Chief Minister claimed that West Bengal had fallen behind in attracting industries and investments. He said economically successful states had achieved growth through a combination of industrialisation and investment-friendly policies, a model his government intends to follow.

According to Adhikari, the state’s development strategy will focus on three major areas: filling vacancies in government departments with qualified candidates, ensuring effective implementation of central government schemes while expanding banking access for businesses and unemployed youth, and promoting investments in heavy industries, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), food processing, horticulture, fisheries and other manufacturing sectors.

Clarifying his government’s land policy, the Chief Minister said there would be no forcible acquisition of land for industries, infrastructure projects or even for strategic requirements such as providing land to the Border Security Force (BSF). He maintained that people would voluntarily offer land if they received fair compensation.

Referring to past controversies over land acquisition, Adhikari said people had opposed the firing incidents during the Left Front era, while they had also disapproved of industrialists being discouraged from investing in the state. He claimed that for projects such as hospitals, railway expansion and national highway development, landowners had recently come forward voluntarily to provide land at government-approved rates.

On being asked about the possibility of the Tata Group returning to West Bengal, the Chief Minister said he would not comment in detail at this stage but made it clear that his government would seek to bring the conglomerate back to the state.

He noted that the land at Singur was no longer under government control, as ownership had been transferred to farmers by the previous administration. However, he argued that the character of the land had changed over the years and that traditional cultivation of crops such as potatoes, mustard and paddy was no longer feasible on much of the area.

Adhikari also raised questions over expenditures related to the Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS), which was organised during the previous government’s tenure to attract domestic and foreign investment.

The Chief Minister alleged that an event management company had received a total of ₹635 crore for organising various editions of the summit. He announced that his government would initiate an investigation into the expenditure and financial transactions related to the event.

His remarks are being viewed as a significant indication of the new government’s industrial policy and its efforts to position West Bengal as an investment-friendly destination while revisiting some of the state’s most contentious industrialisation debates.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh