Kolkata, July 30 -- State Tourism Minister Shankar Ghosh on Thursday said the state government was working to create a level playing field between North and South Bengal while strengthening the state's competitiveness in attracting investments.
Ghosh, along with Finance minister Swapan Dasgupta and Minister of State for MSME and Textiles Ashoke Dinda, held talks with around 40 industrialists and business representatives from North Bengal at Nabanna as part of the government's efforts to boost investment, improve industrial infrastructure and unlock the region's economic potential. The meeting was organised by the North Bengal Chapter of the Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC).
Calling tea and land North Bengal's biggest assets, Ghosh said: "When people think of North Bengal, they think of tea. We want to strengthen its branding and boost tea tourism."
The proposed Tourism Industrial Policy (TIP) also figured in the discussions, with the government exploring greater private investment to develop North Bengal as a tourism hub.
"We wanted to assess the state of industry in North Bengal and identify the steps needed to accelerate its growth," Ghosh said.
On land availability, Ghosh said the region has sufficient land for industrial projects and that the government was working on a policy to ensure its optimal utilisation.
Industry representatives raised infrastructure concerns and issues related to the ease of doing business, which the ministers promised to plug.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.