The Mamata Banerjee government’s inability to hand over the required land for around 20 ongoing projects for national highways in Bengal seems to have caused the waning of the BJP-led Centre’s interest.

The finance committee of the Union ministry of roads, transport and highways (Morth) postponed its meeting with Nabanna for the second time recently.

The finance committee of the Morth was first scheduled to hold a meeting with the state government officials on March 5. it was rescheduled to March 13, and then again to March 28.

“This is unusual, as meetings with all other states were held according to schedule. Only meetings with Bengal and Karnataka are being deferred repeatedly. This gives an impression that the Centre is no longer serious about clearing further projects for Bengal,” said a senior state government official.

The finance committee meeting is important as the secretary of the Morth, along with Niti Aayog representatives, clear projects outside the annual plan towards the end of the financial year, said sources.

Bengal has prepared a project to widen a 26km stretch between Namkhana and Bakkhali of the NH117 to place during the finance committee meeting. It was expected that the ₹240 crore project would be cleared by the finance committee, as it did not involve any acquisition of land.

“We are expecting that this project would get the clearance as no land acquisition is required for the project. This project was selected only because several other projects were being delayed due to delay in acquisition of land and the Centre has been raising questions over these projects repeatedly,” said a senior official.

He added they were not sure whether the meeting would be held on March 28, as it was very close to the fiscal year-end, March 31.

Sources in the state administration said that the Centre has been expressing its displeasure over the delay in land acquisition for about 20 ongoing projects in Bengal.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari wrote to chief minister Mamata Banerjee on December 17 last year, urging her to expedite the land acquisition process for the 20 projects, as most of these projects were held up because of alleged lack of initiative from the state, including land acquisition.

Sources said the Narendra Modi government also expressed its displeasure over the progress of infrastructure projects in Bengal when it took over the responsibility of constructing the second bridge over the Teesta recently.

“The way the Centre took over the project from the state PWD, it sent a message that Delhi believed that the state PWD would not be able to complete the project on time. The Centre wants timely implementation of the project as the area is strategically important for its proximity to China,” said an official.

A senior state official said that files were being sent to the land and reforms department, urging it to complete land acquisition for the national highway projects at the earliest.

A senior bureaucrat said that the state government's top brass had made it clear that it would not take risks by undertaking a land acquisition exercise ahead of the 2026 Assembly polls. “The state government is very sensitive about land acquisition as Trinamool came to power in 2011 by fighting forcible land acquisition in Singur and Nandigram. The ruling dispensation won't go for acquisition on a large scale ahead of the polls,” he said.