Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday attended an administrative review meeting for all eight north Bengal districts and referred to some of the pressing issues the region faced, including the indiscriminate influx of Nepal tea and the erosion caused by the Ganga.

The chief minister was also critical of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre and elaborated on the development projects taken up by the Trinamool Congress government in north Bengal since 2011.

The Telegraph highlights some of the topics Mamata took up at the meeting at Uttakanya.

Nepal tea

The chief minister expressed concern over the import of tea from Nepal and its sale as Darjeeling Tea.

“Teas are brought in from Nepal as there is no import duty. These teas are sold as Darjeeling Tea, which is completely illegal. The issue should be taken up with the Centre as it is affecting the reputation of Darjeeling Tea,” she said.

In the north Bengal brew belt, the state has decided to set up 53 health centres, of which 20 have already been constructed. “Also, 95 crèches (where women can keep their children) will be set up on tea estates. Work of 35 crèches has ended, and 18 of them have opened,” said Mamata.

Erosion and flood

Mamata said the Centre wasn’t releasing funds to address the erosion caused by the Ganga in Malda (and Murshidabad) districts.

“When the Ganga Water Sharing Treaty was signed (with Bangladesh), it was agreed that Bengal would receive ₹700 crore, but not a single penny has been paid to us. The Farakka Barrage Project Authority used to take care of a 180km-long stretch of the river (on either bank), but it has come down to 20km. This is unacceptable...,” said the chief minister.

She said the Bengal government had sent proposals of ₹1,064 crore to the Centre to check the erosion. “There has been no response so far. We have, on the other hand, spent ₹466 crore to address the issue, while projects worth another ₹225 crore are in progress. Acres of land have been gobbled up by the Ganga, but the Centre is not addressing the issue,” she added.

Mamata also referred to the flash floods caused by the rivers which flow into the Dooars from Bhutan.

“If they (Bhutan) release water, we should be informed in advance. Also, a joint river commission should be formed with Bhutan to handle the flood, a perennial problem in Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar, and there should be a state representative on it,” she said.

Projects

Mamata said since she had assumed the chief minister’s office in 2011, 3,869 development projects had been taken up in north Bengal, and 3,183 of them were completed.

“Some projects, especially those of the PHE department, were delayed. These projects should be completed at the earliest,” she said.

Mamata said as far as social welfare schemes were concerned, there was a delay in sanctioning funds and delivering services.

“This gap has to be bridged. Administrative officials have to strengthen the blocks for better delivery of services. People should be made aware of the schemes and services through publicity exercises,” added Mamata.

Sikkim

Mamata said Trinamool had extended support to Sikkim’s demand for inclusion in the list of northeastern states.

“Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister then. The then chief minister of Sikkim had approached us, and we had supported the demand. Since then, Sikkim has been getting additional funds and different benefits,” said Mamata.

In 2002, Sikkim was included as the eighth state of the North Eastern Council.