Chief minister Mamata Banerjee will chair “Synergy”, a business meet in Siliguri on Monday, bringing together trade bodies from eight districts of north Bengal in an effort to boost investment in the region’s micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME) sector.
The event marks the return of such an interaction to the region after seven years, the last one having taken place in Darjeeling in 2018.
The event will be held at Dinabandhu Mancha in Siliguri from 3pm onwards.
“Earlier, north Bengal was seen largely as a trading hub. But since 2011, the chief minister has recognised its potential in the MSME sector, which has encouraged many to explore new industrial ventures,” said Sanjay Tibrewal, the chairperson of both the North Bengal Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) and the TMC Darjeeling district (plains) committee.
Synergy, a flagship event of the TMC-led state government, serves as a platform where trade representatives, potential investors and government officials from various departments interact to identify and address challenges in promoting regional investments.
Tibrewal said the business community was hopeful that Monday’s meeting would bring fresh announcements and credited the chief minister with introducing several investor-friendly measures in recent years. “The initiatives include online issuance of trade and fire licenses from the Uttarkanya secretariat in Siliguri, the formation of technical committees for high-rise construction approvals and the development of industrial parks,” he said.
“The CM has streamlined several procedures to ease doing business. As a result, investors have already poured in more than ₹5 lakh crore into sectors such as ethanol, textiles, cement, paper, maize, pasta production, and horticulture,” said Tibrewal.
The businessman further underlined that for the first time, north Bengal’s investment potential was given concerted focus at the Bengal Global Business Summit held in February in Calcutta. “It shows her intent to develop this region seriously,” Tibrewal said.
Administrative sources said around 1,000 representatives from various trade bodies across the region would participate in the event. Representatives from industrial estates, tea and tourism sectors are expected to present their proposals and concerns directly to the chief minister.
Mamata is also expected to hold administrative meetings during her three-day stay in north Bengal.
