Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday inaugurated and laid foundation stones for a series of development projects worth over Rs 1646 crore in East and West Burdwan districts.
The programme was held at the Burdwan Municipal Boys’ School ground near Curzon Gate. Noting about the new projects, she wrote on X: “Bardhaman always occupies a place of pride in India’s Green Revolution. Rightly called the ‘Rice Bowl of Bengal,’ Bardhaman continues to nourish our State as well as our country. Today, I am taking this opportunity to extend my sincere & heartfelt gratitude to our farmer brothers whose toil has made Bengal the largest rice-producing State in the country...”
Banerjee also launched the distribution of land pattas and agricultural pattas across 14 districts of South Bengal. Over 1.5 lakh families statewide are set to benefit from various government schemes through this initiative. In East Burdwan, the Chief Minister inaugurated and laid foundation stones for 1,452 projects worth Rs 784.49 crore, besides laying foundation stones for another 171 projects involving Rs 699.23 crore. In West Burdwan, 24 projects worth Rs 110.39 crore were inaugurated, and foundation stones were laid for 23 projects worth Rs 51.69 crore.
Since 2011, her government has distributed 2.26 lakh house pattas, 1.80 lakh farmers’ pattas and 47000 forest pattas across the state.
In East Burdwan alone, 28840 land pattas, 832 refugee pattas and 1443 forest pattas have been distributed, with another 24000 pattas to be handed over in the coming days. Banerjee said over 72,000 women in East Burdwan will benefit from Lakshmir Bhandar, more than 50,000 self-help groups will receive assistance, 9,800 students will get Sikshashree scholarships, 4,800 beneficiaries will receive Rupashree support and 2,500 families will benefit under Banglar Bari. Among major infrastructure projects, she laid the foundation stone of Silpa Setu on the Damodar river along the Burdwan–Arambag Road at a cost of Rs 347.11 crore, besides announcing Rs 23.40 crore for upgrading Bhatar Gramin Hospital into a state hospital with 120 additional beds.
Other inaugurations included an integrated English-medium school at Monteswar, a taant procurement centre at Dhatrigram, a yarn depot-cum-warehouse at Ramjibanpur, a new office for the West Burdwan Police Commissionerate and an administrative building for the district magistrate of West Burdwan.