Hasnabad: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday travelled for nearly two hours on a vessel to reach remote Khanpukur village under the Hasnabad sub-division to distribute woollen garments among rural people and give a patient hearing to their problems.
Banerjee, during the journey, was found in a light mood and also tried her hands at steering the vessel.
The village people, particularly the women, assembled in large numbers to pay their gratitude to Banerjee, the first Chief Minister and perhaps any minister to have ventured into such a remote village.
"I have heard that the people here face an acute water crisis. I would ask the Public Health Engineering department to make arrangements for potable piped water supply in this village within seven days," Banerjee said.
She announced that Priti Goel who is presently ADM of North 24-Parganas will be in-charge of the Sunderbans and work for its development. Banerjee on Tuesday had already announced that the Sunderbans will be a new district.
On stepping into Khanpukur village right after alighting from the vessel at the ghat, Banerjee went to Khanpukur Baidyapara Primary School and handed over soft toys and chocolates to the school kids.
After a while, Banerjee travelled some 700 metres to Majherpara and distributed blankets, sweaters and kids' garments among hundreds of people. She asked the local administration to distribute more such items after she left.
From the distribution venue, she not only assured addressing the water woes of the residents but also promised to spruce up the rural road from Kalibari to Simulia.
What followed next was the best part of her intrinsic knack of being able to connect with people of all castes, creed and background.
The Chief Minister entered the courtyard of Namita Mondal, a local resident, and tried her hand at weaving a mat made of palm leaf. Mondal requested Banerjee to have lunch there to which she agreed.
The Chief Minister was seen relishing rice, 'tyangra' and Rupchanda fish with taro (kochu) that was served to her.
It's been years since she has touched rice but Banerjee was treated to a plateful of the staple in her meal at the residence of a lower-middle-class family, once again establishing her deep connect with people at the grassroots.
The residents had complained to her that the road connecting the area with the Sunderbans and its adjacent areas is in a poor condition. She took the right roadway on her return journey to Taki so that she could give the necessary instructions to the administration regarding the repair of the stretch.
Banerjee announced that development of the Sunderbans is on her priority list and added that a master plan is being prepared, which will be soon sent to the Niti Aayog. The plan is aimed at addressing the issue of embankments getting breached by natural calamities and the enhancement of livelihood of locals.
From Wednesday morning, there were speculations that Banerjee, who stayed last night at a government guest house at Taki, will take a vessel ride to take stock of the embankments in and around Ichamati river and also explore the development of tourism potential. However, Banerjee who is known to surprise all ventured into the Khanpukur village and resorted to public outreach in the best possible manner.