Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said West Bengal has received investment proposals to the tune of ₹3.42-lakh crore during the two-day Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS) this year.

As many as 137 MoUs, Letters of Intent (LoI) and Expressions of Interest (EoI) were generated at the summit. These have a total employment potential of 40 lakhs.

Seven dedicated sectors for agri business and food processing, infrastructure, industry, services, tourism and hospitality, international trade, and mining and allied sectors were constituted in the BGBS with leading industrialists as co-chairs for each of them.

Notable multinational companies, including Microsoft, IBM, Adani Group, ITC, KfW, Tata-Hitachi, Gainwell Engineering, LOGOS, Wacker Metroark Chemicals (WMC), Big Dutchman International GmbH, Meyn have expressed their business interests in Bengal, said an official statement.

According to Banerjee, a task force will be set up under the chief secretary for speedy implementation of these projects. Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Finland, Germany, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Republic of Korea and United Kingdom were partner countries in the summit, and as many as 4,300 participants from 42 countries participated, she said.

For the first time, Bengal Global Trade Expo 2022 has been organised alongside BGBS. The exhibition scheduled from April 20–24 is a “first of its kind expo” organised in the country and will create a unique opportunity for West Bengal in trade and significantly benefit MSMEs and the traders’ community in the region, the release said.

BGTE 2022 has a total exhibition area of 3 lakh sq ft, with more than 500 national and international exhibitors showcasing their products across 16 key sectors. The expo is supported by more than 12 partner countries and more than 1,500 domestic and overseas buyers are expected to visit.

Banerjee added that the next summit will be held from February 1 to 3, 2023. In the last five editions, the State had attracted investment proposals worth ₹12-lakh crore, which are in various stages of progress.

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