Ahead of the new West Bengal government’s first budget, newly appointed Finance Minister Swapan Dasgupta arrived in North Bengal on Thursday morning for crucial pre-budget consultations with local stakeholders.

“North Bengal has been deprived for a long time. But North Bengal is highly important to the BJP government. Ahead of the state budget, we are interacting with people in various places to look into what their expectations are,” Dasgupta told reporters at Bagdogra Airport, where he arrived accompanied by a delegation including the secretary and other top bureaucrats of the finance department.

“The purpose of the visit is to elicit views of all the important stakeholders in North Bengal on the forthcoming state budget—to see what exactly they have in mind, what are the demands, what are the problems, and to see how much we can try and meet some of their expectations. It’s purely for that purpose. It’s a very short visit, and it has a single purpose: a pre-budget consultation,” he said.

Acknowledging that the state faces several fiscal and developmental challenges, the finance minister stressed the importance of firsthand communication. “There are a lot of challenges, I can tell you. But it’s best when the various stakeholders tell us what exactly the problems are,” he said.

Dasgupta, who assumed office on Wednesday, clarified that the trip was strictly administrative and focused on the budget. “This is my very first visit to North Bengal, and I have come to Siliguri. Let me speak with the people and see…,” he said. “No other political matters right now.”

Political and administrative circles view this outreach and the presence of top finance officials in Siliguri as a highly significant move by the new government to address regional imbalances.