PM to launch farm, rly projects in 1st Bengal visit since BJP took charge
Times of India | 20 June 2026
Kolkata: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will make his first public appearance in Bengal since the BJP formed the govt on May 9 when he visits Tarakeswar in Hooghly on Saturday, coinciding with Paschimbanga Diwas. During the visit, Modi will launch a slew of development projects with a focus on farmers’ welfare and railways.
The choice of Tarakeswar is significant. It was here that Syama Prasad Mookerjee held a meeting that contributed to West Bengal’s inclusion in India, while June 20 marks the day in 1947 when legislators from Bengal’s Hindu-majority districts voted overwhelmingly to remain with India.
“This location is steeped in heritage due to its connection with Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee and his efforts in preserving the culture of West Bengal,” Modi posted on X. The two-day visit is themed “West Bengal: Heritage, Harmony and Development.”
From Tarakeswar, Modi will release the 23rd instalment of the PM-KISAN scheme, sending nearly Rs 18,880 crore nationwide to over 9 crore farmers — including more than Rs 900 crore to around 45 lakh farmers in Bengal.
“The PM will unveil a grand development package worth Rs 820 crore under the theme ‘West Bengal on the Fast Track of Development’,” an Eastern Railway official said on Friday.
He will also launch a Digital Agriculture Mission for the state, integrating fertiliser supply, fair price procurement and Kisan Credit Card services on a single platform.
He will roll out crop insurance for around 50 lakh farmers across 14 lakh hectares and launch a National Mission on Natural Farming, funding 346 natural farming groups to encourage chemical-free cultivation.
The Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana will also be initiated to optimise agricultural output.
Modi will lay the foundation for railway projects worth around Rs 590 crore, including a 300-bed divisional railway hospital in Howrah (Rs 99 crore) and a Road Over Bridge between Haur and Radhamohanpur in Purba Medinipur (Rs 71 crore).
He will also dedicate the Sankrail-Santragachi Link Line in Howrah, built at a cost of Rs 421 crore, to the nation. Separately, he will inaugurate 49 PMGSY-III road projects spanning over 315 km across the state, a goat semen production laboratory and semen bank at Haringhata in Nadia, a modernised fishing harbour at Fraserganj in South 24 Parganas, and a new fish market in Sainthia, Birbhum.
On Sunday, Modi will lead the International Day of Yoga celebrations from Red Road in Kolkata, marking the event’s 12th edition. Later that day, at Kolkata’s Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, he will commission three indigenously built naval vessels — the stealth frigate INS Dunagiri, survey vessel INS Sanshodhak and anti-submarine warfare craft INS Agray.