Bengal Ministers Urge Local Entrepreneurs to Boost State Investment
Times of India | 1 July 2026
Kolkata: Bengal wants investment from homegrown entrepreneurs, and the state govt is ready to help them in these endeavours, finance minister Swapan Dasgupta said on Tuesday. Speaking at a meeting of the Bengal Business Council, Dasgupta and industries, commerce and enterprises minister Tapas Roy urged Bengal’s entrepreneurs to come forward and invest in the growth of the state.
“We cannot have different policies for entrepreneurs from Bengal. Nor can we say no to investments from outside the state. But we want homegrown entrepreneurs to invest more in this state, and the govt is ready to help them,” said Dasgupta.
“Bengal’s lobbying capacity in New Delhi has come down significantly. The number of homegrown officers in Delhi has come down,” the finance minister pointed out, and added: “There is a chance now. Be aggressive.”
Saying that there were several major investments in the pipeline, Roy said, “There will be a foundation stone-laying ceremony for a factory in Dankuni on July 11. Another ceremony will be held in Mejia on July 17. There will be at least three more large investments before the Pujas.” He added that six closed jute mills were opened on Tuesday.
“We were surprised to find that the state does not have any industry policy or land policy. There is fierce competition among the states, and we didn’t even have any incentive scheme for the industries,” the minister said and told the industrialists present, “Don’t pay anyone who asks for money. Call me if anyone is extorting ... give me the name and I will take care of the rest. If we don’t take strong steps now, Bengal cannot be revived.” Roy said that six closed jute mills were opened on Tuesday.
On Friday, Roy is scheduled to attend a meeting of the Board of Trade (BoT), chaired by Union commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal. The meeting will discuss India’s export strategy and ways to accelerate outbound shipments after the recently concluded FTAs. Representatives from state govts, Union Territories, export promotion councils and industry bodies will be present at the meeting.