CM Suvendu Adhikari at the industrial policy meet
Adhikari also said Bengal is in talks with commercial vehicle manufacturer Ashok Leyland for a possible investment in Singur, the site of former CM Mamata Banerjee’s land protests between 2006 and 2008 that propelled Trinamool Congress to victory over the Left Front in the 2011 assembly polls. Adhikari also ruled out immediate payment of outstanding industrial incentives estimated at around Rs 50,000 crore. “We will take responsibility for incentives under the current policy made on or after May 9, 2026. The outstanding incentive amount is approximately Rs 50,000 crore, which cannot be borne by the govt at this moment,” he said, and added that pending dues will be considered only after the state’s finances turn surplus.
We also won’t say we are the govt and we will not get involved in procuring land for industry,” Adhikari said, referring to his predecessor Mamata Banerjee’s hands-off land policy.
The state administration also coined a new slogan, ‘Invest in Bengal, Grow in Bengal’, which Adhikari said reflects the new dispensation’s guarantee to give investors an “extortion- and fear-free” environment. The CM said the govt will buy land to create a land bank and is in talks with Hudco, Nabard and ADB for funding. “The govt is examining models in which farmers get a share of developed land, equity in companies, and priority in unskilled employment,” Adhikari said.
“We are very clear about two things. We will not use police to forcibly acquire land. We will not allow bullets to be fired. However, the new policy does not show any marked deviation from existing urban and rural land ceiling laws.
Earlier, a top official had indicated that govt might allow industries to hold land in excess of the ceiling. Kolkata: CM Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday unveiled the state’s new industrial policy with focus on acquiring land for industries, generation of employment and incentivising investments in sectors like semiconductors, EVs, defence and advanced technology.