Kolkata: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee who left for the United Kingdom on Sunday morning hopes to make Bengal an attractive foreign destination during her five-day visit.
“We are hopeful about attracting investment to make West Bengal an ideal destination. Earlier governments have sullied the image of the state and are now ridiculing us for our efforts. Bengal lost its image due to the misrule of the earlier governments,” Banerjee told reporters at the international airport here.
However, the opposition has termed her visit a “misuse of money”. “We have seen her utsavs (fairs), songs, theatres and entertainment programmes on Martyrs’ Day. This is another such initiative. She is taking with her nearly 60 delegates and is only expecting 30 per cent success. She is already sceptical about the outcome of her tour,” said Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, state Congress president.
“We want to know what she will do in London. What are her plans? How will she woo the British industrialists to invest in West Bengal? Probably, she will tell prospective investors how much extortion money they will have to pay to her party leaders to do business here,” said a sceptical Chowdhury.
On Saturday, Union Minister Babul Supriyo also questioned the utility of the visit. “What is the utility of Mamata Banerjee’s London visit? How will West Bengal benefit? It is a clear misuse of money. So much money is being spent on foreign trips, then why is the state government not paying the balance dearness allowance to its employees,” questioned Supriyo.
Banerjee emphasised that the government is paying for just 12 people and the rest of the 60-member delegation are travelling at their own expense. “The government team consists of just 12 persons, the rest are travelling on their own,” the chief minister said.
“When she [Banerjee] travels it’s a waste of money. But what benefit is the country getting when Modi is travelling all throughout the year,” questioned Subrata Mukherjee, State Panchayat and Rural Development Minister.
