Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare and Rural Development Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan chaired a high-level review meeting in Kolkata with West Bengal Chief Minister Shri Suvendu Adhikari, state cabinet members, and senior officials from central and state governments. The meeting resulted in several major development announcements for West Bengal, positioning the state as crucial for realizing the Viksit Bharat vision.
Infrastructure Development Push
The central and state governments are collaborating to accelerate infrastructure development through 19 major projects worth over ₹82,000 crore across roads and highways, railways, metro, petroleum & natural gas, coal, and labour sectors. Detailed discussions addressed long-pending issues including land acquisition, rehabilitation & resettlement, utility shifting, forest clearances, and inter-departmental coordination. Ministries, state government, district administration, and implementing agencies were directed to ensure coordinated and time-bound action to remove bottlenecks and expedite implementation. The Union Minister suggested establishing a State-level Project Monitoring Group (State PMG) in West Bengal to strengthen project monitoring and improve inter-departmental coordination, mirroring Prime Minister Narendra Modi's PRAGATI review mechanism.
Rural Development and Employment
Over ₹8,508 crore has been approved by the Central Government for West Bengal's rural development, which together with the state government's share will channel total resources exceeding ₹12,064 crore directly through Panchayats until March 31. This funding aims to generate employment and support comprehensive rural development under the VB-G RAM G Act, 2025 framework that came into force on July 1. The objective has expanded from guaranteeing 100 days of employment to moving toward 125 days of employment, providing greater income security to rural households and additional work opportunities during natural disasters or local emergencies. Special emphasis will be placed on creating durable rural assets including roads, ponds, minor irrigation infrastructure, schools, and Anganwadi buildings.
Housing and Women's Empowerment
An interim approval for one lakh houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin has been granted for West Bengal. Due to heavy rainfall delaying beneficiary surveys, the deadline has been extended until August 15 to ensure accurate identification of all eligible families. Officials were directed to expedite both beneficiary surveys and physical verification simultaneously, with house allotments commencing immediately upon verification completion. Under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana, enhanced financial support of ₹295 crore has been approved for Women's Self-Help Groups, comprising ₹245 crore in bank credit and ₹50 crore under the Community Investment Fund to strengthen women's participation in production, processing, value addition, and marketing activities.
Agricultural Development Initiatives
Malda will be integrated into the national Clean Plant network with a proposed facility focusing on producing disease-free, high-quality planting material for mango, litchi, and other fruit crops. The Clean Plant Program offers financial assistance of up to ₹3 crore for large nurseries and ₹1.5 crore for medium-sized nurseries. Special projects have been approved for West Bengal's major rice-growing regions to strengthen nutrition, value chains, and processing infrastructure, with initiatives focusing on nutritious rice varieties, maize seed production, storage, processing, and value addition. West Bengal will be developed as the Seed Hub of Eastern India through MoUs with the state government for production of potato seed, hybrid maize seed, and seeds of other crops. Additional projects for orchid cultivation and horticulture have been approved to enable farmers to diversify into high-value floriculture.
The Indian Council of Agricultural Research, State Agricultural Universities, and agricultural scientists are jointly preparing a scientific Agriculture Roadmap for West Bengal that will identify region-specific crop planning based on agro-climatic conditions, soil characteristics, water availability, and local resources. Efforts are underway to develop rice research institutions into Centres of Excellence. Farmers across West Bengal will be brought under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana on a much larger scale for protection against crop losses from natural calamities. Village-level camps will be organized in collaboration with NABARD and banks to expand Kisan Credit Card coverage, ensuring farmers receive affordable institutional credit. Additional initiatives including the National Mission on Natural Farming, PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana, Digital Agritech, and nutrition enhancement programs will further transform West Bengal's agricultural landscape.