West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has announced 37,000 crore worth of potential investment for Integrated Textile Development Project to make Bengal a readymade garment (RMG) hub for the country in future.
She was talking to industrialists at a meeting on ‘Doing Business in West Bengal’ in Kolkata on June one. West Bengal’s neighboring country Bangladesh has already developed itself as a RMG hub. Chief minister urged the industrialists present at the meet to join hands with the state government to implement the project in private-public partnership (PPP) mode.
State’s MSME secretary, Rajiva Sinha later said it is planning to develop 10 textile and RMG clusters across the state. Total land requirement would be close to 550 acres. These clusters will be at Borjora, Rajarhat, Sector V, Akra, Ulberia, Belur, Jagadishpur, Ashok Nagar, Barasat and Metiaburuz. Sinha pointed out that out of these 10 clusters, state has land bank for five clusters.
West Bengal Hosiery Association will set up the Jagadishpur clusters across 120 acres in Howrah for knitwear and RMG while Eastern India Garment Manufacturers & Exporters Federation will set up the garment park in Rajarhat.
The state has land bank in Borjora, Belur, Sector V, Akra and Ashoknagar.
Sinha pointed out the state has 20 acres at Borjora in Bankura district for dying, printing and processing as well as powerloom project. It has an investment potential of Rs. 800 crore and employment potential for 10,000 people. In Belur, the government is planning to set up a textile park for RMG, powerloom and technical textile which can attract investment of Rs.3,000 crore and have employment potential for as many as one lakh people.
The largest investment will be worth Rs. 8,500 crore in Jagadishpur in Howrah which will have an employment potential of 1.75 lakh people. “The textile park in Barasat is being developed by the private party which is called Regent Garment Park for Apparel & knitwear. Total employment potential there also is 1.65 lakh,” Sinha added. He hopes that work on most of these parks will start soon.
