NewzVille Desk
Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal met Chief Minister of West Bengal, Suvendu Adhikari in Kolkata to discuss possibility of transforming West Bengal as Eastern India’s Maritime hub with a proposed maritime investment pipeline of ₹19,209 crore by 2031.
Minister of State, Ministry for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Shantanu Thakur was also present during the meeting.
The projects are expected to generate more than 62,500 employment opportunities both direct and indirect while positioning the state as a major maritime and logistics hub for eastern India.
The investment roadmap was reviewed during Sonowal’s meeting with CM Adhikari, where both leaders discussed the future development of ports, inland waterways, shipbuilding, logistics and port-led industrialisation in the state.
The proposed investments, planned under the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, include the development of the Balagarh Multimodal Logistics Hub, expansion and mechanisation of Kolkata and Haldia docks, strengthening of inland waterways, development of world-class shipbuilding and ship repair facilities, cruise tourism infrastructure, riverfront redevelopment and port-led industrial clusters.
Sonowal said the investment programme is designed to attract private capital, create large-scale employment and establish West Bengal as a preferred destination for maritime and logistics investments.
