Bengal Govt to promote MSMEs in big way during Bengal Global Business Summit

Kolkata, Jan 4 (KNN) Bengal Government is planning to promote states MSME sector in a big way during Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS) by showcasing that the state achieved India’s highest bank credit flow to the tune of USD15 billion to MSMEs in the last five years since 2011-12.

BGBS will be held in the city on January 20-21, 2017. The 2-day long BGBS 2017 aims to bring together policy makers, corporate leaders from around the globe, delegations, academia, opinion makers to explore business opportunities, forge partnerships and collaborations.

Ahead of the Summit, the state government is ready with its ‘Advantage Bengal’ campaign which will specifically showcase advantages and opportunities for investment in Bengal to industry captains and foreign delegates at the summit.

The feature which will be showcased prominently will be the fact that Bengal achieved India’s highest bank credit flow to the tune of $15 billion to MSMEs in the last five years since 2011-12, which Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Finance Minister Dr Amit Mitra will highlight to industrialists.

Port, mining and MSME will be the thrust areas at the BGBS 2017. The state government recently framed its Maritime Policy with the help of global analytical company CRISIL. Moreover, the government has also opened the door to widen ‘post-based industrialisation’ to add a sharp edge in Bengal’s trade scenario.

‘Advantage Bengal’ will be promoted at different sessions, including the ‘inaugural plenary session’, multi-country interactions and B2B meetings.

The campaign will highlight the strategic location of the Bengal, which is advantageous for trade purposes. The campaign says that Bengal is the gateway to South-East Asia and North-East India. It shares international borders with Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan. Moreover, the state is well connected with Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia – which are part of the booming Asian economy, All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) has said.

All 10 members of ASEAN would be participating in the business summit. Delegations from Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam have already confirmed their presence.

There are many other specialities that will be highlighted through the ‘Advantage Bengal’ campaign. Bengal has the third largest road network in the country, with more than 3,15,404 km of roads.

Richly-endowed with natural maritime advantages, Bengal has 950 km of water front. It is the leading state in the country in terms of spread density and reach of National Inland Waterways.

It has two international airports at Kolkata and Bagdogra. It has around 4,000 km of railway tracks, including the second largest Metro Rail network in the country.

‘Advantage Bengal’ will also underline the power scenario of the state. Bengal is leading in power generation, distribution, quality and availability in India.