Kolkata, June 19 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first programme in West Bengal, when he arrives in the state on Saturday will be at Tarakeswar in the Hooghly district, about 62 km from Kolkata.

But, what is so important about Tarakeswar that the Prime Minister has decided to celebrate ‘Paschimbanga Divas’ (West Bengal Day) there? For the uninitiated, it was at Tarakeswar that a meeting of the Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha was held on April 15, 1947, authorising Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee to take steps for the partitioning of Bengal.

Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, who was then the “Prime Minister” of Bengal, wanted the whole state to become a part of Pakistan as it has a majority Muslim population. Hindus comprised only 42 per cent of the population of Bengal. It was Mookerjee who opposed this and wrote to Lord Mountbatten that Bengal must be partitioned, even if India was not, to prevent Hindu-dominated parts of the state from becoming a part of Pakistan.

Prime Minister Modi has chosen Tarakeswar to honour Mookerjee at a time when the BJP stormed into power in West Bengal.

The theme for this year’s Paschimbanga Divas will be “West Bengal: Heritage, Harmony and Development”.

During the event, the Prime Minister will dedicate to the nation and lay the foundation stone of multiple development projects.

Spanning the sectors of railways, agriculture, rural development, fisheries and animal husbandry. These initiatives will strengthen infrastructure, improve livelihoods, enhance farmer welfare and accelerate socio-economic development across the state, the Union government has said.

PM Modi will release the 23rd instalment of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN). Under this instalment, more than Rs 18,880 crore will be transferred directly into the bank accounts of over 9.44 crore farmers across the country.

More than Rs 900 crore will be credited to over 45 lakh beneficiaries in West Bengal alone, taking the cumulative disbursement under the scheme in the state to more than Rs 15,000 crore.

This will also take the total disbursement nationwide to more than Rs 4.46 lakh crore since the launch of the scheme in 2019.

Prime Minister Modi will also rollout several key Central agricultural schemes in West Bengal. These include Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, Agri Stack as part of the Digital Agriculture Mission, National Mission on Natural Farming and Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana.

The Centre plans to provide insurance coverage to nearly 50 lakh farmers across about 14 lakh hectares of agricultural land in West Bengal through the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana in 2026-27. This will protect crops with an estimated insured value of around Rs 28,140 crore while supporting farmers through substantial premium subsidy.

AgriStack will also be launched in West Bengal, enabling a unified digital platform for verified agriculture-related services such as fertiliser distribution, Kisan Credit Cards, Direct Benefit Transfers and procurement under the Minimum Support Price system.

The initiative will strengthen digital governance in agriculture and facilitate efficient delivery of farmer-centric services.

PM Modi will also launch the National Mission on Natural Farming in West Bengal to promote sustainable, chemical-free agriculture rooted in traditional Indian practices.

Under the approved Annual Action Plan for 2026–27, the state will establish 346 natural farming clusters covering 17,300 hectares, while also creating Bio-Input Resource Centres and mobilising ‘Krishi Sakhis’ to strengthen adoption of eco-friendly farming practices.

The Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana (PMDDKY), a major step towards integrated agricultural development, will also be launched in West Bengal. The scheme will cover the districts of Purulia, Darjeeling, Alipurduar and Jhargram with a focus on improving agricultural productivity, promoting crop diversification and sustainable farming, strengthening post-harvest infrastructure and irrigation facilities, enhancing access to institutional credit, and ensuring convergence of multiple Central and state schemes for holistic rural development.

–IANS

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