By Aditi KhannaLondon, Nov 14 (PTI) Pitching West Bengal as anattractive destination for post-Brexit investments from theUK, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has said the state is a"great base" for British businesses and a gateway to thenorth-eastern region.
Mamata presided over a meeting titled 'Opportunities inBengal', organised by the UK India Business Council (UKIBC)and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry(FICCI) here.
"West Bengal is a gateway to the north-eastern region.
Our skills, talent and technology is our advantage, whichmakes the state a great base for UK businesses," Banerjeesaid yesterday.
"The citizens of Bengal are eagerly waiting to expresstheir hospitality. Let us work together; I believe that ifthere is any problem in the path of business, there is also asolution," she said while inviting UKIBC to lead a delegationto the Bengal Global Business Summit to be held in Kolkata inJanuary 2018.
"We are business friendly and have a constructive andproactive approach," Banerjee said.
UKIBC chair Lord Davies, who steered the roundtablediscussions, said he was "totally convinced" with WestBengal's potential as an investment hub for the UK andhighlighted the state's cluster-based approach to encouragestart-ups as a major attraction.
"It (West Bengal) is an incredible success story," hesaid.
Amit Mitra, the state's finance, commerce and industriesminister, called on entrepreneurs across different sectorsoperating in West Bengal to share experiences of doingbusiness in the state.
Y K Modi, CEO of Great Eastern Energy Corporation Ltd,hailed the ease of doing business in the state, whileStephanie Farr of UK drinks giant Diageo flagged the Goods andServices Tax (GST) as an issue that the company was keen towork on with the West Bengal government.
The visiting business delegation from India includedHarshvardhan Neotia, chair of Ambuja Neotia Group, TarunJhunjhunwala of Reliance Group and Rudra Chatterjee of LuxmiGroup, among others.
"The kind of government we have in Bengal iscompassionate, proactive and action-oriented," said PurnenduChatterjee, chair of Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd.
The UK enterprises represented at the meeting includedPwC, Standard Chartered Bank, Oxford University and BritishTelecom.
Banerjee arrived in the UK over the weekend on a week-long investment scouting visit for West Bengal.
Besides her formal engagements, including the unveilingof a commemorative plaque in memory of Scottish-Irish socialworker Sister Nivedita on Sunday, she has been walking thestreets of London in her trademark flip-flops with herdelegation of business chiefs and media persons.
Banerjee will also hold talks with Scottish DevelopmentInvestment (SDI) officials in Edinburgh. PTI AK MRJ PMS AKJPMS.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.