The Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry organized the 3rd edition of Prospects for North Bengal – Investments in Sustainability in Siliguri today.

Gautam Deb, mayor, Siliguri Municipal Corporation was present in the seminar along with Andalib Elias, deputy high commissioner, People’s Republic of Bangladesh in Kolkata; Eshor Raj Poudel, consul general of Nepal in Kolkata; Bhaskar Roy, vice-president, Techno India Group; Sunil KC, vice-president, Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce & Industry (NICCI) from Kathmandu among others.

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Regional cooperation was the focus this year of the seminar to discuss the opportunities in business and tourism.

Eshor Raj Poudel, consul general of Nepal in Kolkata mentioned about importance of Siliguri in the supply chain stability of Nepal and Bangladesh being present at almost equidistant from points of borders with Bangladesh and Nepal. Panitanki is the most important export point for Nepal exporting items like tea, cardamom, plywood and others.

Mayor Deb emphasised the need for enhancing the importance of Siliguri Junction station and Siliguri Town station. Land issues of the Bagdogra airport have been sorted for expansion.

“Regional cooperation may go hand in hand with sustainable approaches. Sustainability is not only a phenomenon of the environment, it has to consider the three pillars of economy, environment and social aspect taking into account both present and future needs, especially relevant for developing nations.” said Andalib Elias, deputy high commissioner, People’s Republic of Bangladesh in Kolkata.

The NIB corridor comprising Nepal, Eastern and northeastern India and Bangladesh provides a market of over 400 million people and North Bengal is at the heart of it. “NIB opportunities may be fostered by harnessing innovation, infrastructure and sustainability,” said Sunil KC, vice-president, Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce & Industry (NICCI), who came from Kathmandu.

As an outcome of the programme, Angana Guha Roy Chowdhury, assistant director general, The Bengal Chamber said, “Apart from traditional sectors like tea and tourism, emerging sectors are higher education (along with school education), vocational training, IT, healthcare, real estate among others.”