Amit Shah Lays Foundation of ₹700-Crore Amul Dairy Project in West Bengal

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday virtually laid the foundation stone of a ₹700-crore Amul dairy project at Sankrail in Howrah, West Bengal. Speaking at the event, Shah said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state is implementing the promise of 'Sonar Bangla' (golden Bengal), a phrase used by the party during the 2026 Assembly election campaign.

“I have come to tell the people of West Bengal that whatever we had promised during the elections, the government is implementing the promise of ‘Sonar Bangla’ on the ground,” Shah said. During the campaign, BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shah had spoken about restoring West Bengal's golden age.

Shah traced the political history of the state, asserting that the idea of ‘Sonar Bangla,’ envisioned by poet Rabindranath Tagore, was destroyed by previous Communist and Trinamool Congress (TMC) regimes. He described the political change brought about by the people of West Bengal as unprecedented in any state since Independence.

The Home Minister, on a three-day visit to the state, said the central and state governments had held detailed discussions on governance and security. “We have discussed and taken several steps to stop infiltration, strengthen law and order, and improve women’s safety,” he said.

The Amul project, described as the country’s largest yogurt production facility, will process 10 lakh litres of milk daily. Shah said small dairy farmers would benefit and advised Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari to allocate two 15-acre plots for the project. “Then the entire east India milk production system will be from here,” he added.

Chief Minister Adhikari took a swipe at former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who had previously said she would not let West Bengal turn into Gujarat. “Those who used to say that they will not let Bengal become Gujarat, they are watching on TV from home today. Amul is investing ₹700 crore today for the development of West Bengal,” Adhikari said.

Adhikari urged the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Limited to set up two ice-cream plants, one in south Bengal and another in north Bengal, and said his government would provide 15 acres of land for each plant.

State Ministers Tapas Roy, Swapan Dasgupta, Ashok Kirtania, and Sharadwat Mukherjee, along with BJP state president Samik Bhattacharya, attended the virtual event.

This is the third major investment announced after the BJP government came to power in West Bengal. Previously, Lux Cozi laid the foundation for a ₹600-crore manufacturing hub in Dankuni, and Shyam Steel Group announced a ₹15,000-crore project at its Mejia plant in Bankura district.