New Delhi [India], January 7: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to address a public gathering in Singur, Hooghly district, on January 18 during his two-day visit to West Bengal. He is also expected to visit Malda. BJP sources said Modi will speak at a massive rally at Tata Field in Singur, which is expected to draw lakhs of attendees, with local party leaders managing preparations. The visit is seen as symbolic, highlighting industrial development in the state.
Singur was the site of Mamata Banerjee’s 2006 protests against land acquisition for Tata Motors’ Nano project, which ultimately led to the company relocating to Gujarat. Many local residents now express regret over their earlier support for Banerjee, blaming the Trinamool Congress for failing to revive fallow land after the Tata Nano exit.
Ahead of the rally, BJP national president JP Nadda will visit West Bengal on January 8 and 9 to review party preparations for the 2026 Assembly election, meeting district leaders, workers, and BJP Doctors’ Cell members to assess ground-level issues. BJP working president Nitin Nabin is also expected to visit the state soon.
The Singur protests in 2006 had helped Mamata Banerjee end the Left Front’s 34-year rule in West Bengal by 2011. In contrast, local farmers now hope to revive industrial growth in the region.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently criticised the TMC government during the winter session of Parliament, asserting that state leadership has stifled West Bengal’s development despite record central support. She cited the withdrawal from the Ayushman Bharat Scheme, the exit of 448 listed and 6,447 unlisted industries between 2011 and 2025, and highlighted central allocations of Rs. 5.94 lakh crore since 2014.
Sitharaman also noted key development projects under the NDA government, including AIIMS Kalyani, approval of eleven medical colleges under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme, record railway budget allocations of Rs. 13,955 crore for 2025-26, development of 101 Amrit Stations, over 2,300 km of National Highways constructed, 1,650 km of railway electrification, and the upcoming Bagdogra Airport project in Siliguri at an estimated cost of Rs. 1,549 crore.
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