KolkataWest Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is likely to officially announce Sundarbans and Basirhat as two new districts of the state during an administrative meeting on November 29. A senior official gave this information on Monday. He said that both the districts are set to be separated from South and North 24 Parganas districts. “All necessary work has been completed to create the two new districts. The chief minister is likely to announce the names in Hingalganj during an administrative meeting tomorrow,” the official told PTI.
The Chief Minister will begin her three-day tour of the Sunderbans mangrove area from Monday. Sunderbans district is likely to have about 13 blocks of South 24 Parganas, while Basirhat may have six blocks of North 24 Parganas, he added.
The Sundarbans, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is currently spread over North and South 24 Parganas districts, while Basirhat is a sub-division of North 24 Parganas. There are currently 23 districts in West Bengal.
The official said the state had to bear a cost of at least Rs 200 crore for creating each district. The official said Ms Banerjee would perform ‘Pratiki Puja’ (nature worship) at Hingalganj to save residents from elephant attacks.
“I will do ‘Prakriti Puja’ in Hingalganj. Elephant attacks have increased as jumbos are coming out of forests in search of food,” she had told the assembly on November 25.
He also expressed concern over the Sunderbans facing natural calamities like cyclones and floods every year and said that his government has submitted a master plan for the development of the region to the NITI Aayog.
“We have submitted the master plan for Sundarbans to NITI Aayog. Every year, there are cyclones and floods. If there is a master plan, the problem will be solved. I will ask the forest minister to look into the matter more seriously. ” she added. Ms Banerjee is scheduled to visit Sajnekhali in South 24 Parganas on Wednesday.