Bengal needs innovative ways to deal with land crisis: Ajay Shankar

Kolkata, Mar 17: The government needs to come out with innovative and creative methods to deal the land crisis for urbanisation and industry.

"The state government has to come out with innovative and creative methods to acquire land by taking land owners as partners," Ajay Shankar, chairman of the expert committee on ease of doing business in India under the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) today said.

Shankar was speaking on whether agrarian states in the eastern region like West Bengal be left behind in industrialisation.

"There is a need to find creative ways of making land owners as partners in the process of attracting investment. It can be leasing, instead of outright sale to give confidence among land losers," he said.

CII president Sumit Mazumder said "Improvements in the investment climate are vital, especially if the states are to realise their potential. The states need to expand dramatically their sources and volume of available infrastructure financing."

"This will not be possible without private sector participation, which requires, in turn, a business environment that ensures adequate return on investment, transparency in procurement and high quality governance and regulation," he added.

PTI