Efforts to Undermine Spirit of Bengal Won’t Succeed: Mamata

PTI, KOLKATA, JAN 8 : Asserting that West Bengal is a leader in every sphere—from education to culture and sports—Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said the people of the state know how to counter any threat to undermine that preeminent position and heritage.

Mamata also said that all members of Bengal’s Santosh Trophy squad, which won the championship this year again, will be recruited into the state police force in the junior official rank under a special quota.

Speaking at the 'Students Week' programme here, she named social reformer Rammohan Roy and polymath Iswarchandra Vidyasagar to buttress her point that Bengal has shown the path in eradicating social evils like the practice of ‘Sati’ and exploitation of widows, while ushering in female education. Mamata also underscored how Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore and rebel poet Kazi Nazrul Islam had spread the message of brotherhood, patriotism, amity, and love for the motherland through their poems and songs to "unite people and not divide them."

"Now if someone threatens to undermine that spirit, that glorious heritage of the state, counter that, combat that," she said, without elaborating.

The Chief Minister said that sons and daughters of Bengal are working in every leading institute and organisation of the world and the country, reflecting the state’s distinguished position in the field of education.

"Besides (Economist) Amartya Sen and (historian) Sugata Bose, both associated with Harvard University, so many Bengali academicians are spread worldwide, making the country India their home state proud with their achievements and contributions," she said. Addressing the hundreds of students present at the venue, the Chief Minister asked them to study in the state’s “top-class higher educational institutions” offering a wide array of courses and realise their dreams.

Mamata recalled that during the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022, she had facilitated the enrollment of the state’s medical students who had to return midway through their courses at medical colleges in the state. "If you (students) are enrolled at the institutes of your specialised discipline here, you won't have to face such situations," the Chief Minister said.

She also said West Bengal has turned into the destination of many industrial houses, and the students graduating from the institutes here have great employment scope. Mamata said 500 ITIs and other institutes have come up since 2011, while 47 lakh students have received training to skill themselves under her government’s ‘Utkarsha Bangla’ initiative. "Several lakhs of more students will be imparted skills, and the process is on," she said, adding that 10 lakh new jobs have also been created under ‘Utkarsha Bangla’.

She also asked parents and guardians not to thrust their wishes on their children. “Allow them to pursue what they like. There are so many new streams and subjects, and we have introduced new opportunities for today's youngsters," she said.

The CM said AI and data science are two emerging disciplines with lots of opportunities, and the state's higher educational institutions boast the infrastructure for such courses. Mamata also said the state tops in the MSME sector across the country.

The Chief Minister said 53 new colleges have also been set up in West Bengal. "The Santosh Trophy victory showed that Bengal is the leader in sports. The products of our table tennis academy will ensure we bring laurels for the country in the Olympics one day," she predicted.

Referring to her official date of birth on January 5, Mamata said she was actually not born on that day. "That day, which was mentioned in a certificate, was hastily given by my father when I was a child. A teacher insisted on filling up an application form mentioning any date. However, those of us born at home in those times don’t have such birthdays put on record always," she clarified. The Chief Minister, however, did not mention her actual date of birth.