BJP Likely To Release First List Of West Bengal Assembly Election Candidates
Kolkata: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is visiting Kolkata on Saturday, will address a major political rally and launch multiple development projects worth around Rs 18,680 crore. Soon after the rally, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is likely to release its first list of candidates for the upcoming wlections. The rally is seen as the formal launch of the BJP’s campaign for the upcoming West Bengal Assembly polls.
According to BJP sources, the party has nearly finalised its initial list of candidates. A consensus has reportedly been reached on the names of around 160 candidates during a meeting of the party’s Central Election Committee.
The first list is expected to feature several prominent leaders from the state BJP unit. Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari and former state BJP president Dilip Ghosh are also likely to be included among the candidates.
As per sources in BJP, the party has decided to give a second opportunity to most of its sitting MLAs in the upcoming assembly polls. The party is also preparing to field several former Members of Parliament in the state election. However, BJP has decided not to give tickets to its sitting MPs this time.
Major National Highway Projects to Boost Connectivity
In a major push to road infrastructure, the Prime Minister will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone for several National Highway projects with a combined length of more than 420 kilometres, worth around Rs 16,990 crore.
PM Modi will also lay the foundation stone for several new highway projects. These include five packages of the 231-km four-lane Kharagpur-Moregram economic corridor on NH-116A. The corridor will connect Kharagpur and Siliguri and pass through Paschim Medinipur, Bankura, Hooghly, Purba Bardhaman, Birbhum and Murshidabad districts.
The project is expected to reduce travel distance by around 120 km and cut travel time by nearly seven to eight hours. It will also connect with key highways such as NH-16, NH-19, NH-14 and NH-12.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also lay the foundation stone for a 5.6-km four-lane Dubrajpur Bypass on NH-14, which will help decongest the busy town area and reduce travel time by nearly one hour. Additional four-lane bridges over the Kangshabati and Shilabati rivers on NH-14 will also be taken up.
