Bengal cultivating onions to meet growing demand: Mamata Banerjee

BANKURA: To meet the growing demand of onions and control the hike in its prices, the West Bengal government has started cultivation of the vegetable in Bankura district, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said.

"In Bengal we don't cultivate onions. I have to buy onions from Nasik... In Bankura we already have started cultivating onion on 12,000 bighas of land," Banerjee said while speaking at a public meeting here after inaugurating 166 projects in the district and laying foundation stones of 110 more in different districts.

Bankura MP Moon Moon Sen and party's all-India general secretary Mukul Roy were also present on the occasion. Banerjee said that West Bengal had set an example for the country in the 100-day-work programme and said the day was not far off when the state would be a model for the "rest of the world".

Declaring that the state would observe August 14 as the ' Kanyashree Day', Banerjee appealed to unmarried girls below 18 and who are studying to enroll themselves immediately in the scheme to reap the benefit of the Rs 25,000 grant from the government.

Kanyashree Prakalpa is Banerjee's dream project, for a bright future for the girl child and to prevent child marriages. Besides, she said, her government was also providing a monthly stipend of Rs 600-800 to students belonging to the SC and STs and studying in class six, seven and eight.

Claiming that her government was also monitoring whether the schemes were properly operating or not. The chief minister also inaugurated 48 marketing hubs amid the 500s as planned by the state government. These marketing, Banerjee said would provide job to around five lakh youths associated with the self-help groups.