There is a lot to look out for in West Bengal’s first budget session under the newly elected Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government on Monday. The hope is for indicators towards a pro-industrial push, as the state has lacked big-ticket investments to propel it towards becoming an industrial hub. The Left and Trinamool Congress(TMC) regimes did not hold significant promise for investors, resulting in a not-so-significant industrial growth in comparison with other states.
Director General of the Indian Chamber of Commerce(ICC) Dr Rajeev Singh says it is important to pass this budget as the earlier one by the TMC government was a vote-on-account budget, and the state needs a full-fledged budget. “The budget can give some indicators of what the government is prioritising and this is what they will do. Industries are definitely expecting an industrial policy, because Bengal does not have an industrial policy, which was made a long time back and was withdrawn last year, the old policy is defunct now," said Dr Singh while stating that the previous government cannot entirely be termed as anti-industry, but rather as being passive and not taking the right decisions towards industrial growth.
“That is why industrialists were not finding Bengal to be very competitive in this market. The industrial policy that was there was withdrawn (in 2025). Land is also a big issue in West Bengal; the ease of doing business had multiple layers before executing projects. Those were past issues," added Dr Singh.
Bharat Chamber of Commerce(BCC) Director Naresh Pachisia believes that the budget should have a pro-industrial outlook, providing direction for the state’s growth and employment. “In the previous administration, what was happening was that too much money was going for welfare economics, instead of developmental economics," said Pachisia, referring to previous budgets focusing on social welfare schemes for lower-income households rather than an emphasis on direction to attract investments.
“If we see the budget being favourable towards developmental economics, it will be a good indication. We need a growth-oriented industrial policy. Whether the policy will come in the budget or later, we don’t know, but we need an industrial policy that is long-term and stable in nature," added Mr Pachisia.
The projected debt in West Bengal’s interim budget in February was Rs 8.15 lakh crore by the end of the fiscal year 2026-27. Taking a new direction from the erstwhile TMC government, the double-engine BJP government is looking at central social welfare schemes being implemented and funds coming in from the Centre. This takes some burden off the state exchequer.
Abhirup Sarkar, Economics Professor at the Indian Statistical Institute, says what the state needs is one or two big-ticket investments to build faith for more investors to consider West Bengal as a lucrative destination. Sarkar opines that the fear of industrial output nationally in the previous regime resulted in West Bengal remaining stagnant, as per RBI figures, which can be improved.
“What we need more is to attract at least one or two big business houses. Once you attract one or two big business houses, like IT (Information Technology), you become a part of the national and global value chain," said Professor Sarkar.
Like ICC Director General Dr Singh, Sarkar believes the budget will provide a roadmap for the state’s future projection. “What people are expecting from the new budget are some signals that the government is interested in a long-overdue industrialisation drive. There should be an indication that the state really wants to attract investment," added the economist.
Industry watchdogs know it will take time for things to change in the state, but when Dr Swapan Dasgupta, as West Bengal's finance minister, makes budget announcements, there is some indication of what West Bengal can accomplish towards industrial resurgence.
