After prolonged deliberations about how she will make her way to London following flight cancellations due to an 18-hour shutdown of Heathrow Airport, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee departed for the English capital in an evening flight on Saturday.
She left Kolkata in a flight which will take her and her contingent to Dubai. From there they will board another flight for London’s Heathrow Airport, where situation has gradually returned to normal and flight operations have resumed.
According to her original itinerary, CM Banerjee was scheduled to depart for London on Saturday morning. However, following the disruptions at Heathrow Airport, several media reports had suggested she could leave Kolkata on Monday.
The highlight of the West Bengal CM’s visit to England will be her participation in a discussion session on the topic of ‘Social Development – Girl, Child and Women Empowerment’ at Kellog College of Oxford University on March 27.
Additionally, CM Banerjee’s trip is filled with several key engagements. On Monday, she will reportedly hold a meeting at the Indian High Commission in London. This will be followed by a major business summit the next day, where she will interact with prominent international industrialists.
She is likely to highlight investment opportunities in West Bengal and showcase the success of the Bengal Global Business Summit. Additionally, a business delegation from the state will also be present in London to present insights into West Bengal’s industrial infrastructure.
In addition to attending business meetings and discussion at Kellog College, the chief minister is also scheduled to meet representatives of the British government. As per her itinerary, once these engagements are completed, she will depart from London on March 28 and return to Kolkata the next day.
Meanwhile, in an appreciative gesture, West Bengal Governor C.V. Ananda Bose lauded CM Banerjee for her visit to London, calling it a proud moment for the state.
“We are proud that the CM is going to Oxford,” the governor was quoted as saying by PTI. “It is a matter of pride that the CM who is from the land of Rabindranath Tagore has been invited there.”
