Kamal Kumar Biswas.TOD.Balurghat
A simmering political battle over stalled infrastructure projects flared anew in South Dinajpur district this week, as Dr.Sukanta Majumdar, Union minister and Member of Parliament from Balurghat, accused West Bengal’s ruling party of blocking the launch of commercial flights from Balurghat and Malda.Speaking to reporters, Dr.Sukanta Majumdar said that the failure to operationalize airports in Balurghat and Malda rests squarely with the Trinamool Congress-led state government, not with the Centre.
His remarks were aimed at countering allegations made by Biplab Mitra, West Bengal’s Consumer Affairs Minister and Trinamool MLA from Harirampur, who had accused the central government of conspiring to prevent flight services from starting at Balurghat Airport ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections. Holding up parliamentary documents, Dr. Majumdar said he had first raised the issue in Parliament after being elected. According to him, the Ministry of Civil Aviation informed him that on June 21, 2016, a 30-year agreement had been signed with the West Bengal government for the maintenance and operationalization of the airports at Malda and Balurghat.
“The Centre handed over the airport on a lease of Re 1,” he said. “Even after 10 years, flight services have not started — not because of the Centre, but because of the state government’s complete failure.”As evidence, he pointed to Cooch Behar Airport, which remains under central control and where flight services are operational. “When the airport is under the Centre, services are running,” he said. “The Trinamool cannot shift blame to Delhi to win votes. They should accept their own failures.”He also criticized what he described as flawed state policy decisions. In a pointed remark, Dr. Majumdar questioned why the state had sent officials from the transport department — rather than aviation experts — to assess the viability of flight operations at Balurghat. “Can drivers of cars fly airplanes?” he asked, in a thinly veiled jab at the state administration.
Before the last parliamentary elections, former state Transport Secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay had visited Balurghat Airport to review conditions for reopening it. Though the visit raised hopes among residents that flight services would resume, no progress followed. The dispute over aviation is unfolding alongside another infrastructure controversy: the proposed four-laning of National Highway 512 from Gazole to Hili. Dr. Majumdar alleged that the project has stalled because the state government failed to complete land acquisition, leading to the return of approximately ₹1,300 crore in central funds. “If there are issues about demolishing roadside houses or shops, the alignment can be adjusted through adjacent fields,” he said. “But the state has done nothing.”He further claimed that despite letters from the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways proposing that land be purchased for the project, the state government did not respond. He added that if necessary, he would work to secure the reallocation of funds from the Centre, but emphasized that land acquisition remains the state’s responsibility.
Beyond transport infrastructure, Dr. Majumdar also criticized what he described as a shortage of doctors in district health centers, holding the Trinamool-led state government accountable for gaps in rural healthcare.With Assembly elections approaching, infrastructure has once again become a central campaign issue in Bengal’s politically sensitive border districts — where promises of connectivity and development remain deeply entangled with partisan rivalry.
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