Investments pouring in from Singapore: Bengal minister

Camping here to woo investors, West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra Wednesday said many companies have signed joint ventures and letters of intent promising to pump in at least Rs.1,200 crore in his state.

A government delegation led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee participated in a business summit during the day.

"The GIC-HDFC, one of the world's largest funds, entered into a joint venture for investing $32.5 million (Rs.200 crore) in the Kolkata Riverside Development project. This is not a memorandum of understanding but an official commercial signature," Mitra told media persons after the summit.

On other projects, Mitra said InfraCo Asia has given a letter of intent worth Rs.1,000 crore to the Keventers Agro Intra Company for a food park at Dankuni in Hooghly district.

"Singapore's Compass Group which deals in port designing, has signed a joint venture with Axis Technologies from Bengal. Besides, OBT Inc. and William Sonoma, India have signed a letter of intent to showcase Bengal's art and craft in their 600 outlets in various parts of the world," Mitra said.

He said the Sanderson Group of Australia, which has a holding company in Singapore, will go for a joint venture with the Ravi Auto Group from Kolkata to set up a world class amusement park.

Addressing the summit, Banerjee apprised industrialists about her government's new textile policy, a public-private partnership policy, a new IT policy as well as industry policy.

Banerjee also said a nodal office of the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation will be set up in Singapore to promote global investments in her state.