Prez talks of cooperative federalism at Bengal business meet

President Pranab Mukherjee today dwelt on the issue of cooperative federalism at the Bengal Global Business Summit here, saying every state is important in the context of the entire nation.
"When I was sent the invitation to attend the meet, I thought whether it will be proper to do that as President of the republic. But I felt that as India has cooperative federalism, it lays on the strength of every state. India's strength lies in cooperative federalism especially when it comes to economic development," he said.
Mukherjee, recounting the past glory of West Bengal, said the state had to bear the brunt of Partition and growth retardation because of "unfortunate circumstances and conditions".

Lauding efforts of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in her presence, he said that in the last 6-7 years, necessary ingredients had been created to restart the growth story.
Be it in infrastructure or anything else, West Bengal is the destination for investments, Mukherjee noted, adding that the once debt-stressed state had shown buoyancy in revenue collection.
"There has been a sea change in the country post-liberalisation and collapse of the controlled economy. In Bengal, she has done a fine job. Investments have increased and Bengal is poised for new heights of economic development," the President said.