West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has opened a new centre in Alipore to boost the state’s leather and cottage industries. Called Shilpanna, the facility is part of a larger push to support small businesses, empower women, and promote traditional crafts.
At the launch event on Wednesday, Banerjee praised the state’s performance in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector. She called it a “landmark achievement” and encouraged people to move away from negative talk and focus on creativity and self-reliance.
The Shilpanna centre will help local artisans and self-help groups by giving them space to display and sell their products.
These include leather goods, handlooms, and other handmade crafts. It features 45 air-conditioned stalls and three exclusive stores, giving local businesses a professional platform.
Banerjee also shared impressive figures about the state’s MSME growth. West Bengal now has over 90 lakh active MSME units, which together provide jobs for more than 1.3 crore people.
She said the state has already created 660 MSME clusters and has helped disburse loans of more than Rs 9.5 lakh crore to support these businesses.
