Modi in West Bengal: PM’s visit to Ranaghat delayed as helicopter fails to land due to fog
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to address a rally and unveil highway projects in West Bengal’s Nadia district.
PM Modi is scheduled to attend a public programme in Ranaghat, where development projects worth Rs 3,200 crore will be inaugurated. (Express Photo/Partha Paul)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Ranaghat in West Bengal’s Nadia district was delayed on Saturday after his helicopter failed to land at Taherpur due to heavy fog and returned to Kolkata.
Modi had landed at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport around 10.30 am and was to reach Taherpur around 11.15 am, where he was to address a rally and unveil highway projects. This is his first visit to the state since the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls began.
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Airport sources said a high-level meeting is on between officials of the National Security Guard (NSG), Special Protection Group (SPG), and the state police to discuss alternative routes for the Prime Minister’s convoy.
PM Modi is scheduled to attend a public programme in Ranaghat, where development projects worth ₹3,200 crore will be inaugurated. These include the inauguration of a 66.7 km four‑lane stretch of the Barajaguli–Krishnanagar section of NH‑34, and the laying of the foundation stone for the four‑laning of the 17.6 km Barasat–Barajaguli section of NH‑34 in the North 24 Parganas district. These projects will serve as a vital connecting link between Kolkata and Siliguri.
The two new national highways are expected to reduce travel time by close to two hours. The projects are also likely to boost economic growth in the region and provide an impetus to tourism.
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According to BJP sources, Modi was expected to specifically address members of the Matua community at the Ranaghat rally, as many are anxious about the outcome of the ongoing SIR of the electoral rolls. Of the 17 Matua-dominated Assembly constituencies in Nadia and North 24-Parganas districts, the BJP won all the seats in the 2021 Assembly elections. The party also won the Ranaghat and Bongaon Lok Sabha seats in the Matua belt in the 2024 general elections.
PM Modi is then scheduled to visit Assam for a two-day trip on December 20 and 21.
PM Modi is scheduled to attend a public programme in Ranaghat, where development projects worth Rs 3,200 crore will be inaugurated. (Express Photo/Partha Paul) 
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