The Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in association with West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB), organized the Sustainability Dialogue for North Bengal, on 29th May 2019 (Wednesday) at Hotel Sinclairs, Siliguri.

The objective of the Discussion Forum was to bring together the stakeholders of Jalpaiguri division (Alipurduar, Coochbehar, Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Kalimpong) and Malda division (Uttar Dinajpur, Dakshin Dinajpur and Malda) together, Policy Makers and Industry Leaders to brainstorm and share the best practices and cutting edge technologies to take forward the industrial development of the State with adequate fortification towards vulnerability of ecology.

The forum featured discussions on:
• Air Pollution
• Plastic Waste Management
• Municipal Solid Waste Management
• Best practices and technologies for tea manufacturing units
• Sustainable Agriculture with special focus on North Bengal

Mr. Arun Kumar Mukherjee, Chairperson Emeritus, Energy and Environment Committee, The Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry set the agenda for the discussions with his Theme Address and Opening Remarks. The Chamber believes that strategies for North Bengal are integral for the development of the State especially given the Region's geo- strategic importance. Therefore, sustainable growth is to be focused for North Bengal. The Chamber believes that this forum has to be annualized so that there is a continuous engagement with the stakeholders and the relevant issues are addressed in a structured format.

The Opening Session was graced by Mr. Sonam W Bhutia, Commissioner, Siliguri Municipal Corporation; Dr. Chirantan Chattopadhyay, Vice - Chancellor, Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya and Mr. Jayanta Chakraborty, Senior General Manager, Indofil Industries Limited & Vice-Chairperson, Agriculture & Rural Development Committee, The Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Mr. Bhutia mentioned that Siliguri does not only have ecological vulnerability but also has strategic vulnerability with international borders and access route to South East Asian Nations. Siliguri has 1 lac floating population for trade and tourism every day. Therefore, carrying capacity of the City is stretched every day. Initiatives have been taken especially in transport and connectivity for ecological resilience of Siliguri. 40% of pollution is generated by vehicles. Overall quality of air is in tolerable limit except in some places of vehicular congestion. Air quality monitoring has been installed at 4 places. 2 more would be installed at strategic locations. He also addressed on solid waste management and inorganic waste in Siliguri.

Dr. Chirantan Chattopadhyay mentioned that Sustainability would have to be economic and inclusive. It should include citizens. Issues of land, air and water pollution impact our daily lives. Sustainability in villages is a major area to focus on. Sustainability has to be addressed at Policy level. The awareness has to reach majority of demography. Authorities have to be transferred at grass root level of work. Sustainability and economy have to be interlinked and grass root demography of farmers and other stakeholders are to be motivated.

Mr. Jayanta Chakraborty made concluding remarks and vision for Sustainability in context to North Bengal. He mentioned that Siliguri was an ideal destination to organize this program given its bio diversity. Development is crucial for any economy. Development has to be addressed with Sustainability. Bengal's oxygen lies in North Bengal which has tea, tourism, diversified flora and fauna along with other business practices. Sustainability should be considered in terms of economy as well.

There were two Discussion Forums on "Addressing the concerns - air, water and land" and "Case Study from Industries."

Ms. Sukriti Lama, Scientist & In-charge, West Bengal Pollution Control Board; Mr. Sanjib Kumar Sarkar, SRO, Assistant Environmental Engineer, West Bengal Pollution Control Board; Dr. Ranadhir Chakraborty, HOD, Department of Biotech, North Bengal University and Dr. Partha R Dasgupta, Advisor - Emeritus, Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture joined the first Discussion Forum which was chaired by Mr. Arun Kumar Mukherjee, Chairperson Emeritus, Energy and Environment Committee, The Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Mr. Lalit Sinha, General Manager Goodricke Tea; Dr. Gaurav Roy, Senior Manager-Medical Administration, Medica North Bengal Clinic & Medica Cancer Hospital and Dr. Biswajit Bera, Director (Research), Tea Board of India graced the second Discussion forum which was chaired by Mr. Arun Kumar Mukherjee, Chairperson Emeritus, Energy and Environment Committee, The Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry.