Suvendu unveils Rs 1,200 cr Sunderbans Model, announces Muri Ganga Bridge by 2029

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has embarked on a grand project that has been repeatedly postponed for more than 5 decades: The development of the Sunderbans and its adjoining areas, including the famous Ganga Sagar Islands.

Often referred to as a “stepchild of Kolkata” for the kind of neglect the successive Governments subjected it to, a large part of South 24 Parganas would now be developed and decked up under a new “Sunderban model” that would not only include a 3 km bridge over Muri Ganga to connect the Ganga Sagar Islands with the mainland — making communication easier for 20 lakh pilgrims — but also afford the yearly Ganga Sagar Mela (fair) an international status.

This would also create a new district at Kakdwip, presently the sub-divisional headquarters of Ganga Sagar, situated on the western fringes of the Sunderbans delta.

The Government is initially earmarking Rs 1,200 crore for Sunderbans development, which would include constructing the Muri Ganga bridge. The fund would serve roughly 1.25 lakh people in the initial rounds.

The Chief Minister said that five concrete jetties and a specialised RoRo-cum-LCT (Roll-on/Roll-off and Landing Craft Tank) jetty will be constructed to handle heavy vehicular freight between remote islands. In addition, electric ferries will be introduced in phases to reduce the carbon footprint. For this, the State has set aside Rs 100 crore.

There are 102 islands in the Sunderbans, of which 54 are inhabited and 48 form part of the Sunderbans tiger reserve.

Referring to the Muri Ganga Bridge connecting Kakdwip and Ganga Sagar, he said, “We will inaugurate the bridge by 2029… the earlier Governments have done nothing for this… they did not even submit a DPR (detailed project report)… now we have done it… we will also invest in developing communication infrastructure among the various islands by constructing concrete jetties, including cargo docks and roads.”

The mega-Sunderban development plan comprises 3,202 distinct initiatives. Officials said tenders have been floated for 553 projects in the first phase, while 2,649 projects will be rolled out in the second phase.

“We will make Kadwip a district in two years,” he said, adding the Ganga Sagar Mela would also be upgraded to an international fair.

Ferries run from Kakwip to the Ganga Sagar Islands, where a major religious fair is held on Makar Sankranti (January 14-15), drawing lakhs of pilgrims and monks from across the country.

According to a Government account, about 1.10 crore people visited Ganga Sagar in 2025, prompting the then Trinamool Congress Government to give it National Fair status.

It was not immediately clear whether the Government was planning Kumbh Mela-type preparations for Ganga Sagar.

Still, officials said the Government had big plans, and they also met with the head priest of the Ganga Sagar Kapil Muni Ashram.

“The Centre gave the earlier Government Rs 600 crore, but they could not even spend Rs 200 crore and 80 per cent of that money went into corrupt hands,” he said. Out of the special allocation of Rs 12000 crore, tenders have been floated for 553 works in the first phase. Work on all these projects will commence soon, he said.

“Hundreds of crores of rupees were spent in the name of the Bengal Global Business Summit, but nothing happened in terms of industry in the state… but we are more focused on creating employment for the youth… every month we will do something or the other,” the Chief Minister, who was visiting the house of one of the Kolkata stampede victims on Sunday, said, adding that some major industrial groups have already expressed their keenness to invest in Bengal.