1st time in her 14 years as CM, a Tata Group chairman calls on Mamata Banerjee

KOLKATA: Tata Group chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran came down to Nabanna on Wednesday to meet Mamata Banerjee - the first time a Tata Group chairman has done so in her 14-year tenure as West Bengal CM - to discuss future investment in the state.

Chandrasekaran met Banerjee for about an hour at the latter's 14th-floor office, also marking the first face-to-face conversation between a Bengal CM and the Tata Group's senior-most executive since the group's forced exit from Bengal in 2008 amid the tumultuous Singur agitation (which was led by Banerjee, then the state's principal opposition leader).

The Tata Group has a strong presence in Bengal through multiple entities - like TCS , Tata Hitachi, Tata Steel and Tata Global Beverages (formerly Tata Tea). There was no official communication from the administration on the subject of Wednesday's meeting but Nabanna seniors said it revolved around the availability of large land parcels in the state. Another topic that the discussion might have explored was the possibility of a direct Air India flight to Europe , they added.

Chandrasekaran holds the post once held by Ratan Tata for close to two decades, and then by Cyrus Mistry. Banerjee has never met either Tata or Mistry after taking over as Bengal CM.

The Tata Group (and Tata Sons ) chairman was accompanied by Confederation of Indian Industry director-general Chandrajit Banerjee. State chief secretary Manoj Pant, too, was present. Chandrasekaran left the city after the meeting, officials said.