West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee says Lulu Group interested in investing in state

Mamata Banerjee, who is also the Trinamool Congress chief, met Lulu Group's Executive Director Ashraf Ali MA in Dubai. She was accompanied by senior officials of the state government.

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjeehas claimed that the United Arab Emirates (UAE)-based Lulu Group has shown interest in investment to various sectors, like fish, poultry, dairy and meat processing in the state.

The Chief Minister said this on Friday after having a meeting with the conglomerate's top executive. Mamata Banerjee, who is also the Trinamool Congress chief, met Lulu Group's Executive Director Ashraf Ali MA in Dubai. She was accompanied by senior officials of the state government.

"We delved into a range of exciting possibilities, foremost among them being the prospect of a world-class mall in Newtown. We discussed the global promotion of Biswa Bengal products in LuLu Group's retail outlets," Mamata wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

"Beyond that, the LuLu Group expressed a strong interest in investing in various sectors, including fish processing, poultry, dairy and meat processing," the Chief Minister added.

From the dais, Mamata invited the Lulu Group to be part of the Bengal Global Business Summit 2023 to be held in November. According to a state government official, the conglomerate is also inclined to procure fruits and vegetables for their stores from the state, and set up food processing centres. The group is also interested in skill development projects in the state, the official added.

With annual turnover of USD eight billion, the diversified Lulu Group is headquartered in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. They have operations in 23 countries across the globe.

Lulu Group already has five operational malls in Kochi, Trivandrum, Thrissur, Bengaluru and Lucknow in India. It was decided in the meeting that Lulu Group will have a separate counter for the retail sale of Biswa Bangla brand products in their malls in other countries as well. Besides, the group will also use Bangla for the supply of food items including vegetables and fruits in all markets of Lulu Group. According to reports, the Lulu Group is likely to build a food processing centre in West Bengal.

Following her visit to Madrid and Barcelona in Spain, Mamata Banerjee reached Dubai on Thursday and is scheduled to return to Kolkata on Saturday. In search of investments in state, the Chief Minister left for Spain on September 12.