West Bengal may have another opportunity to fulfil its potential—here’s what it needs to do

The sharpest manifestation of this contradiction is Kolkata. The city is the economic and social hub of the state. West Bengal’s share of wealthy households plunges by almost 80% if Kolkata is removed from the picture. But inequality is increasingly defining Kolkata. It is a hub of growth but a magnet for deprivation too, reflecting the state’s uneven distribution of opportunity.

This overreliance on one metropolitan engine is not simply an economic issue. It is a structural weakness. A forward-looking agenda must prioritize the decentralization of growth. For emerging urban centres like Siliguri, Durgapur Asansol and Kharagpur, continuous investment in infrastructure, industry and human capital is necessary. Lack of multiple growth poles can lead to a situation where opportunity is concentrated, migration increases and regional disparities grow further.

An equally urgent challenge comes from rural Bengal. Almost half of the poor households are located in emerging and left-behind rural areas. While urban poverty often grabs headlines, rural stagnation quietly undermines long-term progress.

Agriculture has been productive in the state historically, but this is no longer sufficient as a principal source of livelihood. There is a need for diversification into agro-processing, rural manufacturing and services. It is also crucial to improve physical and digital connectivity between rural economies and larger markets.

The next key pillar is education and skills. Bengal has a good education legacy, but the current outcomes are patchy. Schooling and employability are weakly linked, especially for first-generation learners. A focus on vocational training, aligned to the needs of industry, can unlock the potential of its large aspirer segment. It’s not only an economic imperative but a social one. Upward mobility should be more predictable and less tied to geography or social background.

Healthcare is another area where we need to move from incremental change to systemic reform. The pandemic brought out the strengths and weaknesses of public health systems across India. In West Bengal, improving access to primary healthcare, enhancing district-level facilities and investing in preventive care can greatly improve quality of life. Improving health outcomes will also raise productivity.

Industrial policy has long been a contentious issue in the state and a pragmatic reset is needed. Investment has been deterred by land acquisition conflicts and regulatory uncertainty, with their baggage of history. But the new national and global context that is emerging, with supply chain reconfigurations, offers a new chance.

West Bengal’s strategic advantage lies in its location, sharing borders with several countries and being a gateway to the Northeast. To tap this, we need clear policies, simplified approvals and a partnership mindset with industry. You cannot grow without private investment and trust is the currency of that.

That brings us to the most understated but perhaps most critical issue, the state’s relationship with the Centre. Political differences are inevitable in a federal structure, but long-term friction has real costs. Fund flows are delayed, projects get stalled and policy misalignment all adversely affect citizens, not governments. A mature governance approach would stress cooperation where it can be done, even across ideological divides. Competitive federalism should not be turned into confrontational federalism.

We also must speak about social cohesion. Bengal is proud of its cultural pluralism and intellectual openness. Maintaining this ethos is a moral imperative and an economic one. Societies that are diverse and inclusive tend to be more innovative and resilient. Hence, development strategies must be inclusive by design to ensure that growth does not widen existing inequalities.

Finally, governance itself has to change. Transparency, data-driven decision-making and citizen engagement are no longer optional. They are crucial. The income distribution has changed relatively slowly in recent years, suggesting that current policies are not without effect but not enough. Course correction requires an honest assessment, not rhetorical assertions. Outcomes should drive accountability and metrics should drive policy.

The new government in West Bengal inherits a state that is neither in crisis nor on an upward trajectory. It is at a crossroads between incrementalism and transformation. The policy choice is not between politics and governance but between short-term optics and long-term results.

‘Oh, Calcutta!’ has long been an exclamation of nostalgia and complexity. Today, it can also be a call to re-imagine not just the city but the state that it anchors. West Bengal can move from being a story of contradictions to one of convergence if the next phase of governance can reduce dependence on a single metro, energize rural economies, invest in human capital and foster cooperative federalism. The voting is over. And so the real work begins, as always.

The author is managing director and chief executive officer of People Research on India’s Consumer Economy.