Stories
West Bengal to Introduce Bill for State Renaming
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CNBC TV18•07-10-2026, 16:46
West Bengal to Introduce Bill for State Renaming
- •West Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya announced that the state government will soon table a Bill in the assembly to rename West Bengal as Paschim Banga.
- •The renaming initiative aims to connect the state with its history and eliminate colonial-era nomenclature.
- •Plans are underway to construct a Paschim Banga Bhavan in Varanasi to serve as a cultural centre and offer residential facilities for pilgrims and tourists from Bengal.
- •Previous attempts to rename the state date back to 1999 under the Left Front government and were later pursued by the TMC government in 2011 and 2016, though none secured central approval.
Key Questions Answered
West Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya announced that the state government will soon table a Bill in the assembly to rename the state 'Paschim Banga' to align with its history.
The Paschim Banga Bhavan in Varanasi is planned as a cultural centre and a residential facility for tourists, pilgrims, and local Bengalis from West Bengal, highlighting the deep spiritual and historical bond between Varanasi and Bengal.
Efforts to rename the state date back to 1999 under Jyoti Basu and later in 2011 and 2016 under Mamata Banerjee's government, which proposed names like 'Paschim Banga' and 'Bangla', but these failed to secure central approval or political consensus.
