Friday, October 21 2005 15:55 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Kolkata: After the agreement with the Salim group, the Left Front Government would take initiatives to bring in more foreign capital this year, according to veteran Marxist Jyoti Basu.

"Besides investments by the Salim group, the State Government will take the initiative to bring in more foreign capital this year. Large Investments are expected before the 2006 assembly elections in West Bengal," he said.

Finance Minister Ashim Dasgupta would visit the United States (US) and China soon to attract investments from there, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) patriarch told reporters after a weekly meeting of the party's State Secretariat today (Oct 21, 2005).

"More manufacturing units will be set up in the state,'' he said.

The West Bengal Government and Indonesia's Salim Group yesterday (Oct 20, 2005) signed an agreement to set up a Rs 250 crore motorcycle manufacturing factory at Uluberia in Howrah district.

Basu, a former West Bengal Chief Minister criticised Trinamool Congress Chief Mamata Banerjee's opposition to the entry of Indonesia's Salim group to West Bengal.

"Her agitation yesterday was irresponsible and detrimental to the state's interest," he said.