Kolkata, April 27: West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra has urged Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley not to shift the headquarters of National Insurance Company from the city as a part of proposed merger of public sector general insurance companies.
In a communication to Jaitley, he also said any move to shift the insurance company's head office from the city will "strike a blow" to the emerging financial ecosystem in West Bengal and will "hurt the interest" of people of Bengal and eastern India at large.
"After the announcement in this year's Union Budget of the merger of the three public sector insurance companies, I am apprehensive that the headquarters of the National Insurance Company Ltd might now be shifted away from Kolkata," he said in a letter.
Mitra mentioned the insurance company with a turnover of Rs 16,472 crore and assets worth Rs 32,397 crore is the oldest general insurance company in India, located in Kolkata since its inception.
According to him, the insurance company is building its head office in the newly developed financial hub in New Town, Kolkata. About 24 banks and financial institutions have taken spaces in this hub for building their offices and State Bank of India has built its largest training centre in the hub.
"In this positive atmosphere of financial services, any move to shift the National Insurance Company Ltd headquarters from Kolkata will definitely strike a blow to this new financial ecosystem. I therefore, urge you not to move the National Insurance Company's headquarters from Kolkata," he said.
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Dense fog envelops Delhi, over 100 flights delayed
New Delhi (PTI): A thick blanket of dense fog enveloped Delhi on Friday morning, reducing visibility to zero which impacted air and train operations, according to officials.
They said over 100 flights were delayed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport and 26 trains were running late.
According to the India Meteorological Department, "Zero visibility has prevailed over Palam since 4.30 IST with southeasterly winds blowing at 6-8 kmph."
At Safdarjung, visibility remains limited to a minimum of 50 meters in dense fog since 5.30 IST with calm winds, the IMD added.
Meanwhile, Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 6 degrees Celsius, 0.9 notches below normal, while the air quality was recorded in the severe category.
According to the CPCB air quality bulletin, the AQI at 9 am was recorded in the "severe" category with a reading of 408.
The weatherman has forecast very dense fog for the day , with the maximum temperature expected to settle around 16 degrees Celsius.
An AQI between zero and 50 is considered "good", 51 and 100 "satisfactory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor", and 401 and 500 "severe".
