PM Modi to visit West Bengal for Paschim Banga Dibas, International Yoga Day celebrations
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in West Bengal on Saturday (June 20, 2026) on a two-day visit to the State and will participate in
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in West Bengal on Saturday (June 20, 2026) on a two-day visit to the State and will participate in events to mark Paschim Banga Dibas (West Bengal Day) and International Day of Yoga. ‘I will be present in West Bengal for various programmes in the next two days, the 20th and 21st. Tomorrow, the 20th of June, is particularly noteworthy because it marks the observance of our West Bengal Day.” Mr. Modi posted on social media. The Prime Minister said the event to mark West Bengal Day would take place in Tarakeswar, Hooghly district, a location steeped in heritage due to its connection with Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee and his efforts in preserving the culture of West Bengal.
The Bharatiya Janata Party government, after coming to power, had announced that it would observe June 20 as Paschim Banga Dibas. On June 20, 1947 Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee moved the proposal in the Bengal Legislative Assembly for the partition of Bengal, which, the Bharatiya Janata Party says, paved the way for the creation of a “homeland for Hindus of Bengal”. During the Trinamool Congress regime, Poila Baisakh, the first day of Bengali New Year, was observed as Paschim Banga Dibas. The very next day on June 21 (Sunday), the Prime Minister will participate in the 12th International Yoga Day celebration in Kolkata.
The event will be held at Kolkata Red Road at 6:30 a.m. Preparations for holding the event have been going on for almost a week and the traffic has been diverted for the past several days. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari had said 35,000 people would participate in the event. Later on Sunday (June 21, 2026), the Prime Minister will commission three indigenously designed and built naval ships — INS Dunagiri, INS Sanshodhak and INS Agray — at the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Kolkata. This will be the second visit of Mr. Modi to West Bengal after the BJP came to power.
Mr. Modi was present at the swearing-in ceremony of Mr. Adhikari and five other Cabinet ministers at Kolkata Brigade Parade grounds on May 9.
The BriefWire