Kolkata : Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived here on Saturday about 45 minutes ahead of schedule while on a two-day trip to West Bengal.
Modi, who was slated to reach at 5 p.m., flew in to the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport at 4.15 p.m. by a Indian Air Force aircraft.
He was received by Governor K.N. Tripathi, state Finance Minister Amit Mitra, state officials and a number of Bharatiya Janata Party leaders.
The prime minister would launch three ambitious social security schemes pertaining to the insurance and pension sector at the Nazrul Mancha auditorium in the evening.
The two insurance schemes to be launched — Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) and Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) — are aimed at providing insurance cover in the unfortunate event of death by any cause, or death or disability due to an accident.
The pension scheme, Atal Pension Yojana (APY), would address old age income security needs and mitigate the longevity risk.
After the programme, Modi would call on Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission’s ailing president Swami Atmasthananda at the Ramakrishna Mission Seva Pratishthan hospital run by the order.
The prime minister would then proceed to Raj Bhavan where he would meet Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and some other delegations before retiring for the night.
On Sunday, he would visit the Dakhshineswar Kali temple and Ramakrishna Mission’s global ehadquarters Belur Math before rounding up his trip by inaugurating the Rs.18,000 crore modernised Indian Iron & Steel Company (IISCO) at Burnpur in Burdwan district.