After 13 years, Writers’ Building will again host Bengal ministers’ offices

After nearly 13 years, the Writers' Building, a nearly 250-year-old secretariat in West Bengal, will once again be home to the offices of Bengal ministers. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and five other ministers are expected to relocate their offices to the second floor of the historic building. According to sources, the Adani group may undertake a Rs 120-crore restoration project at the Writers' Building under a corporate social responsibility initiative. Discussions between the government and the group are currently underway.

In October 2013, the state secretariat was moved from the Writers' Building to Nabanna, but several departments have continued to operate from the building, including parts of the home and hill affairs, agriculture, PWD, law and judicial, and parliamentary affairs. The Writers' Building, originally built in 1777 as an office for the East India Company's junior clerks, housed 34 departments and around 6,000 employees between 1937 and 1947. It has been the West Bengal secretariat since 1947.