Ex-Mayor Sovan Chatterjee appointed NKDA Chairman, had met CM 2 days back in Darjeeling

Amid Darjeeling, a quiet reconciliation unfolds that makes the comeback of former Kolkata Mayor Sovan Chatterjee straight back into the spotlight as the new Chairman of the New Town Kolkata Development Authority (NKDA). Just 24 hours after huddling with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee yesterday, the state government's Urban Development & Municipal Affairs Department dropped the bombshell notification on today appointing the veteran politician under the provisions of the New Town Kolkata Development Authority Act, 2007. This isn't mere paperwork—it's a seismic shift for Chatterjee. Sovan Chatterjee's saga is a tale of triumphs, tumbles, and now, tentative triumphs anew.

A grassroots stalwart since his entry as a Kolkata Municipal Corporation councillor, he climbed to the Kolkata mayor's seat in 2010, steering the city through TMC's early governance highs. But cracks appeared by 2018—marital scandals, a shocking cabinet sacking by CM, and whispers of disloyalty led to his resignation, Sovan Chatterjee vanished from the fray. Enter the Darjeeling meeting yesterday, the closed-door meeting between him and Mamata Banerjee cracked urban blueprints, reportedly mended fences, with Banerjee eyeing his municipal mastery for NKDA's blueprint of smart grids, lush parks, and booming tech zones in the 30,000-acre New Town sprawl.

As Chatterjee starts his new innings, New Town's pulse quickens—poised for accelerated eco-upgrades and infrastructure leaps under his gaze. With Mamata Banerjee's nod echoing from the hills, Bengal's urban chess game just welcomed a cunning kingmaker. Sovan Chatterjee's next moves could greenlight a satellite city renaissance as the plot thickens deep.