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Kolkata, Oct 22 (IANS) The zonal offices of two central agencies, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Kolkata, will start functioning from the same office premises from the first quarter of 2026.
Preparations have started in this regard.
The new complex, from where both the central investigating agencies will operate, will likely be the National Buildings Construction Corporation Limited (NBCC) building, located in New Town on the northern outskirts of Kolkata.
Sources aware of the developments said the decision to operate the zonal offices of both the CBI and ED from the same premises was taken with a view to better coordination between officials of the two agencies, given that both the agencies are conducting parallel investigations in several cases in West Bengal, including alleged financial corruption, school job cases, municipal recruitment cases, cattle and coal smuggling cases.
Already, the CBI had shifted the offices of both its Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) and Special Crime Branch (SCB) to the NBCC Building in New Town. Earlier, the CBI’s ACB operated from the Nizam Palace complex in south Kolkata, and the SCB operated from the Central Government Office (CGO) complex in Salt Lake on the northern outskirts of Kolkata.
On the other hand, ED currently operates from its CGO Complex office located in Salt Lake.
Sources said the new ED office within the NBCC building in New Town will be more spacious, and most importantly, there will be more space for the ED lockup. Sources said the existing lockup space of the ED at the CGO Complex office is not sufficient to keep more than a certain number of accused persons at a time.
The move to operate the zonal offices of both the CBI and ED from the same premises is significant as in recent times, both the agencies have once again stepped up the pace of their action in various cases being investigated in the state, ahead of the crucial West Bengal Assembly elections next year.
–IANS
Source/Red