Mamata Urges Centre to Allow Poppy Cultivation

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has urged the Centre to allow poppy cultivation in the state, insisting that delicacies prepared with its seeds are integral to the Bengali cuisine.

Banerjee said ‘posto’ or poppy seeds are costly as it is cultivated only in a few states.

“Bengalis love ‘posto’. Why should it be cultivated in only four states? Why not in West Bengal, despite it being on our menu every day?” she said.