8.5 lakh people brought back to West Bengal so far: CM Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday denied allegations that her government was not willing to bring back migrant workers, saying the state has so far brought back 8.5 lakh people from various parts of the country.

By June 10 the state would be bringing back around 10.5 lakh migrants, she said.

"Some people are spreading canards against my government that we are not willing to bring back migrant labourers. This is false. So far we have brought back 8.5 lakh migrants and by June 10, a total of around 10.5 lakh of them will be back in the state," she said at a review meeting here.

"We had only said that the migrants should be brought back in a staggered manner as otherwise there may be a spike in the number of COVID-19 cases in the state," Banerjee said.