Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday drove home the message of amity and said a wedding in her family this week would strengthen the bond between the hills and the plains.

“A member of my family (a nephew) is getting married to a girl from the hills. Both of them are doctors and friends. The nuptial ties will strengthen the bond between the people of the hills and the plains,” Mamata told newspersons at the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport in Calcutta, before departing for Bagdogra.

“I love the hills and the plains alike. I love Dalits, Scheduled Castes and tribals and all communities. There is no difference among people in our state,” said Mamata.

Later in the afternoon, the chief minister landed at the Bagdogra airport and headed for Kurseong. On Friday, she will attend a public service distribution programme in Kurseong where people from Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts will be present.

During her seven-day trip to north Bengal, Mamata will visit Alipurduar and Jalpaiguri districts for similar events. On December 12, she will attend another distribution programme at the Kanchenjungha Stadium in Siliguri and will return to Calcutta.

“We will distribute many things at these programmes. I will cover four districts (Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar) during my trip,” she said.

The chief minister’s visit to the region is significant, especially because the Lok Sabha polls are drawing near, said political observers.

At the Parliament elections of 2019, BJP had bagged all three Lok Sabha seats located in these four districts. Altogether, the saffron party had won seven of eight seats in north Bengal region.