By Special Correspondent
KOLKATA: Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee is scheduled to hold talks with Ratan Tata, Chairman of Tata Group, here on Friday to discuss the future of the Tata Motors project at Singur.
“The project’s future does not depend only on the assurances of the State government for, there are various stakeholders involved. But there is no lacking in the sincerity of our efforts to ensure that work at the project site is resumed,” Mr. Bhattacharjee said here on Tuesday.
He was addressing a press conference at the end of an all-party meeting, where a resolution was adopted requesting the Tata Motors and the ancillary industries to resume work at Singur as soon as possible. It contained an appeal to all sections to create a congenial atmosphere.
The resolution also focussed on the need to implement rehabilitation and compensation packages for the affected farmers as well as take initiatives for the development of the area.
While the principal Opposition, the Trinamool Congress, and its ally, the Socialist Unity Centre of India, did not attend the meeting convened by the government, the Congress refused to endorse the resolution “for the present.”
The Tata Motors announced suspension of work on September 2 in view of continued confrontation and agitation at the site. This came in the wake of the “satyagraha” outside the project area by the Trinamool Congress from August 24 in support of its demand that 400 acres of land acquired for the project be returned to farmers who had not received compensation for their plots.
The agitation was lifted following a meeting between Chief Minister and Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee held in the presence of Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi here on September 7. Ms. Banerjee, however, subsequently threatened to resume the agitation unless the September 7 agreement between her associates and the government, pertaining to providing land to “unwilling” farmers, was “operationalised.”
Mr. Bhattacharjee refuted claims of the Trinamool and the Congress that his government failed to abide by the agreement.
The government offered 40 acres from within the project site area to be returned to the farmers who had not accepted compensation, but that was raised to 70 acres “as this, it was felt, was the maximum that could be provided [from within the site] without impacting the integrated nature of the mother plant and ancillary units,” he said.
“In no way had the government moved away from the agreement; there was no talk of agreeing to provide 200 to 300 acres [as is being claimed by the Trinamool Congress]. What was agreed on was providing [to the farmers] 70 acres,” he said.
Mr. Bhattacharjee hoped that good sense would prevail on the Congress leadership that declined to endorse the resolution.
“It is unfortunate that it is not realising the integrated character of the project and is arguing for shifting of some ancillary units. It is not just Tata Motors; we too feel that such a move will affect the very viability of the project,” he asserted.(END) Source The Hindu
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