Singur residents ask Buddhadeb to bring back Nano

KOLKATA,24 October(IANS): A team of representatives of Singur Nano Bachao Committee (Save Nano Committee), a pro-industry group, Friday met West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and requested him to bring back the Tata Motors' Nano project to the state.

"We met Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacherjee today (Friday) evening and requested him to convey the message of the local people of Singur to the auto major. We all want the industry at the abandoned site of the Nano plant," Singur Nano Bachao Committee (SNBC) secretary Udayan Das told IANS. He said Bhattacharjee had assured them that he would personally request Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata to review the present situation at Singur.

"We told him (Bhattacharjee) that people, irrespective of the political affiliations, have changed their mindsets after Tata Motors pulled out of Singur," said Das, adding Bhattacharjee told the SNBC representatives that his government had failed to retain the investment in the state because of the anti-development campaign of the opposition.

An eight-member team of SNBC met Bhattacherjee at the state secretariat here. "We also requested the chief minister to facilitate the process so that we can directly talk to Tata on the issue and inform him about the real pulse of Singur. Bhattacharjee has also agreed to the request," he said.

SINGUR 'NANO' LAND WILL BE USED INDUSTRIAL PURPOSE ONLY: WEST BENGAL GOVERNMENT

KOLKATA,23 October: The Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government has clarified that the 997-odd acres at Singur, originally meant for the Nano project, will be used for industrial purpose only. In a statement on Wednesday evening, the government said that regardless of the circumstances, “the land would be used for setting up of industries only. The state government is mulling all options and planning to take definite steps in order to set up industries.”

It reiterated that it had acquired land in Singur in step with the norms of the Land Acquisition Act. “The land was given to Tata Motors and several vendor companies, for setting up of the Nano factory and various auto component units. All the necessary infrastructural work was done in the mean time. The land was also converted to suit the industrial purpose. However, the project could not be completed due to disruption caused by a section of people.”

Following this, when specifically asked to Tata Motors, that whether it would cancel its Singur land lease agreement with the West Bengal government or retain it for more time; In response, the Tata Motors spokesperson said: “We will discuss the lease issue with the West Bengal government.” The state government had offered Singur land to Tata Motors on a 90-year lease.

Reacting to the development, Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee reiterated her old demand of returning land to unwilling Singur farmers. “The state government can go ahead with its plans of setting up of new industries in Singur land. But the 400 acres which a section of displaced farmers were “unwilling” to part with, should be returned at any cost.” She said that members of the Save Farmland Committee will resume their agitation in Singur after Diwali.

When contacted, commerce & industries secretary Sabyasachi Sen said: “The government wishes to send the message across that even if the Tatas decide to stay away from Singur, some sort of industry will definitely come up in the 997 acres. The state government already has some alternate plans — some light engineering or manufacturing units can set up their plants. If a number of small units are interested, there could also be some industrial park set up in the area.

With land being so scarce in the state, any industrial group would lap up the proposal.”

“We are no longer hopeful that the Tatas will return to Singur to set up any other project. Therefore, we would ideally want the land to be vacated at the earliest,” added a senior WBIDC official.

West Bengal plans kisan cards to widen rural reach

Kolkata, October 24: To bring in more farmers under the credit net of the mainstream banking system, the the West Bengal agriculture department is planning to push banks to issue 15 lakh kisan credit cards (KCCs) by 2012. The department has taken up the issue at the state-level bankers’ committee (SLBC) meeting. “By 2012, we should have at least 30 lakh Kisan credit cards from the present 15 lakh,” said Sanjeev Chopra, agriculture secretary, West Bengal. Of an approximate 68 lakh people having operational holdings, 70% are small and marginal farmers.

“The ratio of corpus to bank finance is 1.13 only, which indicates under-financing by banks,” said a top official in the state finance department. The requirement of farmer’s credit in West Bengal is about Rs 15,000 crore according to estimates by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard). While the state government eyed a disbursal of Rs 5,000 crore of rural credit this fiscal, the formal banking structure in the state could disburse only a little more than Rs 3,000 crore.

“We are talking to several banks including cooperative banks to forge a way out,” said Sanjeev Chopra. “Increasing the number of kisan credit cards will bring more people under the mainstream credit net,” he said. “The banks have infrastructure constraints and we are ready to lend our manpower to the banks for KCCs,” he said. The department is even ready to offer special incentives to the banks against KCC accounts.

According to sources, out of 3,354 gram panchayats (GPs) in West Bengal, about one-third do not have any bank branch. A task force formed by the SLBC has identified about 200 GPs for establishing banking facilities. “We have given targets to our principal agricultural officers and they have been asked to at least double it by the this five-year plan,” Chopra said. The department is planning to creatre three to five lakh new KCC accounts every year to achieve the target.

Normalcy returns to Darjeeling hills

By Indo-Asian News Service on Thursday, October 23, 2008

Normalcy returned to West Bengal's Darjeeling district Thursday as supporters of the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) stopped the forcible use of Gorkhaland in vehicles number plates and signboards as part of their non-cooperation movement in the hills.

"The situation is normal now, both in the hills and plains. No fresh incident took place Thursday," said Rahul Srivastava, Darjeeling district police superintendent.

The Communist Party of India-Marxist's labour wing Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) Wednesday called a 72-hour transport strike protesting the non-cooperation movement of the GJM in the hills.

CITU activists stopped all vehicles with GL number plates, including passenger cars, trucks and goods vehicles, to enter the plains. Later the strike was withdrawn in the evening after holding an administrative meeting in the district CITU committee.

The GJM, led by its president Bimal Gurung, has been spearheading a movement in the hills demanding a separate state and also opposing the Sixth Schedule status for Darjeeling.

The central government in 2005 announced Sixth Schedule status to the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF)-led Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) that ensures greater autonomy to the governing body. But Gurung's group, which is opposed to the GNLF, is demanding full statehood.

PROVINCIAL PAROCHIALISM MUST BE CONDEMNED AND OPPOSED: BIMAN BASU

Kolkata, 23rd October: West Bengal Left Front Chairman and CPI(M) State Secretary Biman Basu spoke about the urgent need to contain and condemn provincial parochialism. ‘Ugly deeds of regional and linguistic chauvinism are a terrible danger to the very notion and practice of national integrity and unity’ was how Bimanda would put it.

‘The whole concept,’ he added, ‘of Indian citizenship itself is now faced with a challenge of grim proportions, as seen in the prejudiced drive overwhelmed with brutalisation against certain sections of the people in what has always been a cosmopolitan and tolerant Maharashtra’ This must not be allowed to go free and unhindered. People of every section of the social fabric must come forward in strong condemnation of the deeds being perpetrated. Political parties of every kind of ideology and political leanings, or lack of them, should have the courage to condemn publicly such parochial acts of commission.

In this connection, Biman Basu referred to two forms of separatist movements taking place in Bengal. Up north in Darjeeling, the anarchic Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) was busy overwriting car number plates and altering signboard lettering, often being met with a different sort of separatism in the dooars and the plain lands. The Darjeeling district Left Front has called for unity of the people and for opposing all attempts at dividing up Bengal. Down south, a demand has been raised by interested quarters about slicing of three districts – Bankura, Purulia, and Midnapore west – from Bengal and having them form part of the neighbouring state of Jharkhand. .

Bimanda stoutly defended the position of the CPI (M) to stand against all separatist acts, and said that earlier a separate Jharkhand was called for by opportunistic elements by carving out upto 21 districts from Bihar, Orissa, and Bengal. The movement ended in crass failure. This time, too, the move must be thwarted by all right-thinking persons, appealed the CPI (M) Polit Bureau member. Bimanda also condemned the killing of a doctor, a nurse, and a health assistant by the Maoists in Midnapore west recently and pointed to the desperation of these anarchic elements, which drove them to commit such crimes against humanity.

On Singur, Biman Basu called upon the lone Trinamul Congress MP to carry her message of ‘400 acres’ to the bigger for a and perhaps shout it out during sessions parliament, sessions that she never attends now more than ever. On the Election Commission’s recent reputed moves, Biman Basu said that back in August of 2006, the CPI (M) general secretary Prakash Karat had placed a memorandum with the EC that called upon it to desist from insisting on a ban clamped down then on banners, posters and graffiti on privately-owned places, noting that these were the cheapest form of campaign with the widest possible appeal. (INN)

Gorkhaland agitation a conspiracy

to divide West Bengal: CPI(M)

Kolkata, Oct 23 (IANS): Terming the ongoing Gorkhaland agitation as an attempt to split West Bengal into small parts, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Thursday urged the people to unitedly protest against the ‘unscrupulous elements’ who were trying to disturb the state’s integrity.

‘The non-cooperation movement of the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) has now become a state of lawlessness. Some bad elements, both in the hills and the plains, are trying to disturb the law and order and social fabric of the hills. All political parties and more over people from different strata should come forward and protest against these ill-attempts,’ CPI(M) state secretary Biman Basu told a press conference here.

He said the GJM movement in Darjeeling was affecting the local people and the tourism, which is the main source of living in that region. ‘This year, during pujas, the tourist arrivals have gone down substantially,’ he added. Criticising the demand that three West Bengal districts - Purulia, Bankura and West Midnapore - be included in the neighbouring Jharkhand, he said: ‘These evil attempts can only be defeated if people can stand up against these type of demands.’

Basu also condemned the Maharastra Navnirman Sena’s (MNS) attack on north Indian students who had gone to sit for a railway board exam in Maharastra.

TRINAMOOL GOONS KILL MADRASAH HEADMASTER

Kolkata,22nd October: Comrade Ala-ud Din Mollah never expected that he would find himself at the end of a plethora of gun barrels. Comrade Mollah was a much respected figure at Haroa and Minakhan block areas as the reputed headmaster of the Antpur High Madrasah.

Comrade Mollah was living for some time now away from his village since just after the Trinamul Congress captured a few Panchayat seats at the village level, near his place of residence. Along with him were forced to flee 180-odd CPI (M) workers. Comrade Ala-ud Din’s long political association with the CPI (M) was an established fact.

On 20 October, comrade Mollah and the other ousted comrades were on their way back to their native village cluster following an all party meeting. All on a sudden, a group of armed Trinamuli anti-socials surprised them while they were negotiating a lonely stretch and the attackers – there were at least a dozen of them – started to fire at them indiscriminately.

The response of these lumpen elements to comrade Ala-ud Din’s surprised inquiry about ‘what is it that you want,’ was a volley of gun fire. He died on the spot. Nine other homeless returnees were left with severe to near-mortal bullet injuries. The Bengal CPI (M) has strongly condemned the murder and the attack. There was a total strike at Haroa and Minakhan blocks on 21 October. The attackers have yet proved elusive.

DARJEELING SEPARATISTS GO IN FOR ‘SIGNPOST’ MOVEMENT’

Kolkata, 23rd October (INN): Whenever there is a signpost in English or Bengali, the Gorkhaland Mukti Morcha (GJM) goons would be sure to spot and ladling it over with glue, stick on crude, handwritten graffito that would say ‘Gorkhaland (GL) government.’ The GJM has been doing this for some time now, and the GJM sympaticos have written extensively and for a long time now, on the divisive newspaper Darjeeling Times that actively espouses the cause of the separatist hungmawallahs, proclaiming how the ‘revolution’ can only be achieved by forcefully advocating a change in the signboards, shamelessly and unconstitutionally calling upon certain hill social groups to become free from the ‘discriminating reign of the plains people.’ Apparently, the forced change in the signposts is held up as a banner that proclaims the ‘first step towards separation – and a even more liberating times farther on,’ according to one GJM supporter.

The Bengal unit secretary of the CPI (M) Biman Basu has been strident in castigating the move clearly and directly-- calling the ruse unconstitutional and attracting of punishment as an offence against the Indian Constitution. The Darjeeling CPI (M) has strongly condemned the separatist moves but has stopped short of direct confrontation, leaving the matter to be sorted out during the much-awaited tri-partite meeting between the central and the state governments and the fractious and quarrelling GJM leadership. Over telephone, the state home secretary Ashok Mohan Chakraborty informed us that ‘all legal steps would be initiated against the perpetrators of these acts.’

The dangerous dimension of the movement was seen by us recently whilst on trip to north Bengal. Such graffito ‘transference’ of administrative authority has spread –well, trickled down would be a better politically correct term – across the plains as well. We saw such acts of what we can dub and condemn as ‘hasty pasting,’ on signposts and signboards in the plains as well, especially in Naxalbari in Darjeeling where the Kanu Sanyal fraction of the CPI (M-L) is active yet, and at Banarhaat and Bagrokote in the district of Jalpaiguri dooars areas.

The ‘signpost disfiguring movement’ actually started several months back, unnoticed by most political outfits in the hills. The beginning comprised surreptitious pasting of ‘GL’ on the license plates of cars and all other motor vehicles. We were present on one such occasion when a car had its number plate disfigured. This is what happened and we quote from our later entry in the notebook that we carry.

I recall the date and time perfectly. I was taking a stroll on the mall at the ‘queen of the hill resorts’ in Bengal, on a rainy morning of 22 June and the time was exactly nine hours. I espied a shiny new car – one of those new-fangled foreshortened hatchbacks – slip by me. What was that on the number plate? Was it a ‘GL?’

I was stumped, bi-focals and all. I strolled towards where the car had parked and the man at the steering was about to get off, shopping bag at the ready. The harassed-looking man was in a hurry too as the ‘unlimited’ bandh had just been taken off for a day or so.

I peered, and then asked courteously, what is with the number plate, sir? Well, it seemed GJM chieftain Gurung (of whom a certain woman leader of a violent outfit is so politically-ideationally enamoured ) and his henchmen had just decreed an ‘order’ for all motor vehicles plying in the hill areas to stick a piece of something on the number plate with the letters GL prominently displayed. An order in the hills is an order where the separatist outfits go.

The man furtively slipped away guiltily and I was left staring at the small square of paper with the appropriate letters, hastily glued askew on the legitimate registered number starting with a ‘WB zero dash’ followed by the vehicles assigned, registered serial number. Is this something that is possible to do?

No, says Bengal LF government’s transport minister Subhas Chakraborty, and he is quite correct. The letters WB are assigned for Bengal just as the letters MH, to take a random example, are referred to for Maharashtra and both are done at the behest of the union government.

It is the union government alone that can assign letters and numerals for registered motor vehicles for purposes of identification and registration, and this is a worldwide reality.

Gurung’s formal request in this regard, sent post facto, to the transport minister during the later afternoon hours of 30 June, has legitimately been turned down. Nevertheless, the growingly public and brash attempts at subverting the Indian Constitution go on.

Gurung’s game lies elsewhere.

By initiating in the hill areas of the Darjeeling district, the (clearly illegitimate) debate in a move to ‘legitimise’ ‘Gorkhaland’ through the backdoor, Gurung, his cronies, and his advisors in the hills and on the dooars are playing a pretty dangerous game, a game replete with violent implications.

Then again, when did Gurung and his lackeys clearly deny that the demand for ‘Gorkhaland’ would remain free of the use of ‘legitimate force of the people?’ Read the pieces that appear in the Darjeeling Times and you would have no doubt about the pure hatred the Gurung men and women preaches and practices.

B. Prasant

ON THE ABANDONMENT OF THE SINGUR PROJECT

A Bengal AIKS Document

All India Kisan Council condemns the disruptive and violent activities of Trinamul Congress led anti-LF combine in West Bengal that forced withdrawal of Tata Motors Ltd (TML) from Singur after 85% of work in the small car factory had been completed. It may be recalled that the agreement between WB Government and Tata Motors Ltd on setting up the cheapest car manufacturing industry in the world was signed on 9th March, 2007 and details of the conditions of agreement were reported to the State Assembly within one week on 15th March, 2007 and text of agreement had been finally been put on the website on behalf of the government.

Only 997 acres of land was given on lease TML and 55 ancillary units against their demand of 1100 acres and on estimated requirement of 1280 acres going by the standard prescribed by NATRIP ( National Automotive Testing and R&D infrastructure Project), a Central Government Undertaking specialised in this job. This can be compared with quantum of land under occupation of comparable factories elsewhere in the country i.e. Maruti of Gurgaon – 1250 acres, Tata Motors at Pune 1100 acres, Mahindra and Mahindra at Mumbai – 1060 acres etc. The land acquired for this purpose was mostly mono-crop and waterlogged and compensation over 160% of market value was paid to the land-losers.

The legality of the procedure was upheld by Calcutta High Court. 10852 out of 13103 land losers i.e. 82.8 % had already voluntarily taken their compensation in spite of threat intimidation of TMC, SUCI, Naxalite groups. They did not attend any of the All Party meetings convened at the districts or state –level and finally declared to start indefinite Dharna from 24th August, 2008 demanding return of 400 acres of lands from the project site where construction has already taken place though only 167 acres of belong to the landlosers, who had not taken compensation.

Ms Mamata Banerjee refused to sit with CM who had written two letters inviting her for discussion for an amicable solution; she also refused to respond to Tata’s letter offering their readiness to discuss the issue. She of course, sent a team of TMC, SUCI, Naxalite etc. leaded by the leader of opposition on 20th August which assured CM and Industry Minister to continue discussion, submit a list of so-called ‘unwilling farmers,’ demanding return of land and maintain peace at the site of dharna.

All these assurances were blatantly violated, and Mamata with aid and abetment from a section of the Naxalites, the SUCI, the Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh, Anuradha Talwarkar, Medha Patkar, and such like minded people made provocative speeches from dharna manch, indulging an illegal blockade of the National Highway (NH) 6. Their followers resorted wantonly to intimidation and violence on the workers, engineers, and security and media persons, finally forcing them to suspend their work temporarily and withdraw from the work site.

Police and local LF workers showed utmost restraint and foiled their every effort to provoke a bloodbath so that they could cash in on any eventuality of casualty including mortality. However, increasingly, the popular opinion started to fulminate against her manoeuvrings of these lowly kinds. This development compelled her to approach the Governor of Bengal for what can be termed a ‘bail-out.’ She also agreed to discuss the issue emerging out of the Singur impasse with the state LF government with participatory presence of the Bengal Governor as, so he himself claimed, a ‘facilitator.’

After a two-day-long discussion with ministers of the LF government whose ranks included the industries minister Nirupam Sen and the Panchayat minister Surjya Mishra, there was a one-day worth of dialogue between Mamata Banerjee and Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. An agreement was finally produced on 7 September 2008 and the dharna was withdrawn.

However, as is her wont, very soon after the meetings, Mamata Banerjee while briefing the media at Raj Bhavan itself iterated the demand of 400 acres of land to be given from within the perimeter of the project area itself, thus completely ignoring the instrument of agreement signed. Bengal chief minister launched another initiative on 12 September to have another round frank parley with the leader of the main opposition party. This discussion did take place and here the chief minister placed a comprehensive compensation-rehabilitation package that brought within it beneficent ambit a wide cross-section of the people of the area.

This package offered seventy acres of land within project area for an economic rehabilitation of the land losers. An additional component of 50% as compensation was provided to the land losers as well the bargadars in cash value for the land acquired. An assurance was set in place for guarantee of employment of one person per family of land losers provided of course that there were none in the family employed. 300 days’ worth of work was pledged for the khet mazdoors and unrecorded bargadars. This was topped by a comprehensive development programme of the affected area.

Mamata Banerjee not unexpectedly turned down the package on offer. The state LF government had no other alternative, thus, left but to air the package in the dailies on 14 September. The Bengal Left Front organised a massive rally at Singur that drew lakhs of people on 15 September in support of the package.

The next day, Mamata Banerjee and her cohorts held a meeting of around a thousand-odd people (also at Singur) and opposed the package. The state LF government convened an all-party meeting on 30 September, which was boycotted, by the TMC and the SUCI. Congress did attend the meeting but preferred to emote a dubious position, virtually encouraging the disruptive role of the Trinamuli combine.

It is against this background as a whole that Shri Ratan Tata finally declared the decision to move out of Bengal and relocate the small car Nano project elsewhere despite the comprehensive assurance of support given and expressed by the state LF government. Shri Tata squarely blamed Mamata Banerjee for the disruptive activities that compelled him to withdraw from Singur and Bengal. He also hinted at the support given to her by some corporate houses. Presently, Mamata Banerjee has issued a call for a march onto the Kolkata Police HQ at Lal Bazar, to be followed by a rush on the Writers’ Buildings, clearly the aim being to precipitate disorder through gratuitous violence.

The Bengal unit of the AIKS was in the midst of campaign throughout this period, and it has taken up a detailed programme intense campaign following Tata’s withdrawal. The programme includes interactive meetings with the people in every village, responding to questions the villagers will prefer to put up. The AIKS shall rally the peasantry in their entirety and other sections of the democratic masses in the struggle against the reactionary combine disrupting every effort at industrialisation and such other developmental activities as construction of roads, power stations, and irrigation projects etc.

The Kisan Sabha has also taken up a campaign-movement for implementation of the Tribal Forest Act, NREGA, Sarba Siksha and Sarba Swasthya Avijan, SHG movement, and programmes relating to the increase of production and productivity in agriculture as well as all issues involving the peasantry, with jathas culminating in rallies to be held in every district in November.

The AIKS coveys its solidarity to the Bengal peasantry in this struggle and firmly resolves to take up the campaign all over the country as well.