‘CONSPIRACY’ - AND THE SINGUR COURT CASE

By B PRASANT

An INN subscriber from Delhi writes to say – perhaps with a minute but obvious tinge of cynicism – as to what is the nature of the ‘conspiracy’ that the Bengal CPI (M) in its statement speaks about, to have been involved in the case filed against and subsequently, after nearly a year, judgment and verdict delivered on, CPI (M) leader Suhrid Dutta on the Singur resident Tapasi Malik’s ‘unnatural death.’

The case had been lodged by the CBI, which also led the inquiry as well as the investigation, and the state LF government was not made a party to the case other than having an AOR (‘advocate-on-record’).

At the outset, let us clarify that Suhrid Dutta was accused of ‘criminal conspiracy’ to murder u/s 120B, plus u/s 302 of the IPC, read inter alia with section 164 of the CrPc and its sub-sections. What do the sections mean, signify, and with what fall-outs, sans the legalese involved?

Section 120B reads that whoever is a person involved with a criminal conspiracy to commit an offence punishable with death can be served with a sentence that involves either the death penalty or imprisonment for life.

Section 302 is whoever commits murder shall be punished with death, imprisonment for life and shall also be liable to [a] fine.

CrPc 164 stands for signed record of any confession or statement made to the magistrate of law in the course of an investigation.

Thus far, everything is simple, straightforward and in keeping with the spirit and law of justice as conceived by our former British colonial masters, and followed since, by- and-large, by the Indian ruling classes.

Let the complexities, comrades and friends, especially our friend up in Delhi, commence from and at this point of time.

Surprise, surprise, the nature, and progression of the conspiracy and the great big fault lines therein, too, appears quite as simple and straightforward as perhaps not expected.

The entire case against Suhrid Dutta is based on the ‘secret confession’ u/s 164 of ‘one Debu Malik.’ Debu later stood in court to say that he has not made the statement, which, by the interesting way, allegedly does not bear his signature.

Subsequently, Debu also formally retracted the confession in the court of law. There thus remained no direct evidence of any kind. This should have been the end of the matter. However, complexities are lovably clung to always with an end in view and a game plan at hand.

After a test of narcolepsy up in Delhi (was he administered the dreaded and mind-bending ‘truth serum’, sodium pentothal, we have no way of knowing), where Debu who does not speak / understand either English or Hindi, was allegedly not even explained the significance of the long and lugubrious section and several subsections thereof, of 164, allegedly neither agreed nor disagreed to whatsoever was read out to him but the fact is that he did not sign the ‘statement’ which the inquiring magistrate then signed. Shall we quote from the law, then, friends, to bolster our case?

Sec 164 (1) states: ‘the Magistrate shall, before recording any such confession, explain to the person making it that he is not bound to make a confession and that, if he does so, it may be used as evidence against him; and the Magistrate shall not record any such confession unless, upon questioning the person making it, he has reason to believe that it is bear, made voluntarily.’

Permit me readers to quote for once the chapter-and-verse of what is written in sub-section 4 of section 164 of Cr Pc for it will help clear up any fog of indecision yet hovering over the case.

Any such confession shall be recorded … of an accused person and shall be signed by the person making the confession; and the Magistrate shall make a memorandum at the foot of such record to the following effect.

"I have explained to (name) that he is not bound to make a confession and that, if he does so, any confession he may make may be used as evidence against him and I believe that this confession was voluntarily made. It was taken in my presence and hearing, and was read over to the person making it and admitted by him to be correct, and it contains a full and true account of the statement made by him. [Our emphasis]

(Signed)

Magistrate"


Here the linguistic issue we talked of before comes to play a crucial rôle. A somnambulant and befuzzled Debu recovering from the narcolepsy test nodded a ‘yes’ or did not, is not the question involved here.

The issue is that the magistrate making the inquiry signed the ‘statement’ without Debu signing it. The statement ‘said’ that according to Debu, Suhrid Dutta, a much respected leader of the Hooghly CPI (M) and well into his 70s, had allegedly asked him [Debu] to hire goons to kill the late Tapasi as ‘she was the leader of the anti-small motor car movement at Singur.’ [Any takers on this score, please, anyone?]

This, we hold, is patently a ridiculous statement had Debu even made it under the circumstances (which, we repeat, he did not.)

The crux of the matter is that in the absence of any specific charge or witnesses, the verdict was given based on ‘circumstantial evidence,’ i.e., Debu’s statement one (a statement that he later formally denied and withdrew).

The CBI called the case the ‘rarest of the rare cases.’

We understand the reason why.

The Bengal CPI (M) has decided to move to High Court with its appeal and quite rightly, too.

The CPI (M) is a patient lot. We recall the absolving of all charges nearly a decade later of what had been slapped on hundreds of CPI (M) workers in the courts of law over the past decades following sentencing that involved the death penalty. We shall wait. We shall win. By now, we are used to it.

(INN)

Mamata demands return of land at Singur by Dec 2

SINGUR,15 November, 2008: If the West Bengal government will not return the land acquired from farmers "not willing" to part with it for the now abandoned Tata Motors Nano project here by December 2, cultivation would be started on it, the Trinamool Congress threatened on Saturday.

"If the government does not return the land to unwilling farmers by December 2, potato, cucumber and vegetables cultivation will begin as the farmers will have to survive," TC chief Mamata Banerjee told at a party rally here. Banerjee said she along with other party leaders would begin token cultivation of vegetables on December two and thereafter farmers on a mass scale if the land was not returned by then.

She opposed the state government's efforts for Faw automobile company of China to start an industry on the plot and demanded that a global tender be floated for new industry there. "There should be transparency and accountability in the tender to be floated for selecting industry in Singur," she said.

Denying that she and her party were anti-industry, Banerjee, who had demanded return 400 acres of the nearly 1000 acres acquired for the Tatas, said she was sticking to her point that 600 acres was sufficient for an industry.

Deadlock continues in Lalgarh (Paschim Medinipur)

Agitators-officials talks inconclusive, will continue
Tribals arrested for blast cannot be freed: government

KOLKATA, 14th November, 2008: Parts of West Bengal’s Paschim Medinipur continued to remain cut off from the rest of the district on Friday, following protests by tribal villagers against alleged police excesses. Maoists are known to have a presence in the region.

Representatives of the agitators met local authorities to break the deadlock. The talks, held in the affected Lalgarh area, were inconclusive and would continue, Home Secretary Ashok Mohan Chakravarty said here. For more than a week, ever since roads were dug up and trees felled to set up roadblocks, access to Lalgarh has remained restricted. Supply of water, power and food has been severely disrupted.

The agitators are protesting against alleged police excesses during raids to track down those responsible for the November 2 IED blast in the region. Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee had a narrow escape that day as a powerful IED went off moments after his convoy passed through Kalaichandi.

Roadblocks have also been put up in the adjoining sub-divisional town of Jhargram and only a few were removed following Sunday’s meeting between leaders of tribal groups and the local administration. The district authorities assured the agitators that allegations of police excesses would be looked into and action taken against anyone found guilty.

But they were told that the demand for release of all tribals arrested in connection with the blast could not be met. Those in whose possession arms were found and against whom specific charges were framed would not be released, Mr Chakravarty said. Nor would the three camps of the Central Reserve Police Force, set up earlier in the region, be withdrawn. In Kolkata, senior officials and those from the police administration attended a review meeting held by the Chief Minister.

The government, which is keen on avoiding a Nandigram-like situation, has advised authorities in Lalgarh not to take any action that might precipitate a confrontation with the protesters. Asked about the situation at Lalgarh, Biman Bose, secretary, State Committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), said the move to apprehend those behind the blast was guided by the administration’s anxieties over the law and order situation and was not aimed at the tribals.The Congress has sought Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi’s intervention to facilitate restoration of normality in the area, said its legislature party leader, Manas Bhunia.

Ban on Maoists up to the Centre: Yechury

KOLKATA, Nov. 13 : CPI(M) Polit buro member Mr Sitaram Yechury said today both political campaign and administrative action were needed to tackle Maoist attacks in West Bengal. Asked whether the West Bengal government should ban the Maoists as the Trianmul Congress chief Miss Mamata Banerjee had dared it to do so, Mr Yechury said it was for the Centre to take a policy decision on the issue.

He said Maoist activities were causing concern in different parts of the country and the Prime Minister had initiated steps to deal with the problem. The Left Front-government had asked for additional battalions of para-military forces from the Centre, but the latter pleaded its inability to deploy them on the ground that they were needed for election duties, he said.

Speaking at a party programme Mr Yechury charged that the bailout package being offered by different nationalised banks in the country would benefit only private players of the share market and not the common man. The current global financial crisis, he said, was the result of the neo-liberal policy of the capitalist world. He questioned why Prime Minister Mr Manmohan Singh was now calling for insulating the country's economy against international finance capital, while he had once been a strong advocate of integrating the country's economy with the globalisation process.

Astonfield sticks to Rs 2000cr green energy plan

Kolkata, November 14, 2008: Astonfield Renewable Resources Limited (ARRL) plans to invest close to Rs 2,000 crore over the next two years on renewable energy projects in India.This is part of the money raised by the company earlier when it had decided to foray into India.

According to Sourabh Sen, co-chairman, ARRL, “Raising fresh funds is an issue now but we have more banks in US and Japan part financing all our projects. A few of the projects are self-funded. We hope to break even in six to seven years from now.”

Sen said ARRL has seen a steady growth of business in 2007 and first quarter of 2008, where the first official renewable energy allotments were received in Bengal, including 10 megawatt of biomass, 5 megawatt of solar PV, and 1 megawatt of manure-to-power, to be executed in Gangarampur, Bankura, and Kalyani, respectively.

Since then, last year, ARRL bought its first plot of land in Bankura, a total of 26 acres for a 5 megawatt solar PV plant, which ARRL will start constructing later this year. According to Sen, ARRL is also in final stage to bid on the allotment for a 54 megawatt municipal solid waste-to-energy plant in Dhapa, a project the company has been working on since October 2007. The specific projects in West Bengal will cost approximately Rs 60 crore for the 10 megawatt biomass project, Rs 100 crore for the 5 megawatt solar, and Rs 8 crore for a 1 megawatt of manure-to-power project.

Sen said that the Haryana Renewable Energy Development Agency (HAREDA) has issued a letter of intent to ARRL for setting up solar power projects of 3 megawatt in the state with the option of two more in future.

The tariff for generation of solar energy has been fixed at Rs 15.96 per unit by the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC) for projects to be commenced up to December 31, 2009, and Rs 15.16 per unit for projects commencing between December 31, 2009 and March 31, 2010. Astonfield has also set up an office in Mumbai to focus on projects in South and West India.

‘Tata’s exit will not be complicated’

Kolkata, November 13, 2008: The exit route for Tata Motors from Singur will not be a complicated one, Principal Secretary of state for commerce and industry, Sab-yasachi Sen, has assured.

“As and when the Tata Motors takes out all the equipment from the site, they can terminate the lease with the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) — but not before that. The same applies for the 290 acres of land that is with the vendors,” said Sen.

He said the factory site has many types of equipment that had been assembled with the help of engineers from Japan and Germany. “Assembling the unit took about two years. The state government has to give them legitimate time to bring out all the equipment. Even if not two years, we are expecting them to take anything between six months to a year,” said Sen.

He said the commerce and industry department will keep a layout ready for possible future projects. “We will conduct a survey of the land and prepare a blueprint with roads, drainage, sewerage and the overall layout. The area might be taken by a single company or two companies or we may even have an industrial park. Layout for all options will be prepared,” the minister said. He, however, added that only when the existing lease agreement is terminated, concrete progress can be made with other companies. The land lease is renewed every year and the present lease will lapse in March.

WBIDC Managing Director Subrata Gupta, meanwhile, confirmed that vendor companies have already started approaching WBIDC for terminating the lease. “Recently we received a letter from one vendor company stating that they would like to terminate the lease and take the money back,” said Gupta.

Sen also said the proposal for Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemical Investment Region (PCPIR) at Nayachar has been sent to the 14-member high-power committee chaired by the cabinet secretary. The proposal was approved by the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers two days ago. “We hope the high-power committee will clear it soon. Then the proposal will go to the Cabinet,” he said.

Regarding Salim group’s investments in Gujarat, he said: “We have no apprehensions of the group pulling out its projects from West Bengal. Both Mahabharat Motors and New Kolkata International Development Pvt Ltd (NKID) are on track. It is a big group which can invest anywhere it wants,” added Sen.

Kolkata Film Fest begins

KOLKATA, 13 th November,2008 - Shorn of glamour, the 14th Kolkata Film Festival got off to a drab and colourless start here this week. Veteran filmmaker Mrinal sen inaugurated the eight-day event, during which 276 films from 62 countries will be screened at 11 auditoria in the city, besides at one each in Siliguri, Barasat and Burdwan.

Actor-filmmaker Nandita Das was the only Bollywood presence, with the state government failing to rope in any other megastars of the country's tinsel capital despite sounding out megastars like Shahrukh Khan and Shabana Azmi. Nandita is attending the festival with her directorial debut Firaq. Among others present were actor Soumitra Chatterjee and West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.

Bhattacharjee quoted the opening lines of Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities, saying it was "the best of times and the worst of times". The chief minister said the ongoing financial crisis in the U.S., which has implications for Europe and even India, made the present "perhaps the worst of times". "On the other hand, the best of times perhaps is that a black president along with his black family members will be entering the White House," he said, referring to Barack Obama's election as the U.S. president.

The centenary tribute to French director Jacques Tati will be the highlight of the annual event that ends Nov. 17. Tati's masterpieces, including Play Time, My Uncle and The Big Day, will be showcased here. Under a special segment Remembering Ray, filmmaker Satyajit Ray's favourite Hollywood films as well as his restored creations, including Teen Kanya, Parash Pathar, Joy Baba Felunath and the short film Two, will be screened. Besides, Aparajito, the second film in Ray's legendary Apu Trilogy will also be shown.

For veteran actress Shabana Azmi, filmmaker-turned-actor Farhan Akhtar's performance, was pitch-perfect- a title that she would otherwise give only to actors Balraj Sahni and Paresh Rawal.
"Farhan took me by surprise with his performance in Rock On. He was pitch-perfect," said veteran actress Shabana, who is married to Farhan's father, writer-poet Javed Akhtar.

Tapasi Malik murder case verdict a conspiracy: CPI(M)

Kolkata,13th November,2008: The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), which leads West Bengal's ruling Left Front, on Wednesday termed as a "conspiracy" the life sentence awarded to its Hooghly district leader Suhrid Dutta in the Tapasi Malik murder case.

Alleging that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), probing the death of the 18-year-old Tapasi in 2006, had been "used" in the "conspiracy" against Dutta and the party, the CPI(M) state committee appealed to its cadres to sensitise the people about the "canards" being spread by the "enemies" of the Left Front government.

"In the past, our party has moved ahead after defeating the conspiracies hatched against us. The latest example is the conspiracy against Dutta and the entire party," the state committee said in a release.

"The party can't accept this verdict. We will see to it that an appeal is made in a higher court," the release said.

Additional Sessions Judge Amar Kanti Acharya of the fast-track court at Chandannagar in Hooghly district Wednesday awarded life imprisonment to Dutta, secretary of the party's Singur zonal committee, and another activist Debu Malik for the murder.

The court had convicted the two on Tuesday. The Singur girl's charred body was found inside the fenced area of Tata Motors' Nano factory on December 18, 2006. Dutta was found guilty of masterminding the murder and criminal conspiracy. Malik was convicted on the charges of murder, criminal conspiracy and manipulating evidence.

Tapasi from Bajemelia village in Singur, about 40 km from Kolkata, was an member of the opposition Trinamool Congress-led Save Farmland Committee that was protesting land acquisition for the Nano project.

Sunderbans, Ganges in 7 Natural Wonders list

KOLKATA,13th November, 2008: Sunderbans, world’s largest mangrove forest located between Bangladesh and West Bengal, and the Ganges River are competing with some gorgeous natural heritage sites across the globe for the seven Wonders of Nature list.

Famous for its breathtaking beauty and the Royal Bengal Tiger, Sunderbans forest has carved a niche for itself when the mangrove was selected by New Seven Wonders Foundation after the selection of seven new wonders of the world last year, which included Taj Mahal.

Lying in the mouth of the holy Ganges, the Sunderban delta is composed of mangrove forests, swamps and forest island all interwoven in a network of small rivers and streams. It covers an area of approximately 10,000 square kilometers.

Altogether 400 places from different continents have been nominated primarily in the seven wonders nomination process which include 51 places (highest number of places) from South America, 31 Europe, 30 Asia, 27 North America, 19 Africa and 10 Oceania.

Voting is continuing through internet. “It is so exciting that out of 400 places which have been nominated primarily in the seven wonders nomination process, Sundarban and Ganges are on leading positions at this moment for Asia region,” an expert on Sunderbans afair reacted.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee cast his vote here at the Writers’ Buildings recently on the website www.new7wonders.com to nominate the Sunderbans and the holy Ganges as two of the seven ‘Global Wonders of Nature’.

Tushar Kanjilal, secretary of Tagore society for Rural Development, was also present at the state secretariat along with Sunderbans Development Minister Kanti Ganguly and Irrigation Minister Subhas Naskar.

“The Chief Minister took the first step and we request people from both West Bengal and across the country to vote for the Sunderbans and the Ganges to enlist them in the seven new natural wonders’ list. These are multinational nominees and it needs both India and Bangladesh to officially support it,” Ganguly said.

Ganguly said, “We have already formed a supporting committee to champion the cause and we are trying to promote it in a manner to appeal to people in India and Bangladesh to vote for these two heritage sites. In fact three because Cox’s Bazar beach, the largest sea beach of the world, has also found place in the nominated site out of 158 natural places of the world so far.”

The global voting platform, which is conducting the poll, is promoted by the New Seven Wonders Foundation that included the Taj Mahal in its list of seven man-made wonders last year. The foundation was set up by Swiss-born Canadian film maker-explorer Bernard Weber. The platform selects the wonders on the basis of nomination committees in each country and only one nomination from each country is finalised in the last lap of the race.

The Ganges was at the seventh position, while the Sunderbans was tenth, as per current voting on the website. The voting will continue throughout 2010 and into 2011 when the results will be declared. Ganguly further said a nomination committee from Bangladesh had approached the state government to support the Sunderbans, as the forest cover vast areas of both India and Bangladesh.

“I know the process and we have yet to see many ups and downs in the position so far but if we all keep on voting for Sundarbans, Ganges and Cox’s Bazar, we should be in good standing till the end. Voting in the internet is fun and it should be more fun doing it for our heritage sites,” said student of Calcutta University Divya Malik.

“Everyone must log on to the following link and cast their valuable votes to earn the title for natural wonders. That way we will be able to boast of another Wonders of the Modern World, the first one was the Taj Mahal,” said an elated college student.

The Sundarbans features a complex network of tidal waterways, mudflats and small islands of salt-tolerant mangrove forests. The area is known for its wide range of fauna, with the Royal Bengal tiger being the most famous, but also including many species of birds, spotted deer, crocodiles and snakes.

It is already a UNESCO World Heritage site and was designated a Ramsar site on May 21, 1992. It was also nominated as one of the New seven Wonders of the world, along Taj though didn't make to the final 14.Some other prominent natural heritage sites in the race include Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park in Phillipines, Ha Long Bay in Vietnam, Chocolate Hills in Phillipines, Al-Ahsa Oasis in Saudi Arabia, Phong Nha-Ke Bang National park in Vietnam and Fansipan Mountain in Vietnam.

Kolkata Trams offer a nostalgic journey to commuters

Kolkata (IANS),13 November, 2008: The charm and nostalgia of the old Kolkata streets, the coffee house sessions and landmarks like the Victoria Memorial, would now come alive through line drawings on the body of the trams - the “heritage wheels” of the metropolis.

Master illustrator Samir Biswas has given an all-new look to the colonial transport mode through the dexterity of his line drawings skills that capture the changing facade of Kolkata since the time when it was the British India capital.

Telecom service provider Aircel launched the innovative programme celebrating the rich heritage of the city. The cultural initiative would initially be introduced in 27 trams across the city.

"The drawings will give a complete feel so that people could easily visualise both old and the new features of Kolkata. All the paintings, mostly based on line drawings and watercolours, will showcase the lifestyle of people belonging to different social strata," Biswas told IANS on the sidelines of the programme here Wednesday.

He said the drawings would cover diverse subjects from the Raj era, high-rise buildings, major landmarks like Howrah Bridge, College Street, Park Street and the Hogg Market. "The portraits will describe a tale of the metropolis which has undergone a change in the time of globalisation. The sky-scrapers, glitzy malls and IT township - which are entering into the history of the metropolis and its colonial soul - will also get a place in my artistic depiction," he said.

Biswas, who once worked as a graphic artist with a Kolkata-based leading newspaper group, is a Government Art College graduate. His line drawings skills on Kolkata buildings and life in the metropolis graced many a newspaper and magazine for three decades between the 1970s and 1990s.

"It's a great feeling for me that people now would get to see my creativity," he said. Ever since the first horse-drawn tram of the city rolled out on meter gauge tracks way back on Feb 24, 1873, this medium of transport has virtually become a logo of Kolkata, and has withstood criticism of its utility in the present era of fast-moving vehicles.

The Calcutta Tramways Company (CTC) was formed in 1880 and registered in London on Dec 22 that year. The electrification of the tram routes was done in the early 20th century. The CTC was taken over by the West Bengal government in the 1970s.

Plans for solar power plant on anvil

Kolkata,Thursday, Nov 13, 2008: West Bengal Green Energy Development Corporation (WBGEDC) has invited “expression of interest"" from various developers for setting up a roof-top solar energy harvesting mechanism.

The corporate houses or commercial buildings with roof top area more than 50,000 sq ft would be eligible for submitting an application, said Mr SP Gon Chowdhury, MD, WBGEDC. He said that corporate houses with 50,000 sq ft or more roof top area can set up “high efficient"" solar power plant capable of generating 250 KW of power. He said Wipro has already expressed interest for setting up the proposed solar power plant. This corporate houses would be able to sell power to different state power utilities at Rs 11 per unit as per the state electricity regulatory commission.

He said the WBGEDC has already spoken to different power utilities like CESC, West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Corporation (WBSEDC), and DPL. All these power utilities have agreed to buy solar power from the corporate houses. They would be providing the solar power generated to the grid with the help of a transformer. A metre would be fitted to record the total amount of transmission and accordingly the corporate houses would receive the ‘preferential’ tariff.

He described this as “win-win"" situation for the corporate houses as they would be entitled to tax benefits and can also ask the United Nation Framework on Climate Change for carbon credit. But prior to the application, the corporate houses would have to take post country clearance from ministry of environment and forest.

Mr Gon Chowdhury said that the power utilities would be benefited as it is mandatory for them to buy 10 per cent renewable energy by 2012 as per Renewable Energy Port Folio (RPF) standard.

Yunnan Tourism signs MoU on tourism exchange with West Bengal

To offer Lifestyle, Leisure, Sports, Experiential and MICE as tourism products

Kolkata, November 13, 2008: In a bid to strengthen the industrial and tourism cooperation with India, Yunnan Provincial Tourism Administration (Yunnan Tourism) is focusing on tourism exchange with West Bengal. Yunnan Tourism signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with West Bengal Tourism Directorate, West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation (WBTDC) and the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) Eastern Chapter on the 10th of this month in order to build a mutual bond on tourism practices, exchange and understanding.

Having approached the West Bengal Tourism Directorate, WBTDC and the TAAI Eastern Chapter, Yunnan Tourism plans to cash in on tourism opportunities in Kolkata and East India considering the short distance, newly launched air link and the similarities in culture and ethnicity. As part of the MoU, West Bengal Tourism Directorate and WBTDC have also planned to make the state more available for Chinese tourists.

Manabendra Mukherjee, Tourism Minister of West Bengal said, “Apart from developing destinations and other tourism products, we will be developing the China Town area of Kolkata and include it under the Destination Development Scheme.” Talking about plans to focus mainly on Eastern India, Yu Dingcheng, Director General, Yunnan Provincial Tourism Administration, told TravelBiz Monitor, “Yunnan and West Bengal have many similarities in tastes and traditions and both enjoy large ethnic diversities. Also, Kolkata is at a distance of about two hour’s flight from Kunming, a region we are projecting as Yunnan’s USP. Apart from the newly-launched air link, Kolkata has a large harbour in coastal Eastern India. All these features have prompted us to start our promotional activities in India from Kolkata.”

China Eastern Airways, which re-started its operation from Kolkata last month, currently operates with four flights a week to Kunming. According to a China Eastern Airways official, depending on the growth in traffic, the airline may increase the flights to seven per week. Speaking about the tourism products offered by Yunnan Tourism, Dingcheng said, “Yunnan has the largest ethnic diversities in China and that will be one of our highest selling points. With large golf courses and natural hot springs, we will focus on tourism products like Lifestyle Tourism, Leisure Tourism, Sports Tourism and Experiential Tourism.”

Targeting these products at leisure tourists, Yunnan Tourism also sees potential of MICE segment when it comes to tourism exchange with India, especially Eastern India. “Eastern India still lacks exposure to good international destinations as MICE destinations. We are on a constant lookout to find more international MICE destinations which are lesser known but strong in terms of infrastructure when it comes to supporting MICE travellers. Yunnan has great potentials to host MICE segments,” said Devendra Parikh, Chairman, TAAI Eastern Chapter.Commenting on the stiff competition from Thailand Tourism, Dingcheng said, “Although Thailand is an old player when it comes to tourism exchange with India, we have come up tourism products that are different from those offered by Thailand.

Besides, we have geographical proximity with India and have better climate to offer. While most of the popular tourist destinations in Southeast Asia cannot provide year-long tourism services due to extreme climate conditions, Yunnan has pleasant weather condition throughout the year and can play host at any time of the year.”

Seige enters fifth day, Lalgarh remains cut off

Kolkata, November 11: Meetings fail to reach consensus, prices of essential commodities go up Lalgarh remained cut off from the rest of West Bengal for the fifth consecutive day on Tuesday, as all-party meetings called by the district administration to resolve the crisis failed to reach a consensus. The state government has alleged that outsiders are instigating the locals of the area.“The type of slogans being raised in Lalgarh show the presence of outsiders who are instigating violence,” said Home Secretary Ashok Mohan Chakrabarti.

“The trouble at Lalgarh is also hampering the investigations in the Salboni blast, as the officers involved in the probe are now busy with controlling the law and order situation in Lalgarh. Moreover, the snapping of roads has affected the supply of kerosene oil, which is widely used in the area that has no electricity,” he added. Political parties and the administration have failed to arrive at an agreement to allow repair of roads dug upin the Lalgarh area of West Midnapore. Two separate meetings were called by the administration on Tuesday.

The first meeting — called by the block development officer (BDO) of Lalgarh — was held at his office and was attended by gram panchayat pradhans and panchayat samity members of the area. Another meeting was called by District Magistrate Narayan Swarup Nigam in Jhargram with all the political parties. Both the meetings failed to serve the purpose. “We do not intend to use force to repair the roads that have been dug up. We want to resolve the issue through dialogue,” said Nigam. Another meeting has been called on Wednesday.

In both the meetings, the Opposition demanded an end to the 'atrocities' by the police and that the police should release all those arrested or detained for their alleged involvement in the Salboni blast. The Opposition also sought a public apology from the police. District police sources, however, said since the case was linked with the attack on the chief minister’s convoy, it would not be possible for them to allow release of those arrested. “This will give a signal that the administration is compromising even in such a sensitive case,” said a senior police officer of the district police.

Panic was evident among the residents of Lalgarh, with most of the roads remaining deserted on Tuesday. The three police station areas of Lalgarh, Binpur and Belpahari remained cut off, which has resulted in the rise in prices of essential commodities — with potato and candle being the worst hit. A source in the Lalgarh BDO office, however, claimed there was no shortage of dry food. The administration is arranging for supply of kerosene in the area.

Lalgarh comprises 10 gram panchayats. Of these seven are run by the Jharkhand Party and three by the CPI(M). The panchayat and samity members have been requested by the state administration to go back to the villages and try to convince the villagers to allow repair of roads.

Bayern Munich to set up football academy in Kolkata

Kolkata,November 12, 2008:German giants Bayern Munich will set up their first football academy outside Germany, and West Bengal will have the honour of being their partner. Bayern president and former German soccer star, Karl Heinz Rummenigge was in Kolkata on Wednesday to announce the plan of a football academy that would be set up in Burdwan with technical support from the giants of club football in Europe.

The Burdwan District Sports Association would enter into an agreement with Bayern and Techno India (a knowledge management group) for the proposed academy.Rummenigge said that Bayern chose India and West Bengal as a partner for such a venture as they were looking into long-term relationships and were not in Kolkata only to make money.

"Our philosophy is different from other clubs of Europe who go into Asia for making money. Our slogan is to create friends and have long-lasting commitments. The way we saw Oliver Kahn being felicitated here when he played in farewell match in Kolkata also showed us how people of West Bengal loved football," he said.

While Rummenigge will fly back on Wednesday night, his colleague from Bayern, Martin Hegele, will travel to Burdwan on Thursday to see the proposed site. Hegele told India Today: "We are here as we wanted to work with serious people and your minister Nirupam Sen is one such man." Burdwan is Sen's home town and he, along with sports minister, Subhas Chakraborty, pledged support for the academy.

Hegele explained that apart from providing technical support to build up the academy, which will include the construction of artificial and natural football pitches, training of coaches and players, there will be exchange programmes and age-group tournaments to enhance the talents available in West Bengal and also across India.

The academy will have a stadium and five football fields, two of which will have artificial turf. Four fields will be floodlit, so that the students can practise at any hour.Rummenigge expressed hope that one day a player from the Burdwan academy will play in the professional football circuit in Europe and added that he did not think it was impossible for a passionate country like India to finally play in the FIFA World Cup.

WB govt to support ailing steel and sponge iron units

KOLKATA,12 November,2008: The West Bengal government said on Wednesday that it would support, within its ability, ailing steel and sponge iron units facing closure in the state. “I have proposed to meet the sector to understand the situation collectively and not individually. If in some way, the government can help within its abilities, it will do so,” said the Principal Secretary of Commerce and Industries, Mr Sabyasachi Sen, said here.

Mr Sen, was speaking to reporters while announcing a B2B (business to business) exhibition cum conference, 'Biz Bridge - Resurgence East', to be held here. Admitting that the government was aware of the recent developments in the steel sector, Mr Sen, h owever, said that it would consult with industry bodies - CII and FICCI - to ascertain the number of such units facing closure.

Industry players said that units facing problems were not integrated players and mainly small ones. Following the global meltdown and subsequent lull, the steel industry is in the dock which has prompted production cuts even by majors like JSW Steel, Ess ar Steel and Ispat Industries.
Steel Secretary Mr P K Rastogi had said yesterday that public sector major SAIL may also cut production as the demand for the commodity dipped. Admitting that the steel industry was in the grip of a crisis, Mr Ramswarup Group Chairman and Managing Direct or Mr Ashish Jhunjhunwala said that CII has already urged the state government to support the industry. “However, this is a temporary blip and the steel industry is not going to die,” Mr Jhunjhunwala said. - PTI

State Bank to lend Rs.40 bn for JSW’s West Bengal project

Kolkata, Nov 12 (IANS): JSW Bengal Steel will take a loan of Rs.40 billion from the State Bank of India (SBI) to part finance the first phase of its steel project in West Bengal, a senior company official said here Wednesday.”SBI has agreed in principle to fund the first phase of the West Bengal project,” JSW Bengal managing director Biswadip Gupta said on the sidelines of a press conference organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry.

Talks are on now with SBI for re-negotiating the interest rate, Gupta said. The first phase that involves setting up a three million tonne plant will cost Rs.100 billion, and the debt component of Rs.40 billion would be funded by SBI. JSW, however, wants the bank to bring down the interest rate.

“SBI had earlier demanded 13.75 percent interest. Considering the current lower interest regime, we have asked it to lower the rate,” Gupta said. JSW Bengal is promoted by JSW Steel, which holds an 89 percent stake in the company, with the state government owning the balance.
The company is constructing a 10-million-tonne steel plant in three phases on a total investment of Rs.350-billion (over $7 billion) in Salboni in West Midnapore district of the state.

The first phase of the project will have a pelletisation plant, iron ore beneficiary and coal mine development units by 2012. The second phase, a six million tonne plant, is scheduled for completion by 2015. The entire project will be ready by 2020.

CIL, DVC and BEML to invest INR 1000 crore for MAMC revival

Kolkata, 12 November, 2008: BS reported that CIL, DVC and BEML will be investing around INR 1000 crore in phases to revive the West Bengal based Mining and Allied Machineries Corporation, a BIFR company since 2003.While BEML will be the major share holder with 48%, CIL and DVC will be picking up by 26% stake each in the company.

A revived MAMC is expected to commence operation from the middle of 2010.Mr PS Bhattacharya chairman of CIL said that "I have approached the Mr HC Gupta coal secretary to take up the matter with the ministry for a cabinet clearance on the takeover. Prior to that the clearance for the joint take over will have to come from the Calcutta High Court as it is a BIFR company and the court is sole custodian to determine the company’s future."

Mr Bhattacharya said that MAMC has dues of INR 1200 crore with the Centre and about INR 100 crore with the West Bengal government. He said that “I approached the West Bengal government for a waiver and they have readily agreed. The green signal for the central waiver is still awaited and for this cabinet clearance is mandatory."He said that a silver lining recently emerged on the future revival of the company with the State Bank of India deciding to prune the debt component of the company from INR 430 crore to INR 120 crore.

He added that SBI ends have been tied up and things are moving in the right direction.Revival of MAMC is essential for CIL as it is moving ahead in augmenting underground mining production in the next couple of years. The coal giant is also seeking overseas tie ups in Australia, China, Indonesia and USA for developing UG mining in the country.

West Bengal seeks more Central forces from Home Ministry

New Delhi (PTI),11th Nov: West Bengal on Tuesday sought additional para-military forces from the Union Home Ministry to tackle the Maoist problem in the state.

The demand was made at a meeting of State Chief Secretary Amit Kiran Deb with Union Home Secretary Mahdukar Gupta here on Tuesday.Deb later told reporters that he asked for more security personnel for the state, but declined to specify the quantum of the requirement.

The meeting came in the backdrop of the Home Ministry asking for a detailed report from the State Government on the landmine attack on Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan in Maoist-infested Midnapore district on November two. The powerful landmine blast triggered by suspected Maoists had damaged the security vehicle of Paswan and injured six policemen.

The Home Ministry has already said that there were "callousness" and "lapse" as the security drill was not ensured by West Bengal Police ahead of the visit of the two dignitaries to Midnapore.

Sources in the Home Ministry said the police did not carry out the basic road opening exercise, a mandatory security drill, ahead of the VIP arrival or departure from the foundation-laying ceremony of a steel project.

The remote-controlled mine was exploded at Salboni shortly after Bhattacharjee had passed through that area and Paswan was approaching the point in Jhargram district, adjacent to Midnapore.

Maradona to arrive in Kolkata on December 5

Kolkata,10 Nov,2008:

Argentine soccer legend Diego Maradona will lay the foundation stone of the Indian Football School (IFS) besides participating at a charity dinner during his visit to the city December 5-7.

Announcing Maradona's itinerary in the city, Lok Sabha MP Samik Lahiri said the present Argentine coach would arrive at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in the city on the night December 5.

After laying the foundation stone of the IFS in Maheshtala , about 13 km south of the city December 6, Maradona would meet the press - his first ever media interaction after becoming the Argentina coach.

The West Bengal government and the soccer fraternity would felicitate the superstar in the evening at the Salt lake Stadium, where all former soccer internationals of India would be invited. Maradona's programme for the day ends with a charity dinner, where some of his football gears would come under the hammer.

The hero of Argentina's 1986 World Cup victory is scheduled to visit Mother House, the global headquarters of Missionaries of Charity the next day, before attending a football clinic with youngsters, Lahiri told reporters on Monday. Maradona would leave for home the same night. To a query, he said Maradona could not play now, as he was a FIFA-registered coach. Lahiri also refused to disclose the remuneration Maradona has asked for his appearance.

The soccer genius is likely to be accompanied by his estranged wife Claudia, who played a big role in arranging the meeting between him and the organisers which made the visit possible. Asked what benefit would accrue to the country from the visit, Lahiri said: "The presence of the soccer master will definitely inspire and motivate the youngsters, who have grown up watching his exploits on the soccer field through video".

Lahiri said the ambitious IFS project would start by choosing 20 talented youngsters below the age of 10 from various clinics. The cadets would be coached by a former national level player, who would undergo a coaches' training in a reputed Latin American soccer academy.

After three years of training, the total number of youngsters would be pruned down to 40 (three batches combined). Once the shortlisted charges become 18, efforts would be made to place them in the leagues of various Latin American and European countries.

"Initially, we can't find slots for them in the premier divisions, but I think placing them in lower divisions should be possible," he said. He exuded confidence that if the project succeeded, the country would get 100 players with the experience of playing at the international level. West Bengal Sports Minister Subhas Chakraborty said the state government would play the role of facilitator for Maradona's visit.

Metro Cash & Carry to open outlet on Dec 4

KOLKATA,10 Nov: Metro Cash & Carry will be thrown open to the public on December 4. This German supply major outlet off the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass will be inaugurated the day before, possibly by chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. Metro officials met ministers Naren De and Mortaza Hossain among others on Monday.

The outlet will be the company’s fifth outlet in the country after Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai. Metro’s special focus would be hotels, restaurants, traders and kirana stores. The opening of the outlet is a major development as the Forward Bloc-controlled agricultural marketing board had refused to issue a fresh licence to the wholesale outlet a few months ago. Later, it agreed to give the nod after placing certain conditions. CPI(M) and Forward Bloc were locked in a major tussle over the issue. Finally, the marketing board and the Bloc agreed to issue a fresh licence and a memorandum of understanding was signed between the company and the state government on October 10.

Metro will do business with only those who have APMC licences. Though it can purchase from private markets or regulatory marketing committees, it has to pay one per cent market fee while selling the produce. Other conditions include a bar on contract farming with farmers and only following the business-to-business model with traders. Also, in case of a legal dispute, it must be sorted out in a court of law within the state.

The German wholesale major has already trained 350 persons to work in its outlet. According to its officials, the wholesale centres are open exclusively for business customers, all of them duly registered and provided with customer identification cards.