May 24, 2011
Process to return 400 acres of land to Singur farmers now a prime agenda
May 24, Kolkata: Partha Chatterjee, Minister of Industries, has sought all documents on the Singur land lease to Tata Motors and vendors to see if the process of returning 400 acres to “unwilling” farmers can be fast-tracked.
The Minister has also asked the industry and IT departments to draw up a status report on distribution of land to industry from 1991.
Mr Chatterjee held meetings with the Industry Secretary and the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) Managing Director and asked for copies of the lease agreement and correspondence from “day one”.
“I want to present this to Chief Minister Ms Mamata Banerjee for her views and direction,” the Minister said.
The first decision of Ms Banerjee`s cabinet was to return the 400 acres.
The industrial data Mr Chatterjee has sought is expected to be collated within a week. The information will cover the following aspects: the number of industrial units approved by the government, the quantity of land distributed and the way it was done, the use of land, employment generated, whether the investors delivered on the promises and, if so, whether deadlines were met.
The Government is also giving a thought to amend laws if necessary to facilitate the process.
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