By IANS,
Kolkata : West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi Thursday said people of the state want a peaceful solution to the ongoing row over the acquisition of farm land for the Tata plant in Singur in Hooghly district and had confidence in those who were dealing with the issue.
“I would like to say that people in West Bengal want a solution to the Singur issue,” Gandhi told reporters on the sidelines of the 154th annual general meeting of Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) here.
“People of the state desire and deserve to have a solution and they have confidence in those who are dealing with the issue,” he added.
“There should be a certain respect to what a word conveys between a social group and an interactive group,” Gandhi said.
He had mediated the talks between the state government and the opposition Trinamool Congress to resolve the land dispute.
Ever since the project was announced in 2006, the Tata factory has faced protests from a section of farmers led by the Trinamool Congress against the “forcible acquisition” of agricultural land for the plant.
The umbrella body of the protesters – Krishijami Jiban Jibika Raksha Committee (KJJRC) – has demanded the return of 400 acres to the farmers who were unwilling to part with their land.
Tata Motors Sep 2 announced the suspension of work at the factory – planned to build the world’s least expensive car Nano – after local farmers backed by the opposition Trinamool Congress laid siege to it Aug 24.
An agreement was concluded between the state government and the opposition in the presence of the governor Sep 7 to find the maximum possible land to rehabilitate this section of farmers.
Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee later said only 70 acres were available and came out with a compensation package that was rejected by Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee.
On Monday night, a guard at the plant was beaten up and by Wednesday Tatas began moving out key equipment from the factory.
On the same day, Banerjee demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into how the government could distribute cheques among the ‘unwilling farmers’ when the money meant for their land had been deposited in the court as per the Land Acquisition Act, 1894.