Monitoring West Bengal -

01-08-2007, 01:17 AM

Singur now Nandigram. Time had come to closely watch West Bengal criminal politics.

We know UPA Govt. will take no action, because neither name of state is Gujarat or state ruled by BJP.
Killing brutality is on going event in WB and now open land grab by pressure or false hope.
Lets see whether hired NGO goons are ready to work in their own playground.

01-08-2007, 01:21 AM

QUOTENandigram boils over: 7 killed 
Pioneer.com
Saugar Sengupta | Kolkata
CPM activists clash with activists of Trinamool, SUCI, Jamaat-e-Ulema Hind and Naxalites
It's now the killing fields in Nandigram. Seven people perished early on Sunday in the boiling boondocks of Sonachura and Garchakraberia off Nandigram in East Midnapore district prompting Opposition, Congress Trinamool Congress and the BJP to call a 24-hour and 12-hour bandh on Monday. This, even as a hapless West Bengal Police continued "keeping a close watch" on the situation, as protesters declared Nandigram a muktanchal - liberated zone.

The deaths occurred in clashes between activists of the ruling CPI(M) and the Bhumi Uchhed Birudhi Committee (Land Eviction Resistance Committee) comprising the Trinamool Congress, SUCI, Jamaat-e-Ulema Hind and a Naxalite faction. The violence in West East Midnapore district was sparked off over the acquisition of land for a SEZ to be set up by Indonesia's Salim group.

Indeed Nandigram continued to remain an island cut off from the rest of the country till reports last came in on Sunday. Senior police officials were contemplating "different plans to take back the control of remote villages," sources said. Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee called the incident unfortunate but vouched fortune will be in the farmers' side if they surrendered farmlands for industry.

Most of the dead bore bullet injuries and half-a-dozen critically wounded were on their way to Kolkata, SP East Midnapore AK Dutta said. The police were unable to recover many bodies as the villagers had denied them entry into the village, senior officials said adding injury marks suggest use of muskets and "sophisticated guns perhaps imported from Bangladesh."

Deploring the Opposition role CPI-M State committee member and former Chief Whip Rabin Deb said, "the mainstream Opposition had joined hands with the Naxalites and Jamaat-ul-Ulema-e-Hind to create tension in the area."

Incidentally according to senior intelligence officials the Jamaat had been spreading a disinformation campaign among the Muslim farmers that the Government in its bid to promote industry had been eyeing the lands belonging to the minorities.

Earlier also the Jamaat had organised protest movement against the CPM at neighbouring Bhangor in South 24 Parganas alleging that the CPI-M was working against the interests of the minorities and that most lands being taken for industrialization belonged to the them. Minorities constitute little more than 24 per cent of total population in the State.

Much like Singur the people of Nandigram have been protesting against a reported administrative move to acquire farmlands - some 19,000 acres in the first phase - for Indonesian Salim Group's SEZ project. Earlier on last Wednesday 5,000 strong crowd had torched three police vehicles and snapped all roads and bridges leading to Sonachura and Garchakraberia the two villages likely to be most affected by the acquisition. 

Though the Chief Minister later said that what ever had happened at Nandigram was the product of a rumour the locals continued to mobilize under the banner of Save Farmland movement the Trinamool-led umbrella group that had been spearheading the Singur agitation.

While the police decided to soft-pedal the issue and kept off the affected villages the CPI-M mobilized cadres at the entry point of the two villages leading the existing tension to intensify, local Trinamool leaders feel. "The CPI-M is following the Garbeta-Keshpur line here at Nandigram ... they have been importing hordes of armed-cadres from Garbeta to finish off the protesters ... but we reply brickbat for brickbat," thundered senior Trinamool leader and former local MLA Sisir Adhikari. "We have been camping here for the last 7-8 months to build up a resistance movement," he said not denying that the naxalites were also present in the affected areas.

"The fascist Government has unleashed a reign of terror in Bengal villages, particularly Singur and Nandigram leading to death and destruction. It is in the interest of the poor farmers that the Trinamool Congress has been forced to call a bandh on Monday ... we invite the like-minded parties to support the bandh," State Opposition Leader Partho Chattopadhyay told the media after meeting DIG Eastern Range NR Babu.

A day after the all-party peace meeting featuring Left Front Trinamool Congress, SUCI and Jamaat ul Ulema e Hind Nandigram erupted once again with only gunshots tearing the foggy darkness. Nothing could be seen or heard baring sporadic flashes of bomb blast and anti Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee slogans, panicked sources fleeing the war zone in hordes said late on Sunday.

"Buddhababu's irresponsible way of tackling the situation precipitated the crisis which is akin to a civil war," commented Congress Legislature Party Leader Dr Manas Bhuian before leaving for the affected area. "We are not for calling bandhs but it was the reckless handling of the situation and the ruling party's highhandedness that has forced us to call a 24-hour bandh for the first time in last one year," PCC acting president Pradip Bhattacharya said adding his party would however, the flagship IT sector was excluded from bandh.

SUCI, BJP and Kamptapur Progressive Party have also called a dawn-to-dusk bandh on Monday leaders said.

Elsewhere in Kolkata a group of 30 Trinamool Congress-backed Save Farmland activists on Sunday raided the Taj Bengal Hotel where a delegation of Dubai-based investors were putting up. The investors had come to talk the development of Kulpi Port in South 24 Parganas. The protesters reportedly clashed with the hotel guards and blows were exchanged between some women activists and the security guards before the police finally intervened and brought things under control, sources said. Later Save Farmland activists said they had come to protest because there was a plan to acquire farmlands in the name of developing Kulpi port.

Meanwhile the Nandigram incident has brought to the fore a sharp divide both within the Left Front and in the CPI-M, informed sources said.

In an unprecedented war of words septuagenarian Marxist leader and central committee member on Saturday dared the Forward Bloc to quit the Left Front and join the Trinamool Congress after senior Bloc leader Debabrato Biswas reportedly told that "Buddhababu's fate would be no different from that of Chandrababu" in the formers mad quest for industrialisation.

Reacting to Biswas' comments CPI-M politburo member to-be Mr Konar said: "I wonder which Forward Bloc leader have said so ... but if they really think like that then they are free to leave the Front and join the Trinamool Congress to dislodge the Government ... why don't they do it now!" The Bloc leadership however refused comments but insisted the Government would do good to bring transparency in its style of functioning.

Both the CPI and the RSP have also registered their protests with the way the Government went about acquiring lands leading the Chief Minister to comment it had become a habit with the (CPI) leaders to give statements in order to get front page treatment in newspapers.

Apart from the Front partners the Chief Minister also came in for sharp criticism from within his party. Requesting anonymity a State committee member on Sunday said, "the way our Chief Minister is functioning it seems he will soon turn out to be the Gorbachev of CPI-M... one wonders how the party will fare in the next years Panchayat polls."

Notwithstanding the backlash the Chief Minister on Sunday put up a brave front saying, "Bengal unlike many other States has 62 percent land under agriculture. Only 1 percent land is fallow and there is no other way but to acquire some farmland for industrialization... we can't flee from this stage."

HIGHLIGHTS 
Bullet injuries suggest import of sophisticated weapon perhaps from Bangladesh
Jamat ul Ulema e Hind alleges Government taking minority lands for industry
Jamaat had its head quarters at near Raotara neighbouring Egra but had only limited presence
The organisation only gained popularity after land grab movement
Naxalites equally involved in uprising
Buddhababu responsible for this civil war, says Manas Bhuian
Buddhababu's condition will be like that of Chandrababu Naidu if we go on taking farmlands forcibly: Forward Bloc
The Chief Minister is fast turning into the Gorbachev of CPI-M: anonymous Marxist leader
Why doesn't the Bloc quit the Front and join the Trinamool Congress: Central committee member Benoy Konar.

BAREFACTS
Nandigram Assembly seat is held by CPI

Trinamool has four Panchayts in its control

Police say making crude bombs has taken cottage industry proportion in the area covering Nandigram, Khejuri, Garbeta, Keshpur and a large number of people are involved in dacoity and highway robbery.

OF MYTHOLOGY AND HISTORY BOOKS
Locals claim Bharata, the brother of King Rama was visiting his maternal uncles at Nandigram when King Dasrath sent Rama to exile

In Khejuri is the country's oldest modern post office built during the Raj. The building is in a dilapidated shapeÂ

01-08-2007, 04:41 PM

QUOTE(Mudy @ Jan 8 2007, 01:21 AM)<div class='quotetop'>QUOTENandigram boils over: 7 killed 
Pioneer.com
Saugar Sengupta | Kolkata
Apart from the Front partners the Chief Minister also came in for sharp criticism from within his party. Requesting anonymity a State committee member on Sunday said, "the way our Chief Minister is functioning it seems he will soon turn out to be the Gorbachev of CPI-M... one wonders how the party will fare in the next years Panchayat polls."


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And he'll take the WB commie structure to its logical conclusion...like Gorbachev did for USSR. <!--emo& Big Grin

--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' />

Commie days...umm years... are numbered.

01-08-2007, 08:45 PM

QUOTEAnd he'll take the WB commie structure to its logical conclusion...like Gorbachev did for USSR.
Another chunk of West Bengal will opt for Independent Islamic country.

01-09-2007, 12:32 AM

The worst of times--Arun Nehru
QUOTEMs Mamata Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress have stolen the thunder from the CPI(M) and are once again in the race to win 8-10 seats in the next Lok Sabha election. The Congress is in the background. Ms Banerjee was willing to give her life for her "convictions" and this was very different from the more celebrated leaders who were agitating on similar lines, but with the objective of scoring political points.

For the State Government to act as an estate agent of MNCs does not make sense. A displaced farmer deserves a fair compensation for his land, and must have the facility to negotiate on the market value.

The Union Government is withdrawing subsidies as the reforms progress. Does it make sense to provide land subsidy to MNCs at the cost of farmers? The reality is that there are few rules which have not been violated by the land mafia. And the only option for those hurt by these moves is to get into wasteful legal activities which may stretch up to a decade.

There is so much land available for industry in all the States; land which is not fit for agriculture. Why not use it for the industry? Ms Banerjee may or may not succeed politically, but she has brought about a change. Those who acquire land in the future for wrong reasons will have to contend with more than just hunger strikes.

01-09-2007, 01:17 AM

QUOTENandigram haunted by night of long knives 
Pioneer.com
Saugar Sengupta | Nandigram
CPM let loose terror as police watched as mute spectators
Suleiman Sheikh is just 15 and has learnt the art of fighting back his tears in one full night of nightmare. After much cajoling and 'reassurance', he describes his ordeal: "Kaku (uncle) I haven't seen a gorier night than this. My father told me to be with the protectors of lands. I was guarding the field with one hundred men. The road across the canal leads to Khejuri. The dakatdal (band of robbers) eyeing our lands were parked at Tekhali (a CPI(M) dominated village) on the other side of the road. And we were at the Sonachura side.

"After the whole night's strain I had dozed off a bit when there was a loud bang and I was jerked out of my slumber. A bomb had exploded right beside my uncle who is admitted in Nandigram health centre.

"Then all hell broke loose. Our men were running towards the road separating the two sides with whatever weapon they had while bullets and bombs flew over my head. Not knowing what to do I chose a direction and ran. It was still very dark. On my way near the canal I stumbled upon a man. He was still alive trembling. I knew him by face. He was Salim and he looked at me helplessly. Before I could help him, a gang charged at us and I ran away, towards the bushes (bamboo shrubs). Later they said Salim had died.

"From a distance, I saw a group of men holding a person. He was pleading for life but they continued to stab him... five-six times perhaps and shot him through his neck. I do not remember what happened then as I passed out." Suleiman's father, a marginal farmer at Sonachura, is an active member of the CPI "still don't understand why they are targeting us." 

Despite being in the Left Front, the CPI has been protesting the acquisition of farmlands for Salem Group's SEZ project. "As it turns out, the CPI(M), once a party of have-nots, consecrated richer Salem's project with poor Salim's blood," a local leader said.

Describes Samar Manna how the villagers discovered a charred body by the canal half-eaten by the dogs. "We saw the dogs biting off loaves of flesh. I suppose this was Bharat who was first stabbed and then set on fire." The police clearly on the defensive, however, would not reveal a word.

There have been reports that both sides: the Trinamool Congress-backed Save Farmland activists, which also has a fare bit of Maoists within its fold and the CPI(M) have been importing arms and men from neighbouring Keshpur-Garbeta and Orissa. "We have reports that hundreds of suspected Maoists have infiltrated from Orissa through Kanthi to fight the police. They are all armed," says IG Arun Gupta. This whereas Kanthi Trinamool MLA Subendu Adhikari says, "The CPI(M) has been importing sophisticated loads of arms in ambulances and police jeeps from Garbeta and Keshpur... They are following the Keshpur line by launching pre-dawn attacks."

Meanwhile, Opposition Congress and the Trinamool Congress jointly held the "CPI(M)-backed" police for the "butchery that was perpetrated at Nandigram on Sunday morning". Demanding the immediate sacking of IG Arun Gupta and DIG NR Babu, State Opposition leader Partho Chattopadhyay said: "The police were hand-in-gloves with the CPI(M) cadre and remained away from the spot of occurrence so as to help the Marxist goons to enter Sonachura and slaughter the protesting villagers... We want these two officers to be removed immediately from the area."

Dwelling on the modus operandi of the "invaders", senior Trinamool MLA Saugato Roy said: "While police remained away at the instance of their bosses at Writers' Buildings, the CPI(M) cadre entered the villages in police fatigue and butchered the people at will... Can the Government expect the situation to calm down?"

Apparently as well, the political Opposition looked helpless and even some of them conceded how things are fast slipping out of their hands. "It is strange how so many people converged in one place so suddenly. For sure, the Trinamool Congress had not conducted any significant programme here. It seems the Maoists have a hand in it. But whatever be the truth, this is helping the farmers' cause," a senior district Trinamool leader said.

The Congress on the other hand looked more vociferous with CLP leader Manas Bhuian castigating the police for "behaving like Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde".It is strange that the police were within a few hundred metres but refused to intervene. At least ten people have died, out of which three bodies are still missing. Are we to assume then that the Government has kept them to reinforce the ranks of killers?"

01-09-2007, 02:27 AM

QUOTECPM, Buddha stand alone, SEZ struck
Pioneer.com
Santanu Banerjee | New Delhi
Left Front, allies abandon party
Sharp divide has surfaced among the Left front partners over breakout of violence in Nandigram in East Mednapore District in West Bengal. The CPI and RSP have joined the Opposition in condemning the West Bengal Government for terrorising the farmers through strong-arm tactics.

Speaking to The Pioneer, the all India general secretary of CPI farmer organisation (All India Kisan Sabha) Atul Kumar Anjan said: "The CPI(M) did not discuss the strategy in Left Front forum for how to go about acquiring land for the SEZ in Nandigram. It seems they haven't learnt any lesson from Singur."

Amjan questioned the role of police and said both the State Government and police deliberately brought the farmers under sense of insecurity.

RSP leader Aboni Roy went a step further by accusing the Buddhadeb Bhattachajee Government of facilitating the loot of farmer's land.

He regretted that the State Government did not negotiate with both the farmers and the political parties before issuing notification for acquiring multi-crop land for SEZ. "Its a loot of farmers land," he said.

Anjan said his organisation strongly pleaded for shifting SEZs to over 3 lakh hectare of fellow land in West Bengal and the State Government should have built infrastructure to attract investment.

With the Left Front partners alleging that deals with Tata and Indonesia-based Salem Group lacked transparency, the State Government has also come under pressure from the left sympathisers.

On Monday, historian Romila Thapar, Justice Rajinder Sachar, Sumit Chakraborty and Arundhati Roy wrote to top Left leaders condemning the complicity of the CPI(M) in escalating violence in Nandigram.

"While we condemn the burning down of CPI(M) office in Nandigram, we condemn party more strongly- and State-sponsored strong-arm tactics used by West Bengal Government to create fear among the farmers," a letter sent to all top Left leaders by these activists said. 
Why they are not asking CM resigination?

01-12-2007, 07:02 PM

QUOTE(sroy @ Jan 8 2007, 04:41 PM)<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mudy @ Jan 8 2007, 01:21 AM)<div class='quotetop'>QUOTENandigram boils over: 7 killed 
Pioneer.com
Saugar Sengupta | Kolkata
Apart from the Front partners the Chief Minister also came in for sharp criticism from within his party. Requesting anonymity a State committee member on Sunday said, "the way our Chief Minister is functioning it seems he will soon turn out to be the Gorbachev of CPI-M... one wonders how the party will fare in the next years Panchayat polls."


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And he'll take the WB commie structure to its logical conclusion...like Gorbachev did for USSR. <!--emo& Big Grin

--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' />

Commie days...umm years... are numbered.
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i said this over a year ago in this very forum. (history of bengal thread). that BB will be the gorbachov of bengal. i am happy to have found a resonance.

01-15-2007, 08:00 AM

QUOTENandigram, CPM stares at crisis of credibility
Subrata Nagchoudhury
Posted online: Monday, January 15, 2007 at 0000 hrs Print Email
Those opposing SEZ are illegal occupants settled in the 1980s, under the CPMs own patronage 

NANDIGRAM, January 14: If a large section of the nearly 1.75 lakh people in Nandigram are not convinced about Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjees plans for the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) here, the reasons are rooted in the track record of his CPM in the area.

Its a crisis of credibility, and to get to its heart one must visit the relief camps in Sonachura, where CPM cadres driven out of Nandigram by villagers have taken shelter.

A 50 feet x 30 feet patch in an open paddy field, covered by tarpaulin sheets is now home to about 200 CPM party cadres. They were driven out of their homes by bands of armed villagers who have formed a resistance committee against acquisition of land for the proposed SEZ.

Ranjana Pramanik of Gangra village, with her one-and-a-half-year-old son Subharanjan has been a staunch party member, like Ghanashyam Patra whos at the camp with her. They both narrate how they managed to flee their homes in time to save their lives.

In a village where there were just two houses against the CPM, suddenly there was a reversal of allegiance. Known party supporters had joined the resistance forum formed in conjuction with different outfits, the Trinamool Congress, the Congress, the BJP, the Jamat-E-Ulema Hind and some Naxal factions.
Together they formed the Bhumi Ucched Sangram Protirodh Samity ( Resistance Committee against Eviction from Land). And they took on those who would not side with them.

They asked me to pay a penalty of Rs 10,000 and join the forum, says Ghanashyam Patra. How could I agree to it being a member of the CPM, he wonders.

Scores of others in the camp, including senior CPM zonal committee members like Badal Mondal admit: Its been a serious debacle for the party. We failed to convince people about the SEZ plans and in the process there is a heavy erosion among the rank and file.

But why did the party fail to convince?
There is one significant difference between Singur and Nandigram as far as the nature of the agitation is concerned. While conversion of fertile farmland was the key issue of agitation in Singur, in Nandigram the bone of contention is eviction and compensation.

There is no dispute whatsoever, that the land in Nandigram is nowhere near Singur in terms of fertility. The single crop paddy is largely rain-fed. For the rest of the year, the farmers produce items that are best suited for the salinity of the area kesari dal and vegetables.

If the clash of interest in Singur was between land owners and unrecorded share croppers and daily wage earners, in Nandigram it is between what many describes as land mahajans, meaning big land owners (jotedars) and karfas, or illegal land occupiers.
Karfas are those who at a point of time were forcibly established on the land of mahajans, say Block Land Records officials in Nandigram. This forcible occupation was engineered largely by the CPM during the land reforms movement in Bengal in the early 80s.

According to one estimate, there is a high concentration of karfas in the proposed 10,000-odd acres which is needed to be acquired in Nandigram s 27 mouzas. Nandigram Block - I, which is the scene of the present turmoil has a total of 99 mouzas and comprises 12,800 hecatres.

Official sources say some 40 per cent of the settlers in the proposed 10,000 acres in 27 mouzas are illegal. These are the people who do not have any valid papers to claim compensation should the land be taken over for the Special Economic Zone. Many such cases are locked in court cases for decades. 

Having realised that these people will resist the party tried to assuage their feelings. In one public meeting for instance, in Nandigram, end December Lakshman Seth promisd to take care of their problems.

But coming as it is from the political platform it did not convince the community. The assurance must have come from the administrative levels and in official form, says Ujjwal Maity, president of the Resistance Committee.

Added to this is the question of non-distribution of pattas or title deeds, which the CPM machinery at the local level is accused of holding back in order to ensure loyalty.
Nandigram Block Development Officer Ashok Sarkar says that in Nandigram a total of 13,000 pattas have been distributed but a large number is yet to be distributed.

subrata.nagchoudhury@expressindia.com

01-18-2007, 01:39 AM

QUOTELeft sees red 
The Pioneer Edit Desk
Is forced to go slow on SEZs
The circumspection shown by the Left Front Government in West Bengal on the issue of land acquisition in Nandigram, East Midnapore, for the SEZ to be built by Indonesia's Salem Group is welcome, notwithstanding the fact that the decision to exert caution has been forced by the violent agitation by villagers in the district, including the ruling CPI(M)'s own cadre. Six people were killed and several others wounded earlier this month in clashes with the police in which armed mobs burnt down the local gram panchayat office, several houses and police vehicles. If the West Bengal Government has realised that pushing forward with industrialisation - the absence of which has rendered this once prosperous State as one of the most backward industrial economies of the country - does not always pay; indeed, it invites a violent backlash; the virtual uprising by the farmers in the district on the basis of mere rumours that land was being forcibly acquired points also at the emotive content in the issue. Suddenly, it is not just the main Opposition in West Bengal, the Trinamool Congress, that is at the forefront of the agitation against the setting up of special economic zones on what is considered prime agricultural land; the Chief Minister, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, has had to retreat in the face of snowballing protest by villagers to whom the project does not signify adequate compensation for the land they would appear set to lose. A rattled West Bengal leadership is thus embarking on the uncertain mission of "convincing" the farmers of Nandigram about the benefits of the project. Indeed, it may well be asked what had the Left Front Government been doing in the months since the signing of the deal with the Indonesian group? It should be embarrassingly obvious to the apparatchiks in Writers Building that they failed to take the people, whose ostensible benefit they had in mind, into confidence before they signed the multi-crore rupee project calling for the acquisition of 4,000 hectares of farmland. As a result, the Marxist Government's ambitious plans of setting up at least six other major industrial projects, including SEZs, necessitating the acquiring of at least 10,000 hectares, is now in a limbo.

That may be just as well. People cannot be forced to go along with every one of the Government's development projects - without due and proper compensation. Land is a sensitive issue in a State that is among the most densely populated in the country. The people have to be convinced of their stakes in an industrialising society. In that sense the Government of West Bengal has failed to get the fundamentals of land acquisition in an agrarian State right: It did not move with the requisite transparency. If the SEZs in West Bengal look set to be put on the backburner for several months to come, the Marxists have none to blame but themselves.

01-23-2007, 11:47 PM

QUOTESingur row snowballs 
Pioneer News Service | Kolkata
Fencing set on fire
Singur once again burst into flames in the wee-hours of Tuesday even as the Tata Motors began their construction work post bhoomi poojan. At around 2.30 in the morning, a group of alleged Save Farmland Committee activists torched 25 poles fencing the acquired land at the Tata Motors' site before the police intervened and brought the situation under control, Hooghly SDPO Kalyan Mukherjee said.Â
Mamata Banerjee

The incident that took place at Bajmeila village was second in a row after protesters burnt down 20 poles at Joymolla in Beraberi in Singur block on Sunday night. Bombs were also hurled at the site, police later said. Earlier on Monday, the Trinamool Congress-backed SFC members had performed a symbolic memorial service of the Tata Motors.

Meanwhile, urging Trinamool chairperson Mamata Banerjee to hold talks on land acquisition, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said: "An ideal situation for industrial turnaround has been created in the State after many years. No political party should oppose it for narrow political interests. This is my earnest request to all concerned, particularly the main Opposition that please do not let go the excellent opportunity of industrialisation created in the State."

Trinamool leadership, however, maintained such wildcat protests would continue till the Government returned the lands forcibly acquired from the poor farmers. "We continue to remain with the farmers," party leader Madan Mitra said, adding "protests would continue till the Government did not lift Section 144 and stop construction at Singur." However, senior Tata Motors officials who were present at the site along with WBIDC MD MV Rao said, "Construction works at the site went on without much impediment."

gangajal · 01-24-2007, 02:46 AM

QUOTE(Mudy @ Jan 23 2007, 11:47 PM)<div class='quotetop'>QUOTESingur row snowballs 
Pioneer News Service | Kolkata
Fencing set on fire
Singur once again burst into flames in the wee-hours of Tuesday even as the Tata Motors began their construction work post bhoomi poojan. At around 2.30 in the morning, a group of alleged Save Farmland Committee activists torched 25 poles fencing the acquired land at the Tata Motors' site before the police intervened and brought the situation under control, Hooghly SDPO Kalyan Mukherjee said.Â
Mamata Banerjee

The incident that took place at Bajmeila village was second in a row after protesters burnt down 20 poles at Joymolla in Beraberi in Singur block on Sunday night. Bombs were also hurled at the site, police later said. Earlier on Monday, the Trinamool Congress-backed SFC members had performed a symbolic memorial service of the Tata Motors.

Meanwhile, urging Trinamool chairperson Mamata Banerjee to hold talks on land acquisition, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said: "An ideal situation for industrial turnaround has been created in the State after many years. No political party should oppose it for narrow political interests. This is my earnest request to all concerned, particularly the main Opposition that please do not let go the excellent opportunity of industrialisation created in the State."

Trinamool leadership, however, maintained such wildcat protests would continue till the Government returned the lands forcibly acquired from the poor farmers. "We continue to remain with the farmers," party leader Madan Mitra said, adding "protests would continue till the Government did not lift Section 144 and stop construction at Singur." However, senior Tata Motors officials who were present at the site along with WBIDC MD MV Rao said, "Construction works at the site went on without much impediment."

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Mamata Banerjee is making a mistake here. She should insist that those who lost their land should be properly compensated. She is wrong, however, to insist that the land should be returned. West Bengal or for that matter India needs to move millions of subsistence farmers from low paying agriculture to industry and services sector. There is not enough land to give to these farmers.

01-24-2007, 08:08 AM

They should build factories is non-farming lands. They should use minimum land as they do in Japan or Singapore. Land should not be given on subsidize rate.

gangajal · 01-25-2007, 12:53 AM

QUOTE(Mudy @ Jan 24 2007, 08:08 AM)They should build factories is non-farming lands. They should use minimum land as they do in Japan or Singapore. Land should not be given on subsidize rate.
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It is not just a matter of farm land. It is a matter of reducing pressure on land. Currently 54 million people are dependent on 13 million acres. This is putting enormous pressure on land. Poverty can not be reduced if so many people depend on agriculture. At least 10 % of the current farm land should be moved out of farming
and used to build 300-400 towns with factories, agro industries etc so that the number of people dependent on agriculture can be reduced from the current 54 million to 1 million. This is the only way to reduce poverty.

In the western world only about 2 % of the population lives on agriculture. In West Bengal 68 % does. Such a high percentage is unacceptable and would guarantee permanent poverty. Moreover we would add another 20 million people in the agriculture sector in the next 43 years. So many people on so little land would cause even the agricultural sector to collapse.

gangajal · 01-25-2007, 12:56 AM

QUOTE(Mudy @ Jan 24 2007, 08:08 AM)They should build factories is non-farming lands. They should use minimum land as they do in Japan or Singapore. Land should not be given on subsidize rate.
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The matter of subsidizing land is again not a simple issue. One should do a cost-benefit analysis and see if the benefits of the new factory in generating jobs and govt revenues would outweigh the cost of the subsidy.

01-25-2007, 02:35 AM

One has to admit however that this whole scenario is pretty amusing. Commies getting a dose of their own medicine. This issue should be exploited as much as possible to extract some very amusing statements from the commies.

gangajal · 01-25-2007, 05:13 AM

QUOTE(rajesh_g @ Jan 25 2007, 02:35 AM)One has to admit however that this whole scenario is pretty amusing. Commies getting a dose of their own medicine. This issue should be exploited as much as possible to extract some very amusing statements from the commies.
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Yes, the commies are forced to do an U-turn. They basically gave the lands of landowners to the landless in 1978 (75 % of the produce of the land had to be given to the landless laborer -- in practice landless laborer took all the produce due to the red terror unleashed by CPIM). Their solgan at that times was "land for landless". This has enabled them to get the votes of the landless in perpetuity. The growth of the population in the meanwhile means that there are now more claimants to land. The Commies also chased away industry in the name of attacking capitalists. The net result was that the state Govt was staring down the gun of bankruptcy. Even the number of landless poor has started to increase.

Around 2000 Buddhadev got hold of some new ideas from the internet (soc.culture.indian/ soc.culture.Bengali). He is trying out these new ideas. These new ideas have resulted in visible prosperity around Kolkata. Even these new ideas will fail if the number of people dependent on agriculture can not be reduced. So now they are telling the same landless peasants that they should give up their land for the greater good of all. Giving people something is a pleasant policy. Asking people to give up something is not so easy. Commies are now forced to eat their own words.

01-25-2007, 06:49 AM

QUOTEAround 2000 Buddhadev got hold of some new ideas from the internet (soc.culture.indian/ soc.culture.Bengali). He is trying out these new ideas. These new ideas have resulted in visible prosperity around Kolkata.What? Buddhadev is allowed to get ideas from outside the Communist Manifesto(es)? Hope he's not parading these ideas as his own or as communist ones.
That would then mean the "visible prosperity around Kolkata" mentioned above has nothing do with communism other than that Buddhadev was desperate enough to implement them. More proof that communism has achieved zip.

Strange that a state leader has to resort to the internet to get ideas on proper governance; ideas thrown up by regular individuals. Non-communists too, I shouldn't wonder. Gasp.

gangajal · (This post was last modified: 01-26-2007, 12:05 AM by gangajal.)

QUOTE(Husky @ Jan 25 2007, 06:49 AM)<div class='quotetop'>QUOTEAround 2000 Buddhadev got hold of some new ideas from the internet (soc.culture.indian/ soc.culture.Bengali). He is trying out these new ideas. These new ideas have resulted in visible prosperity around Kolkata.What? Buddhadev is allowed to get ideas from outside the Communist Manifesto(es)? Hope he's not parading these ideas as his own or as communist ones.
That would then mean the "visible prosperity around Kolkata" mentioned above has nothing do with communism other than that Buddhadev was desperate enough to implement them. More proof that communism has achieved zip.

Strange that a state leader has to resort to the internet to get ideas on proper governance; ideas thrown up by regular individuals. Non-communists too, I shouldn't wonder. Gasp.
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It is not surprising that Buddhadev got his ideas from the internet. He and other CPIM leaders mostly have degrees (if they have any degree) in Bengali. So they know nothing about governance. All they know is what Marxist books say.

The rank and file of CPIM are actually very unhappy with Buddhadev using ideas from internet. Of course Buddhadev has dumped Communism. So why are the rank and file still with Buddhadev? The reason is that even the partial implementation of these ideas have resulted in a very large increase in Govt revenues and a large number of jobs for the educated. So the hard line commies are finding difficult to junk these ideas. Also Buddhadev has been called a great and original thinker by the US ambassador himself and also by local intellectuals. So how can he now backtrack.

Then there is the brutal reality that the agricultural sector is under stress. So the commies are running out of option. This is also why Deng dumped Communist economic theory in China.

gangajal · 01-26-2007, 01:27 AM

Even the comrades are beginning to sit up at the grave threat developing in West Bengal as is clear from this statesman news. It is the muslim clergy that organized muslims in Nandigram. Muslim percentage has grown from 19% in 1977 to 25 % today. It will grow to 30 % in 2025.

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CPM to begin awareness campaign

KOLKATA, Jan. 24: The recent violence in Nandigram and Singur and apparent influence of religious leaders over the minority population in East Midnapore and North-24 Parganas became the focal point at a meeting of the CPI-M state committee today. While debating the issue of land acquisition, a section of party leaders expressed their concern over the partyâs support base in these areas. The leadership decided to initiate a mass campaign in rural Bengal to win over public opinion. As announced earlier, 27 January would be observed by the CPI-M as Nandigram Diwas all over the state. All senior leaders, including the chief minister, attended the day-long session at Alimuddin Street.

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