Thousands abandon Tata’s Nano car project at Singur

Workers are leaving Tata’s Nano car project at the threatening of KJRC. Incidents are getting violent. The project after completion of more than 50 per cent infrastructure is now facing a big question; will the project come up at all?.

TATA MOTOR’S Nano car project at Singur in West Bengal has received a further severe jolt when more than 1000 workers left the project venue on Friday itself. The workers include nearly 200 engineers and 800 ordinary workers. Despite the management’s heart and soul try to keep them uplinked with the project and providing all facilities they require to join their duties regularly, the workers are not ready to linger on their stay there because the movement by the Krishijami Raksha Committee (KJRC) is getting more violent every day. The aggressive style of the movement has recalled among many people, the violent incidents of Nandigram where Maoist groups were directly involved.

Early this week the violent cadres of the KJRC beat severely an engineer Manish Khatua when he opposed to leave the job at the instruction of the KJRC cadres. On that day, more than 50 workers left the lodge where they were staying. After that police force was increased in the locality. The Tata management started miking to spread over the message among the workers that they have no reason to fear and they will receive all kinds of help from the management and the local administration. Sapoorji Palonji, the main contractor of the project arranged transport facilities for the workers to pick up them from different locations and reach them safely after the day’s job is over. Even then the flow of the workers leaving the area did not stop.

The lodge owners have alleged that the situation is getting tensed everyday and they are facing tremendous loss in business. The roadside hotel which were supplying foods for the workers are getting hardly 50 customers a day which was more than 300 everyday even a week before. Posters, asking the workers to leave the project venue immediately have been pasted everywhere in the locality. Rallies are being organised everyday threatening the workers. On Friday, a group of people again broke a part of the wall of Tata Motors. They threw stones and bombs inside the project venue. Large contingent of police only could supersede the mob.

The Tata management is feeling uneasiness and sensing a serious crisis. They met the West Bengal chief secretary Amitkiran Deb on Friday and informed him of the incidents at Singur.

Communist Party of India- Marxist [CPI(M)] which have faced a loss of face after the Tata’s MD Ravikant flashed the truth that the land at Singur for the Nano car project was chosen by the state government and not by them, is now busy on working out the plan to find out political solution.

The statement of Ravikant is noteworthy as it contradicts the chief minister’s statement that the land was chosen by the Tata management and they said that they could do the project only if that particular land is given to them. This has created further loss of faith on the government. And the local CPI(M) which has been defeated in the last panchayat election at Singur is least interested to fight political game.

They have only decided to organise a rally against KJRC and the Trinamool Congress, which will have no impact in the locality at all. State government is also at a loss to find out a way out. Under such a situation, the Tata management has to show the strength of patience for a normalcy to loom over for an indefinite period.

source:merinews