Kolkata: The new BJP govt will bring back Tatas to Singur and talks have already begun for their return, state party president Samik Bhattacharya said on Friday.“Exit of Tata Motors from Singur sent out a wrong message that Bengal is not industry-friendly. But Tatas will return — if not in the automobile sector, then in another sector. It is both a responsibility and challenge for BJP. The return of Tatas will send a positive message across the state’s industrial sector,” he said. He assured that the overall business environment of the state will transform over the next 1,000 days.Attending a session titled ‘Reigniting Bengal’s Industrial Fortune’ organised by Merchants’ Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) on Friday, Bhattacharya said, “The character of land in Singur has changed. We are in talks to bring the Tatas back. If not to Singur, then somewhere else in Bengal.”Three years ago, Tata Motors had informed stock exchanges that an arbitral tribunal had directed West Bengal Industrial Development Corp (WBIDC) to pay the company Rs 766 crore in compensation for losses incurred at its manufacturing site in Singur. The company had been forced to shift its plant for Nano small car from Singur to Sanand in Gujarat in Oct 2008 following an anti-land acquisition movement spearheaded by Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee. By then, the company had already invested over Rs 1,000 crore in Singur. The previous Trinamool govt had said it would file an appeal against the tribunal’s order.Bhattacharya assured industrialists that unlike in the past, there will be no political interference in their business operations in the state. “BJP does not have a trade union. If anyone plants a party flag at a factory or demands wage hikes and employment in the party’s name, inform us, and we will take immediate action,” he said.He alleged that during the 50-odd years when Left Front and Trinamool were in office, there was no significant industrial development in Bengal. “Our vision is to uplift the socio-economic infrastructure of the state. We believe in balancing capital-intensive and labour-intensive industries. BJP bears no enmity toward any community. Today’s religion is democracy, and its politics is development,” he added.Bhattacharjee said the new govt will provide incentive to an imitation jewellery hub that has come up in Singut and revive Falta Special Economic Zone (SEZ).(With inputs from Satavisha Dutta in Kolkata)
