Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday once again made it clear that the state government would not procure land for the private investors. They would have to purchase their land directly from the owners at the market price. In her first interactive session with the industrialists and representatives of the industries as chief minister, she also
announced that her government would rejuvenate the state’s industry in its own way. “Gujarat is Gujarat. Bengal is Bengal. We will not adopt the Gujarat model for industry. We will rejuvenate industry in our own way: the Bengal model,” Ms Banerjee said.
She also informed the gathering that though the state government was preparing a land map as well as a land bank as part of the land policy, it would not procure land for the private investors. “For the private investors, it is always better that they should purchase the land directly. If we (the state government) forcefully capture land, it will again bring a disaster,” said Ms Banerjee who had earlier as the Trinamul Congress chief spearheaded the anti-land acquisition movement in Singur and Nandigram.
She, even, pointed out that micro, small and medium size industrial units doesn’t need large quantum of land. “Only the big industries need large amount of land. However, the policy of our government is that the investors will have to purchase the land directly from the owners at the market price,” the chief minister said.
ITC chairman Y.C. Deveshwar, however, apprehended that direct purchase of a large quantum of land was a hard task. “But we will definitely try,” he added. Bengal Peerless managing director K.S. Bagchi suggested the chief minister that the state government should fix the land price at which the private investors would purchase the land, otherwise the middlemen would call the shot. The chief minister replied: “Middlemen are everywhere. You must know how to bypass them. If a land owner asks for a higher price, leave the plot and buy another one which is less costly.”
Ms Banerjee also announced that she wants industrial rejuvenation of the state as soon as possible. “Many people ask me why I am in a hurry. I would like to tell you that the job will remain unfinished if I am not quick in my approach,” the chief minister added.