Polls ahead: Mamata seeks to ‘end dispute’ with Ratan Tata

A source close to the government told The Sunday Express that an “unofficial emissary” has been roped in to kick-start the dialogue process between the Tata Group and the CM.

“The chief minister wishes to end the ongoing dispute with Ratan Tata, which has been going on since 2007. An unofficial emissary is attempting to initiate a dialogue between the two, wherein both parties can aid each other and the state of West Bengal,” an official in the know said.

While it remains unclear whether dialogue with Ratan Tata would fructify before the three-day-long summit beginning January 7, the government is hopeful of reaching to an agreement that will resolve the crisis.

“There are about 2,200 odd unwilling farmers in Singur, who refused to part with their land for the Tata Group’s project and will be affected by the decision. It’s important their well being is also taken into account,” said the official.

For the summit, which will be inaugurated by Union finance minister Arun Jaitley, Reliance Industries’ managing director Mukesh Ambani has confirmed his participation.

The opposition, meanwhile, intends to keep the Singur issue alive, even as CPM politburo member Md Salim questioned the lack of industries in the region. “Where is the industry that she had promised? Nothing has changed in Singur. All the state has offered till now is lies.” Echoing his opposition, state BJP president Dilip Ghosh said, “This government promised industry and jobs and what they gave in return was crime and communal politics. This must change and we intend to ask hard questions regarding Singur and Nandigram.”

Reiterating the Bengal government’s optimism, on the other hand, state finance minister Amit Mitra spoke of creating investment opportunities at the summit.
“The Bengal government is very confident of a much higher investment in the state at the forthcoming summit. Rs 2,43,100 crore worth of business announcements, business document exchanges, expressions of interest and investment proposals were received from varied sectors during the 2015 Summit. Of the promised amount, Rs 91,200 crore is currently in the stage of implementation. Major investments are expected in the cement, IT, steel, power and fertiliser sectors,” he said.