Chance of Tatas staying back slim, admits Buddha

At a CPM secretariat meeting held on Friday morning at Allimuddin Street, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee told party colleagues that the chance of the Tatas staying back in Bengal and operating in Singur were very slim.

At a CPM secretariat meeting held on Friday morning at Allimuddin Street, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee told party colleagues that the chance of the Tatas staying back in Bengal and operating in Singur were very slim.

Nonetheless, the government would try its level best to keep the Nano project in the state.

Emerging from the meeting, Commerce and Industries Minister Nirupam Sen said the chief minister had appealed to the Tatas to stay on in Singur.

8220;You will not encounter any problems in continuing work at Singur. There are adequate security arrangements. If needed, security can be increased,8221; said Sen, quoting from the Chief Minister8217;s letter to Ratan Tata.

In his letter, the chief Minister has tried to convince the Tatas that an overwhelming number people from West Bengal want the Nano project to stay.

Apart from Bhattacharjee, Sen and Left Front chairman Biman Bose have also appealed to the Tatas on the same lines.

8220;The opinion of a handful of people cannot be held as the ultimate decision,8221; said Sen, 8220;out of 13,000 dispossessed farmers, 11,000 had accepted compensation. So how can one say that the majority does not want the Nano plant?8221;

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Biman Bose said: 8220;I can understand that the small car will miss its deadline, but I still feel that the Tatas should stay in Bengal.8221;

Trinamool Congress chief, Mamata Banerjee, meanwhile, remained defiant. On Friday, the party held a protest rally in front of the Tata plant, demanding the return of the disputed 400 acres.

From her speech, it was evident that she was aware of the latest developments. 8220;What is the problem if the Tatas leave? There are many investors who want to invest in West Bengal,8221; she said.

8220;The Tatas have already acquired agricultural land. If they leave now, Bengal will have neither factory nor the farmers will have their land. Bengal will have neither industry nor agriculture and the West Bengal government should be held responsible for this, not me,8221; she added.