KOLKATA: Challenging the West Bengal Government's resolve to acquire land for setting up a car plant at Singur in Hooghly district, Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee on Sunday sowed potato seeds in a plot earmarked for acquisition.

Ms. Banerjee is at the forefront of a movement against land acquisition for the proposed project to be set up by Tata Motors. The Congress is also extending support to the campaign.

Addressing farmers at Singur, Ms. Banerjee, demanded that Tata Motors seek an alternative site for its project. She reiterated her opposition to alleged forcible acquisition of farmland by the authorities.

A series of rallies and demonstrations opposing the project have been held in the area over the past weeks by the Trinamool Congress, even as the State Government is going ahead with its plans to acquire the land required for the project.

The Tata Motors management, which has expressed satisfaction with the pace of the land acquisition process, expects the first batch of cars to roll out of the plant in 2008 as scheduled.

The Left Front has called for a rally at Singur on November 29 in support of the project.

Ms. Banerjee underscored her party's determination to prevent any farmland from being acquired for the plant. She warned of a "bloodbath" if the State Government went ahead with its plans for the project.

She challenged Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee's recent statement that over 913 acres out of the required 993 acres of land for the project had already been acquired.

`A blatant lie'

"This is a blatant lie and the Chief Minister has misled the Assembly", Ms. Banerjee said, adding that her party MLAs would move a motion for breach of privilege in the House for Mr. Bhattacharjee's statement.

Not more than 550 acres had so far been acquired, she said.

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