KOLKATA: "We have been put to some difficulty," veteran Marxist leader Jyoti Basu said here on Friday when asked about the guidelines proposed by the Centre on Special Economic Zones (SEZs).

"We have got the report [the Centre's guidelines], and it will come up for discussion at the Left Front meeting on Saturday," he said. All major Left parties had expressed their reservations about the guidelines.

On the proposed SEZ to be set up in the State by the Salim Group, Mr. Basu said it would take some time to come up. In the wake of the recent violence at Nandigram, the West Bengal Government has selected an alternative site for the chemical hub, and also received an assurance from the Indonesian group that a new venue will not be a problem.

"We earlier decided to campaign for at least three months to make the people understand the need for industrialisation before any such project is taken up," he said. "Many are now understanding it, but there remain others who are yet to understand and those who misunderstood it," observed Mr. Basu, who has been emphasising the need for taking the people into confidence.

AIFB reaction

Commenting on the new guidelines for SEZs, Debabrata Biswas, All-India Forward Bloc general secretary, told The Hindu here: "We had expected that the United Progressive Alliance Government would at least discuss with some seriousness, and not in a piecemeal fashion, the note submitted by the Left parties on the matter. The empowered Group of Ministers is now trying to convey the message that the Left's views have been considered."

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