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‘West Bengal can't progress without industrialisation'

KOLKATA: The Trinamool Congress will not have the last word on industrialisation in West Bengal, it can not bring the process to a halt, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee asserted at a public rally in Bardhaman on Monday

“Despite what happened at Singur, the process of industrialisation of West Bengal has not been halted. This irresponsible, unruly Opposition party will not have the last word on industrialisation in the State,” Mr. Bhattacharjee said at a rally organised by the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI).

What happened in Singur is a source of “regret” for many. If the Tata Motors small car project had come up, many automobile manufacturers would have followed, Mr. Bhattacharjee said.

“We have suffered the fallout of the Opposition's actions,” he said, adding that the State had managed to attract investment worth Rs. 9,000 crore despite the agitation led by Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee at Singur.

Stating that it was not possible for the State to progress without industrialisation, Mr. Bhattacharjee admitted that adequate attention had not been paid to it. “At the time of Independence, Maharashtra and West Bengal were leading centres of industry, but in the years that the Congress was in power the situation worsened.”

Addressing the youth, Mr. Bhattacharjee said that unlike Ms. Banerjee, his party did not lie to the people by assuring them jobs in return for their support.

“The Opposition says that they will give two lakh or five lakh jobs. Where are these jobs,” Mr. Bhattacharjee asked, while adding that employment can only be created by setting up factories and creating an environment for business.

An attempt is being made to create an unstable environment and the government is not being allowed to function, he said, adding that the scenes of political clashes witnessed outside the gates of University of Burdwan last month had not been seen since the days of Congress Chief Minister Siddhartha Shankar Ray.

The people of West Bengal have seen the rule of the Congress and rejected it in favour of the Left Front. The Congress and the Trinamool will not succeed in ensuring the “end of the Left movement” that they have envisaged, he said.

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