At a time when Tata Motors Ltd is pleading for maintaining “status quo” on Singur land till its petition is heard by the Calcutta High Court, the State Government appears to be working overtime to redistribute land to unwilling farmers as set out in the objectives of the Singur Land Rehabilitation and Development Act, 2011.
The State Government has already formed a committee headed by the Commerce and Industry Minister, Mr Partha Chatterjee, for this purpose. Apart from the minister, the committee comprises the district administration local representatives to the Assembly and Parliament. The district administration is the designated enforcing authority of the Act.
While the first meeting of the committee was convened late in the evening on Saturday, informed sources in the Government told
To put it straight, the State is drawing legal divisions between Tata's lease holding and the vendors that were slated to be allotted land for setting up facility inside the integrated complex at the recommendation of Tata.
While Tata Motors plea to the High Court claimed that 13 ancillary units were set up inside the complex and 17 more were under construction, the State has been consistent in claiming that “no such construction had taken place”, as is referred by the Advocate-General, Mr Anindya Mitra, to the High Court on Friday.
While the vendors' (54) petition is yet to be heard by the Court, the State appears to be using the land allotment records as a bearing to press its argument.
“None of these industrial units (ancillaries) have taken any step in obtaining lease in terms of letters of allotment or at all have not set up any industry and, the land is lying unutilised for more than three years,” states the Singur Land Rehabilitation and Development Bill as part of the statement of objects and reasons.
Clever move
Tata Motors always maintained that it would have required the entire 997 acre area for successful implementation of Nano project and relocated the project in the face of demand for return of 400 acres to unwilling farmers.
While the fate of Tata's petition is decided by the court, the Mamata Banerjee-led State Government is clearly trying to use the vendors' land allotment issue as a handle to win its argument for return of land to unwilling farmers.