Mamata Banerjee Opts for INDISCRIMINATE Industrialisation as Birlas Performed MAHAYAGYA!SAIL for Metro coach unit, WB govt suggests Singur! Chief minister Mamata Banerjee's seven-day ultimatum has hardly had its desired effect on the Maoist guerrillas camping in Jangalmahal. Akash, the state secretary of the Maoists, said they will not seize to demand basic rights for the tribals. While this strong note is a major jolt in the peace process, jailed tribal leader Chhatradhar Mahato's wife Niyati Mahato, on the other hand, accepted talks offer floated by Trinamool leader Mukul Roy and assured to meet him on November 3.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday claimed that eight investment proposals, totalling about Rs 20,000 crore, have been received. However, all these are proposals and not firm commitment for investments.
Now Mamata is adopting quite a VEDIC way! She claimed to be a MATUA and mind you, Harichand Thakur rejected all kinds of Brahaminical Rituals as well as the Brahaminical system!
The Marxist state government in West Begal, which in the past had opposed industrialisation, wooed the Tatas to set up the plant to create jobs in the desperately poor state.
The main drivers of industrial growth, as measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), were capital goods and consumer goods.
What Industrialisation means in India noadays? Auto Hype, Chemicals, Construction, Banks, Retail Chain, SEZ, Nuclear parks, Infrastructure, IT, Entertainment, Health Tourism,Knowledge Economy, Nuclear Energy,Retail chain, FDI, Foreign Money and Contact Farming! Industrial Corridor, Privatisation of Mines and Natural Resources, Realty an so on! Highly dependent on Plastic money and Sensex related Public Issues targeting the Resurgent Middle Class and rural sector to expand the Consumer market.Magic Realism of Industrialisation sustains with a Big Bang of Consumer durables and capital goods particularly during this Festival Season all over this diveded geopolitics bleeding! Industrialisation always meant DISPLACEMENT, EXCLUSION, Deportation and Ethnic Cleansing! All out Monoploistic Aggression! Continuous HOLOCAUST!It means Manusmriti LPG Mafia Rule!
The yagna was attended by more than a dozen
business leaders of the state including Patton Group chairman HP Budhia, Shyam Steel chairman SS Beriwala, Shravan Himatsingka of Ideal Group.
Industrialists like R S Agarwal of Rupa & Co, RS Goenka of Emami and HM Bangur of Shree Cement are also part of the organisers.
Haridwar-based Swami Prakharji Maharaj will oversee the nine-day-long ritual and "unleash the powerful spiritual energy to act as a catalyst for the economic development and all-round betterment of West Bengal".
While 100 'yajna kundas' have been installed at the place, 500 Brahmins from across the country will perform the ritual.
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Mamata Banerjee Opts for INDISCRIMINATE Industrialisation as Birlas Performed MAHAYAGYA! Chief minister Mamata Banerjee's seven-day ultimatum has hardly had its desired effect on the Maoist guerrillas camping in Jangalmahal. Akash, the state secretary of the Maoists, said they will not seize to demand basic rights for the tribals. While this strong note is a major jolt in the peace process, jailed tribal leader Chhatradhar Mahato's wife Niyati Mahato, on the other hand, accepted talks offer floated by Trinamool leader Mukul Roy and assured to meet him on November 3.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday claimed that eight investment proposals, totalling about Rs 20,000 crore, have been received. However, all these are proposals and not firm commitment for investments.
Mind you,NANO shifted to Gujarat due to the Resistance against Indiscriminate Industrialisaion! Brahamin Mamata Banerjee Hijacked and Encashed the Resistance and Succeeded to dislodge the Marxists! Marxists have been OUSTED as they ran Blind on the HIGHWAY of so called DEVELOPMENT. CM Mamata seems to be an INCARNATION of Blind BUDDHADEV ! Just Remember,While supporting the Magic realism of Indiscriminate Industrialisation defending
Ruling Hegemony interests intact, it is the logic of mainstream Media as well as
Economists that Going by the volume and intensity of India Inc's support for
Ratan Tata, West Bengal would be in deep trouble if the Nano doesn't drive out
of Singur! With the talks between then West Bengal Chief Minister Buddadeb
Bhattacharjee and then Opposition leader Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee failing to make any
headway, then Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi on called for a "spirit of
accommodation" that was evident during the talks he presided over to break the
Singur deadlock. While,Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee lashed out at
West Bengal government on Saturday alleging that it broke the terms of agreement
with her party, leading to the Singur standoff. She alleged that Chief Minister
is taking all the decisions on his own without consulting Trinamool Congress.
Now Mamata is adopting quite a VEDIC way! She claimed to be a MATUA and mind you, Harichand Thakur rejected all kinds of Brahaminical Rituals as well as the Brahaminical system!
The yagna was attended by more than a dozen
business leaders of the state including Patton Group chairman HP Budhia, Shyam Steel chairman SS Beriwala, Shravan Himatsingka of Ideal Group.
Industrialists like R S Agarwal of Rupa & Co, RS Goenka of Emami and HM Bangur of Shree Cement are also part of the organisers.
Haridwar-based Swami Prakharji Maharaj will oversee the nine-day-long ritual and "unleash the powerful spiritual energy to act as a catalyst for the economic development and all-round betterment of West Bengal".
While 100 'yajna kundas' have been installed at the place, 500 Brahmins from across the country will perform the ritual.
State-owned Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) today said ìt was holding talks with Railways for setting up a Metro Rail coach manufacturing factory in West Bengal, with the state government suggesting that it be located at Singur.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said, "SAIL has given a letter to the state government expressing interest to set up a coach factory of the Metro Rail. I had a talk with Railway minister Dinesh Trivedi. "I will be happy if Rail, SAIL and the state government jointly set up the coach factory at Singur on 600 acre. We are committed to return the remaining 400 acre to the unwilling farmers," she said.
She said that the Railways had agreed to the proposed Metro coach factory and would send a formal letter soon.
Stating that SAIL and Railways have a long-standing relationship, its chairman C S Verma said in a statement, "SAIL is in talks with Railways for setting up a Metro Rail coach manufacturing facility in any suitable site in West Bengal."
Verma said that to further strengthen relationship with the Railways, work has begun in new areas, several of them in West Bengal. These was a wagon manufacturing unit at Kulti, wagon components manufacturing factory at Jellingham, Nandigram for manufacture of cast steel bogies and couplers.
SAIL has also requested Railways for allocation of rail coach factory project at Kanchrapara, Verma said.
"These joint initiatives will give SAIL an opportunity for downstream integration and logical extension of utilising the various grades of carbon and stainless steel being produced from its recently modernised Salem Steel Plant and its other steel plants," he said. "SAIL already has a significant presence in the state with two integrated steel plants at Durgapur and Burnpur and an alloy steel plant at Durgapur. Modernisation and expansion of these units at a capital investment of about Rs. 20,000 crore were already underway," Verma added.
Several Kolkata-based industrialists on Saturday organised a Mahalaxmi Mahayagna for bringing in economic and industrial development in the state.
The elaborate yagna with at least 100 havans would continue for nine days in Howrah, close to Kolkata.Reports Indian Express!
Birla group patriarch BK Birla, who inaugurated the yagna, said, "We should not expect any thing (from the yagna). We should only hope the God is there and he will help us."
Agriculture Minister of State Arup Roy, who attended the yagna, said, "We will be talking to the industrialists and urge them to invest more in the state."
During the inauguration of the nine-day-long yagna, Roy was the only representative from the Cabinet.
'Mahayajna is working already'
TNN | Oct 30, 2011, 02.31PM IST
HOWRAH: Swirls of smoke curl up from a dozen yajna-kunds to the chanting of mantras. Seated around each kund, five priests raise their arms in prayer, liberally pouring ghee and other offerings into the flames, making them leap for a fleeting second. With each passing minute, the chants grow louder and the prayers more intense.
A hundred of these sacred fires will be lit over the next eight days on a three-acre plot in Howrah. All for divine intervention to lift up Bengal's sagging industrial fortunes.
And the goddess of wealth seems to have started showering her blessings on Bengal already. The first day of the Mahalaxmi Mahayajna organized by Bengal's industry leaders saw chief ministerMamata Banerjee announcing a host of new projects. It could be a mere coincidence, but the organizers were mighty pleased with the quick result. The yajna will help the state regain financial health, they were convinced.
"This is miraculous! We have just started the yajna and the CM announced a Metro coach factory in Singur," said industrialist Jagdish Toshniwala.
The yajna, presided over by Swami Prakharji Maharaj of Haridwar, started on a solemn note on Saturday morning with BK Birla Group patriarch Basant Kumar Birla and his wife Sarala Birla lighting the ceremonial lamp in the morning. The mega ceremony will be performed on a 100 heart-shaped yajna-kunds on the plot owned by Shravan Himatsinghka in Howrah. A temple has specially been built with an idol of Goddess Mahalaxmi on the premises. Three pandals have been erected - yajna shala, pathshala (where hymns will be chanted) and katha sthal. The priests will chant 16 shlokas of Srisukta Mantra to please Mahalaxmi.
Talking about the importance of the Mahayajna, Sarala Birla said: "Of course, it will bring some change." The chief minister is already doing her bit to revive the financial health of the state, she said. "She is very honest. But we are also doing this yajna. It will benefit us."
Among other industrialists present at the inaugural ceremony were H P Budhia, chairman,Patton, S S Beriwala, chairman, Shyam Steel and Shravan Himansingka of Ideal Group.
Ganesh puja and sankalp flagged off the ceremony. Members of the Mahayajna committee then left the ground to fetch water from the Ganga. The real prayers got off around 4.30 pm. Sunday onwards, the yajna will be held from 7 am to 12 noon and from 2.30pm to 6pm.
Five-hundred priests will be conducting the prayers at the hundred kunds, with an industrialist seated at each. "It already looks like a medieval prayer that we have all heard about but never seen. It will definitely be a treat to watch once all the kunds are lit," said one of the industrialists.
Other than the visual spectacle, the business captains were also eager to make the prayer yield material results. "We are here for generations and are eager to make Bengal prosper," Sarala Birla added. B K Birla said he believes in god. "Kolkata, 50 years ago, was a very prosperous state. Earlier, the foreigners would come to invest here, but now we are left with just four to five big Indian firms," he said.
While the industrialists are busy invoking Laxmi for financial uplift, the ministers, too, refused to be left behind. Some were already planning to use this platform to fetch investments for the state. State agriculture minister Arup Roy said: "We are grateful to those who have taken this initiative. I would request them to invest here apart from doing puja. We will talk to the industrialists in this regard."
Swami Prakharji Maharaj of Haridwar who has conducted such ceremonies for other states will preside over the mega yajna. Maharaj, who assured that the economic turnaround will be evident in a year, said the idea of the yajna is to change the mindset of the people over here.
Budhia said he has huge expectations from this Mahayajna. "The state is facing economic hurdle as industrialists from other states are losing confidence in it. Hope the situation will improve after this yajna."
R P Pansari, senior president of Essel Mining of the Aditya Birla Group, who is taking part in the Mahayajna with his wife said individually everybody prays to God for wellbeing. "But if we all pray to god for the well being of the state, I am sure our prayers will be answered."
Bengal to seek legal opinion on Haldia verdict | ||||||||||||
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 *Kolkata: Asserting that revival of the cash-starved Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd (HPL) is its top priority, the West Bengal government Saturday said it will take further steps after getting legal opinion on the aspects of the Supreme Court verdict on the share pattern of the company.The HPL, which is second largest maker of polyethylene in India and co-promoted by the West Bengal government, is currently facing an acute financial crisis. The Supreme Court recently dismissed the petition filed by Purnendu Chatterjee-led The Chatterjee Group (TCG), which is also a principal shareholder of HPL, against the decision of the Calcutta High Court allowing the state government to retain 155 million shares in the company. The TCG had challenged the high court verdict that set aside an order of the Company Law Board directing the state government to exit from HPL by selling its stake to the joint venture partner TCG. "Purnendu babu had come here. We (the government) were trying to understand the legal aspects of the Supreme Court's verdict. We will first take legal opinion and then take actions," state Industry Minister Partha Chatterjee told reporters after holding a meeting with Purnendu Chatterjeee. "We told him that the current sickness in HPL is not only because of the share pattern. Technology, marketing and decision making are also the reasons for the sickness," he said. Stating that the revival of the firm was the top priority of the government, he said, "We told him that we will soon take legal opinion and inform him on this regard." HPL is a modern naphtha-based petrochemical complex located 125 km from Kolkata, at Haldia in West Bengal's East Midnapore district. IANS |
* 77Submited by Dasarath Sahu
Why have this indiscriminate hunger for Industrialization in Orissa?
The author of this article Shri. Suparno Satpathy is a writer, businessman, sports person, a social activist and a young promising political leader.
_______________________________________________________
If this indiscriminate hunger for industrialization carries on in Orissa and that too with out implementing a well thought of plan for the same, all that Orissa will be left with would be a bunch of capitalists hand in glove with a few corrupt politicians crushing the Oriyas for their own vested interests. This will lead to aggravation of the depression which already exists among many Oriyas, primarily caused due to the lack of opportunity to earn a reasonable livelihood, poverty and the sub human living conditions .Further creating Orissa an un-conducive place for any industrialist to work in and also creating havoc in the society. For example Orissa was always a peace loving state and its crime rate was much lower than many states of India. In the past 6-7 years surprisingly out of the 30 districts of Orissa 17 as per the home department of Orissa Govt. are naxal affected. Besides other reasons it is the ever growing economic divide among the rich and the poor in Orissa which is primarily responsible for the increased criminalities.
I along with many Oriyas certainly do not oppose industrialization or investments coming into Orissa but the same should happen in a planned manor. Orissa state Govt. should finish its own home work first, that to with utmost perfection, prior to approaching any one for any investment to be made in the state. The Government should be aware of what it can offer and also be aware of what it can bargain for from the Industrialist balancing their interest and also safe guarding the interest of Oriyas & Orissa . Also Safe guarding the environmental, social and economic interest on a long term basis. It is like one is in need of money and one agrees to let out his / her house on rent, now a moneyed person sees investment potential in the house and offers to take it up on rent. One must be aware about the need of funds which will be required for the smooth functioning of owner's family, the available electricity load, water availability, and garbage disposal system etc. of the house. Points like how many people will be visiting the tenant and that the premises should not be used for illegal & criminal activities must be taken into account. Considering all and the market value of the property the landlord should bargain with the interested moneyed person on the rent / deposit / security. The agreement made during the letting out of the house should be a well thought of long term plan .The tenant who pays rent is not expected to take care of the owners children nor should one expect the tenant to be concerned about the ailing mother. Similarly an Investor company coming to Orissa is primarily here to earn profits for its promoters and its share holders. In return it is willing to pay taxes as prescribed in the rule book of the land and also pay for the welfare work as per the pre-laid guidelines of the Government of the land. Beyond that no company should be expected to do any welfare for the people of Orissa. The welfare work is the job of the Government and not of the investor coming into Orissa. Neither an investor company nor the agitating people of Orissa should be held responsible for the recent day chaos created due to the proposed industrialization in Orissa; it is the indecisive and week, head of the administration who is responsible. I hope and wish that no investor coming to Orissa should face the same troubles as that faced by POSCO. I do not say that POSCO, as in the company is only facing trouble, the agitating people who are affected due to this project too are troubled deep with in.
Despite the fact that the Posco issue and the issues of several other companies are not yet resolved and there has been an international embarrassment for India due to the indecisiveness & miss-management of the Neveen Patnaik Government, the Orissa government is now making an all-out effort to woo another global steel giant — MMK (Magnitogorsk) of Russia. I am told that the state government has nominated its principal secretary of industries, to take the initiative.
I have been personally interacting with many Oriyas from all the 30 districts of Orissa because of my office of the Government of India, Convener PMSA -Orissa and also due to my social work with project 'Nandini', most in Orissa now a days juggle one question many a times, is Naveen Patnaik looking for investors to invest in Orissa for the benefit of Oriyas or for his own benefit? I have a different political party affiliation than the Orissa CM but I personally respect Mr. Naveen Partnaik , I just wish that he should be ignorant about the ill deeds of the Govt. of Orissa and also that he him self should not be the epicenter of this chaos in Orissa, cause if he personally is, then many Oriyas including me will be left disgusted. But like the General of the Army takes the credit for the good doings of his soldier and gets the wrath for their ill doings. If no drastic measures are taken for Orissa then I guess Mr. Naveen Patnaik should just wait to get the verdict of the mandate for him to leave office.
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Industrialization
Information management for water management - Experiences, Referrals
Submitted by contentsupport on June 22, 2011 - 00:00From Satishkumar, University of Agricultural Sciences, Raichur
Posted 22 June 2011
I work with the Department of Soil and Water Engineering, University of Agricultural Sciences, Raichur, Karnataka. I have been engaged in teaching, research and extension activities on soil and water resource conservation, irrigation and drainage, surface and groundwater hydrology.
I am developing a knowledge information system on watershed (as defined by a natural boundary demarcated by runoff that leaves the boundary through a single outlet, i.e., stream/ river) management. Eventually, a watershed is the managerial unit of planning, development and management of natural (land water and energy), animal, plant, and human resources for their sustainable use.
A watershed could be as small as a few hectares to several thousand square kilometres, covering a river basin. Because of human intervention in terms of indiscriminate agriculture, deforestation, industrialization and urbanization, land and water resources are susceptible for degradation in terms excessive erosion, siltation, salinity, barren land, droughts, deserts, depletion of groundwater as well as the repercussions of climate change. Read More
http://www.indiawaterportal.org/taxonomy/term/12486
30 OCT, 2011, 02.15AM IST, ET BUREAU
Industrial projects in West Bengal: Rash of projects 'follows' yagna
KOLKATA: It apparently didn't take more than a few slokas out of the 5 lakh Shrisukta that are to be recited for Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, to bless Bengal with industrial projects.As the 500 pundits led by Swami Prakarji Maharaj of Haridwar settled down for the nine-day Mahaluxmi Mahayagna, chief minister Mamata Banerjeeannounced the possibility of a private-public partnership at Singur to manufacture metro railway coaches on 600 acres vested with the state government.
The project is expected to be a joint venture of Railways and Steel Authority of India. "I had made a proposal in the railway budget about a coach factory at Singur. The railways have informed me about its intention and SAIL has already written to us showing its keenness to participate," she said.
She also said that the TVS group has decided to invest in a bike manufacturing facility at Howrah whileHPCL wants to invest `1,000 crore for a gas-based industrial project in Asansol. Kolkata, she said, is also likely to get pipe-gas through a project of Greater Calcutta Gas Supply Corporation, a GAIL-state government venture. Tractors India might also set up a manufacturing facility at Kharagpur, she said.
The Mahayagna organisers were thrilled. "See, the effects are beginning to show," beamed a pundit. Basant Kumar Birla, who inaugurated the proceedings, was cautiously optimistic. 'One should not expect anything. God is there, and if he helps, it will be good," he said.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/et-cetera/industrial-projects-in-west-bengal-rash-of-projects-follows-yagna/articleshow/10533719.cms
| A Diwali 'gift' but not so perfect PSU-heavy list stirs doubt | |
| OUR BUREAU | |
Calcutta, Oct. 29: Mamata Banerjee today rolled out a list of "Diwali-gift" projects that she said would spark an "industrial revolution" in Bengal but the dominance of public sector units and the absence of big-ticket private investment proposals stirred scepticism. "This is our Diwali gift for the people of Bengal…. Industrial revolution is coming to the state," the chief minister said, referring to the projects. (See chart) Seven of the 10 proposals listed by the chief minister were from the railways and PSUs. Most of the 10 had been announced earlier. No investment figure was available for two of the projects, but government sources put the total investment at around Rs 30,000 crore. A few are labour intensive and may generate jobs if they materialise. Mamata, who claims to have already created more than one lakh jobs in her five months in power, shied away from any prediction about the projects' potential to generate employment. Although India's founding fathers had envisaged PSUs as the engine of the country's growth, they and the railways are unlikely harbingers of an "industrial revolution" in Bengal. Today, it's the private sector that propels growth across the globe. "We all know how PSUs are forced to announce projects under political compulsion. Once the political equation changes, the projects either dry up or drag on for years," said a Calcutta-based industrialist. The industrialist said that private sector investment proposals are the true measure of a state's attractiveness as an investment destination. According to the Gujarat government, private entrepreneurs signed 7,936 MoUs with it at the Vibrant Gujarat summit in January, committing a total investment of Rs 20.83 lakh crore in the state. "So far, that enthusiasm has been missing in case of Bengal," the industrialist said. "The biggest challenge facing Bengal today is whether the chief minister can convince business to put in their money," a senior state government official agreed. Mamata had got a sense of that during her meeting with Bengal Inc earlier this month, when industrialists raised questions about the government's hands-off land policy and the poor infrastructure in the state. At that meeting, the chief minister had promised to focus on industry after Diwali and prodded business leaders to invest in Bengal. Today, Mamata promised to speed up clearances for industrial projects. She cited how seven companies have been waiting for clearance since the time of Left rule despite possessing land and having allocated funds for investment. "We will do away with such absurdities. They (private companies) shouldn't have to sit around for such formalities when they are ready to begin work," she said. The three private investments she listed today were the induction of TVS in the already existing two-wheeler plant in Uluberia, a new tractor-making unit in Kharagpur by Tractors India Limited, and an eco tourism hub, power plant and training centre for fishermen in Nayachar by Universal Success. All of them had been announced earlier. Among the rest, the Metro rail coach factory in Singur and the proposed steel units in Kanchrapara, Dankuni and Kulti can create jobs and contribute to the Bengal economy. Mamata added that Union commerce and industries minister Anand Sharma would come to Bengal on November 4 with a team of industrialists to explore opportunities for the revival of the textile and jute industries in the state. "The chief minister has been pressing the Centre to coax private players into investing in Bengal. The Centre has entrusted Sharma, among others, with the responsibility of exploring the possibility," a Writers' Buildings source said. While the Centre can organise such visits by industry, it cannot ensure investments by them. Private sector investments, unlike those by the railways and PSUs, are made after due diligence and rigorous calculations on the likely returns on investments. Amid the chief minister's efforts to attract private capital, a seven-day yajna for Bengal's industrial rejuvenation began this morning in Shibpur, Howrah. Veteran industrialist B.K. Birla inaugurated it. The Birla patriarch, however, was not sure whether divine intervention would help Bengal. "One should not expect anything. We should only expect that God is there, and in case he helps us, it is good," Birla said. |
*http://www.telegraphindia.com/1111030/jsp/frontpage/story_14685296.jsp
| TVS to restart Bengal project | ||
| A STAFF REPORTER | ||
Calcutta, Oct. 29: Hosur-based TVS Motor has picked up a 50 per cent equity stake in a joint venture project with Prasoon Mukherjee-promoted Universal Success in a bid to revive its plans to make two-wheelers in the state. TVS Motor will make the two-wheelers from a 63-acre facility at Uluberia, around 30 km from Calcutta. At present, Mahabharat Motors, promoted by Universal Success, produces 250 units monthly under contract manufacturing with TVS. With TVS's entry as an investor, this can be scaled up to 400,000 units per year. Of the 63 acres, 45 acres have been earmarked for the manufacturing facility, while ancillary units will come up on the remaining land. In 2006, Universal Success had tied up with the Salim group from Indonesia to manufacture budget bikes. The project failed to materialise. In 2008, TVS entered into a contract manufacturing agreement with Universal Success to produce bikes under the Mahabharat Motors brand. But TVS had to temporarily shelve the project after recession hit sales. The company today sent a letter to the state government, stating its intention to restart the project. Once the facility goes onstream, TVS will be able to tap the markets in Bengal and the Northeast. "The entry of TVS in Bengal is a revolution in the development of the automobile industry in the state. Earlier, TVS was supposed to sell two-wheelers under the Mahabharat brand. But, with the demerger of the two, TVS will start making two-wheelers on its own from the Uluberia facility. There is 63 acres there, of which TVS will operate on 45 acres (which will have the manufacturing facility)," said industry minister Partha Chatterjee today. "A letter from TVS has reached the state government today, stating their intent to start operations in Bengal. H. Lakshmanan (director of TVS Motor) is expected to come to the city soon and we shall discuss in details the project," added Chatterjee. |
*http://www.telegraphindia.com/1111030/jsp/business/story_14684848.jsp
CM not serious about peace process: Maoists
TNN | Oct 30, 2011, 02.36PM ISTMIDNAPORE: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee's seven-day ultimatum has hardly had its desired effect on the Maoist guerrillas camping in Jangalmahal. Akash, the state secretary of the Maoists, said they will not seize to demand basic rights for the tribals. While this strong note is a major jolt in the peace process, jailed tribal leader Chhatradhar Mahato's wife Niyati Mahato, on the other hand, accepted talks offer floated by Trinamool leader Mukul Roy and assured to meet him on November 3.
"We want peace. But we can't accept the peace proposal leaving the basic rights of the tribals and their right to self determination," said Akash, who claimed his people are not afraid of the CM warning.
Simultaneously, Niyai has been invited by Roy to initiate talks. "Jaydeep Mikherjee from the legal aid forum had offered us talks with Roy. We are eager for the dialogue," said Ashok Jiban, convener of the Santras Durnity Birodhi Committee, an umbrella outfit believed to be floated by the Maoists.
The Maoist state secretary claimed that since they offered the ceasefire, they did not involve in any violence despite several provocations and kept their word. But the state government failed to keep their word and continued their operation against the Maoists.
"We have strong doubts that Mamata is not serious about the peace process and her proposal is just an eye-wash," said Akash.
The rebel leader also claimed that common people of Jangalmahal did not participate in Mamata's rally in Jhargram as her government failed to keep her promises made before the polls. Even the Maoist state leader claimed that they had not planted any IED on the tracks near Sardiha and did not threaten people to stay away from Mamata's rally.
The strong reply from the Maoists, however, could not pull back Niyoti to meet Roy. Maoists are believed to be closing all doors of dialogue as they reasoned that they have been losing trust on the interlocutors. But Chhatradhar is still optimist to start talks. " We always advocated for talks. But any dialogue should be in official level," said Ashok Jiban, convener of Santras Birosdhi Committee. The change of stance once again put the Jangalmahal situation under speculation.
Maoists are not worried about the ultimatum announced by the state chief minister Mamata Banerjee, said rebel leader Akash, who is now in charge of state unit of the rebel outfit in Bengal. Virtually ruling out Mamata's ultimatum to the Maoists for laying down arms within seven days, the rebel leader clearly stated that despite most stringent steps from the government they will not leave the demands of basic demands of tribal rights.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/CM-not-serious-about-peace-process-Maoists/articleshow/10540817.cms
Mamata reviews riverfront revamp
TNN | Oct 30, 2011, 02.39PM ISTKOLKATA: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee held a meeting with officials of Hooghly River Bridge Commissioners (HRBC) at Writers' Buildings on Saturday to take stock of work planned on either bank of the Hooghly river. The government has a slew of plans for the riverfront which will be beautified and possibly sport a Kolkata hut, an aquarium, a bird sanctuary and eco tourism facilities.
Mayor Sovan Chatterjee, who had also attended the meeting, said the CM took stock of HRBC's work. "The chief minister wanted to know about the present status on the Howrah bank. The feasibility of setting up an aquarium and eco tourism facilities will be studied," he said. HRBC vice chairman Sadhan Banerjee said that his agency will work according to the plans adopted.
The government is already working on its riverfront-beautification plan spread out over 10 kilometres. Mamata Banerjee had earlier launched the pilot riverfront-beautification project at Millenium Park in August this year with an estimated cost of Rs 36 crore. However, the entire beautification project will be taken up in phases over the next two to three years and will cost several hundred crores of rupees.
Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) and Kolkata Port Trust are working together to come up with new plans and execute the project. Private investors have also been urged to participate in this project.
However, KMC authorities are keeping their fingers crossed about meeting the project deadline amid a funds crunch.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Mamata-reviews-riverfront-revamp/articleshow/10540847.cms
Bengal tycoons seek divine help for better biz
Sajal Mukherjee, TNN | Oct 30, 2011, 05.21AM ISTHOWRAH: The Mahalaxmi Mahayajnaorganized by Bengal's industrialists to revive the state's fortunes began in Howrah on Saturday.
Five priests, seated around each yajna kund, raised their arms in prayer, liberally pouring ghee and other offerings into the fire. Chants prayers resonated through Shravan Himatsinghka's three-acre property where the mahayajna is being held. A hundred sacred pyres will be lit over the next nine days.
The yajna started Saturday morning with B K Birla Group patriarch Basant Kumar Birla and his wife Sarala Birla lighting the ceremonial lamp. Praising CM Mamata Banerjee, she said, "She is doing her bit. She is very honest. But we are also doing this yajna. It will benefit us... Of course, it will bring some change," said Sarala Birla.
Bengal's ministers plan to use this platform to attract investments for the state. State agriculture minister Arup Roy said, "We are grateful to the people who have taken the initiative to do this mahayajna. I would like to request them that apart from doing puja they should invest here. We will try to talk to the industrialists about this."
Patton chairman H P Budhia, Shyam Steel chairman S S Beriwala and Shravan Himansingka of Ideal Group were among the industrialists attending the inaugural ceremony which began with Ganesh puja and sankalp. Around 4.30 pm, prayers began. From Sunday, the yajna will be held from 7 am to noon and from 2.30pm to 6pm. Other than the visual spectacle, the business captains were eager that the prayer yields material results. "We are in Bengal for generations and are eager to make it prosper. Our good wishes are always with the CM of the state," said Sarala Birla. B K Birla said he believes in god. "Fifty years ago Kolkata was a very prosperous place. Earlier, foreigners would come to invest here, but now we are left with just have 4-5 big Indian firms," he said.
Swami Prakharji Maharaj of Haridwar will preside over the mega yajna. The nine-day ceremony will be performed at 100 heart-shaped yajna-kunds.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Bengal-tycoons-seek-divine-help-for-better-biz/articleshow/10536894.cms
Sixteen more babies die in WB govt hospitals, toll 29
PTI | Oct 28, 2011, 04.20PM ISTBURDWAN/KOLKATA: Four more babies died at Kolkata's B C Roy Children's Hospital, which has witnessed a series of crib deaths, besides 12 newborns in the Burdwan Medical College, taking the death toll in two government hospitals in West Bengal to 29 on Friday.
Though the crib deaths have raised a question mark on the standard of medical care in paediatric hospitals in the state, hospital authorities claimed that it was 'not unusual'.
Twelve babies have died at the Burdwan Medical College and Hospital in Burdwan district and four at the B C Roy Children's Hospital here since yesterday, authorities said today
"The one-to-three days old babies were underweight and suffering from jaundice, encephalitis and septicemia," Burdwan Medical College and Hospital Deputy Superintendent Tapas Kumar Ghosh said.
Doctors did their best to save the lives of the babies, but all were born with critical complaints at the hospital where 160 infants were being treated against its capacity of 60 beds, he said.
In Kolkata, at the B C Roy Children's Hospital, another four babies died taking the toll to 17 in the last three days.
"Four babies, referred to us in a critical condition, died in the hospital in the last 24 hours," its superintendent D Pal said.
There was 'nothing abnormal or unusual' in the death of babies, mostly below one month, Pal said, as they were admitted in an extremely critical condition.
Pal said on an average, five infant deaths occurred in the hospital of the daily admission of nearly 300, mostly referred by district hospitals.
Stating that the hospital was overburdened with patients referred from district hospitals, Pal maintained that the best of care was given to the babies admitted.
The health department yesterday gave a clean chit to the B C Roy Children's Hospital after an internal inquiry.
Director of Medical Education Sushanta Banerjee said no lapse was found in the treatment of the babies, who were brought in a moribund state.
Mamata names core team to push industrialisation
ET Bureau Jun 19, 2011, 02.50am ISTWest Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday announced a 25-member team that will look at refurbishing the state's industry.
This "core" team comprises 17 members from the industry and six key departmental secretaries and the chief minister herself. Banerjee's announcement came during her first interaction with industry at The Belvedere Club. As many as 258 industrialists from across the country turned up, of which 40 corporate bigwigs managed to express their views. Prominent industrialists who attended the mega event included ITC's Yogi Deveshwar, Fortis' Shivinder Singh and Godrej Industries' Adi Godrej.
"I came here to hear the new chief minister and to learn the new mandate. The meeting has gone very well. The mood and flavour were both very positive. We have already invested `300 crore, and now I am looking at adding another `300 crore more," said Shivinder Singh, managing director, Fortis Healthcare.
For his part, Adi Godrej, president designate, CII, said: "The investment climate has changed so much. Mamata's speech was very refreshing. I will also ask other CII members to look at Bengal. It has a lot of potential. We have invested `2,000 crore here in real estate, cattle and poultry feed business".
Principal priority areas outlined at the meeting were IT, health and tourism among others. "I want you to join us in re-building West Bengal" Mamata told at the outset. "We will have to introduce a do-it-now culture for work. The core committee will therefore meet, thrash out problems and take decisions with speed," she said.
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2011-06-19/news/29676931_1_core-committee-mamata-banerjee-core-team
Left Front Govt And Bengal's Industrialisation
Benoy Konar
IT is in the background of the onslaught of imperialist globalisation and liberalisation – with India's ruling classes succumbing to imperialist pressures resulting in the endemic closure of traditional industries – that some possibility of industrial development seems to have opened up in West Bengal. The industrial revolution in advanced capitalist countries had taken place on the basis of plunder of the colonies and control over the market mechanism. Cottage industry of India was, for instance, destroyed to meet the demands of industrial revolution. In 1840, Charles Trivlen arrogantly declared in the House of Commons in England, "We had swept away manufacturing from India."
Industrial revolution also accelerated capitalist development in agriculture. The laws of capitalist competition replaced small cultivation by giant capitalist farms utilising modern science and technology. But the peasants uprooted from land were absorbed by the rapidly developing industry and they could, through their struggles, make their lives somewhat better than their life as a peasant.
In US, which has an abundance of agricultural land, only 1.5 per cent of population is engaged in agriculture and only 1.5 per cent of the national income comes from agriculture. Agricultural farms equipped with most modern technologies absorb very few persons. Even the workers employed in agriculture are vastly different from our agricultural workers. They do not toil bare-foot, bare-body in water and dirt. They work on the farms well dressed and depending upon their skills, they earn between $7.5 to $9 an hour. That is, if they work eight hours daily for 26 days in a month, their monthly income would be in terms of rupees between 55,000 to 70,000. Even though the cost of living in US is more expensive, there cannot be any comparison between them and our agricultural labour. Because of high productivity of labour due to advanced science and technology and partly with subsidies from the State, the farm owners in US are able to realise the wages they pay their workers, while the latter are still exploited. As for the gap between the highest and the lowest income groups in that country, which is much more than here, the solution is not in the division of big farms into small holdings but, as Marx said, in their socialisation.
We in our country had no such industrial revolution, because this was not possible without mobilising large masses into a struggle against imperialism, feudalism and monopoly capital. Industry has developed here in a fragmented way. Capitalist relations have grown on the foundation of feudalism in agriculture. Even though small cultivation is still pre-eminent in our country, competition is displacing it. Imperialist globalisation process is further accelerating this process. The Central Agriculture Commission says that in the last ten years over 30,000 peasants, who were ruined due to unequal competition, committed suicide. The sluggish industry is not able to accommodate the growing labour power due to larger population as also the displaced labour power from agriculture. The traditional industry is unable to cope up and many of the units are closing down. The pressure of the population on agriculture is on the rise. A significant 21 per cent of the national income is coming from agriculture whereas almost 60 per cent of the population is depending on agriculture. Agricultural labourers do not get job for more than 130 days on an average in a year and the wage paid is quite meagre. The working conditions are also inhuman.
BENGAL SCENARIO
This is the all India perspective in which the Left Front government in West Bengal is working. Here, by way of peasants' uprising, land reforms have been achieved as far as possible in a capitalist-landlord State. Feudal concentration of land is gone. Enthusiastic participation of peasants in panchayats has resulted in the expansion of irrigation and intensity of cropping. West Bengal is in the forefront so far as the rate of increase in agricultural production is concerned. Purchasing power in the rural areas has increased. Communication has improved a lot, and trade and commerce and non-agricultural sectors have also developed. During the period 1991-2001, people engaged in non-agricultural works have increased by 12.3 per cent and in the same ratio, the number of those engaged in agriculture has decreased. Still, the pressure of population is the highest here. Whereas the average population in the rest of India is just about 223 people per square kilometre, West Bengal averages a whopping 948 people per square kilometre. Hence, unemployment is acute. The children of the agricultural labourers, who have acquired some degree of education, now do not want to go through the often inhuman toil and hardship of an agricultural labourer. It does not take an expert in economics to know and understand this. Anyone knowing elementary economics would also agree that technological advances would slowly and gradually reduce the employment in agriculture; and that the advance of any society depends upon the growth of its industries. Even the growth of agriculture depends upon the growth of modern industries.
Building on this very thread of understanding, the Left Front government had tried to initiate the process of industrialisation in the 1980s, but due to the then central government's policies of licensing and freight equalisation, it could not proceed. The obstacles created and the struggle waged for setting up Bakreshwar electricity project and Haldia petrochemicals project is known to all. After these hurdles were removed, the Left Front government once again initiated the process under the leadership of chief minister, Jyoti Basu, who announced the industrial policy in 1994. The current Left Front government is carrying forward that very legacy. The market has expanded in the agricultural sector. Infrastructure and electrification has improved considerably. We have a conscious, disciplined, able, intellectual and general labour force, political stability, an honest cabinet of ministers etc. Also, West Bengal is the door to entire East Asia. The inflow of capital has started. Industries cannot be set up without land. But today those very people who were once the sworn enemies of the peasants, the close confidants of the landlords – the very people who had tried to drown the land movement in streams of blood, and had unleashed a semi-fascist regime of terror on the farmers who had participated in the movement – have suddenly become peasant-lovers and are today crying themselves hoarse to protect the land of the peasants! Actually, they have no alternative. Just as in the case of the land reforms, any advance in industrialisation is a threat to their very existence.
MISPLACED OPPOSITION
What is most saddening is the fact that a section of people who are known to be Marxists are opposed to the Left Front government's industrial policy. Yes, we are opposed to the market economy controlled by imperialist globalisation. What we mean by "market economy" is an economy over which the government does not have any control in any form; where no subsidies are provided to control prices or safeguard the interests of the weaker sections; where the government does not hold itself responsible to fulfil the basic needs of its people like food, education health, drinking water, housing etc; where everything is left to the mercy of the market. This section of Marxists question as to why there should be market friendly production in West Bengal, which is ruled by the Left Front government, when Marxists are fighting against imperialist globalisation. They accuse that it is hypocrisy. They wishfully hope that the capitalists would come to West Bengal to produce products that cannot be sold in the market! Communists fight for socialism, but under capitalism they undertake collective bargaining through trade union struggles. Communists want the abolition of private property but when it comes to land reforms, they want the farmers to own the land. Then would that also be hypocrisy? Do these people suggest that even Marx, Engels and Lenin were also hypocrites? Had they been alive, they would have suffered from remorse after witnessing this consequence of their teachings.
Marxism is not a dogma or mantra. It is a system of dialectical reasoning, a science of universal as well as social motion. While the basic strategy and aim remain the same, the essence of Marxism is to chalk out concrete decisions and tactics taking into consideration the stage of development and the correlation of class forces in a given situation. Lenin had said, "It is not enough to be revolutionary and an adherent of socialism or communism in general. You must be able, at each particular moment, to find the particular link in the chain which you must grasp with all your might in order to hold the whole chain and to prepare firmly for the transition to the next link; the order of the links, their form, the manner in which they are linked together, their difference from each other in the historical chain of events are not as simple as those in an ordinary chain made by a smith." (Lenin, Collected Works, Vol. 33, pages 112-113)
These critics say they could somehow accept the establishment of market friendly industries, but they cannot accept the invitation to private capitalists like Tatas to set-up industries in the state as it is promotion of pure capitalism. They are shocked to see that the Left Front government, the Communists are building capitalism! According to them, after the debacle of socialism, we are destroying the fundamental tenets of socialism. Marx, in the chapter, 'Historical tendency of capitalist accumulation' in his book, Capital, has defined the theoretical basis of socialism. He stated – 'when the small producers will be displaced from agriculture and industry when the big capitalists with their giant production capacity, acquired due to advances in science and technology, would displace innumerable small producers and concentrate the entire wealth in the hands of a handful people when the whole of production would turn into social production, the means of production would develop to the extent that unless used collectively, they cannot be used, when the productive forces would tear off the production relations, then the expropriators would be expropriated. And to achieve this, bourgeois state has to be replaced by a working class state'. It means, in the developed capitalist countries, the working class would take the State power by revolution and establish socialism by bringing the privately-owned giant social production under social ownership. Does the situation in West Bengal resemble in any way, the above? Then how are we deviating from Marxism?
ILLUSIONS ABOUT LF GOVT
Actually, they have created this illusion about the West Bengal Left Front government and this suits them to confuse people. West Bengal is not a sovereign country. It is a province within a capitalist-feudal State. There has been no revolution in West Bengal. West Bengal does not have a socialist or a people's democratic government. The West Bengal government is a democratic government which has to work within the socio-economic framework of the capitalist-feudal State. Its main responsibilities are to realise the fullest potential of growth for its agriculture and its industries, to safeguard the interests of its working people, to provide some relief, to extend democracy and to make the people aware of the existing anti-people socio-economic system through their practical experiences and to project an alternative policy. Leave alone the LF government; let us recount the experience of the November revolution about capitalist development. In spite of being called the socialist revolution, Lenin had to say that in reality it was a working class-peasantry revolution, which means in real sense it was a democratic revolution under the leadership of the working class, whose task was to reach socialism after completing the task of bourgeois-democratic revolution. In China, similar revolution was called new democratic revolution. We have called it the people's democratic revolution in our program. While writing on materialistic outlook on history, Engels had written, "From this point of view the final causes of all social changes and political revolutions are to be sought, not in men's brains, not in man's better insight into eternal truth and justice, but in changes in the modes of production and exchange. They are to be sought not in philosophy, but in the economics of each particular epoch." (Utopian and Scientific Socialism, emphasis by Engels)
Echoing the same, Lenin had also written, "Born along on the crest of the wave of enthusiasm, rousing first the political enthusiasm and then the military enthusiasm of the people, we expected to accomplish economic tasks just as great as the political and military tasks we had accomplished by relying directly on this enthusiasm. We expected – or perhaps it would be truer to say that we presumed without having given it adequate consideration – to be able to organise the state production and the state distribution of products on communist lines in a small peasant country directly as ordered by the proletarian state. Experience has proved that we were wrong." (Lenin, Collected Works, Vol 33, page 58)
Further, basing upon the experience, he said, "Socialism is inconceivable without large scale capitalist engineering based on the latest discoveries of modern science. It is inconceivable without planned state organisation which keeps tens of millions of people to the strictest observance of a unified standard in production and distribution. We Marxists have always spoken of this, and it is not worthwhile wasting two seconds talking to people who do not understand even this (anarchists and a good half of the left Socialist-Revolutionaries)." (Lenin, Collected Works, Vol 32, page 334) Unfortunately, even after 85 years of Lenin saying so, we still have to contend with such forces. While adopting the New Economic Policy, the so-called "true" Marxists, in Lenin's word, had alleged that Lenin was compromising with capitalism. Lenin had replied, yes we are compromising. And he cited the example of one of the world's greatest generals of those days: Japan's Nogi, who was defeated again and again by a more powerful enemy, when he was directly attacking them to free Pearl Harbor. He ultimately won the cause by adopting the tactics of a long drawn blockade. Similarly, he said we have committed mistake by directly attacking forces of capitalism, which are stronger than us; we have to compromise, keep patience, gather strength to achieve victory; we have no other alternative. Talking about the people's song 'this is the final struggle', he said, although we sing it, it is not true. We need to fight at many stages. Can we say that Lenin was not a Marxist?
"PURITY" OF MARXISM?
To ensure the industrial development of the state, the Left Front government is giving various proposals to the big industrial houses of the country, and bargaining hard to strike various deals. On this, the Left critics are very prompt to ridicule: why are we so appeasing and trying so hard to get them here? Such critics perhaps would have been happy, if Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee did remain sitting in the throne with an indifferent mood and the capitalists – in their own bourgeois-landlord state – crawl towards him, as the devotees do before their gods to gain his blessings! Maybe, therein lies their "purity" of Marxism! It is worth noting what Lenin had said after the revolution, "Concessions to foreign capitalists (true, only very few have been accepted, especially when compared with the number we have offered) and leasing out enterprises to private capitalists definitely mean restoring capitalism, and this is part and parcel of the New Economic Policy" (Vol 33, page-64) "You will have capitalists beside you, including foreign capitalists, concessionaires and leaseholders. They will squeeze profits out of you amounting to hundred per cent; they will enrich themselves, operating along side you. Let them. Meanwhile you will learn from them the business of running the economy, and only when you do that will you be able to build up a communist republic. Since we must necessarily learn quickly, any slackness in this respect is a serious crime. And we must undergo this training, this severe, stern and some times even cruel training, because we have no other way out." (Vol 33, page 72) He further said, "We communists shall be able to direct our economy if we succeed in utilising the hands of the bourgeoisie in building up the economy of ours and in the meantime learn from the bourgeoisie and guide them along the road we want them to travel."
Therefore there is no genuine reason for these so-called Marxists to be so upset.
Questions are also being raised: well Tata is OK but why Salim group? Its Indonesian origin and friendly relations with Suharto, whose hands are soaked with the blood of communists, is their concern. But Marx was always concerned about the character of capital, not the character of the capitalist. Capital is a relation. Marx in his work, Capital said, "Capital is dead labour, that vampire-like, only lives by sucking living labour, and lives the more, the more labour it sucks." Marx had quoted T J Dunning in his work to describe how the capital behaves with the percentage of profit, "…with 300 per cent profit, there is not a crime at which it will scruple, nor a risk it will not run, even to the chance of its owner being hanged." Didn't Chiang Kai Shek slaughter millions of communists? In spite of that, wasn't he forced to join hands with the communists in the anti-Japan movement? And what about the Congressmen? Aren't their hands too stained with the blood of our comrades? In that case, should we bring down their government at the centre, and let the BJP come to power? So, if by joining hands with a local enemy for a greater cause in politics is Marxism, then why is it not so, in the case of economic policies? America is responsible for the cold-blooded murder of millions of innocent Chinese and Vietnamese. Do they now reject American capital? Did not Cuba desire for American investment? In this context, let us go back to Lenin. While talking about British capitalist and most counter-revolutionary, Urquhart, Lenin had said, "And it is for the sake of relearning, I think, that we must again firmly promise one another that under the name of the New Economic Policy we have turned back in such a way as to surrender nothing of the new, and yet to give the capitalists such advantages as will compel any state, however hostile to us, to establish contacts and deal with us. Comrade Krasin, who has had many talks with Urquhart, the head and backbone of the whole intervention" (Speech at the plenary session of Moscow Soviet, November 20, 1922 -- emphasis by author)
He had said all this after the end of the bloody revolution, when the working class state was established. West Bengal is a federal state in a capitalist feudal country. What its government has done is just a miniscule step compared to what Lenin was forced to do, even after the revolution. If this is what upsets these "true" Marxists so much, we request them to stop living in their imaginations and step into the real world.
http://pd.cpim.org/2006/1008/10082006_benoy%20konar.htm
MAINSTREAM, VOL XLV, NO 29
Land Acquisition and Industrialisation in WestBengal : Report of a Workshop
BY ARUP KUMAR SENThe land acquisition drive of the Left Front Government for promoting industries is at present the most controversial public issue in West Bengal. Recently (on April 20), the Centre for Studies in Social Science, Calcutta, organised a one-day workshop on the topic: Agriculture to Industry: The Problem of Transformation.
In his opening remarks, Sugata Marjit, the present Director of the Centre, made it clear that the "CSSSC has no institutional and official position on the policy of industrialisation as far as the present Left Front Government is concerned". He also opined that the question of industrialisation should be judged academically, not politically.
Kalyan Sanyal's deliberation—Industrialisation in West Bengal: Some Inescapable Questions—raised critical questions about the government's policy of industrialisation. He argued that the rhetoric of industrialisation used in the government campaign has been picked up from undergraduate textbooks of economics. He criticised the government for this casual approach to industrialisation which would displace thousands of people.
Sanyal further stated that agriculture did fairly well in West Bengal upto the mid-1990s in terms of production. After that, the cost of production went up because of withdrawal of subsidies but the prices of agricultural products did not go up. There are indications that for small and marginal farmers land is no longer viable in West Bengal. And a sizeable number of peasants having pattas sold their land in recent years. But, because of land ceiling regulations, small peasants are buying and selling lands among themselves, stated Sanyal.
Sanyal accepted the need for industrialisation in West Bengal, but he expressed his dissatisfac-tion about the government policy. He argued that no calculation has been made by the government about the net employment to be created through its proposed industries. He pointed out that the government talks about the linkage effect of industrialisation, but is silent about the loss of agriculture-related occupations. When asked about the alternative path of industrialisation, Sanyal stated that a sizable number of people have got employment in the non-farm sector in West Bengal in recent times without any government effort. So, one has to know the possibilities of alternative employment. He highlighted the need for a sound compensation policy in case of land acquisition keeping in mind the complexities of land tenure in West Begnal. He cited the case of Singur to show the limits of cash compensation to farmers because loss of land implies loss of source of livelihood and makes life vulnerable.
Surajit C. Mukhopadhyay discussed the interface between politics and economy in his paper—The Politics of Land Acquisition in West Bengal. He stated at the outset that after coming to power in 1977 the Left Front Government took a series of land reform measures within the constitutional framework. The process of land reforms led to politicisation of the peasantry. But, by the mid-1980s, land reforms became stagnant, argued Mukhopadhyay.
Mukhopadhyay revisited the land acquisition question in the context of South Bengal. He argued that South Bengal's density of population is very high and that led to fragmentation of holdings. Though the fertility of land is high in this part of Bengal, because of rise in input costs peasants just do subsistence farming and do not opt for multiple cropping. Mukhopadhyay claimed that because of the poor state of affairs in agriculture in this region, out-migration to other Indian States in search of livelihood is gaining momentum.
Having interviewed landowners-cum-cultivators in Hooghly, Mukhopadhyay and his team came to the conclusion that 14 per cent of the farmers did not want their next generations, who have education, to pursue farming because cultivation no longer pays. He said that during his teaching career in Burdwan University some years back he also came to know about the dismal conditions of agriculture from students coming from cultivator families.
Though Mukhopadhyay more or less supported the industrialisation venture of the government, he confessed that there is tremendous middle-class pressure on the government and that it has to take care of middle-class aspirations as the representative of a multi-class social formation.
ABHIRUP SARKAR'S paper—Development versus Displacement: Story of Land Acquisitions in West Bengal—was concerned with the associated problems of industrialisation. He argued that the theoretical literature on development economics has largely ignored the problems of land acquisition for industrialisation. He observed in this connection that around one lakh acres of land planned to be acquired by the government for industries represent a small fraction of 14 million acres of cultivated land in West Bengal. So, this will not pose a major problem of food security in the State. He also hinted at the possibility of increasing the average size of landholdings by shifting people to industry on the assumption that the latter will sell their land to the remaining landholders.
Sarkar argued that the government violated property rights during land reforms by confiscating land and transferring land to the landless people. Now, the same government is doing so by transferring land from small farmers to rich investors. In the light of fragmentation of landholding in West Bengal, Sarkar argued that the transaction cost will be very high if the industrialists directly acquire land from the landholders. Ideally speaking, argued Sarkar, the government can ensure fair price for the small farmers who cannot effectively bargain with a powerful buyer.
Sarkar raised the fundamental question as to whether West Bengal being a practising democracy can follow a path of coercion for land acquisition. He categorically stated that the Chinese path of industrialisation is not possible here. In China, land acquisition and industrial growth took place on the basis of secured property rights for investors and loosely defined rights for landowning farmers.
Sarkar argued that in the light of poor conditions of villages in West Bengal and non-profitability of agriculture, there is no alternative to industrialisation. But, he, criticised the government for the failure to develop infrastructure in rural Bengal and emphasised the need for a sound compensation, rehabilitation and resettlement policy. He noted in this context that a cost-benefit analysis of industrialisation is entirely missing in the policy statements of the government. He expressed his reservation about the fact that registered bargadars are getting only 25 per cent of sale proceeds in the land acquisition process whereas they are supposed to get 75 per cent of the produce under the barga system. He concluded by saying that the views of the people, who are losing their land and livelihood, should be given due recognition in the land acquisition policy of the government.
The last session of the workshop was a panel discussion. Alok Mukherjea blamed the West Bengal Government for carrying the land acquisition policy hastily without going through the process of trust-building. Anirban Chattopadhyay pointed the incompetence of the government in properly handling the crisis of agriculture. He suggested that the government had the option of developing cooperatives for the resurrection of agriculture. Gautam Gupta viewed the land acquisition problem to be basically a management problem and criticised the Opposition for politicising the issue for electoral gains. Ratan Khasnobis argued that the cost of transformation initiated by the government is being passed to the weaker sections of the population. Keeping in mind the recent violence connected with land acquisition, Anup Sinha stated categorically that even a single killing is a crime and should be condemned
http://www.mainstreamweekly.net/article205.html
"Trinamool derailed Bengal's industrialisation"
Raktima Bose
| Eighth Left Front government will set up industries in various sectors to provide employment to youth: Buddhadeb |
Kolkata: Vowing not to allow the Trinamool Congress to derail the industrialisation drive in West Bengal, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee asserted on Friday that the eighth Left Front government if elected to power will set up industries in various sectors to provide employment to the youth.
He scoffed at Trinamool Congress chief and Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee's assurance to create 10 lakh jobs in the Railways, described it as a false promise and claimed that not a single person will get any job there.
Canvassing for Left Front candidates at Arambag in Hooghly district, Mr. Bhattacharjee said that 4,000 people would have been employed at the Tata Motors small car factory at Singur by now had the Trinamool Congress not forced the withdrawal of the project through incessant protests.
"We will not tolerate such actions any more. The Trinamool Congress had thought that it was successful in derailing the industrialisation drive but we proved them wrong with the upcoming steel plant at Salboni and fertiliser plant at Bardhaman," he added.
Questioning the Trinamool Congress' policy for bringing about 'change' in the State, Mr. Bhattacharjee pointed out that the party being an ally of the UPA Government is to blame for steep increase in prices of essential commodities, tax on hosiery items and for trying to privatise nationalised banks and the insurance sector.
"It is better not to speak about the Trinamool Congress that has a policy to create unrest. It is actively supporting the separatist powers in Darjeeling and also the Maoists. If not for the Trinamool Congress' support, these powers would not have been so assertive. It is a party that indulges in violence and one devoid of any policy," he charged.
Mr. Bhattacharjee also accused the Trinamool Congress of using large amount of "illegal funding" for election campaign and added that the party was trying to use money power to win the Assembly elections.
Expressing concern over the sky-rocketing prices of essential commodities, he said the Left Front Government would attempt to strengthen the ration system in the State.
"The ration system exists here but is not adequate. The Centre refused to act on our repeated requests to fix prices of certain essential commodities…we will not depend on Below Poverty Line or Above Poverty Line cards and rice will be made available to those families whose monthly income is less than Rs 10,000 at Rs. 2 per kg through the ration system," Mr. Bhattacharjee said.
http://www.hindu.com/2011/04/30/stories/2011043060480300.htm
A RECORD IN WEST BENGAL
With far-reaching achievements in the fields of agriculture and industry to its credit, the Left Front completes 25 years of uninterrupted rule in West Bengal.KALYAN CHAUDHURI
in Kolkata
ON June 21, 2002, the Left Front, led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist), completed 25 years of its rule in West Bengal. To celebrate the political record of ruling a State for such a long, uninterrupted period, thousands of supporters of the Front gathered at the Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata on that day.
Cheered by the crowd, Front leaders, including former Chief Minister Jyoti Basu, his successor Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, CPI(M) State secretary Anil Biswas and Forward Bloc general secretary Ashok Ghosh, declared that West Bengal had created history in coalition politics. "It is the unity forged by a shared ideology that has been the strength of the Left Front. This unity is now unbreakable," said Biman Bose, Chairman of the Left Front and a Polit Bureau member of the CPI(M).
SUSHANTA PATRONOBISH
The first Left Front government, led by Jyoti Basu, assumed office in 1977, with a resolve to provide immediate relief to the people, take the State forward on the path of development, decentralise the power structure, and thus involve people in the day-to-day work of the government. Of the 25 years it had been in power, the Left Front government was led by Jyoti Basu for over 23 years, until he stepped down in favour of Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee in October 2000. That it has kept the promises and gained the people's trust is evident from the fact that the Left Front has been voted to power six successive times with massive mandates. This is a world record for an elected Left government. Effective and purposive governance, successful conduct of coalition politics, political stability that was achieved and firm adherence to secularism are widely seen as the reasons for its success. This was possible largely because of the CPI(M)'s ability to hold together the coalition which includes nine other parties. It has not been an easy task. But the CPI(M)'s experience with the United Front governments of 1967 and 1969 stood the party in good stead. This period was followed by a dark phase when the Left parties had to function in an atmosphere devoid of democratic rights, under the Congress(I) government. It was during this long period of struggle for democratic rights, civil liberty, social justice, agrarian reform and industrial resurgence that the Left Front took shape.
The United Front experience helped the CPI(M) leadership to delineate a code of conduct, which has been adhered to strictly and uniformly by the Front constituents, irrespective of their relative strengths. This, despite the criticism, mainly from newspapers that have been hostile to the Left Front, that the smaller parties in the Front have been exploited by the "Big Brother".
The CPI(M)'s strength in electoral politics lies in its ability to gauge the mood of the people and come up with slogans that would catch their imagination. And it has always taken the lead in launching the campaign, leaving little time for its main opponent, the Congress(I), to set its house in order. In both Assembly and Lok Sabha elections the Left Front turns the contest into an issue-based one by blending local issues with larger political issues.
At the time of taking office in 1977, Jyoti Basu said that the Left Front was fully conscious of the duties and responsibilities that had been entrusted to it by the people of West Bengal through a historic electoral verdict. "Our government would not be run from the Writers' Buildings alone ; it would maintain close touch with the representative organisations of the people in order to serve them effectively," he said.
Tracing the record of the government in the last 25 years, Jyoti Basu said the Left Front government had been endeavouring to alleviate the hardships of the people by implementing welfare schemes and programmes with their support and active participation. He said: "On every available opportunity, we have made it clear that no fundamental changes can be brought about by the State government, which has to function under the constraints and limitations of the existing constitutional framework. Our efforts, however, are constantly directed to extend much-needed relief to the people. With our emphasis on land reforms, agricultural development and democratic decentralisation, we have been successful in achieving a major breakthrough in agriculture and allied sectors. Our achievement in the field of foodgrain production is now well-recognised, while the land reforms programme has radically altered the scene in the countryside with definite benefits to the rural masses."
The panchayats, Jyoti Basu said, had been successfully implementing various rural development programmes aimed at generating gainful employment to the rural poor and creating durable assets for common benefit. "Decentralisation of planning through the involvement of the people in the formulation and implementation of the planned schemes constitutes a basic component of our strategy for general welfare," he said.
After capturing power in 1977, the CPI(M) lost no time in consolidating its base in West Bengal. The holding of panchayat elections regularly since 1978 has created a strong rural base for the party. The over three million families that have benefited by land reform constitute its main support base. The reforms also led to a spurt in the rate of agricultural growth, the highest in the country. Between 1980-81 and 1990-91, the average annual increase in food production had been 7.1 per cent as against the national-level increase of 3.15 per cent.
After being sworn in Chief Minister on May 18, 2001 following the Left Front's victory in the Assembly elections, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee initiated changes that have provided a new dimension to Left Front rule. In a conversation with Frontline, he discussed the Left Front's spectacular performance in the past 25 years in improving the rural economy. "We have to remember that our real strength lies in our achievements in rural Bengal. However, we will not lose sight of the new generation with which we will go forward. So we will have to look at the requirements of the new generation in the light of the scientific and technological developments taking place now. We Marxists are realists. We understand that change is essential to life. There is no point in holding on to a dogma. We shall have to change our policies according to the changing situation. We are now in the 21st century and this century's science is information technology, biotechnology and the like. We must adapt to the new environment. Otherwise we will be nowhere in the picture," he said.
PARTH SANYAL
Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has concentrated on developing industry, especially agro-based industry. "We have been able to attract Rs.14,961 crores as investment over the past three years and gained the fifth position in this respect in the country. We have been trying to improve the functioning of the State public sector undertakings. I am determined to take a decision on all the 69 of them by the year-end," he said.
For the past 25 years, the Left Front government has been pursuing an alternative approach to rural development planning. The approach is based on more equitable distribution of land and other productive assets in rural areas, within the limitations of the existing socio-economic structure. Although West Bengal has less than 4 per cent of the total agricultural land in the country, nearly 20 per cent of the land distributed through land reforms in India is in the State. About 60 per cent of the total land is owned by small and marginal farmers as against the national figure of 28.8 per cent. In other words, the government's efforts have created an objective situation in which agricultural planning is done from the standpoint of the poorer working farmers.
Agricultural development, with emphasis on the best manner of utilisation of labour and local resources, has increased the purchasing power of the common man and thus helped in the growth of agriculture-linked cottage and small-scale industries. Over the last 20 years, small units have registered a significant growth rate. Their number has gone up from less than a lakh in 1976-77 to about four lakhs now, generating over one lakh jobs every year.
The process of decentralisation of economic and administrative power, initiated by the Left Front government 25 years ago, is almost complete. It has generated considerable interest in India and abroad. The administrative principles adopted and the development strategies pursued through the three-tier panchayat system reflect a new ethos of catering to the needs of the common people and creating an alternative path of development that gives priority to eradicating poverty and ensuring social justice.
Surjya Kanta Mishra, Minister for Health, Panchayats and Rural Development, told Frontline that one of the most significant achievements of the panchayat system was that it had entrenched grassroots-level democracy. Since 1977, five rounds of panchayat elections have been held, once every five years. In the last round, held in May 1998, the Left Front captured over three-fourths of the 80,000 seats in the gram panchayats, panchayat samitis and zilla parishads. Over 35 per cent of the panchayat members are women and 28 per cent belong to the Scheduled Castes and 7 per cent to the Scheduled Tribes.
The panchayat bodies have, in close coordination with the State government, taken over the planning, administration and implementation of developmental activities. They have also shaped themselves into a force that is powerful enough to usher in social change; it has empowered the common man to decide his political, economic and social destiny.
JAYANTA SHAW/REUTERS
The West Bengal government spends almost half of its annual budget through the panchayats. The money goes towards creating rural employment and financing local development. Village or gram panchayat leaders have, over the last two and a half decades, emerged as key players in developing their respective areas. The land-owning gentry have been rendered powerless, an achievement that has not been matched anywhere else in India.
The panchayati raj institutions in the State have a pro-poor orientation because the majority of their members come from the downtrodden sections. A survey conducted by the Staff Development and Planning Department covering 100 gram panchayats revealed that more than 71 per cent of the panchayat representatives are small and marginal farmers. A recent study of panchayats in 25 blocks across 14 States presents a contrasting picture: 88 per cent of the panchayat members and 95 per cent of the panchayat presidents in these belong to the landed gentry. This glaring contrast is testimony to the success of the Left Front's development strategy, which is based on land reforms.
The Left Front government initiated steps to devolve power in the first year of the Seventh Plan (1985-86) by constituting block and district planning committees headed by presidents of panchayat samitis and zilla parishads. The block planning committee (BPC) consists of the heads of gram panchayats and the members of the executive committees of panchayat samitis and block-level officials from different departments. The district planning committees (DPCs) consists of the presidents of panchayat samitis, the chairmen of municipalities, the executive members of zilla parishads and the heads of the various government departments at the district level. The Block Development Officer (BDO) and the District Magistrate are the member-secretaries of the BPC and the DPC respectively.
The budgetary provision for various departments for district-level items are disaggregated and disbursed to the DPC. A similar exercise is undertaken at the level of blocks and municipalities. Within these budgetary parameters, which have come to be known as divisible outlay, the DPC has the power to formulate its own plan on the basis of the "district-specific schemes" drawn from district-level sectoral plans and the "block and municipality-specific schemes" appearing in block and municipal plans.
THE strong industrial base of West Bengal started eroding in the 1950s and early 1960s. The process of de-industrialisation of West Bengal was accentuated by the Union government's economic policies, which gave preference to petrochemical industries over steel and coal-based industries, in which the eastern region had a competitive advantage. The policy of freight equalisation took away the region's edge relative to the rest of the country.
SUSHANTA PATRONOBISH
Successive Congress governments of West Bengal are mainly responsible for the decline of industry in the State. Although Congress Chief Minister Dr. B.C. Roy was a visionary, he made two mistakes: he neglected agriculture and placed too much emphasis on heavy industries. Owing to the neglect of agriculture, the State could not develop a strong agricultural base, a prerequisite for industrialisation; and the emphasis on heavy industries led to the neglect of traditional industries such as jute which was fighting a losing battle against synthetic fibre.
However, the rapid strides made by the State in agriculture and allied sectors under the Left Front government have once again created the base for industrial development. The change in some policies of the Union government in response to the repeated demands of the Left Front government also facilitated this process. Thus the delicensing of industries and the discontinuance of the policy of freight equalisation created a situation conducive to industrial development. The State is now back on the priority list of investors. Large companies are looking for fresh investment opportunities in the State.
One of the major factors that has brought about a change in the investors' attitude is the high rate of growth in food production in the last decade. Increased food production, combined with land reform measures such as Operation Barga and relatively high wages for agricultural workers, has ensured a fairly equitable distribution of income. The State's industry is ready for a take-off both economically and socially. As compared to other parts of the country, West Bengal has a much broader domestic market. Another major attraction is the factor of political stability.
Above all, the turnaround in power generation has made investment in West Bengal an attractive proposition. The State's power position is perhaps one of the best in the country. From a total production capacity of 1,361 MW in 1976, West Bengal has now become a power-surplus State, producing 7,099 MW of power and supplying part of it to neighbouring States. A large number of engineering colleges and industrial training institutes in the State have ensured a steady supply of skilled manpower.
Academicians conducting socio-economic studies on West Bengal generally agree that with its mass internal market, political and social stability, and relatively clean and efficient administration, an industrial revolution in West Bengal will be unstoppable.
http://www.hindu.com/fline/fl1914/19140310.htmMoney doesn't make the landowner fonder
The country's first legislation on land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement is out as a first draft. Here is a sharp critique of the bill
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THE GOVERNMENT has made public the new Draft National Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation & Resettlement Bill, 2011, which FW has run in these columns over three days. This is what I think of it. In terms of the definition of public purpose, the Bill is more colonial and draconian than its older counterpart. The sops provided in the new Bill for Scheduled Tribes defeat the constitutional rights that the Fifth Schedule (Clause 5) has conferred on tribals in the notified areas. In principle, no land should be acquired in the Scheduled Areas. The Bill is regressive and should undergo major changes before it can be made people-friendly. In its present form, it provides enormous scope for rent-seeking among politicians and bureaucrats and leads to large-scale human rights violations.
The 1984 Land Acquisition Act is in itself a draconian law enacted by the colonial rulers at that time in the name of invoking the state's Eminent Domain to forcibly acquire private lands in the name of public purpose. The compensation offered to the displaced persons under this Act is necessarily below the market price as the price is determined by the local officials on the basis of the sale and purchase prices obtained from land transactions that have taken place in the vicinity. The latter always represented gross undervaluation by the parties to the transaction to avoid paying the registration charges. In other words, the compensation amounts paid under the Act failed to capture the real value of the land. In most cases, the authorities routinely invoked the urgency clause to dispossess voiceless citizens but the process of payment of compensation remained tortuous and time-consuming.
We have a case in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, where several farmers were dispossessed from their lands submerged under the waters of the Tandava Reservoir Project thirty years ago but they are yet to receive compensation. The Act unfortunately never stipulated that no land should be taken without payment of compensation. People have sentimental association with the land inherited by them from their forefathers. In the case of the Mangalore SEZ, Gregory Patrao, whom I had the benefit of meeting a couple of years ago, showed me his village and his ancestral house, explaining that his house was the weekly meeting place for his community for offering prayers till a church was built. The church itself was built hundreds of years ago. In other words, for Gregory Patrao, the sentimental value of the house was immeasurable, irrespective of whatever public purpose the government had cited to displace him and irrespective of the price tag attached to the land. He refused to accept it the cash packet the government dangled. He was forcibly evicted from the house, which was demolished to accommodate the SEZ.
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Those that own and manage the SEZ will appropriate large chunks of the land acquired to locate their palatial residences and lead lives of such high quality that the displaced families could never aspire for. The so-called rehabilitation colony proposed for the displaced families near Mangalore is a sight that anyone with a sense of dignity would abhor. Do we want such incidents to happen in a civilised democracy? The Ministry of Rural Development (MRD), which is ensconced in air-conditioned rooms of Krishi Bhavan in New Delhi, is perhaps far too disconnected with the ground reality to appreciate the finer concerns of the citizens of this country, as far as land acquisition is concerned. The recent landmark order pronounced by Supreme Court on the need for the authorities to exercise self-restraint in depriving citizens of their land assets should force the MRD to rethink on this. There are a few fundamental issues that need to be addressed by the MRD before considering a new land acquisition law. These are as follows.
The Bill provides a highly distorted and warped view of development. It makes one believe that industrialisation is an end in itself and everything else is subsidiary to it. The Indian Constitution envisages a development process that springs out of what the people want in terms of what is good for them. The choices with regard to development projects should lie with the people, not the government. Once this basic premise is accepted, the question of someone at the top imposing a project on the local community against its will and forcibly acquiring land should not arise. Unfortunately, the Preamble to the Bill starts with this warped objective, rendering the remaining parts of it highly regressive.
Industrialisation cannot be an end in itself. Indiscriminate industrialisation cannot contribute to balanced development. For example, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF) has cleared more than 2,00,000 mw of base load power generation capacity as a part of the laissez fair approach of the government. Whereas the most optimistic electricity demand estimates of the Central Electricity Authority do not justify such a large incremental capacity nor is it good from the point of view of protecting the environment. Should the state invoke its Eminent Domain authority to dispossess people of their land by calling such unwanted projects infrastructure facilities for public purpose? This argument holds well in the case of mining projects, ports, SEZs and so on. In most cases, the developers expect the state to give many other concessions including hefty tax sops. This has become one of the most important factors promoting corruption and black money in India. Should the state's Eminent Domain be invoked to promote corruption?
Private companies invest in projects to earn profits. They rarely do it to promote public welfare. Any industrial activity will incidentally provide goods for public use. Can the definition of public purpose be stretched to include all such activities that enable the developers to realise returns for their personal benefits? The Preamble to the Bill starts with the statement that it primarily aims to 'balance the need for facilitating land acquisition for industrialisation, development of essential infrastructure facilities and urbanisation, while at the same time to meaningfully address the concerns of farmers and those whose livelihoods are dependent on the land being acquired'. Other than industrialisation, is there no development activity that the government should pursue? To take an extreme case, if the proportion of agricultural or forest land falls below a threshold limit, will it not become necessary for the state to invoke its Eminent Domain authority to acquire the land belonging to an industrial house to accommodate either agriculture or forestry? Should not the Bill, if it were to be equitable, provide for acquiring industrial land to accommodate traditional fishing communities and artisans?
CLAUSE 5 of the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution requires the Governor in each state to review all laws and adapt them to suit the interests of the Scheduled Tribes before extending their application to the notified Scheduled Areas. This implies special constitutional rights conferred on the tribals. Even though more than six decades have gone by after Independence, India has failed to carry out such a review. The land acquisition law should have been reviewed in accordance with this provision and an adapted version of it should have been kept ready. Those that have drafted this new Bill are perhaps unaware of this far-reaching constitutional requirement. By providing an innocuous clause (Clause 13) in Schedule II to the Bill, the drafters perhaps thought they had done all that was necessary to dole out charity to the tribals. They should know that the Constitution has provided a statutory entitlement and a price tag attached to rehabilitation can never be compensation for it.
A disturbing feature of land acquisition as revealed in the case the Outer Ring Road (ORR) in Hyderabad is that selective acquisition was resorted to and many influential persons were left out. The less influential received compensation fixed by the government and later, the more influential exploited the incremental value of their land adjacent to orr to realised enormous windfall benefits. Cash compensation for land acquired has been found by many research workers to have led to highly undesirable socioeconomic outcomes. Usually, an agricultural family that has lost its land as a result of acquisition is rarely in a position to buy alternate land elsewhere, because part of the cash compensation goes into artificially-boosted consumption and the purchase value of alternate land is far higher than the compensation amount itself. This usually leads to undesirable occupational displacement of the affected family.
Against the above background, I offer the following comments and suggestions. In the new Bill, invoking the Eminent Domain of the state should be a last resort, limited to a highly restricted definition of public purpose, after the state satisfies itself that the land requirement computed by the requisitioning agency conforms to stringent land use norms, both in terms of the area and the use. In order to translate this intention into a tangible legal provision, acquisition in excess of a few acres (say, 10 acres) in a rural area should have the legislature's prior approval. No land should be acquired for a company that has been set up to earn profits. Even when limited land is acquired for, say, a government hospital or a school, the land so taken from the owner should be treated as on long lease with the rental indexed to the market value variation in the area, computed on the basis of its potential future value rather than on existing value.
The definition of public purpose in the Bill is open-ended. It is more draconian than its counterpart in the old Act. The relevant definition in the Bill will enable the state to include any profitable private land acquisition proposal within its ambit, rendering the concept of right to property contemplated in Article 300A dysfunctional. This right was a fundamental right (erstwhile Article 31) replaced in 1977 by Article 300A in the 44th Constitution Amendment. The amendment itself was regressive, as it was introduced to accommodate large psus with an insatiable appetite for land. Indiscriminate land acquisition was the outcome of this. Later, this has helped influential private players take advantage of the loophole provided. Politicians and bureaucrats in nexus with private players have exploited this provision on a large scale.
There should be a ban on acquisition of land belonging to tribals in all Scheduled Areas as it will deprive them of their rights. The decision to set up a development project in the Scheduled Areas should lie with the tribal Gram Sabhas, Panchayats and Tribal Advisory Councils. Even if such a project is to be set up, it should be owned and managed by the tribals. Thus, the question of land acquisition should not arise in Scheduled Areas. In the rest of the country, the choices about setting up projects should emerge from discussion and debate among the local communities. It may so happen that the local communities have more people-friendly approaches than what the Bill envisages.
A major sop in the new Bill is the rehabilitation and resettlement package, as though it would undo the trauma caused by forcible land acquisition and the human rights violations involved. Proposing a package without addressing the fundamental issues is not acceptable. The Bill in its present form is people-unfriendly and is, therefore, unacceptable. It should be revamped totally. Land acquisition involves deprivation of people's right to property and consequent human rights violations. These are not choices that should be left entirely to democratic processes. They need to conform to the norms set out in the Constitution. The Bill fails the test.
EAS Sarma is currently convenor of the Forum for Better Visakha, also is the former finance secretary Government of India based in Visakhapatnam.
eassarma@gmail.com
http://www.tehelka.com/story_main50.asp?filename=Ws060811Money.asp
| Anindhya Tiwari | |
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http://www.legalserviceindia.com/articles/eco_gr.htm
| Let 'V' be the symbol of freedom from occupying forces, not vendetta | ||
| Guest Column - Victor Banerjee | ||
Looking out of a posh apartment's window in Alipore, I saw two painters, without safety harnesses, precariously balanced on a crooked bamboo scaffolding 34 feet above fluttering green and red flags in the street below, merrily slapping on whitewash. "Congress ka haath aam aadmi ki jaib mein," said one to the other. They burst out laughing so loudly, that the bamboo they were standing on swayed and shook and loosened the knots that held the monkey's puzzle together with thin coir ropes. Were the ropes from the ruddy coconut plantations of Kerala, I wondered? Now there was a state that routinely saw a change of political guard and this time I've been told by some Congress bigwigs (who recently returned from a campaign vacation there) that the Congress party is expecting to sweep back into power. Next door in Tamil Nadu, the 2G skullduggery had hit the alliances hard and here in Bengal the haath had slipped into Mamata's pockets for whatever trinkamools it might adroitly gather or pinch. Will the ignored Congress party hit pay dirt this time or merely get its hands soiled messing with Jora Ghas Phul? With Das Munshi and Panja out of the game, probashiPranabbabu is as inconsequential to us as that fake non-resident Assamese Prime Minister is to the people of Assam. But will the insane violence and bloodshed, sadly and disgracefully unique to Bengal, stop? Almost everyone I have spoken to is afraid that although Mamata might chuck the culpable Commies out, her core cadre simply consists of relabelled CPM goons and extortionists whose unbridled dadagiri terrorised paras and stretched ruthlessly into naive rural Bengal. Sometimes I think the great Kazi Nazrul gave us too intense an insight into revolution and turned bidrohis into victims of their own revolt. Now we all fear it shall don a new mask no matter which face it hides. And Buddhadebbabu has probably set his fiddle aside to ponder upon his uncle's prophetic verse: "Ekhaney mrityu haana deay baar baar, lokh chokkhur aaraaley ekhaney jomechhey ondhokaar…. Nirobey mrityu gerechhey ekhaney ghaanti". A few weeks ago, front-page pictures of the two rivals Buddhadeb and Mamata had them both flashing "V" signs into cameras that were waiting to capture their mood after they had cast their votes. Fourteen people lost their lives that day to help stretch their leaders' facial muscles into reprehensible smiles of brinkmanship. In the last century, after the greats like Vivekananda, Tagore, Nazrul, Surendra Nath, Subhash and BC Roy, and even Sukanto, had died, inexplicably, Bengal became an intellectually stagnant morass of deviant misinterpretation of proletariat causes. After Churchill, the "V" too has undergone many changes. During the floral Sixties, through gentle clouds of marijuana, it meant "Peace", and many still use the symbol to denote just that. In today's world, the "V" with your hand held facing you, simply means "**** off !" Nixon used it with flailing arms up to the point he relinquished office, Lyndon Johnson used it to lie about the attacks in the Bay of Tonkin, to eventually wage war on North Vietnam, George Dubya used it before he walked into the Oval Office to immediately lie about Weapons of Mass Destruction, to justify a war in the Gulf that hung Saddam after mercilessly killing his sons and after it maimed and killed thousands of American country boys who join the army to serve their country like innocent and lovable Gumps. And finally, the lies of Nandigram where the whole nation witnessed the cold-blooded slaying of peasants who for decades had been treated like political slaves. "Fear is the beginning of wisdom" is the maxim that General Sherman employed to burn and liberate the South during the American civil war. It has been the basis of political thought and the undercurrent of life in Bengal, for several years now. Let's hope our winners or losers don't do a re-run of Sherman's "march to the sea" to teach our people a lesson. It would be the sort of vindictive backlash that Bengal can do without; doesn't need any more. We don't need a civil war. The Americans lost six hundred and eighteen thousand men in theirs, more than in all the wars they've been engaged in since, up to Abbotabad earlier this month. At the end of World War II, "V" was the symbol of freedom from the occupying forces. How ironic. We still feel ruled; by usurpers. I googled political "v"endetta: out popped "Kasba" on the very first page. It said, "Once regarded as a notorious locality famous for political vendettas and other antisocial activities, Kasba is now thriving and on its way to becoming a well-developed locality." One prays that the same will hold true for all of Bengal in the days to come. "V" stood for peace. I contemplated on symbols and their interpretations. I thought of the colours red and green. No matter what your political allegiance, we've all had enough of red. It symbolises anger, violence and terror unleashed. It is the colour that warns you of danger. The hammer and the sickle too have changed from the tools of factory workers and farmers into manipulated instruments of destruction. The symbol is now banned in many east European countries where they had once formed weapons of misbegotten revolution. The arbitrary and indiscriminate industrialisation of rural land is what brought about Bengal's current clash between the instruments of industry and the agrarian's harvesting implement. At the end of Tagore's 150th birth anniversary, his dream of the social empowerment of our rural masses is, at last, perhaps, beginning to be fulfilled. Green on the other hand "signifies a positive change, good health, growth, fertility, healing, hope, vigour, vitality, peace, and serenity. Orange denotes hope, friendliness, courtesy, generosity, liveliness, sociability, and also represents a stimulation of the senses". There is also a certain childlike innocence and purity in the simple image of two blossoms upon the grass, that no one can deny. I, therefore, believe that its source, in the final analysis, will be honest and reliable. I am hoping Bengal hasn't become colour-blind. The Congress have their hands in the Trinamoolah till and so the cult of the fishy coalition will remain one UPA on the rest. In the next couple of days the façade will have been whitewashed and our workers will have descended from their risky perch to the green turf below. The index finger will point to them for support and then, in victory, obeisance. And few doubt that the middle finger won't go back to its ignoble task of wanton social and economic exploitation. As for me, I would like to see the reign of the communists in Bengal consigned to the archives of the "Cult of the dead fish", where stenches and truths are not disguised. Where freedom is what it means. And here's a special wish from all of us. A thousand miles away, after a parallel 35 years of unforgivable occupation and pitiless suppression, I hope the Israelis relent and grant Palestinians their freedom to determine their own futures in their own land, in a terribly strife-torn West Asia. To all of you my brothers and sisters of Bengal, remember Nazrul. "Awbaak prithibi robey takiye toder dikey". Good luck, and keep your "V"s crossed. The piece was written before the May 13 verdict. | ||
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110524/jsp/calcutta/story_13973374.jspIndustrialization of Bengal and A Free Marketeer's Dilemma: Artha ShastriSun, 2008-03-30 00:00I Young Jude, the protagonist in Thomas Hardy's Jude the Obscure learns about the perceived "seat of learning" Christminster that it takes that city "—five years to turn a lirruping hobble-de-hoy chap into a solemn preaching man with no corrupt passions". Five years is not too short a span of time, but in West Bengal these days, we find ample ' preaching men' who have taken a far shorter period to suddenly discover their new role, being played tirelessly in sermonizing the lay-Bengali in general and to the Government in particular, about attitudes that need to be changed, things that need to be done and the words that need to be uttered, when, Industrial houses 'are eager to do business in Bengal and that too, on a massive scale'. The points to note here are, firstly, these people were no gawky bunch of hobble-de-hoys before the ongoing process in Bengal gathered steam (while simultaneously effecting their metamorphosis) and secondly, though there is definitely a plethora of relevant issues that need to be sorted out and discussed (or even space for preaching the odd complicated one), a total lack of willingness to engage in any form of informed debates and discussions is reason enough to view such drastic transformation and the sudden new-found concern regarding the 'plight of the farmer' -of several writers, painters, film-makers, singers and even Economists through a very critical eye (the basic right of Freedom of speech is not the issue here). In this essay it would be interesting to focus specifically on the last group (some of the Economists), in order to make sense of some of the words that we have heard over from them in the last few months in the context of the ongoing process of Industrialization. For this group in particular, consisting predominantly of 'Free-Marketeers' (those who have huge and at times, unquestioned, faith on the virtues of the Free Market) the problem is not about their 'lack of willingness' in engaging on issues of relevance, but , primarily, about the timing as well as the content of what they have chosen to deliver under the guise of a sudden and painful realization, especially when this country has already gone through 17 long years of Neo-Liberal Economic Reforms. After the adoption of the Structural Adjustment Policies (SAP) that the Government of India did in 1991, retreat of the State from almost every sphere of the Economy- be it Agriculture, the Financial Sector or even the Public Sector-became the single most priority of Indian Policymakers, submerged in the romanticism of the market-mythology. Over these years there has been a sharp decline in living standards of the rural-poor all over India, who have faced significant shrinkage in their Purchasing Power abilities. The Agricultural sector is in shambles, public investment in Agriculture has been curtailed and farmers, pressurized immensely by rising input prices, meager commodity prices and debt-burden, committing suicides in large numbers even in the so-called advanced states like AP, Karnataka or Maharashtra (with West Bengal being an welcome exception).The solution to such a series of unfortunate developments in the agrarian sector, according to the bulk of the Free Marketeers has been further 'opening up' of that sector to MNCs, on the pretext of 'modernization' and establishment of efficient market-networks. The cautious observer of events on this front would only be too aware of the nature of problems that introduction of Contract Farming and the entry of MNCs in the purchase and distributional circuit of Foodgrains have given rise to. Insurance schemes like the NAIS have not worked, since governments, devouted to a systematic reduction of subsidies have not exempted farmers from paying market-determined rates of premium, which mostly have been beyond their reach. For those even moderately suspicious about the virtues of the Neo-Liberal Economic policies-the facts stated in the previous paragraph may seem to be ones that are well documented and widely recognized. However, for avid Free-Marketeers, these events are nothing more than momentary aberrations on the way of the aforesaid 'Reforms' that are, in their opinion the only means to set the prevailing ills right. Regular incidents of mass-suicides by farmers have not been enough to induce them to speak out bemoaning the 'plight of the farmer' over all these years, let alone to question the indiscriminate imposition of Neo-Liberal policies on the Agrarian Economy. On a similar vein, for such Economists the process of acquiring land for setting up of industries or the issue of paying compensation in return of acquiring farmland have generally been considered unworthy of much consideration until the issue of land acquisition for the TATA's small-car project in Singur came up. The volubility of a few Free Marketeers over the Singur project, that was to later reach new heights when the unrest in Nandigram happened, need to be understood in the context of the long silence that they had maintained all these years when the Agrarian sector in India was, slowly but surely, getting ravaged. While rightly recognizing the fact that acquiring farmland by the amount that has been done in Singur (or for that matter which will be necessary for setting up of an industrial unit anywhere) will have no impact on the overall agricultural production (a 'concern' that was raised by the lady who runs the opposition TMC as well as several other 'intellectuals' supposedly 'qualified enough' to come up with such 'observations' regarding the fallouts of 'Budhhababu's Industrialization'!) the Free-Marketeer (whose article we are going to refer to below) demanded that the Government must come clean regarding its 'deal' with the TATAs, publishing every detail of the compensation package that was on offer in Singur. In an EPW article titled 'Development and Displacement; Land Acquisition in West Bengal' this particular Economist had fished out a calculation to determine whether the compensation paid was indeed enough. In this calculation (i) he compared the price that was paid to the seller of land in compensation with the sum he would have received if he had sold that piece of land on the free market (the compensation amount as he himself observed was higher) and (ii) asked whether the sum received as compensation by the seller of land, if invested in a Bank (since now the earning from his owned piece of land was gone) would guarantee him a decent income vis-à-vis his previous income from agriculture, given the annual market real rate of interest. Two problems arise in the context of such an analysis. Firstly, the economic condition of the farmer (whether he cultivates his own land, what proportion of his income is derived from Agriculture etc.) whose land has been acquired is not taken into consideration. Secondly, (because the first issue is not considered) it is assumed that whatever sum the seller receives from the sale of his land would NOT be invested in or in the initiation of an alternative non-agricultural activity but would find its way to a bank. We shall see later why a careful study of the agrarian conditions of Singur is important. It is a different (though by no means unimportant) issue that the landless casual labourers who work on other peoples' land, for obvious reasons, would receive meager or no compensation to make-up for their displacement. But this group of agricultural workers, in any case, is not generally in a position to access formal banking institutions. In asking a question like (ii) it is then assumed that only those who can access formal financial institutions viz. comparatively well-off landowners (who for the purpose of cultivation lease out land and thus their lands are characterized by absentee-landlordism, as we shall see, the majority of the land in Singur is indeed characterized by and for whom agriculture does not account for the bulk of their incomes) or a section of the sharecroppers, have been taken into account. For the former (who are already dependant on the non-agricultural sector for the bulk of their incomes) if the compensated amount is kept in a bank, their disposable income in the post land-donation scenario would comprise of the (already existing) non-farm income plus the interest earned from the bank, and it is this that needs to be compared to the otherwise farm income from the piece of land donated (which is now lost) and the non-farm income, and not solely to the income from the piece of land. However, more importantly, if the money received is instead invested in a non-farm activity; the future stream of income from that already-existing/newly initiated activity can get significantly revised upwards thus making the seller of the land better-off in the post-donation scenario. Such a possibility is never recognized in the article, but, assumed that in a post-donation scenario all that the seller will be doing is to depend on the interest earned from his compensation-amount deposited in a bank. This, in fact, undermines the writer's general support for the Industrialization process- which is expected to usher in development via steering the bulk of land and capital from farm to manufacturing production, in turn raising income levels. (This simple inference is justified in the case of Singur in particular because it is significantly less agricultural compared to several other parts of West Bengal). This article is particularly interesting with regard to the measures that are prescribed to take care of the woes of the ailing agrarian sector, especially the 'small and marginal farmers'. The Free Marketeer writes "The other problem, which we have already briefly mentioned, is the absence of an adequate marketing channel for the small and marginal farmers…. these problems could be partly solved by inviting big capital, including multinationals, into the agricultural sector. This could break the feudal chains in which West Bengal agriculture is confined today. Contract farming with big corporations could help the farmers not only by providing them certain and wider markets but also make them aware about new technology, new products and, in general, helping the economy to develop agriculture-based industries. At the same time direct links could be established between the farmers and big retail outlets that could also help them break their dependence on the feudal traders" (bold letters mine). The advent of MNCs and contract farming (as is evident from the experiences with PepsiCo in Punjab and similar other cases) may liberate the farmers from the fetters of a semi-feudal production relation, but would open before them a Pandora's Box of newer problems. That the same neo-liberal prescription is advocated to take care of the woes of the farm sector implies lack of recognition of the ground realities and explains, as we have already noted, why these Economists have not been concerned over the fate of the farmer for all these years. Thus, quite expectedly, in the article's dealing with the issue of the displaced agricultural labourers precipitated via land acquisition for industry; we find no insight as to how (in the context of the Free Marketeer's dissatisfaction with the land acquisition process) a more 'acceptable' process of land acquisition can be evolved or how can there be a move towards a process of incorporating the landless within the realm of the developments that are expected to ensue from the Industrialization drive. All we find is a blame 'lack of Rehabilitation and Resettlement policy of the Government of West Bengal'. One time compensation amounts cannot be a problem solver for the woes of the marginal farmer. Promise of granting homestead lands to the landless is naturally very difficult to implement, especially in a state like West Bengal where already the land-man ratio is skewed upwards. Since the whole 'critique' is made from within a neo-liberal paradigm, it is not recognized that such displacement of the marginal farmer has been an unfortunate common occurrence through all these years via the very neo-liberal market oriented policies undertaken in the Agrarian sector and through land acquisition. Demands for the setting up of rural non-farm employment opportunities are extremely important in their own regard, but do not reflect the concerns that an alternative path of Industrialization seeks to address. A genuine concern for the fate of the landless labourer and other agricultural workers must manifest itself in serious attempts at rethinking on ways to impart a position of greater symmetry to these groups vis-à-vis the buyers of land, which is not achievable simply through Government packages or fiat. Neo-liberalism has no qualms with the current arrangement where it is the individual states and not the Industry houses that compete to attract Investments. Financially constrained state governments often tend to stretch their limits in order to attract capital and, as we all know, the Industry houses take advantage of this to squeeze out favourable terms. It is high time that the latter are made to broaden the limits of 'Corporate Responsibility' and mechanisms are thought about to distribute the stake of the initial hardships and later fruits of Industrialization over all the parties involved in its processes. This should reach beyond the established notions of 'Participatory Development' which emphasizes on the participation and 'owning' of a Development process by the local population since, with regard to Industrialization, the Investor must also be made to act upon his obligation to 'own' and address the local impacts of the initiative, and not just get reduced to the passivity of carrying out production in the local unit once the land acquisition or the factory set-up process is over [This may be achieved, for example, by tying up the initial acquisition process to promises of further Investments in Social or Physical infrastructure or other productive sectors locally by the Industrial house in question, carried out in co-operation with the local institutions. The task of Economists then becomes one of designing incentive schemes and mechanisms of such co-operation such that the alternative is feasible and implementable]. For state governments operating under fiscal squeeze (a direct fallout of the 'Fiscal Responsibility' paradigm) it is impossible to adequately compensate the owner of land, the sharecropper and the large numbers of landless labourers simultaneously, given the present era of rapid Industrialization necessitating substantial and quick acquisitions of land. What our 'Intellectuals' need to appreciate is that, until this happens, we cannot deny being a part of such a process, even if we know that with respect to the Capitalists, both the potential sellers of land as well as the Government are in a weaker position to negotiate. It is definitely easier to blame the Government for everything (which the article, ignoring the larger picture, does), rather than to embark on the previous task, which is arduous, but not impossible. So, what has aroused the Free Marketeers sudden concern for the 'plight of the farmer' in the context of their general support of the process of Industrialization in Bengal? This stems from a dilemma. On one hand, Industrialization [irrespective of the context in which we view it- be it the non-viability of agriculture a'la rising input costs etc. or the logical next step towards development with opportunities in the farm sector naturally exhausted] is the only path forward to raise income levels of the masses and so is to be supported. On the other hand, since the process is occurring in a state ruled by the Left- a political force whose ideology and Economic policies are at poles apart vis-à-vis Neo-liberalism, the policies implemented in Bengal need to be projected as ones that are uniquely regressive and the 'plight of the farmer' needs to be urgently reinvented! A manifestation of this lies in the observation that when Free Marketeers and the media (which also steadfastly adheres to the same Neo-liberal ideology) 'discuss' the Industrial progress of a state like Gujarat, figures of Investment amounts flowing in are consistently highlighted ignoring existing shortcomings (we have not heard much concern about displacement of marginal farmers ensuing from the Development process in Gujarat from mainstream theorists) , while in 'discussing' the same process in Bengal, the yardstick gets altered in that the minutest shortcoming is never ignored and the positives often suppressed. The point thus is- it has been beyond the scope of Free-Marketeers to effectively address mechanisms of Reform that can take care of the problems of the marginal farmers (over which the Free Marketeers are now claiming to lose their sleep) because even in the process of criticizing a Policy keeping in mind the above group, they can at best come up with 'the lack of connectivity to the market' as the prime raison-de-etre for all ills and refuse to acknowledge the glaring limitations of a Neo-liberal scheme by blaming all its shortcomings on 'government inefficiency', which indeed constitutes a safe criticism consistent with the market ideology. No wonder that the few attempts which have so far been made to address the issues outlined above have been carried out by non-mainstream theorists. Throughout the 90s and uptill now it has been Economists from the Left who have time and again cautioned us against the adversities that blind adherence to Neo-liberalism may entail. It is not with glee, but grief that we find that most of those predictions, (be it acute agrarian distress, rising inequalities and so on) once branded as 'arising out of populist sentiments', have come true! Thanks to the media, there is little recognition of this! * Sudden new-found concerns for the 'plight of the farmer' being one resultant phenomenon of the dilemma that we had earlier talked about, there is another channel through which the dilemma and the lack of proper recognition of the compulsions of a State Government operating in a Neo-liberal milieu has played itself out. The media, Free Marketeers, Opposition Parties all have tended to interpret the "industrialization of Bengal" as a process that 'proves' that the Left has shunned its path towards the establishment of Socialism and embraced Capitalism. This is a deliberately constructed propaganda, framed without being the least under the impression that such an ideological shift has actually taken place. Such propaganda is primarily aimed at those who recognize themselves with the Left ideology. It desires to create a sense of confusion in its ranks and inject a question mark in the mind of the Leftist worker regarding the path that is being followed, all very consistent with 'There Is No Alternative' to Neo-liberalism adage. Ever since the land acquisition process in Singur began one-liners like 'Left and right switch roles, the strange case of Singur' came up. As Nandigram happened, as the Left increased its pressure on the UPA over the Nuclear deal with the USA, as the Left persisted in regularly questioning the rationale behind Neo-Liberal Economic policies and as one ally of the Left Front in Bengal became increasingly restive, the propaganda machine started to run extra time. Jyoti Basu's comments at a huge rally in Kolkata were misinterpreted and a hedge between the CPI (M) and the rest of the Left parties was sought to be created. All this so as to increasingly project the CPI(M) as an 'arrogant' ally that wants to hijack the Left agenda and hijack it away from the 'path of socialism'. Thus by weakening the Left all challenges to the free-run of Neo-liberalism was sought to be crushed. An excellent article by Professor Prabhat Patnaik titled 'The Communists and the building of Capitalism' has effectively exposed the crudity and hollowness of such propaganda. II The article 'Development and Displacement' ends with the allegation that the unrest in Singur is a result of the protest against China-type 'coercion' by the Left Front! About the rulers of Bengal the Free Marketeer is of the opinion that 'Being brought up in the Leftist tradition of thinking, they are not too scrupulous about the methods they take to achieve their goals' and reminds the Left that there is Democracy in India and hence such 'coercion' is 'untenable' . Since this conclusion is not arrived at through a careful study of the local conditions in Singur it does not merit serious consideration. We do not attempt to discuss the land acquisition process in this article either, but it would be interesting to take note of Mritiyunjoy Mohanty (MM)'s work on the same subject in which he has based his conclusions on meticulous study of the local economy of Singur and hence is of much more academic relevance. From available statistical evidence what can be inferred about the agrarian economy of Singur? "..sustained agricultural growth in the overall context of diversification away from agriculture has produced a differentiated peasantry – a large number of small land-owning households where income and employment from agriculture now constitutes a smallproportion of total household income and employment; and a smaller set of relatively larger landowners and tenant farmers who use the land lease market to expand agricultural operations, allowing them not only to grow but to accumulate as well." Since for bulk of the title-holders on land agriculture is no longer the main source of income, most of the land donations (75 percent according to MM) have been voluntary. But since "... there is an emergent rural bourgeoisie, accounting for a small proportion of the title holders but a significant proportion of the land acquired, whose economic interests (as in profit and accumulation) have probably been adversely affected by the acquisition. What evidence there is would suggest that it is from this group that the fairly vehement resistance has come and what consent (for land sale) there is has in all likelihood been non-voluntary". This rural bourgeoisie who have resisted not because their livelihoods are at stake, but to protect their interests have organized themselves under the banner of the Krishi Jami Raksha Committee (KJRC) supported by the TMC. In other words the TMC has taken the sides of those (the rent-seeking segments) who have traditionally constituted its support base, but do those singers and writers who have aligned with the TMC citing its leader as Sarbaharar Netri (leader of the Have-nots!) realize this? MM's work is not devoid of criticism of the state Government, but it is constructive criticism. The same cannot be said about 90 percent of all 'criticisms' which have been targeted against the same in West Bengal. For example, let us consider what our Free Marketeer chose to deliver in India Today over the unfortunate occurrences in Nandigram. After branding the State Government as 'Fascist' he writes "If we look at China, the entire East Asia, or Mussolini's Italy or Franco's Spain, a high level of economic growth took place during such regimes. Under a Fascist regime you cannot raise your voice, and that helps the Investors'. Simply amazing! One with even a minimum knowledge of history will wonder how China compares with the regimes of Mussolini and Franco with respect to Fascistic tendencies! Or, as to how Nandigram invokes in the mind of a knowledgeable person the memories of Italy or Spain during the Second World War! What is the definition of 'Fascism' in use here? More importantly, as we have already noted several times, it is monumental hypocrisy on the part of an Economist to suddenly raise a hue and cry 'you cannot raise your voice' when (i) he and his ilk had chosen not to raise their voices all these years when the miseries of thousands of farmers consistently failed to move our policymakers forcing the former to choose the path of death (Infact we have consistently heard over from the latter as to why 'agricultural subsidies need to be reduced' to make the system more 'efficient'!) and (ii) thousands of Left supporters were driven away from their homes for eleven long months with utter lawlessness prevailing in Nandigram, thanks to the BUPC-TMC-Maoists, after it was the latter combination that deliberately chose the path of violence by rejecting repeated calls for negotiations from the Government ! And when the Free Marketeer has finally decided to 'raise his voice' all he can prescribe, through the EPW article, is the same old prescription of Corporate penetration of agriculture , the same Corporate houses whom he blames for financing the terror in Nandigram- "Where did (the money) come from? I don't have any solid evidence but most likely it came from the business people. Business men always want to be close to the government for their own reasons'! One wonders as to why businessmen would finance the buying of armaments by the CPI (M) supporters in a scenario when the Chief Minister had announced on March 15th itself that no land would be acquired in the area for a chemical hub. This critical comment aimed at the 'businessmen' thus should not be construed as a recognition of the ominous influence that the Corporate Sector now wields, but as an attempt to 'infer' the 'evil influence' that Politics can have on the market forces. This would be clear if we go through some of the columns that this the Free Marketeer has written over the past few months. * The bulk of the newly emerged preachers were given a common platform to propagate their preaching by the AnandaBazar Patrika after it initially had labeled the group as 'Sushil Samaj' (A society consisting of the quintessential Good Guys- sushils, as opposed to those portions of the society that adheres to the any form of political ideology, and hence extrapolating the ABP's concept, must be the 'duhshils'- the Bad Guys!). It is another story how and why the ABP was later to rechristen them as 'Nagarik Samaj', but the projection of Politics, and particularly Left Politics, as something that is totally undesirable and anti-progress has been the ABP's single most important agenda, of which the 'Sushil' or 'Nagarik Samaj' is the latest expression. But for the ABP unease set in when several members of this group extended their tirade against the Left to the realm of active opposition to the process of Industrialization. Our Free Marketeer was then called to duty in order to emphasize that it is the Left that needs to change, not the Capitalists! Whatever was written about 'Businessmen' in India Today was conveniently forgotten and on page 4 appeared the sermon Bangali'ke Bujhte habe Pujipati'ra shatru nay [Bengalis have to understand that Capitalists are not our Enemies]! (ABP January 17th, 2008). The article also stemmed from a suspicion which the ABP harboured about the mentalities of a few members of the 'Sushil Samaj', (especially those who were earlier supporters of the Government) that they may not have parted entirely with their Leftist sympathies just by crossing over to the 'Sushil' camp (though in writing, the 'Bangajanata' or the general people of Bengal were generally noted to be hostile to Capitalists). In this article, the Free Marketeer amply demonstrates the level of his understanding of Fascism by drawing frequent parallels of the Nandigram incident (terming it as 'genocide') with Gujarat riots and comparing the Chief Minister with Narendra Modi. The Chief Minister was then urged (consistent with the ABP's line of viewing the Chief Minister as an entity independent of the party Ideology) to change the above 'mentality' of Bengalis (read Leftists), supposedly by going against the party ideology! The list of sermons in ABP's Neo-liberal gospel runs long and it is beyond the scope of this article to consider even a few of them. But let us take note of another interesting one that appeared on the 6th of February 2008, written again by the same academician with the heading Madhyabitter unnati hale tarai garibder tene tulbe [ Once the Middle Classes are (Economically) well-off, they themselves will lift the poor up (from Economic Misery)]! There exists some sensible observations in this article regarding the general fallouts of Industrialization, but the headline and the tone seems to convey that once the middle-income classes achieve a certain level of prosperity they would automatically devout themselves to the 'sacred duty' of upliftment of those below them. No need for political organizations or movements to create consciousness in the minds of the disadvantaged about their rights in a society where class and caste divisions run deep! Needless to say, it has never happened that way. Neo-liberalism, by constantly playing up a strict dichotomy between the realm of 'Development' and 'Politics', wants us to forget that it never happened that way! The 'Sushil Samaj' experiment of the ABP is now on the wane. The false propaganda of the 'CPI (M) turning Capitalist' has not been able to make much dent into Left-Unity. But this, along with the Nandigram issue will be trumpeted tirelessly, sermons will flow with volumes rising up to the elections, which would keep the faith in the hearts of the Left-haters alive. More crocodile tears will be shed over the 'plight of the farmer'. While all these happen the Left has to live up to its tradition of leading nationwide struggles for alternatives to the Neo-Liberal agenda, which it has been tirelessly doing over years. In West Bengal there is already talk of granting ownership of land to the Bargadars and involving the Panchayats in local Industrialization efforts. These are encouraging developments which need to be extended and sustained. Only the Left can sustain these initiatives since it is the only political force in this country which possesses the perspective, will and expertise necessary to ultimately succeed in these struggles. Notes and References; 1. Sarkar Abhirup "Development and Displacement; Land Acquisition in West Bengal'. EPW, April 2007. 2. No one can deny the Importance of the establishment of proper market connections for the farmer. But there are more fundamental problems facing them today, like lack of Government support (again the direct fallout of implementation of the Narasimham Committee report in the post-1991 era that led to the closure of a large numbers of rural bank branches) necessitating a dependence on rural moneylenders or dishonest input dealers, interlocking of markets and so on. To ignore all these and to harp always on 'lack of market networks' can achieve nothing. 3. Reading the article one feels that many of the observations made about rural West Bengal are unique to the State, which, however, is not the case. Even during the brief period of unrest a few months back in certain areas of West Bengal over the Public distribution system, this academician had attributed it as a protest against the state of public distribution system in West Bengal ignoring once again the all-India scenario! He should know that Kerala and West Bengal are the two states where the PDS has worked well despite all the efforts of the Centre to subvert it. 4. Mohanty M., Singur and the Political Economy of Structural Change, IIM Calcutta Working Paper series no. 601, February, 2007. 5. Sarkar Abhirup 'The rage of Fascism', India Today, November 2007. http://www.pragoti.in/node/693 Bengal Stands By The Affected People Of Nandigram B Prasant STATEWIDE marches and rallies marked the people's protest against the dastardly attack on the kisans at Nandigram at east Midnapore by the combined goons of the Trinamul Congress, SUCI, Naxalites, and religious fundamentalists throughout the month of January. A massive fund collection drive was taken up from the foothills of the Himalayas to the sea coast at the Sunderbans, to assist the affected people of Nandigram. CPI(M) workers and supporters have been assaulted and Party offices burnt. Thousands of CPI(M) workers and sympathisers are in relief camps having been forcefully ejected from their hearth and home. A large amount of fund was mobilised throughout January 17 via mass collection. Ten thousand rupees were collected from the Entally locale in central-east Kolkata alone as groups of CPI(M) workers went around with Biman Basu, state secretary of the Party in the van. On the occasion, several lakh leaflets published by the Bengal unit of the CPI(M) and stating the myth versus reality at Nandigram were distributed across Bengal. OPPOSITION NO FRIENDS OF KISANS Biman Basu spoke on the day in two places in impromptu meetings where he explained in brief what happened at Nandigram. Biman Basu pointed out that the entire train of vicious attacks started with the spread of a well-calculated rumour that large tracts of land were about to be taken over and in an indiscriminate fashion sans compensation for an industrial project. Biman Basu noted that the Left Front and the Left Front government stood for industrialisation based on the agricultural success of Bengal. The programme flowed from the election manifesto of the Bengal Left Front for the 2006 assembly polls. The rumour-mongers were no friends of kisans, said Biman Basu, and he went on to add that the resistance was nothing but a determined opposition to the sweep of pro-people industrialisation being essayed by the Bengal LF government. The CPI(M) leader said those who were going on a path of violence to defeat the process of industrialisation would be relegated to the dustbin of history. More than 50,000 people attended three rallies held on the day at Chandipore at Nandigram, Kapas Area at Mahisadal, and at Radhaballavpur at Tamluk — all in the district of Midnapore east. Addressing the two succeeding rallies at Mahisadal and Tamluk, Benoy Konar, a member of the central committee of the CPI(M) said that all on a sudden, a few groups of rank opportunistic elements had started to pose as kisan sympathisers and they had been hard at work towards making the mass of the people confused. The self-same people had stood in stiff opposition in the past against the land reforms movement, operation barga, and the increase of wages for the khet mazdoors. Benoy Konar drew the attention of the rallyists that the Bengal opposition had changed tactics after being beaten back at Singur by the people. Now they would go in for covert action including acts of sabotage. Rumours are resorted to, and communal harmony sought to be disrupted, playing a dangerous game of anarchy. Terror is created with impunity. The anarchists also try to put Left unity under pressure, albeit without much success however. FACTS OF THE SITUATION Benoy Konar said that the CPI(M) and the Left Front workers must go deep amidst the people and with great patience explain that industrialisation would keep the agricultural success intact while more and more would be generated through the setting up of factories. It would also serve the interests of the kisans by providing additionality of employment components. With shrinking land parcels, agriculture is no longer the panacea for economic growth as it used to have been. With 66 per cent of the populace dependent on agriculture, the pressure on land was approaching the absolute limit. Quoting statistical evidence, Benoy Konar said that while a two-acre double-crop land could sustain the livelihood of just one man per year, an industrial unit set up on that same two-acre ploy would provide gainful employment to at least 40-50 people. Benoy Konar also punctured the principal line of argument of the anarchists that agricultural land must never be used for any other purposes, as per the 'will of the kisans.' Konar pointed out how in both the two Midnapores and Hooghly hundreds of large-sized cold storages had been set up — and on agricultural land handed over for the purpose by the kisan themselves. Attacking another argument of the anarchists that factories should set up on fallow land in their entirety, Benoy Konar noted that since the fallow land amounted to 0.7 per cent of the land mass in Bengal, any industrial activity would perforce need agricultural land to be set in motion. State secretariat member of the Bengal CPI(M) Dipak Dasgupta said at the Chandipore rally that the Bengal opposition, including elements of religious fundamentalism, were out to create confusion amongst the people. A look at the transformation that Haldia has undergone would convince the people of the future that waits them once industrialisation rolls on. Dipak Dasgupta accused Congress leader P R Dasmunshi of double-speak in that he would speak against industrialisation in Bengal and argue for industrialisation when up in Delhi. Other CPI(M) leaders who addressed the rallies were Mohd Selim, Laxman Seth, Nirmal Jana, Prasanta Pradhan, Satyagopal Mishra, Kanu Sahu, Ashok Guria, Pranab Das, and Bidyut Guchhait. http://pd.cpim.org/2007/0204/02042007_bengal%20nandigram.htm Political contradictions & industrialisation in BengalSeptember 04, 2008 10:45 ISTTwo unconnected incidents on Tuesday served as a reminder of the tragedy and farce of industrialisation in West Bengal [ Images ]. One was the death of Thomas J Bata, head of the Bata [ Images ] empire, at the grand old age of 93 and the other was a development that captured Tuesday's headlines - Tata Motors [ Get Quote ] announcing that it would withdraw from Singur. The experiences of both corporations in Bengal represent the political contradictions that make industrialisation in Bengal such a contentious affair. Thomas Bata's connection is tenuous but significant. The Indian operations of the footwear empire he inherited from his father were located on the outskirts of Kolkata [Images ]. Batanagar, the sprawling complex that expanded into a suburban town, represented the lavish industrialisation of an era when competition was limited - much like Dunlop's Sahagunj factory or, indeed, the tea estates of the Dooars (in north Bengal). In the bad old days before the Left Front strengthened its grip on Bengal, Batanagar's New Year's parties were very ton - as much for the quality of the entertainment provided as the gossip they generated. On the business side, its Naughty Boy [Images ] lace-ups, plaid sneakers, Keds and Pathfinder school-shoes were all hot sellers. The allure of Batanagar's social life diminished after foreign exchange controls saw its expat managers - faithful upkeepers of social traditions - exit. But more critically, the reservation of footwear manufacture for the small scale sector saw Batanagar's pre-eminence decline - it suffered broadly the same problems as the integrated textile mills out in Mumbai [Images ]. The increasing need to outsource production to small scale players, depriving it of the obvious benefits of economies of scale roughly coincided with a growth in militant trade unionism - fuelled by the Naxalite movement - from the late sixties onwards. For those of us in Kolkata proper, Batanagar seemed to be perpetually suffering lock-outs owing to labour troubles or its management was being gherao-d (literally, surrounded). The labour outlook was strongly manifest in the showrooms where the heavily unionised sales staff displayed such patent disinterest that those who could took their custom to the Chinese shoe-makers instead. Despite this, Bata managed to stay mostly in the black and its management periodically tried to perk up the company with new ideas - its teenage shoes and clothing brand North Star being one brief but notable example. But by the late eighties, chronic labour troubles kept it teetering. This was a circumstance that proved the gain of popular and profitable regional brands like Khadim's, Sreeleathers and Liberty, which began to outsource at low cost to the numerous outfits in this shoe-manufacturing town rendered desperate by the frequent shut-downs of its major customer. By the time it dawned on the Left Front that its labour unions weren't doing it any favours, Batanagar had become a shadow of its former self. The company has shifted headquarters to Gurgaon (though Kolkata remains its registered office) and has taken advantage of liberalisation to import the latest fashions from its global network. Batanagar itself has been earmarked for real estate development. Its story is true of hundreds of other big corporations once centred in the state. By the time Tata Motors responded to a reformist Bhattacharjee's overtures, state government-sponsored trade unionism had pretty much abated. The Left Front under Jyoti Basu [ Images ] had learnt a harsh lesson in the mid-nineties when Congress-led unions stalled the sale of the Great Eastern Hotel to the Accor group. This was a major embarrassment to both Basu and Somnath Chatterjee [ Images ], current Lok Sabha Speaker [ Images ] and then chairman of the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation. Both had started holding high-profile road-shows in the US and Europe - a la Andhra's Chandrababu Naidu [ Images ] - to assure investors that labour unions were well within their control. As the Great Eastern incident showed, Basu (whom the wags called "Mou-da" for his proclivities for signing MoUs that never came to fruition) had not considered the fact that the revolutionary embers had been transferred from Citu and Aituc - controlled by the two major Communist parties - to Congress-controlled Intuc. And Mamata Banerjee [ Images ], it may be recalled, was originally a Congress worker. She hogged the limelight in a state slipping into the ennui of stagnation by virtue of her antics - she cashed in on police violence against her person - but more importantly, by hijacking the Left's old revolutionary agenda. "For the peoples, (sic) by the peoples" is her favourite slogan in English. Seen from the perspective of those with wider exposure, her protest at Singur looks grossly illogical. But in a state in which the "demonstration effect" of industrialisation is thin on the ground it is not surprising that unemployed, educated youth and dispossessed farmers facing the insecurity of limited employment options flock to her support. Tata Motors' Nano [ Images ] factory complex was supposed to have reversed the kind of decline that Batanagar represented. But as Mamata Banerjee has shown, the Left Front is paying the price of the negative revolution it started 31 years ago. Kanika Dattahttp://www.rediff.com/money/2008/sep/04guest.htm s West Bengal ready for industrialisation? Left parties have used politics of protest, shut down, cutting supplies, nepotism to establish their dominance. Now when they are too desperate to board the development and industrialisation bus, their own tactics have turned against them. CJ: Madhuri katti Mon, Aug 25, 2008 14:48:19 IST WE PICKED a wrong Sunday for the outing. My son waited and waited, with his little feet aching, for the new 'Tata' bus to return home. We were told that most buses were off the road because there was a political meeting of opposition parties of West Bengal in Singur. Opposition parties are protesting at Tata's 'Nano' car factory site at Singur, which is a normal feature in Kolkata. If there are political meetings, buses are diverted from regular routes to ferry people to the venue. And here lies one of the reasons why West Bengal is all set to miss the Tata's bus as well! Even local politics can bring normal life to standstill here. Colleges face shutdown over student elections. Most old jute mills and many factories have permanently shut down due to labour union woes. The huge factory complexes are now turning into housing complexes! For 30 years, ruling Left parties have used politics of protest, shut down, cutting supplies, nepotism to establish their dominance. Now when they are too desperate to board the development and industrialisation bus, their own tactics have turned against them. Interestingly, Left front came into dominance because they had faith of the farmers. Their main success lies in rural uplift, introduction of Panchayati Raj, land sealing acts, benefit and wages for landless labourers etc. Now they have taken a 'U' turn and are asking for vast stretch of rural lands for industry and Special Economic Zones (SEZs). Opposition has grabbed the opportunity to stand with farmers this time. Faith of rural Bengal is a reckoning factor. The recent panchayat poll results showed that the opposition has gained ground. If they persist with SEZ plans, West Bengal's Left may lose more than just the industrialisation bus. Not being in the coalition at the Centre is making it worse. Every aspect of life is politicised here. Even auto stands and parking lots are unionised. Similarly, politics and unions have ruined the vital education and health sector as well. Such tactics can only down the shutters but cannot open new avenues. I don't know whether a compromise formula will be worked out and whether 'Tata' factory will stay or not. But I won't be surprised if the factory is shutdown down by labour unions much after the assembly line production begins. West Bengal would have been a great success had only 'work' and not 'stop work' mantra permeated this land…. Our normal life in Kolkata and West Bengal continues to be punctuated with political meetings, protests, shutdowns, student union conflicts etc. I could not explain to my son why the bus never turned up. Since I had to tell him something to make him give up his long wait for the new bus, I told him, "All the buses have been taken for Sunday picnics." Maybe, I was not wrong. http://www.merinews.com/article/is-west-bengal-ready-for-industrialisation/140033.shtml THIRTY YEARS OF THE LEFT FRONT GOVERNMENT IN WEST BENGALThu, 2007-07-19 00:00 | Prasenjit BoseThe formation of the Left Front Government in West Bengal was a culmination of decades of struggles by various sections of the people — workers, peasants, teachers, refugees and students — under the leadership of the Left, and its biggest component the CPI (M). This is an article by PRASENJIT BOSE. Historical Outline The formation of the Left Front Government in West Bengal was a culmination of decades of struggles by various sections of the people — workers, peasants, teachers, refugees and students — under the leadership of the Left, and its biggest component the CPI (M). Faced with the rising tide of struggles and the growing influence of the CPI (M) and the Left, the Congress government, which was formed after it blatantly rigged the elections in 1972, resorted to a reign of semi-fascist terror in West Bengal. The CPI (M) and the mass organizations faced the brunt of this repression. 1,100 Party workers and close sympathizers were killed. In the general elections of 1977 the Congress was severely punished by the people of the country for its authoritarian and anti-democratic actions during the Emergency. The Janata Party Government was formed at the Centre with Morarji Desai as Prime Minister. The Assembly elections in West Bengal were held shortly after the general elections in 1977. The people came out to vote in very large numbers to get rid of the reign of terror. The Left Front won by over three-fourth majority. While assuming office in 1977, the Left Front government was aware of the limitations of a State government in implementing pro-people policies within the existing Constitutional set-up. While the major responsibility of delivering services to the people was with the State Governments, financial resources were concentrated in the hands of the Centre. Keeping in mind this constraint, the Left Front government embarked upon a programme to provide immediate relief to the people and implementing alternative policies in spheres where the State government had some say. The major initiatives of the first Left Front government were to carry out thoroughgoing land reforms and establishing a vibrant Panchayati Raj. These historic initiatives broke the back of landlordism in the rural areas and immensely empowered the poor peasantry and agricultural workers. Large sections of the rural poor, especially the dalits, adivasis and minorities, gravitated towards the Left and the CPI (M). This section continues to be the most stable mass base of the CPI (M) and the Left Front till date. Several other pro-people initiatives were also undertaken regarding workers' rights and social sector development, which benefited different sections of the people: factory workers, unorganised workers, government employees, school and college teachers, students, youth, women and the refugees. Through their experience, the majority of the people of West Bengal came to recognize the Left Front government as a pro-people government, a custodian of their rights and a fighter for their cause. Therefore, since 1977, neither did the people ever look back nor did the Left Front government. Land Reforms, Democratic Decentralization and Agricultural Success Land Reforms The land reforms initiated in West Bengal had three major components: (i) effective imposition of land ceiling and vesting of ceiling surplus land (ii) redistribution of vested land among the landless cultivators and (iii) securing of tenancy rights of sharecroppers (bargadars) through a system of universal registration of tenant cultivators (Operation Barga). As a result of this thoroughgoing land reform programme, West Bengal today has the most egalitarian land ownership pattern in the entire country. While West Bengal accounts for only around 3% of agricultural land in India, it accounted for over 21% of ceiling surplus land that has been redistributed in India till date. The total number of beneficiaries of land redistribution in West Bengal is over 28 lakhs, which is almost 50% of all beneficiaries of land redistribution in post-independence India. The security of tenancy rights provided to the sharecroppers under Operation Barga was also unprecedented in India. The total number of recorded sharecroppers has reached over 15 lakhs, which accounts for over 20% of the total agricultural households in the State. Over 11 lakh acres of land was permanently brought under the control of sharecroppers and their right to cultivate land was firmly established. After 30 years of Left Front rule, 84% of land in West Bengal is owned by small (owning 2.5 acres to 5 acres of land) and marginal farmers (owning less than 2.5 acres) today, while the all-India figure is only 43%. Over 12 lakh acres of ceiling surplus vested land is lying with various State governments today but not being distributed among the landless. This shows the difference in the political will of the Left Front government in West Bengal and other State governments run by bourgeois parties. Moreover, around 56% of the total beneficiaries of land redistribution in West Bengal are dalits and adivasis. Dalits and adivasis also comprise over 41% of the registered sharecroppers. NSS data show that the proportion of agricultural land owned by dalits in comparison with their proportion in the rural population of West Bengal is the second highest in the country (after Tripura). Till date, over 5.35 lakh women have been given joint pattas and 1.57 lakh women given individual pattas (ownership rights over land) in West Bengal. Muslims have also benefited significantly from the land reforms programme. The share of land cultivated by Muslims in West Bengal in total cultivated land is 25.6%, which is the second highest in the country (second only to Jammu and Kashmir where the share is 30.3%). Following the onset of the neoliberal policies in the decade of 1990s, whatever land reform measures were undertaken in most Indian States in the post-independence period were sought to be reversed. However, in West Bengal an additional 95,000 acres of land was acquired in the 1990s under the land reform legislation and 94,000 acres redistributed. These figures for the decade of the 1990s account for almost all the land acquired and over 40 per cent of the land redistributed in the entire country. The Left Front government has continued with the land redistribution programme. 30,000 acres of land was distributed among landless families in 2006-07. Panchayati Raj Reorganisation of the system of local government has been one of the most important institutional changes brought about by the Left Front government. In the process, West Bengal has created a history of participation of the common people through the process of decentralisation. A system of democratic elections to local bodies at anchal, block and district level has been instituted: gram panchayats at the anchal level, panchayat samitis at the block level and zilla parishads at the district level. Elections to these local bodies were held in June 1978. The newly elected panchayats were involved with the execution of land reforms. Panchayats took the initiative in exposing benami land holdings, ensured the identification of excess land and the declaration of vested land and were also given charge of ensuring the legal rights of recipients of vested land and bargadars over land. The panchayats were also involved in arrangements for the provision of institutional credit for the beneficiaries of vested land and for bargadars. After the rural development projects were devolved to panchayats for implementation, the beneficiaries of land reform were given priority in the receipt of benefits from these projects. This was possible because through the panchayat election of 1978, a new leadership was established at the helm of the rural bodies from less privileged socio-economic backgrounds. The erstwhile village elite, including landlords and moneylenders, lost their dominance over the newly elected local bodies. The new leadership after 1978 came out of the tradition of peasant upsurge and struggle for land reform of the past three decades. The West Bengal government has held regular elections to local bodies every five years for the past 30 years. The aim has been to provide a substantial share of fiscal resources of the state to the local bodies. The West Bengal government has made a serious effort at devolving funds from the state government level to the lower tiers of administration. The panchayats have also been assigned a large and substantial range of responsibilities that were earlier seen as under the purview of the district-level bureaucracy. The panchayats perform civic duties and undertake developmental activities like construction and maintenance of hospitals, schools and libraries, promotion of agriculture, cooperatives and cottage industries, child welfare activities, etc. They play an important role in the local-level planning and implementation of government schemes. Panchayats in West Bengal have played an important role in activities like mobilising cooperation for improving agricultural production, management of local resources, and identification of beneficiaries for housing, poverty alleviation and social security programmes. This has made the panchayats a critical institution of local governance in the West Bengal countryside. Over time, there has been an increase in the representation of the rural poor and of socially deprived groups like dalits and adivasis, as well as women, in the elected bodies. All this has helped to change the power equations in rural society as well as encouraged the social and political empowerment of social groups that were earlier marginalized. The proportions of dalit and adivasi panchayat representatives in all the three tiers are over 37% and 7% respectively, well over their share in population. Since 1995, one third of the seats and positions of chairpersons in the panchayati raj institutions have been reserved for women. It is noteworthy that the actual representation of women exceeds one third as a number of women candidates also win in the general constituencies. Presently, over 36% of the gram panchayat members are women. Also, 7 out of 17 zilla parishads have a woman sabhadhipati and 155 out of 351 panchayat samities have a woman sabhapati. In the late 1990s, the panchayati raj system in West Bengal was further strengthened by introducing gram sansads. These are the general councils of voters in every ward, that are required to meet twice a year with a minimum quorum of 10 per cent of voters to discuss the work done by the panchayats and utilisation of funds. Successes in Agriculture This strategy of the Left Front government; of implementing land reforms on the one hand and the establishment of an effective panchayati raj in West Bengal on the other; has not only led to the political empowerment of the rural poor but has also brought about a rejuvenation of agriculture in the State. Since the Left Front came into office in 1977, foodgrains production in West Bengal has grown at the rate of 6% per annum, which is the highest among seventeen most populous States of India. From a food deficit State witnessing famines and food riots during the Congress rule, West Bengal has emerged as a leading food producer in the country under the Left Front rule. West Bengal has emerged as the topmost producer of rice, vegetables and fish among all Indian States. Cropping intensity in West Bengal has increased from about 136% in 1980-81 to about 180% in 2000-01, second highest in the country. This has been achieved through significant expansion of irrigated land area through small and minor irrigation projects. In the backdrop of the neoliberal policies being adopted by the Centre since early 1990s, agricultural growth has slowed down across the country. While agriculture grew at less than 2% in India during the Tenth Plan period (2002-2007), the growth rate of agriculture in West Bengal has been over 3.5%. The Left Front Government has been successful, to some extent, in insulating the agrarian economy of West Bengal from the acute agrarian distress currently being witnessed across the country. This has been possible by following pro-peasant policies. For instance, the charge for flow of water in agriculture under major irrigation has not been increased in West Bengal since 1977. Water for irrigation is the cheapest in West Bengal at Rs. 37 per hectare in West Bengal compared to Rs 156 to Rs 267 per hectare in the rest of the states of the country (except for Kerala where it is much lower). Agricultural workers are also protected and the minimum wage of Rs. 63 is implemented effectively, in contrast to many other States where despite the scheduled minimum wage rates being higher, they are not implemented effectively. Industrialization: An Imperative Reversing Industrial Stagnation For most parts of its lengthy tenure, the Left Front government has had to encounter hostile governments at the Centre. There was a conscious effort on the part of successive Central governments, particularly those run by the Congress, to discourage industrialization in West Bengal since it was a Left ruled State. This was done both through a denial of public sector investment as well as licenses for setting up private industries. During Indira Gandhi's tenure as the Prime minister in the early 1980s, a proposal for setting up an electronics complex in Salt Lake near Kolkata was shot down by the Central government on security grounds, because West Bengal was a border State! Permission for the Haldia Petrochemical project was withheld by the Central government for 11 long years. The freight equalization policy; which meant that railway freight rates of industrial inputs like coal, iron ore, steel or cement were structured in a way through Government subsidies so that they were available at the same price in all parts of the country; also became a major obstacle. This robbed West Bengal, along with the other states in the Eastern region of India like Bihar and Orissa, of its locational advantage of being rich in those minerals which came under the purview of freight equalization. Other industrial inputs were not included in the freight equalization scheme. Following these discriminatory policies pursued by the Centre and the vitriolic anti-Communist propaganda carried out by the bourgeois media, which led to some degree of capital flight, West Bengal experienced industrial stagnation during the decade of the 1980s. Traditional industries like tea, jute and engineering were on a decline. This aggravated the unemployment situation in the State, especially in the urban areas, besides causing hardships for the workers in the sick industries. The need was felt to make special efforts to reverse the trend towards industrial stagnation and re-industrialize West Bengal. Meanwhile, a big policy shift had come at the national level when the Narasimha Rao led Congress Government adopted the "New Economic Policies" in 1991 following the dictates of the IMF and the World Bank. The neoliberal "economic reforms" initiated by the Central government abandoned the earlier emphasis on public sector investment, devised a strategy of liberalizing and deregulating the economy and laid emphasis on private capital, both domestic and foreign, as the main driver of economic growth. These policy changes were clearly in the rightwing direction, which was opposed by the CPI (M) and the Left. However, it also meant an end to the discriminatory policy regime of the Central government, based upon licensing and freight equalization policy, which had caused enormous harm to the economic interests of West Bengal. It was in this backdrop that the Left Front government had to devise its industrialization strategy. In September 1994, Comrade Jyoti Basu announced the Industrial Policy of the Left Front government in the changed scenario, which stated: "we are all for new technology and investment in selective spheres where they help our economy and which are of mutual interest. The goal of self-reliance, however, is as needed today as earlier. We have the state sector, the private sector and also the joint sector. All these have a role to play". Following the adoption of the Industrial Policy, the industrial scenario in the state witnessed a turnaround, with important projects like Haldia Petrochemicals and Bakreshwar Thermal Power plants finally being set up. Industrialization Gathering Momentum The process of industrialization received further impetus after the Left Front government registered its sixth consecutive victory with Comrade Buddhadeb Bhattacharya as Chief Minister in 2001 and subsequently its seventh victory in 2006, with an enhanced majority. During the period from 1991 to 2006 a total number of 1,391 industrial units have been set up in West Bengal with a realized investment of Rs. 32,338.95 crore and creating direct employment for 2.03 lakh persons in the organized sector. The number of new industrial proposals in West Bengal is increasing progressively, especially in sectors like Iron and Steel, Chemical and Petrochemicals, Food Processing and Information Technology. Since the thrust of the West Bengal government's industrial strategy is on employment generation, the focus is not limited to big industries alone. The State government has consciously provided policy support to small and micro enterprises, because of which the number of unorganised manufacturing enterprises in West Bengal has increased from 19.1 lakhs in 1994-95 to 27.7 lakhs in 2000-01, with employment in these industries during this period increasing from 43.8 lakhs to 58.7 lakh. West Bengal now ranks first among all Indian States in respect to both the number of working units and employment generation in the small-scale industrial sector. The West Bengal government is providing infrastructure support to the small-scale industries by building industrial clusters in all districts of the State, with a target of 150 such clusters set for the Eleventh Plan period. Unlike other State governments, which succumbed to the neoliberal prescriptions of the Centre, the Left Front government has followed a different approach towards industrialization. Rather than following the policy of indiscriminate privatization of public sector units, the Left Front government has sought to strengthen them and earnestly tried to revive sick or closed industrial units. By repeatedly placing its views before the BIFR in the interest of industry and workers, the Left Front government has been able to obtain the sanction of revival scheme in respect of 79 units. Of these, 22 units have already been revived and about 25 more units are likely to be revived. SAIL has recently decided to invest Rs. 10,000 crore in the modernization of the IISCO factory at Burnpur, which will be one of the biggest public sector investment projects currently being undertaken in the country. The Central government had earlier decided to privatize this sick unit. It was the protracted struggle waged by the IISCO workers and the principled position adopted by the West Bengal Government, which prevented privatization and has subsequently led to the revival of IISCO. Similarly, Bengal Chemicals, which had become a sick PSU, is being revived with Central investments worth Rs 440 crore. Recently, two public sector units, Coal India Limited and Damodar Valley Corporation have come together to acquire and revive the Mining and Allied Machineries Corporation (MAMC) based in Durgapur, a prestigious PSU that was closed few years ago. Closed units like Jessop and Dunlop have also been reopened. Rather than following the dictates of the Central government in privatizing the State Electricity Board, the West Bengal government has firmly maintained the public ownership of the WBSEB and initiated reforms to improve its performance. The WBSEB, which was a loss making entity till recently, registered a profit of Rs. 300 crore in 2006-07. All this reflect the alternative approach of the left front government. Some controversy has arisen recently over acquisition of agricultural land for setting up industries in West Bengal, especially in the context of the Tata Motors plant in Singur and a proposed chemical hub near Haldia. While the opportunistic gang-up of the entire opposition, from the ultra-Right to the ultra-Left led by the reactionary Trinamul Congress, has sought to pitch the debate in terms of industry versus agriculture, the Left Front government has repeatedly emphasized the need for a balanced and harmonious development of both sectors. The slogan of "agriculture is our foundation, industry our future", put forward by the Left Front before the Assembly elections of 2006 has received wide acceptance among the people. Pro-People Initiatives and Constraints Education The Left Front government in West Bengal has undertaken several pro-people initiatives to ensure all-round development of the State. The Left Front government has ensured significant expansion in the spheres of public education and health. The first Left Front government had made school education free upto the higher secondary stage. With a thrust on the expansion of school education, the number of schools in West Bengal has seen a substantial increase in the post-1977 period, with the number of secondary and higher secondary schools registering a four fold increase, from 4600 in 1977 to over 22,500 in 2006. Accordingly, the number of students appearing for the secondary board examination has increased from a little over 2 lakhs in 1977 to over 7.5 lakhs in 2006. Positive results have also been seen recently in the implementation of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, with the net enrolment ratio of children of the relevant age group (5+ to 8+) exceeding 98% in 2006-07. The drop-out ratio has also fallen below 20% due to the effective implementation of the mid-day meals scheme, which now covers 94% of the primary schools in the State. This has been made possible through the involvement of Self-Help Groups in providing cooked meals in the schools. Health West Bengal has witnessed significant improvements in some health indicators in the recent past. The death rate in West Bengal at 6.4 per thousand is the lowest in the country. The infant mortality rate has also dropped to 38 per 1000 live births, which is much lower than the national average at 58. The birth rate in the urban areas of West Bengal is the lowest within urban areas of the country and the total fertility rate has also fallen much below the national average, with the State heading towards achieving the population stabilization goal by the end of the Eleventh Plan. This has been possible due to active government intervention in the sphere of public health. West Bengal has also registered significant successes in providing access to toilets and safe drinking water, especially to the poorer section of the population. The State government had set a goal of providing 40 litres of safe drinking water per capita per day in each habitation in the rural areas. Already, 81% of the 91320 rural habitations of the State have been covered fully. This is the second highest coverage achieved by a State in the country. As far as sanitation is concerned, West Bengal has the second highest coverage of access to toilets for all BPL households as well as for all Scheduled Caste households in urban areas, in the country. These have been possible due to the concerted efforts by the State government and the local bodies in the implementation of the programmes. The National Health Accounts published by the Union Ministry of Health in 2001-02 showed that public expenditure on health in West Bengal was the second highest in the country (Maharashtra had the highest figure). In fact, around 80% of the indoor patients in West Bengal today are treated in Government hospitals, while the all-India figure stands at only 50%. This obviously translates into affordable healthcare for the people. The total per capita health expenditure in West Bengal was lower than the national average on account of very low private expenditure on health compared to other States. While the per capita health expenditure in West Bengal needs to increase substantially, what is noteworthy is the effort on the part of the government to commit substantial resources for public health in a fiscally constrained scenario. Workers' Rights The Left Front government has firmly defended the trade union rights of the workers. It has also taken important steps to provide social security to workers like introducing a provident fund scheme for unorganised sector workers for the first time in the country (nearly 7.9 lakh workers have already joined the scheme so far), providing financial assistance of Rs. 750 per month to workers of closed factories and tea gardens and providing social security to the construction workers. Another important development in West Bengal in the recent years from the point of view of employment generation is the phenomenal growth of Self-Help Groups (SHGs). The total number of SHGs in West Bengal reached 3.8 lakhs in 2005-06, involving nearly 38 lakh persons, 90% of whom are women. This has opened up new possibilities for self-employment and women's empowerment. When the seventh Left Front government assumed office in 2006, a dedicated Ministry to provide policy support to these SHGs was created. Minority Welfare The Left Front government has also taken positive initiatives to uplift the Muslim minorities, who comprise over 26% of the State's population and are socio-economically backward. The West Bengal Minority Development Finance Corporation (WBMFDC), which was formed in 1996 following the passage of an Act in the State Assembly, provides training as well as soft loans for self-employment and scholarships for meritorious students among Muslims. The WBMFDC ranks second, both in terms of cumulative disbursement of funds (from 1994-95 to 2005-06) as well as the number of beneficiaries, among all the State level minority development corporations. It has disbursed Rs.10751 crore to 28904 beneficiaries over this period. If the fact that the Uttar Pradesh MFDC started disbursing funds from 1994-95 (i.e. two years before the WBMFDC started disbursing funds) is taken into account, then the performance of the WBMFDC clearly emerges as the best in the country. Challenges and Constraints There is no doubt that the West Bengal government needs to do much more as far as people's welfare is concerned, especially for the socio-economically disadvantaged groups. The areas in which improvement has to be brought about have been noted by the West Bengal Human Development Report 2004. The Sachar Committee Report 2006 also pointed towards the necessity of adopting concrete steps for the upliftment of the Muslim minorities. The Left Front government has been proactive in taking initiatives to do away with the shortcomings that continue to exist in its developmental effort. For instance, the Left Front government was the first State government to announce a sub-Plan for minorities at the State level, earmarking 15% of all Plan expenditure for development programmes meant to benefit minorities and implement the recommendations of the Sachar Committee. Several new initiatives have also been taken to improve the quality of public service in school education and public health in order to improve the human development scenario. However, the capacity of the Left Front government to deliver in the spheres of peoples' welfare and social infrastructure has been severely constrained by the limited availability of resources. Unless the resource constraint is overcome, major welfare initiatives cannot be undertaken. While a part of the additional resources can be generated through internal resource mobilization, much depends upon the direction of economic and social policies of the Central government too. The power to take crucial economic policy decisions in India rests with the Central government and not the State governments. Within the existing Constitutional set up, while the State governments are expected to deliver upon a lot of responsibilities related to development and peoples' welfare, the financial resources available to them have remained extremely limited given the skewed nature of Centre-State relations. The skewedness in Centre-State relations has aggravated in the post-liberalization period. Finances of most State governments have worsened due to growing indebtedness, squeeze in resource transfers from the Central Government to the States, rising interest cost of States' debt and conditionalities regarding fiscal austerity imposed upon State governments through successive Finance Commissions and the Planning Commission. The Left Front government in West Bengal has also not been able to escape this predicament. The Left Front government has tried to resist the neoliberal reforms imposed by the Central government. For instance, the West Bengal Government has rejected the dictate of the Centre regarding the enactment of the neoliberal Fiscal Responsibility legislation, which in effect binds the capacity of the state governments to undertake development expenditure. Alongwith the Left led Governments of Kerala and Tripura, the West Bengal government also resisted attempts by the Centre to force all States to undertake neoliberal pension reforms, which seeks to privatize the pension system. Similar unity between the Left led governments was on display during a recent meeting of the National Development Council on Agriculture, where efforts were made by the Centre to impose reforms of the State level APMC Acts and get all the States to endorse contract farming by corporates. The struggle for restructuring Centre-State relations is crucial for creating the autonomous space for the Left Front government to continue with its pro-people policies in future. Conclusion A big achievement of the Left Front government in West Bengal is its record in safeguarding democratic rights. Notwithstanding the vicious campaigns unleashed against it from time to time by its opponents, the Left Front government continues to remain firmly committed to democratic values and principles. Its impeccable record in upholding secularism and communal harmony, dealing with communal elements with a firm hand and defending the rights of minorities is a welcome exception to the programmatic or pragmatic communalism practiced by the bourgeois parties and the State governments led by them. The fact that the communal RSS-BJP combine have failed to gain any significant foothold in the State is primarily because of the relentless ideological-political campaign against communalism, in which the Left Front government leads from the front. While dalits and adivasis across the country continue to be victims of caste violence, it is indeed heartening to find that West Bengal has an almost zero rate of atrocities against dalits and adivasis. The Left Front government also has the distinction of resolving the Gorkhaland issue, in a just and democratic manner within the framework of the Indian Constitution, by providing regional autonomy to the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council. Born out of the struggles against authoritarianism and State repression, it is the commitment of the Left Front government to democracy, which has won it enormous credibility in the eyes of the people of West Bengal and enabled it to complete thirty years in office. This incisive and thought provoking article was contributed by Prasenjit Bose. He is a PhD in Economics from JNU, and is currently into full time research. http://www.pragoti.in/node/12 PDS: cash instead of food, and other dismantling measures since liberalisationBy Debarshi Das, SanhatiThe first post-liberalisation assault on the Public Distribution System of India came in 1997. Instead of a universal system, beneficiaries were divided into two groups APL and BPL (above and below the poverty line). This drastically reduced the quantum of distribution courtesy bureaucratic machination. From 20.8 million tons in 1991 distribution plummeted to 10.9 million tons in 1999-2000. In Dharavi, one of the world's largest slums, government officials could find no more than 153 poor families. In a country of 1160 million where three fourth of people cannot afford to spend more than two dollars a day, the central government's estimates show 65 million poor Indians. Read this article » The UPA government's surreptitious attempts to dilute NREGABy Debarshi Das, Sanhati. August 15 2009.If one remembers the chequered history the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) had to withstand, the recent surreptitious attempts of the UPA government to dilute it does not come as a surprise. Read this article » Labour Standards and Globalisation: A Case Study of Implementing Minimum WagesBy Manali Chakrabarti (IDS Kolkata) and Rahul Varman (IIT Kanpur). This article appeared in Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 50,1. It reviews civil society action for implementation of minimum wages for contingent workers at an IIT, and analyses the underlying political economy.Minimum wage policy has remained in contention with economists and policy makers aligned on both sides of the debate. Increasingly the state has been forced to formally retract these laws under the onslaught of the globalisation of capital. This has resulted in a precipitous drop of wages for workers, especially in the so-called 'unorganised sector'. The present note is an attempt to capture the process and consequences of institutionalisation of payment of minimum wages in a public sector academic institution. Read this article » Peasantology: An informal introductionNew Scientist vol 175 issue 2354 - 03 August 2002, page 44Most of the world's population live independently of the formal economy. Recognising this, says Teodor Shanin, a sociologist, is the key to removing poverty and inequality. He invented "peasantology" - the study of how people survive in the "informal economy". He tells Fred Pearce why Western economists are failing the poor. Read this article » Economic Recovery: Is It Time For a Mid-Course Correction? - New School LecturesOn Tuesday, May 19, 2009, The Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis (SCEPA) at The New School for Social Research, held a half-day conference to critically evaluate the Obama administration's current economic recovery plan. The question that was the focus of the conference was: is it time for a mid-course policy correction of serious magnitude, relating mainly to fiscal policy and bank regulation? Critical perspectives on the economic recovery plan also included discussions on (1) active labor market policies and what else policy makers can do to lessen the impact of the recession on the severity of joblessness, (2) the undue focus among policy makers and the media on GDP and bank health as a marker for a healthy economy.Read this article » Global Recession NewsJune 13, 2009Both the unemployment rate and the capacity utilization rate (roughly the proportion of total non-labour capacity for production that is being used) are good measures of the level of economic activity in a capitalist economy. Both these indicators show that the US economy is in the deepest recession since the Great Depression. Monthly Review Editorial, June 2009 The Real Unemployment Rate Hits a 68-Year High - John Miller, Dollars and Sense Euro unemployment at decade high Read this article » The Social Meaning of PensionsBy Michael Perelman, MRZine. This article appeared first in 2005.Pensions offer a wonderful example of the perverse phenomenon of the corporate sector winning support by taking actions that harm individuals. Between 1979 and 1997, the share of employees with defined benefit plans — i.e., plans that promise a specific level of support — fell from 87 percent to 50 percent (Mishel, Bernstein, and Boushey 2003, p. 247). Under defined benefit plans, employers bear the responsibility to provide the promised pensions — a responsibility that they were more than happy to shed. Read this article » Financialisation and the Tendency to StagnationBy Bernard D'mello, EPW. May 9 2009This is review of the book - The Great Financial Crisis: Causes and Consequences by John Bellamy Foster and Fred Magdoff (New York: Monthly Review Press; published in India by Cornerstone Publications, Kharagpur), 2009. Click here to read the review by Bernard De Mello [PDF, English] » Social Security Benefits and the New Pension SchemeThe central and many state government employees joining after 1st Janurary, 2004, would not get the benefits of the pay-as-you-go pension scheme. The employees themselves would have to contribute for their own pension fund, matched by equal contributions by the government. This fund might be utilised to invest in financial markets through fund managers, presumably private. In a single swoop the idea of pensions being rights of workers, has been thrown into the neo-liberal dustbin. One reason offered for this is the high return which could be earned in financial markets – a dangerous point needing scant elaboration in view of the recent worldwide turmoil. There has been little resistance from political parties. The Left parties demand for a guaranteed minimum pension income and keeping the fund out of speculation; this does not address the fundamental issue of stripping of citizens' right to a life of dignity. The article, though a little dated (September 2007), sums up many aspects of the new pension scheme. - Editors, Sanhati. May 31, 2009.Read this article » Understanding the Nano: small car, big responsibilitesBy Dipankar DeyOn the 23rd March 2009, the Tata Motors Company (TMC) launched its much publicized small car 'Nano' at Mumbai. As the Sanand plant at Gujarat is at its inception now, a makeshift arrangement has been made to produce 50,000 units at their Pantnagar plant. Limited numbers of prospective buyers will receive their cars after three months, in June 2009. It is reported that the basic model priced at Rs one lakh (ex-factory without transportation cost) without air conditioning will contribute only 20 per cent of the Nano sales and rest 80 per cent will be contributed by the premium models priced at around Rs1.6 lakh. Read this article » Capitalism Beyond the Crisis - Amartya Sen's article, and a critiqueUnnayan - A discussion on the concept of Development with DignityBy Atanu MidyaThis article is based on Professor Amit Bhaduri's recent work, Development with Dignity, and related discussions with Meher Engineer, Dipanjan Rai Chaudhuri, and others. It addresses the twin issues of mass employment generation on the one hand, and social and political empowerment of the rural population on the other. Click here to read Unnayan, a discussion on Development with Dignity [PDF, Bengali] » Working Paper: Current crisis regime and impact on class struggle in IndiaThis paper has been produced by Gurgaon Workers News, February 2009.1. The character of the Shining India after the crash 1991 2. Landmarks of the current crisis in India. a) The Crisis Blow b) The state's reaction 3. Margins of the crisis regime in India a) The Social Unrest of the Rural World b) The Energy Crunch c) The Industrial Impasse d) The political consequences for the crisis regime 4. New frame-work and potentials for proletarian unrest Read this article » Inflexibility and falsifiability in economics, and the failure of rigid worldviewsBy Amit Bhaduri. EPW, January 2009It is remarkable that despite the inexactitude of economics as a body of knowledge, which should have left enough space for some if not several contesting economic ideologies, over the last 20 years or so all the major political parties in India cutting across the spectrum from the Left to the Right largely converged to a very similar point of view on economic management. Would the current global financial and economic crisis give us the courage necessary to re-educate ourselves to view the "logic of the market" more logically? Read this article » Space relations of capital and Significance of New economic enclaves: SeZs in indiaBy Swapna Banerjee-Guha. This article was published in EPW."Space is political. It is a product literally filled with ideologies." - Lefebvre 1991: 101 This paper examines the evolution of the new development enclaves - special economic zones - in India in the light of the space relations of capital. The process of establishing sezs in India is essentially a classic unfolding of the process of "accumulation by dispossession" which is part of the recent strategy of global capital to overcome the chronic problem of over-accumulation. The paper throws light on the ongoing reorganisation of the space relations of capital in India. Click here to read article [PDF, English] » Indian Tribes after Sixty Years - A StudyBy Walter Fernandes. This paper first apeared in Counterviews Webzine, Feb 2008.(1) Tribals and Land - Basic Statistics (2) Tribal displacement due to refugee rehabilitation (3) Displacement in Tripura due to refugee rehabilitation (4) Development-Induced Displacement (5) Ensuring Availability without Access (6) The Development Paradigm (7) Attack on Tribal Culture (8) Tribal Reaction (9) Conclusion Read this article » Dispossession of weavers in Varanasi and the need for an artisans movementVaranasi in North India, which employed 700,000 people in handloom a decade back, now employs only 250,000, with 47 reported cases of suicide. In the face of liberalization, silk cloth imports, indiscriminate mechanization, loose control over cheap imitations, rising price of silk, etc. weavers, like other artisans, are being dispossessed. This article discusses the inefficacy of existing government schemes, and suggests ways forward, stressing the need for an artisans' movement in the country.Read this article » Class analysis of Indian agriculture: from Towards a New DawnNewsletterBy Abhijnan Sarkar, Towards a New Dawn, September 2008.Click here to read article [English, PDF, 2.4 MB] » The US financial crisis: locating the real locus of the debate with Rick WolffBy Rick WolffIn US capitalism's greatest financial crisis since the 1930s Depression, status-quo ideology swirls. The goal is to keep this crisis under control, to prevent it from challenging capitalism itself. One method is to keep public debate from raising the issue of whether and how class changes — basic economic system changes — might be the best "solution." Right, center, and even most left commentators exert that ideological control, some consciously and some not. Hence the debates where those demanding "more or better government regulation" of financial markets shout down those who still "have more confidence in private enterprise and free markets." Both sides limit the public discussion to more vs less state intervention to "save the economy." Then too we have quarrels over details of state intervention: politicians "want to help foreclosure victims too" or "want to limit financiers' pay packages" or want to "weed out bad apples in the finance industry" while spokespersons of various financial enterprises struggle to shape the details to their particular interests. Read this article » SEZs in India: current lists and statisticsClick here for list of notified SEZs in India as of August 11, 2008 »Click here for list of approved SEZs in India as of August 1, 2008 » Click here for list of SEZs in India set up before SEZ Act of 2005 » Click here for sectorwise distribution of SEZs in India » Click here for statewise distribution of SEZs in India » A conversation with Amit Bhaduri: alternatives in developmentA few of us had a discussion with Professor Amit Bhaduri on his concept of "Development with Dignity". In the struggle of ordinary people against the aggression of big capital in our country, this concept provides a vibrant locus of activity and future direction. It may also be important in the broader aim of social change. We present a draft of our conversation, both in Bengali and in English.Read this article » NREGA Scams in Orissa and Madhya Pradesh - two reportsThese reports from the Centre for Environment and Food Security (CEFS) published in July 2008, give an outline of NREGA scams in Orissa and Madhya Pradesh. The full reports, as well as their executive summaries, are given.Read this article » Stiglitz and Sen, Food and MoralsBy Aseem SrivastavaThis article examines a recent piece by Joseph Stiglitz that appeared in The Guardian, called Scarcity in an age of plenty. Click here to read this article [PDF, English] » India's Runaway 'Growth': Distortion, Disarticulation, and ExclusionIntroduction I. Economics as Mechanics II. How Capitalism Emerged in Europe III. Colonial Rule: Setting the Pattern IV. India's Runaway 'Growth' IV 1. Missing Links IV 2. The External Stimulus and Its Implications IV 3. Private Corporate Sector-Led Growth and Exclusion IV 4. The Condition of the People IV 5. The Agrarian Impasse and Its Implications V. Unlocking the Productive Potential of the Entire Labour ForceRead this article » Behind (or ahead of) the India-US nuclear deal: India Inc bets big on N-powerIndian capital is quick to take cue from the government's move and has already started planning its investments in the nuclear sector. Whose interest will the nuclear deal serve? (1) US strategic interests, and (2) Indian corporate interest. The CPI(M) is and probably will remain silent about the second. One might even go a little further and see the haste in the government's move resulting from pressures emanating from these two quarters: (1) US administration, and (2) Indian big capital. Thus, it seems that a nice alliance is in operation here, the alliance between multinational capital (represented by the US State) and national capital (represented by the Indian State). Analyzing the changing nature of this alliance over time might offer insights into the evolution of contemporary imperialism. - Dipankar Basu, Sanhati.Read this article » A man-made famine - India and the world in the Great Hunger of 20081. India's Emerging Food Security Crisis: The Consequences of the Neoliberal Assault on the Public Distribution System - Analytical Monthly Review2. A man-made famine - Raj Patel, The Guardian 3. The World Food Crisis: Sources and Solutions - Fred Magdoff, Monthly Review 4. Manufacturing a Food Crisis - Walden Bellow, The Nation 5. Global food crisis: 'The greatest demonstration of the historical failure of the capitalist model' - Ian Angus, Socialist Voice 6. Soaring prices are causing hunger around the world - Washington Post Editorial 7. The World's Growing Food-Price Crisis - Time magazine Read this article » Let them eat biscuits! - Or how the market seeks new vistasBy Jean Drèze and Reetika Khera. An editorial in The Hindustan TimesAnyone who has illusions about the influence of corporate interests on public policy in India, or about the priorities of elected representatives, would do well to read the recent correspondence among the Biscuit Manufacturers Association (BMA), Members of Parliament and various ministries. The main issue in this correspondence is a proposal to replace cooked mid-day meals in primary schools with biscuits. Read this article » Does Land Still Matter?By D. BandyopadhyayThe national economy is growing at double digit rates but neither industry nor non-agricultural activities in rural India provide livelihood for millions of rural workers. The annual growth of agricultural output decelerated from 3.08 per cent pa during 1980-81 to 1991-92 to 2.38 per cent pa during 1992-93 to 2003-04. It is this failure that underlies the spurt in rural violence that has highlighted once again the issue of the poors' access to land, water, and forests. It is gradually being recognised that further deterioration of economic, social, and political conditions of the rural poor can neither be arrested nor reversed without a significant policy shift towards a comprehensive land reform program. Read this article » Predatory GrowthBy Amit BhaduriOver the last two decades or so, the two most populous, large countries in the world, China and India, have been growing at rates considerably higher than the world average. In recent years the growth rate of national product of China has been about three times, and that of India approximately two times that of the world average. This has led to a clever defence of globalisation by a former chief economist of IMF (Fisher, 2003). Although China and India feature as only two among some 150 countries for which data are available, he reminded us that together they account for the majority of the poor in the world. This means that, even if the rich and the poor countries of the world are not converging in terms of per capita income, the well above the average world rate of growth rate of these two large countries implies that the current phase of globalisation is reducing global inequality and poverty at a rate as never before. Read this article » Tall Claims: Employment generated by Haldia PetrochemicalsBy Dipanjan Rai Chaudhuri and Purnendu ChakrabortyThese articles calculate the actual employment figure in downstream units of HPL for 2005 to be less than 19,301. We are being asked to believe that, in 2 years, the figure has increased from less than 19,301 to 50,000+89,900, an increase of more than 7-fold. The figure of 89,900 is also suspiciously close to 89,895, which is the employment figure for ALL new projects implemented in the state between 1991-2002 (Source: Frontline). It seems that either 89,000 is a favourite number, or that all employment in the state has come from HPL. Read this article » Reforms and the Kerala ModelBy M A Oommen. A EPW article, January 12 2008.A model, which is not sustainable, is a tragedy. In the context of neoliberal reforms, this article raises certain emerging issues relating to equity and sustainability of the "Kerala model" of development. This article seeks to raise certain issues relating to equity and sustainability concerning Kerala's development experience, widely referred to as a development "model". The issues are raised in the context of the neoliberal reforms underway in India since 1991. It is particularly important because there is a strong view that "Kerala's social democratic gains have been preserved and the social costs of its transition to a more open and competitive economy have been effectively managed" [Sandbrook et al 2007:68]. Read this article » Work for Everyone and Amartya SenBy Dipanjan Rai Chaudhuri. Translated by Kuver Sinha, SanhatiOn the whole, Amartya Sen has distanced his support from the West Bengal government's disregard for peoples' suffering and the protest that has emerged in its wake, its shameless espousal of SEZs and its brokering of land for big business. At a time when people of the state are registering their dissatisfaction and protest in the face of daily harrassment from the biggest party of the government, even such indirect criticism from Sen is helpful. But the fact remains that Amartya Sen is a supporter of the West Bengal government's basic industrial policy. If we strip away all the embellishment, the logic is "to remove poverty, we must increase income". This "income", however, is the neo-liberal economist's "income" – comprising, in the example of the Singur factory, the Tatas' profits, bank interest, government revenue, and, only as a fourth component, the wages of the employees. In an unequal society like India, an increase in this "income" may leave poverty unaffected or even in an enhanced state… Read this article » Amit Bhaduri - Notes from a lecture on Development and Rights, and an interviewKapil Bhattacharya Memorial Lecture by Professor Amit Bhaduri at Bharat Sabha Hall, Kolkata, 9 December, 2007Topic : Unnoyon o Odhikar / Development and Rights - organised by APDR Notes by Soumya Guhathakurta, Sanhati The lecture was divided into two parts : 1. Development and Human Rights and 2. Alternative Routes to Development Read this article » Globalization and land battles - a West Bengal perspectiveBy Abhijit GuhaContents : (1) Introduction (2) Land reforms and decentralized planning in West Bengal (3) The winds of change and the contradiction (4) Marginalization of peasants in the era of globalization in West Bengal - A case study (5) Impact on land reforms (6) Impact on the local self-government (7) Peasants against acquisition (8) Governmental initiative towards resettlement and rehabilitation - an incomplete effort (9) In search of an alternative path to reform Click here to read this article [PDF, English, 98 KB] MKP Booklet on SEZ - A critical look at the SEZ ActThis booklet from Mazdoor Kranti Parishad covers the following :(1) How the SEZ Act was created - the international and national backdrop (2) SEZ Act 2005 - the most important of its 58 sections and SEZ Rule 2006 - the most important of its 77 rules (3) Critically examining the sections and rules - (i) Section 5 ( examining generation of additional economic activity, promotion of exports of goods and services, promotion of investment from domestic and foreign sources, creation of employment opportunities, development of infrastructure), (ii) Sections 11, 12, 20, 21, 22, 23, 46, 51, 53 - the powers of the Development Comissioner in an SEZ, and colonial parallels (iii) Sections 26, 27, 32, 50 - exemptions, drawbacks, and concessions to developers and entrepreneurs, and what it means for social and rural programs (iv) Rule 11(10) - allotment of SEZ land for non-business purposes - real estate profits and promoters (v) Rule 44 - Contract farming for agricultural SEZs - what it means for the farmer and the seed company (4) SEZ, and the stance of the BJP, Congress, and CPI(M). (5) West Bengal SEZ Bill 2003 (6) Alternatives Click here to read MKP's booklet on SEZ [PDF, Bengali, 290KB] » NREGA implementation in West Bengal - some statisticsBy Debabrata Bandopadhyay. Translated by Soumya Guhathakurta, SanhatiIn 2006-07 only 14 work days were created per enlisted household in West Bengal whereas as per NREGA, 2005, the stipulated limit is 100 work days. The top state with respect to NREGA implementation in 2005 is Rajasthan and the percent of rural poverty in this state is 10 points lower than West Bengal. To top it, the highest percentage of households suffering mal/under nourishment, is in the state of West Bengal. Read this article » Peasant Resistance in Bengal a Decade before Singur and NandigramBy Abhijit GuhaThis EPW paper studies the case of Tata Metaliks, covering land taken, amount of compensation and non-existence of rehabilitation policies. It follows up with the disastrous land acquisition by Century Textiles and Industrial Limited (a subsidiary of the BK Birla Group), which took possession of 358.25 acres of land in Kharagpur I block in 1997, never payed a cent of the promised compensation, and never set up their factory. The huge chunk of agricultural land remains unutilized to this day, robbing 3000 people of their means of subsistence. 73% of the people from the gram panchayats where land was acquired for Tata Metaliks and CTIL were living below he poverty line in 1997. Click here to read this paper [PDF, 327 KB] » Development - a note for discussion written for the Kashipur Solidarity GroupBy Nagraj AdveThis extensive note discusses the measures carried out in the wake of liberalization, such as reduction in certain kinds of public expenditure, the attack on agriculture, refoms in trade, financial sector reforms, labor targetting, reforms in urban areas, disinvestment, foreign investment, and state repression, police terror, and arrests. The note ends with a detailed summary of the issues confronting us, and possible alternatives. Read this article » Poverty reduction and the magic of numbersMany mainstream economists in India have been claiming that poverty in India has gone down over the last decade and a half. The trick is to use an unimaginably low poverty line (Rs 12 a day). Therefore, while large numbers may have technically ceased to be included in the official poor, they remain vulnerable - a fact corroborated by the findings of the Arjun Sengupta panel on unorganised sector.Read this article » A letter to Prof. Amartya Sen, in response to his Telegraph interviewBy Subroto Roy, Contributing Editor, The StatesmanThe comparisons and mentions of history you have made seem to me surprising. Bengal's economy now or in the past has little or nothing similar to the economy of Northern England or the whole of England or Britain itself, and certainly Indian agriculture has little to do with agriculture in the new lands of Australia or North America. British economic history was marked by rapid technological innovations in manufacturing and rapid development of social and political institutions in context of being a major naval, maritime and mercantile power for centuries. Britain's geography and history hardly ever permitted it to be an agricultural country of any importance whereas Bengal, to the contrary, has been among the most agriculturally fertile and hence densely populated regions of the world for millennia. Read this article » Stakeholder analysis wrt land as a resource in the SEZ strategy in Bengal - a paperBy Dheeraj Singh, IIM KolkataThe State government recently acquired 997.11 acres of land, spread across the five mouzas within the Panchayat Samity of Singur, for the TATA's small car factory project. This paper performs a stakeholder assessment and looks into the finer details of the entire deal. The idea is to find out the land distribution among the different stakeholders such as middle peasants, small farmers, and marginal farmers, and the distribution of the compensation amount as declared and promised by the state government of West Bengal, given the price of the per acre of land assessed and fixed again by the state agency. The actual distribution provides us the real, fact-based information which can then be used as a basis to make broad assessment and prescribe some policy level initiatives or alternatives. Click to read paper [PDF, 15 pages] » Alternatives in IndustrialisationBy Amit Bhaduri, Economic and Political Weekly, May 05, 2007A programme of decentralised, employment-intensive, rural industrialisation through participatory democracy at the local level is the only process of industrialisation that this vast and meandering democracy of enormous poverty can sustain. To pretend that this can be achieved through corporate-led growth, no matter how high, is to live in a make-believe world. Click here to read article [PDF, 5 pages] » In the Name of Growth - The Politics and Economics of India's Special Economic ZonesBy Shankar Gopalakrishnan, a study prepared for The Council of Social DevelopmentClick here to read article [PDF, 113 pages] » If one were to sum up the current Indian SEZ policy in one sentence, it could perhaps be this: the policy fails on every count. It fails the test of logical consistency, with its actual provisions violating its stated goals. It fails the test of economic rationality, granting incentives that exacerbate existing distortions and encourage speculative activity at the expense of production and development. It fails the test of historical reference, taking an already questionable model and exaggerating its most negative aspects. And, most of all, it fails the test of social and political justice, by promoting a conceptual, institutional and political model that is deeply undemocratic. Click below to read the conclusions: Read this article » INDUSTRIALISATION: Which way now? - Medha Patkar and Amit BhaduriFrom : Ekak Matra, May issue (vol 7 no 6), Krishi Bonam Shilpo?An economic alternative creating another kind of development is feasible, and elements of it exist even in the present political-economic system. Very briefly, it has to be based on three basic premises. First, we must learn to rely far more on the internal rather than the external market. The biggest driving force of the internal market is the purchasing power of the ordinary people derived from employment growth. India's record on this score has been dismal in recent years. An eight per cent growth in output has been accompanied by hardly 1 per cent growth in regular employment, and increase in irregular or ancillary employment is marked by flexible contracts loaded against the worker with insecurity and over-crowding of infrastructure. It is foolish to expect that corporate-led growth can do better on the employment front, because corporations are in the game of making profit by cutting costs, including labour costs. And the more we accept globalisation unconditionally, the stronger would be the relative importance of the external over the internal market. This means cutting labour cost to increase export will become even more pressing. Primacy to export also means priorities in production going against the needs of the population here. Growth of the internal market through rapid employment growth, therefore, requires a far more selective approach to globalization. Read this article » U-Turn of Industrial Policy Erodes the Very Base of AgricultureBy Abhijit Guha, translated by Debarshi Das (Sanhati)"Destination West Bengal": this is the rather pompous sounding slogan which the Left Front government of West Bengal has used since it made a U-turn in the 1990s, and started on a reverse course from its earlier incomplete task of land reform. To investigate the possibilities of industrialisation the state government all of a sudden appointed McKinsey, a multinational consultancy group. The booklet titled "Destination West Bengal" is in fact based on McKinsey report. Curiously, this is the Left Front government, taking out processions, organising meetings protesting entry of multinational corporations all the time – which called in McKinsey. Could not the faculty members of Indian Statistical Institute or Indian Institute of Management, Kolkata, who are renowned internationally, perform the same job that was handed over to McKinsey? Click here for Bengali version Read this article » Political Economy of Land GrabBy Pranab Kanti BasuA new phase of capitalist expansion led by "global capital" is driving governments, including those of the left, to dispossess and displace peasants from agricultural land, even using force to break up peasant resistance. This article offers an understanding of this new phase, with a focus on the role and compulsions of governments. The analysis is in the tradition of radical political economy, and is based on a revaluation and expansion of Marx's conceptualisation of rent and the primitive accumulation of capital. Click to read article [PDF, 7 pgs.] » Development and Displacement in West Bengal: An Excerpt from a Forthcoming PaperBy Abhijit Guha, Reader, Dept. of Anthropology, V.U.The first striking thing one observes in this field is the virtual absence of any empirical and theoretical work on development induced displacement in West Bengal. This of course does not mean that displacement and rehabilitation are non-existent in West Bengal, which in the pre-Independence period, was the leading state in terms of industrialisation, and where, after Independence, large industries and thermal power plants have been built up displacing many families (including tribals) from their agricultural land and homes. West Bengal has also experienced large-scale mining on the western part of the state bordering Jharkhand. Read this article » Assessment of Rehabilitation of People Displaced due to Indira Sagar Pariyojana (ISP)By Kaivalya Desai, Vineet Jain, Rahul Pandey, P. Srikant, and Upmanyu TrivediThis paper is based on a field survey of a sample of 429 rural families displaced from Indira Sagar Pariyojana (ISP), covering 5 government and 6 private sites, all resettled 2-4 years ago. Majority of ISP oustees preferred to resettle privately because the state failed to provide adequate number and quality of resettlement sites. We observed significant deterioration in living standard of people in both government and private sites. Incomes of most families have fallen by more than half as compared to pre-displacement years. Farmers lost significant land but could not purchase even a small fraction; small farmers have to now do more of labour work for sustenance; landless labourers have been further marginalized as both farm labour demand and wage rates have fallen. Read this article » SOS from Nandigram - Beyond the immediate tragedy - EPW editorialsThe killing of protesting villagers in Nandigram by a trigger-happy police on March 14 sounds an alarm bell that sends a warning not only to the Left Front regime of West Bengal where the tragedy occurred, but to all those at the helm of affairs in both the center and other states, who irrespective of their party affiliation, are fond of riding roughshod over public opposition, for the sake of "economic growth" - the catchword in today's official discourse of liberalisation.Click to continue "SOS from Nandigram" [PDF, 2 pgs] » There is a need to go beyond the immediate tragedy of Nandigram and examine the underlying process that gives rise to sucepisodes. In the neoliberal times that we are living through, governments, whether at the central or a state level, are essentially for the markets, by the markets, and of the markets. Indeed, the parliamentary political process is increasingly governed by the logic of the market. Click to continue "Beyond the Immediate tragedy" [PDF, 1 pg] » Headline Singur - Food self-sufficiency, barren land, fighting unemployment, and other misrepresentations.Why Singur? Is West Bengal self-sufficient in food production? Has West Bengal reached ultimate level of agricultural productivity? Trade (or State?) secret – a white lie? Is this policy fighting unemployment?Read this article » Strategy for economic reform in West BengalSource : Maitreesh Ghatak , London School of EconomicsThis paper reviews the performance of different sectors [industry, higher education, state of public finance, etc.]in West Bengal and makes a number of suggestions for policy reforms. This paper also stresses the importance of small-scale industries to help overcome some specific market imperfections [access to credit, technology and distribution channels etc] which the West Bengal government is not prepared to do. Click here to read article [PDF] » Special Exploitation ZoneSource : P N VenugopalAt Cochin's Special Economic Zone, independence is a forgotten ideal. Here, as in other SEZs, the government has long treated native soil as territorial possessions of foreign nations, exempt from taxes, rules and safeguards that apply elsewhere. The only losers are the workers. P N Venugopal reports that now this charade is being expanded. Read this article » Development Or Developmental Terrorism?Source : An article by Prof. Amit Bhaduri. January 7, 2007It has become a cliché, even a politically correct cliché these days, to say that there are two Indias: the India that shines with its fancy apartments and houses in rich neighbourhoods, corporate houses of breath taking size, glittering shopping malls, and high-tech flyovers over which flows a procession of new model cars. These are the images from a globalized India on the verge of entering the first world. And then there is the other India. India of helpless peasants committing suicides, dalits lynched regularly in not- so- distant villages, tribals dispossessed of their forest land and livelihood, and children too small to walk properly, yet begging on the streets of shining cities. Read this article » The Economics of Nuclear PowerSource : Steve ThomasThis article by Steve Thomas analyses the economic issues and politics of nuclear power plants. It also analyses key determinants of nuclear economics, its costs, and the need for public subsidies. Click here to read article [PDF] » Microcredit, NGOs and Poverty AlleviationSource : An article by Mrityunjay Mohanty, IIM KolkataThe Microcredit movement, of which Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank have been leading pioneers, makes two important contributions to development practice: first to demonstrate that creditworthiness and collateral do not go hand in hand and therefore it is possible to delink the two; and secondly, it is possible to use a collectivist ethos and group solidarity (and implicit joint liability) to minimise the risk of loans being made to persons with high-risk propositions (adverse selection) or of their being utilised for purposes other than that for which they are contracted (moral hazard), and to use peer pressure to ensure that repayment schedules are met. Read this article » Land Acquisition and Peasant Resistance at SingurSource : An EPW article by Parthasarathi BanerjeeThis is a brief account of the peasant resistance to land acquisition for the Tata Motors project at Singur in Hooghly district of West Bengal. Click here to read article [PDF] » Special Economic Zones: Revisiting the Policy DebateSource : An EPW article by Aradhna AggarwalThis is a discussion of the pros and cons of the controversial SEZ policy. Export Processing Zones (EPZs) are an international phenomenon influencing increasing share of trade flows and employing a growing number of workers. In 1986, there were 176 zones across 47 countries; by 2003, the number had increased to over 3000 across 116 countries. Click here to read article [PDF] » Subversive enclavesSource : A Frontline article by V. Sridhar.Everything about the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) sprouting across the country is special. Entities in these enclaves will pay little by way of taxes, enjoy access to state subsidies of various sorts, and be immune from the rules that normally govern the running of businesses. Indeed, the particularly special aspect of the SEZs in the pipeline - about 300 at the last count - is that they are "phoren" enclaves in what for everybody else is India. The "approvals", given on a first-come-first-served basis, have only fuelled the frenzy of SEZ developers. The Board of Approvals (BoA) has already given approvals for nearly 200 SEZs. Another 100 are likely to be given permission soon. While cynics would regard the Congress' recent attempts to retool the SEZ policy as an attempt at obfuscation, there are no indications that the government is making any attempt to correct the most controversial aspects of the policy. Read this article » In the Name of DevelopmentSource : An article by Somnath MukherjiThe debate over Singur has never centred around the paradigm of development, of which the present situation is an inevitable outcome. The moot question is not whether a plot yields a single crop or multi-crop but whether state power and vital public interest are being mortgaged to the interest of global capital. Rather than providing counterfactuals about the altered behaviour of a different political front in power, one should discern the structural transformation of the state machinery ~ a transformation designed to serve the whims of global corporate interests. The question is not what is right or wrong but rather who gets to decide what is right or wrong. What are the mechanisms in our society that take into account people's participation in developmental decision-making and how effective are they? Read this article » Peasant Hares and Capitalist Hounds of SingurSource : Sumanta Banerjee, Economic and Political Weekly, December 30, 2006Singur is a test of sorts : For the Left Front government that is very ardently pursuing industrialisation as the only pathway to progress and also for its opponents, who are speaking up for the unregistered sharecroppers and landless labourers, who stand to gain little from the project. The wide nature of opposition also offers an opportunity to diverse groups to explore an alternative path to development. Read this article » Singur and the Displacement ScenarioSource : An EPW article by Walter FernandesThe controversy over the acquisition of land in Singur in West Bengal for an automobile project raises larger issues. The plight of the displaced and project-affected persons across the country shows that it is the development pattern, nature of rehabilitation packages, and the "public purpose" declared by the State while acquiring land that need to be debated and redefined. Click here to read article [PDF] » Land acquisition in a West Bengal districtSource: An EPW commentary by Abhijit Guha. October 2004The process of land acquisition for industrial development initiated since the mid-1990s in West Bengal's Paschim Medinipur district threatens to undermine the pro-peasant policy of the Left Front government. Moreover, the government continues to rely on the Land Acquisition Act enacted by an earlier colonial regime for such purposes. While agricultural land following acquisition now lies waste, there has been an increase in the number of the landless and small and marginal farmers. Click here to read the full report » Neoliberalism And Primitive Accumulation In IndiaSource : Pratyush Chandra & Dipankar Basu , Feb 9 , 2007Recent events in Singur - a town which is less than 40 kms away from Kolkata (Calcutta), where the West Bengal government is struggling to acquire and sell 1000 acres of agricultural land to Tata Motors - indicate the extent to which capitalist-parliamentarianism can regiment a counter-hegemonic force once it agrees to play by the rules. At the least, it clearly shows that the Communist government, which boasts of being the longest-running democratically elected Marxist government in the world, is hopelessly caught in the neoliberal project. Read this article » http://sanhati.com/articles/economic-articles/ |
*Palash Biswas
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