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All-party meeting on Singur today

Special Correspondent

Kolkata: The West Bengal government has convened an all-party meeting here on Tuesday to find ways torestore normality in Singur so that Tatas can resume work on the car project there.

The meeting, however, will not be attended by the State’s principal Opposition party, the Trinamool Congress, that has been spearheading an agitation demanding return of 400 acres of land [300 acres from within the site] acquired for the project to farmers who have not accepted compensation for their plots.

Call for consensus

Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee is keen that the major political parties in the State reach a consensus in support of the project at Singur prior to his meeting with Ratan Tata, Chairman, Tata Group, the date for which is yet to be finalised.

There have been apprehensions of Tata Motors pulling out of Singur ever since work was suspended at the site on September 2 in view of continued confrontation and agitation by the Trinamool Congress and its allies.

The agitation was lifted after a meeting between the Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on September 7. But the latter has threatened to resume the agitation unless an agreement between her associates and the State government on the land issue is implemented.

On Monday, Ms. Banerjee ruled out her party’s participation in any all-party meeting that the government convenes till the latter decides to implement the agreement signed on September 7.

“If the agreement is operationalised, we have no problems sitting for talks on any technical matter but not on the question of the package [proposed by the State government for the rehabilitation of the affected farmers of Singur],” she said.

Congress to attend meet

Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi said the Congress had decided to attend the meeting. It would have been better had the meeting been called before the process of land acquisition for the project started, Mr. Dasmunsi said.

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