Industry can return to Singur: Bengal Power Minister

September 09, 2016 12:29 am | Updated September 22, 2016 05:56 pm IST - Kolkata:

Among the decade-old unused structures on the 997-acre abandoned Tata Motors plant site in Singur stands the transmission and distribution towers built by the West Bengal government to supply power to the proposed factory.

Announcing the road map for implementing the Supreme Court order on giving physical possession of the land back to the villagers, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on September 1 that the power plant spread over 40 acres of land would have to be dismantled.

At a time when work is going on in full swing for land-plotting on the site, the State’s Power Minister, Sobhandeb Chatterjee, said the power plant would be rebuilt in nearby areas, kindling fresh hopes of industry coming to Singur. “I have told officers that the machinery relating to the transmission towers should be carefully removed. We have discussed with district administration availability of land near the project area,” Mr. Chatterjee told The Hindu .

“The stations are reusable, we have to make power stations in this area only,” he said, adding that Rs. 80 to 85 crore had been spent building this power infrastructure.

The Power Minister is among those senior Trinamool Congress leaders who did not rule out industry returning to Singur.

“If the people of Singur want industry and they tell that to the Chief Minister, industry will be set up here. It was for the people that she [Mamata Banerjee] fought such a long battle,” Mr. Chatterjee said.

Since the Supreme Court verdict of August 31, at least one State Minister is visiting the site every day to take stock of the work.

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