Efforts on to retain Wipro, Infosys in West Bengal

The West Bengal government is making efforts to provide land to Infosys and Wipro elsewhere to retain the IT majors in the state.

“We are trying to make some arrangement so that IT giants like Wipro and Infosys can stay back in the state,” the Housing minister Gautam Deb told reporters after a CPI(M) secretariat meeting here on Friday.

The Left Front government had scrapped the IT township project at Rajarhat in North 24 Parganas district following the Vedic Village land deal controversy.

The Trinamool Congress chief, Mamata Banerjee, had termed this as a “failure” of the state government for not being able to allow Wipro and Infosys to set up their units in the state.

The Congress has said that the government should provide alternative land to the software companies for setting up their units.

Party sources said Mr. Deb, who had advocated retaining the IT majors in the state, gave the proposal of providing alternative land at the secretariat meeting.

The Minister said he would speak to Chief Minister on the issue after Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee returns from Siliguri. “The chief minister has to take the decision,” Mr. Deb said.