Farmers must be adequately compensated, says state Congress chief.
The opposition to Tatas Nano in growing in Gujarat. Days after Congress spokesperson Arjun Modhvadia demanded that farmers in Sanand, where the Tata group has relocated its small car project, be properly compensated, Gujarat Congress chief Siddharth Patel has upped the ante by accusing the state government of making last-minute changes in the industrial policy to accommodate the project.
“Rules have been put aside in order to accommodate the project,” said Gujarat Congress president Sidhdharth Patel.
The opposition party has sought details about the incentives offered to the Tata group under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
He alleged that the Gujarat government changed in Industrial Policy overnight to benefit the Tatas. Congress has demanded that all details pertaining to the incentives offered to the group be made public.
“We welcome industrial investment to the state, but Gujarat government should reveal all detail about the deal to the people of Gujarat. As an opposition party, we should have got the details of agreement, but this government has not given us any information on the deal," he said.
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''There has been doubt that t the state government has changed policy matters as people should have right to get all information about the deal, but the government has not given the information, he added.
The Tata group is supposed to invest around Rs. 2,000 crore for the Nano car project.
The proposed investment is not very high as compared to other projects, which are already there in Gujarat.
Coming down heavily on Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi’s penchant to hog the limelight, Patel said Tatas already have presence in the state—the group is setting up a 4000MW power plant at an investment of Rs. 12,000 crore.
“Though it is a union government project, the Congress party has never tried to hog limelight,” he said.
The state Congress chief reiterated the party’s demand that farmers whose land has been acquired should be adequately compensated.
He alleged that a few farmers, who went to ask for compensation were threatened by a top official from the state revenue department.