Some of West Bengal’s biggest industrialists turned up today to be a part of Trinamool Congress leader and Railway minister, Mamata Banerjee’s interactive session to project an investor friendly image, almost a year after her agitation drove the Nano project from the state.
Among the notable investors at the event organised by Railways, was Prasoon Mukherjee, one of the promoters of New Kolkata International Development (NKID), the special purpose vehicle for the Nayachar petroleum, chemical, petrochemicals investment region (PCPIR), which is being opposed by Banerjee.
West Bengal government’s most significant investor, Mukherjee, has a host of other projects over a 15-year period including Eastern Link Highway, SME industrial estates, and a deep water post close to Nayachar.
Mukherjee is now keen on joining hands with Banerjee. He expressed his keen interest to work with the Indian Railways and said that he had submitted proposals to the Railway Board wherever a potential tie-up was possible. This included a 1000 MW power plant project at Adra in Purulia in West Bengal.
Industrialists were effusive in their praise for Banerjee, a stark contrast from last year around the same time, when the chambers of commerce got together to take up the agitation at Singur.
In the three-hour session none of the industrialists questioned on the Singur issue. However, Sanjiv Goenka, vice chairman of the RPG group, raised concerns on how should one go about changing the image of the state that has taken a beating in the last two years. Goenka asked "Is it the correct time for launching a coordinated effort for image building of the state? And if so, how should we go about it?”
Banerjee echoed what used to be chief minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee's tag-line "do it now" after an overwhelming majority in May 2006. She said that "I want to act immediately. It is not a time for lengthy deliberations. It is the time to act."
It’s not just Bengal Inc that has transformed in the last year, so has the Trinamool Congress leader. Sanjay Budhia, promoter of Patton said "We now see a smiling Mamata Banerjee in front of us, someone who was at the helm of an agitation a few months ago".
"When you come closer, you see the truth, you see the real person", came Benerjee's reply. Sandipan Chakravortty, managing director, Tata Ryerson said, “There has been a sea change in her attitude, body language. She has rekindled a sort of flame, hope among the industrialists. At the end the industry will see what is delivered.”
However, back door, after the meeting, industrialists dubbed the meeting as a “mela” as they felt it should have been a closed door meeting. That feeling is the only constant as the same sentiments were echoed after the all-chamber meeting last year.
