Policeman killed near SEZ site

Bengal's plan to build industrial zone in Nandigram has run into trouble.

Fresh clashes near Nandigram, site for the proposed Special Economic Zone (SEZ) to be built by Indonesia's Salim Group, claimed the life of a policeman today.

The clash broke out when police was trying to stop some persons digging up roads at Bhowanipur in West Bengal's East Midnapore district.

Reports say the policeman, a district intelligence official, was beaten up, and his body dragged away by the protesters. Police have launched a massive hunt for his body.

Four other policemen, including the officer in charge of the Bhowanipur station, have been injured and are now in the hospital.

The protesters resisting land acquisition have categorically said that they would not stop protesting till the government assures them that there will be no SEZ in Nandigram.

At least 10 persons had so far been arrested following the incident, state Home secretary P R Roy said.

West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, chief secretary Amit Kiron Deb and Roy took stock of the situation at a meeting in Writers' Building. IG (Western Range) Arun Gupta has rushed to the spot.

Nandigram, where earlier clashes over the proposed SEZ by Indonesia's Salim group had claimed six lives, continued to remain on the boil like Singur.

The West Bengal government has plans to build an industrial zone in Nandigram with the help of Indonesia's Salim Group, but the project has run into trouble with angry villagers refusing to give up their land. Opposition parties in West Bengal have been organising the farmers in the area to hold the almost daily protests since the government began acquiring land for the project.

Fearing a minority backlash and scared of the growing influence of the Jamiat, Bhattacharya had backtracked from Nandigram and admitted that the move was a mistake.

He asked the district magistrate to tear apart the land acquisition notification in Nandigram that led to the carnage in early January and announced a peaceful political process to convince people.

Also there were angry protests in the Tata Motors small car project site at Singur, a village 30 kilometers northwest of Kolkata.

The villagers again uprooted poles of the Tata Motors car project site at Ujjal Sangha, dug roads at Bajemelia to prevent police access to the area and damaged a brick-laden tractor belonging to the car project at Gopalnagar.

Police used teargas on activists of Trinamool Congress-led Krishi Jami Raksha Committee (Save Farmland Committee) who had barged into the fenced area and uprooted at least 10 poles.

Meanwhile, Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind leader Siddiqullah Chowdhuri held his Singur rally at Bara in Hooghly district and avoided a showdown with police by not marching towards Singur where prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPC were imposed.

The Jamiat rally against farmland acquisition had the West Bengal government on its toes, as there were fresh fears of violence if they had proceeded towards Singur in violation of the prohibitory orders.

Jamiat has expressed its desire to join hands with Trinamool Congress in the fight against farmland acquisition for industrial projects.