We have lost the Singur battle but not the war to get industries to the state, said West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee here today even as CPI(M) leaders said Tata Motors should give the land back quickly to the state so that new industrial units could be set up there.
Bhattacharjee alleged at a function that opposition parties like the Trinamool Congress (TC) in the state were irresponsible and unable to appreciate the need to develop industries, adding that he could continue to work to get big investors to the state.
However, in a marked hardening of its stand towards the Tatas, Left Front and CPI(M) leaders like Biman Bose and Shyamal Chakravorti said in different functions that here that the Left Front wanted the land back so that it could either be handed over for new units, or auctioned to new users.
Shyamal Chakravorti also demanded the removal of Bengal’s governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi, in a repeat of his earlier attacks on the governor for being sympathetic towards opposition political parties.
In contrast, TC leader Mamata Banerjee said 300 acres could now be returned to “unwilling” farmers who had not accepted compensation although their land was taken over in 2006 for the 997 acre Tata Motors Nano plant at Singur, and whose cause she had championed.
“the departure of the Tatas from Singur marks a major success in the war being fought by farmers nationwide to save their farmland”, added Mamata Banerjee.
Buddadeb Bhattcharjee’s comments came at the foundation stone laying functions of Orion Techcity, a 155-acre commercial and integrated SEZ with a focus on information technology (IT), in the presence of the central minister of external affairs Pranab Mukherjee, bengal’s minister of housing and public health engineering Gautam Deb, minister of IT Debesh Das, and the IT department secretary Siddharth.
The proposed SEZ will have 18 million sq ft of commercial space and is expected to create employment opportunities for nearly 180,000 individuals.
According to Bhattacharjee, Orion developers will get all assistance to ensure the project is commissioned in time.
The inauguration coincided with the laying of the foundation stone for a Japan village within Orion Techcity, by the minister of external affairs Pranab Mukherjee and the Japanese ambassador Hideaki Domichi.
This dedicated 25 acre 'Japan village' will serve as a self-sufficient Zen paradise for discerning multinationals, within Orion Techcity.
Orion Techcity will be positioned as the largest IT SEZ in eastern India, located in the heart of eastern India's IT corridor, Rajarhat, only 5 km from the international airport, on the main New Town road.
The project is expected to attract around $1.2 billion investment over 10 years.
Around 70 acres will be dedicated to IT companies, 20 acres for an research and development (R&D) laboratory to spearhead cutting-edge technology in the telecom sector including 4G and Wimax. The project will also dedicate 25 acres for a Japan village, 25 acres for the hospitality and services area, and 15 acres for non-IT commercial offices, thereby positioning itself as a commercial, leisure, recreation, hospitality and retail destination.
The Japan village will house language training centres, BPO facilities, service apartments, lifestyle amenities and leisure concepts, expected to help reproduce a customised IT and ITeS environment to attract Japanese companies.
The IT SEZ, backed by 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI), will enjoy tax benefits, Bhattacharjee noted.
A West Bengal IT department and WBHIDCO initiative, around 70 per cent of the project will have greenery and a mix of cost, comfort and convenience. This city within a city will have its own water, power, sewerage, and renewable energy support infrastructure.
The development of Orion Tech City will enhance opportunities for companies seeking infrastructure for commercial space in Rajarhat, where there are upcoming developments of residential units in large scale. The project is also expected to benefit companies engaged in research and development in biotechnology and telecommunications, such as 4G and Wimax, futuristic Japanese business process outsourcing (BPO) companies, IT security and data warehousing solutions, and Bengal Innovation Incubation Centre to help incubate new technological ideas for inclusive growth.
The Japan finishing school on the premises will train students in the Japanese language and culture to handle the upcoming IT business from Japan.
