Panagarh Industrial Park: State takes initiative to resolve farmers' grievances

KOLKATA: The state government has taken up an initiative to resolve the grievances of farmers, who had given their lands for development of the Panagarh Industrial Park during the previous Left government's regime.

As the farmers had alleged that they were yet to receive their compensation under Land Acquisition Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation officials urged the Burdwan District Magistrate (DM) recently to speak to the aggrieved farmers.

Speaking about the issue, Partha Chatterjee, state Industry minister, said: "The issue is being looked after by the officials of the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation and it will be resolved."

The land was taken for the development of the industrial park in 2008-09 by the then CPI(M) government. About 2,000 farmers, under the banner of Jamitada Adhikari Raksha Committee, had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the then DM of Burdwan, Manish Jain, for a fair compensation.

Krishna Doyal Karmakar, convener of Panagarh Industrial Park, said: "For the development of the park, around 14.53 acres had been acquired from three mouzas— Kanksha, Kota Chandipur and Tondali. During that time, a MoU was signed between the farmers and those who acquired the land. As per the MoU, around 1 cottah of land inside the park will be given to the farmers for their cultivation. But, farmers are yet to receive the land. The farmers had approached the then Industry minister Nirupam Sen, but he failed to resolve the matter. Finally, the farmers have now approached the Mamata Banerjee government officials."

According to Karmakar, when the land was acquired, it was stated that the locals would get jobs in the park. "But, only 10 per cent local people have been inducted in the park and the remaining are outsiders in the four plants of the Panagarh Industrial Park," he claimed.