SINGUR FIASCO

Why facts are ignored?

While states pursues the policy of granting all sorts of favours to the powerful industrial and mining corporations, it has ignored the rights of farmers, tribals and poor people of the country. Brave policemen take no time to show their faces and bravery on the innocent poor farmers and tribals who agitate to protest against the injustices caused to them. They are never consulted nor they are taken in to confidence but the only task on the list of the state governments is to drive them out of their only source of livelihood even at the cost of forcibly displacing them, even at the cost of lathi charge, firing tear gas shells, rubber and also live bullets. If they are killed in the process, it doesn't matter but the land has to be possessed. Fine. 

Now the same state officials when dealing with the powerful industrial houses, their behavior is entire different. They bow down on knees before them as if they are god. The same policemen who fired live bullets on innocent farmers are in and around the industrialists in the name of providing security. What ever is demanded by the industrialists is offered them on platter, even without assessing its genuine needs. [I have serious doubts on the need of 1000 Acres by Tatas at Singur.] Even the deals are kept secret documents. This is the scenario every where. West Bengal is no exception. This has happened at many of the places including Gopalpur (Orissa) in 1988 3400 Acres land acquired for a steel plant by Tatas the plant which has never been established, farmers are on road. 403 hectares of prime farmland at Nagarnar (Chhattisgarh) from 303 families, who are starving, Kalinga Nagar (Orissa)  has already gone in rough weathers and Nandigram (W.Bengal) yesterday and now it is the turn of SINGUR today before new battle zones may be at Lohandiguda (Chhattisgarh) may hit the head lines tomorrow.

When this is the scenario in front of us, what to expect from the states, though their  first duty is towards its own people but in the hurry to ink the MoUs and strike a deal, farmers are ignored, tribals are pushed to corners, their lands are marked for "PUBLIC PURPOSES" to serve the "PRIVATE INTEREST" of an industrialist. Mockery is made of the constitutional provisions that safe guards the property rights of tribals. When the state fails to discharge their constitutional duties towards the people of the state and instead wages war against them, peace is bound to be disturbed, SINGUR is no exception.

Before it gets too late, the state actors should ensure that instead of waging war against its own people, instead of intruding in to their fundamental rights, they should deal with the industrialists the way they have dealt with the farmers so far. There is a test of war of nerves between poor farmers and politically and wealthy powerful Industrialist.

Pravin Patel