Lalgarh revolt rows, Centre asks LF to act

Lalgarh, which has been a CPI(M) bastion for almost 30 years, continued to burn on Wednesday as the much-awaited Central forces were unable to flush armed Maoist cadres out of the so-called "liberated zone" in West Midnapore district of West Bengal.

Mobs allegedly led by Maoists went on a killing spree in neighbouring Jhargram, slaughtering three CPI(M) cadres. West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattcharjee is expected to discuss the situation with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday.

As violence escalated in the state, under Marxist rule for three decades, Union home minister P. Chidambaram said it was time the state administration took action. The Centre said while paramilitary forces might provide a supporting role, it was primarily the job of the state police to tackle the situation in Lalgarh.

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Mamata’s gift to poor: Rs 20 per month rail pass

Trinamul Congress president Mamata Banerjee, in an unusual move, assumed charge as railway minister on Tuesday not at her New Delhi Rail Bhavan office but at the headquarters of the Eastern Railway at Kolkata’s Fairlie Place — a stone’s throw away from Writers’ Buildings, seat of the state’s Left Front government in West Bengal.

Keeping an earlier promise, Ms Banerjee announced special Rs 20 monthly passes for all those with a monthly income below Rs 500. “This is for small vendors, labourers and other poor people who cannot afford tickets and regular passes. The railways will give them economic freedom to travel by train,” she said.

She also announced a new train for West Bengal, named Kandari Express after the famous poem by Nazrul Islam, whose birth anniversary fell Tuesday. It will run daily between Howrah and Digha in a month’s time.

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Buddhadeb and Paswan escape big mine blast

West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and Union steel, chemicals and fertilisers minister Ram Vilas Paswan narrowly escaped a landmine explosion at Baruahati in Maoist-infested West Midnapore district on Sunday afternoon.

The explosion, allegedly by Maoist outfits, has exposed the failure of the West Bengal police and its intelligence wing in ensuring foolproof security for VIPs. Six policemen travelling in the Union minister’s pilot car were injured in the explosion. Two of them were admitted to Kolkata’s AMRI Hospital Sunday evening.

“It is a serious incident. Two policemen are in critical condition,” the chief minister said.

The explosion took place when the pilot vehicle (WB-62-5647) in Mr Paswan’s convoy was passing the Kalaichandi canal area at around 2 pm. “The four-wheeler was tossed in the air by the impact and left mangled.

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Police hunts in Bengal, Uttar Pradesh for Delhi suspects

Half a dozen Delhi police teams fanned out to eastern Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal to hunt for the two motorcycle-borne men suspected to be behind Saturday afternoon’s blast at Mehrauli.

Investigators are, meanwhile, keeping close watch on a youth being treated at AIIMS’ trauma centre on the suspicion that he could be one of those who had planted the bomb. No evidence on this has, however, been found.

The injured person, Allauddin, from Gaya in Bihar, had two driving licenses. His brother Shabuddin told the police he was working for a Gurgaon call centre, and his boss there had got him a second driving licence from Nagaland. The reason he was carrying a lot of money was because he had gone to open an account at the State Bank of India on the day of the blast, his family explained.

Five Bangladeshi nationals are among those being questioned, and the police has not ruled out the possible involvement of illegal Bangladeshi migrants.

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Singur talks positive

Friday’s much awaited meeting between the West Bengal government and the Trinamul Congress-led Krishi Jomi Raksha Committee (Save Farmland Committee) on the Singur imbroglio ended on a positive note. “We are heading towards a solution. Discussions are on and will resume tomorrow,” Trinamul delegation leader Partha Chatterjee said after the talks, chaired by West Bengal governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi.

The meeting at Raj Bhavan began at 4.10 pm and lasted three hours. State industry minister Nirupam Sen, who led the government side, said later he was hopeful of a positive outcome. “We discussed all issues, including land. We had a free and frank discussion, and we are hopeful that tomorrow, when the talks resume, we will arrive at a solution,” he added. Trinamul Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee is under considerable pressure from her own party to withdraw her agitation soon.

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Mamata is losing support in Singur

Trinamul Congress leader Mamata Banerjee, spearheading the Singur agitation, might forcibly enter the Nano factory the moment the Tatas decide to withdraw from West Bengal.

Trinamul sources said this was what “Didi (Mamata) has been contemplating for long.” He told this newspaper: “This could be risky... if we decide to enter the factory by breaking the boundary walls and sit on a dharna.” While Ms Banerjee appeared set for a head-on collision with West Bengal’s Left Front government, she also sent a delegation to hold talks with governor Gopal krishna Gandhi on Sunday. The governor had sent a letter Saturday asking her to agree to negotiations.

Ms Banerjee, despite her “pro-people” stir, also appears to be losing considerable local support in Singur. A breach is also becoming evident within her party on the issue. Some leaders fear that if the Tatas were forced to leave Bengal, the CPI(M) could regain the political advantage as it would hold them (Trinamul) for the loss of a major project.

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Metro line under river in Kolkata

The Centre on Thursday approved a Ks 4,676-crore Metro Rail link between Howrah and Salt Lake in Kolkata, part of which will run under the Hooghly river. Kolkata's 13.77-km east-west Metro corridor was approved by the Union Cabinet. Of the total distance, 8 km will be underground and 5.77 km elevated from Howrah to Salt Lake. It will be in two phases and will be completed in six-and-a-half-years.

The Union Cabinet gave its approval for implementation of the East-West Metro Corridor project, Kolkata, covering 13.77 km on standard gauge, from Howrah Station to Salt Lake Sector V at a cost of Rs 4,676 crores. The project is to be executed through a joint-venture company to be formed by the Central and the state government.

A special purpose vehicle (SPV) will be constituted for successful execution of the project as well as its operation and maintenance. Such SPV will be a joint-venture company of the state government and the Centre. Equity participation of government of West Bengal and government of India will be on a 50:50 basis.

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