Bengal in foreign media

Capitalism must for industrial progress: communist CM
KOLKATA, JANUARY 4
Reformist Communist Buddhadeb Bhattacharya has said there is no alternative to the capitalist system if industrial process is to be carried forward in Left Front-ruled West Bengal. “There is no alternative to capitalism if we are to take forward industrialisation here,” Bhattacharya said on Thursday night.
“We say humbly that after assessing everything there is no way out but to follow the capitalist path,” he said, putting to rest the likelihood of adopting the socialist model of development by the world’s longest serving democratically-elected Communist government.
“There is actually no way out if we are to bring in capital. From where will we get the money otherwise?” he asked, speaking at a function to mark the 42nd anniversary of Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M)’s Bengali daily Ganashakti.
Prior to the last Assembly election in West Bengal, in which the Marxists returned to power for the seventh consecutive term with a thumping victory, Bhattacharya had admitted that “what we are doing here (Bengal) is not Communism”. Bhattacharya, whose reform process and policies of farmland acquisition for industry triggered violent protests in 2007, is a strong votary of reforms to keep pace with the capitalist global economy.
Smarting from the backlash over farmland acquisition for various projects, Bhattacharya said his government would take utmost caution in future before such acquisitions. “We will take extreme care in choosing land for industry after assessing the character of the plots. We will offer adequate compensation to the farmers and rehabilitate the displaced people properly,” the chief minister said. “Industrialisation in West Bengal would not be exclusive of the poor farmers and land losers but inclusive of their betterment.” He said his government is trying to upgrade agriculture in the state too. “We think there is lot more to do on the agricultural front. Even land reform is not complete in West Bengal.” Bhattacharya, recovering from a spate of negative publicity over the Singur small car project of the Tatas and the spiralling violence in Nandigram after a special economic zone (SEZ) and chemical hub plan went awry in the face of villagers’ protests, is on a drive currently to correct his own image as well as that of the government and the party.

Coal pit fire creates panic in mining belt
KOLKATA, JANUARY 6
Leaping flames and smoke billowing from illegal coal pits in the Ranigunj-Asansol colliery belt in West Bengal’s Burdwan district have created panic in the area. In Nimcha village in the district, thousands of villagers fled their homes as several houses developed cracks and a cloud of smoke hung over the area through the day, making it difficult for people to breathe.
The fire was first noticed in an abandoned mine near Saatgram on December 31 and soon spread across the area. A piece of land also caved in Friday near the Ranigunj coal mine, about 230 km from here.
The coalmines, lying between the Benali Colliery and the East Satgram Colliery, are in Jamuria.
The National Highway 2 and an oil pipeline of the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) are located close by. Eastern Coalfields Ltd (ECL) authorities cordoned off the entire area and put up a danger notice at the site. They also started filling up the cracks with sand and mud.
“We live in perpetual fear of being swallowed by leaping flames,” said Sitaram Mukherjee, a resident of Nimcha. Disgruntled villagers met ECL general manager K P Singh and accused the company of lifting coal without taking precautions against subsidence.
“This is not the time to blame anybody. We are trying our best and filling up the cracks with sand and mud,” Singh said.
“We demanded that land should be cut out at about 100 feet and filled with sand and water. Officials are around and are trying to control the fire and ensure villagers’ safety,” said another local resident Gautam Majhi.
Asansol sub-divisional officer A P Roy said Nimcha residents might have to be shifted if the Directorate General of Mines (Safety) declared the village unsafe. “We have requested the Directorate General of Mines (Safety) to conduct a survey in the area,” Roy said.