BeyondHeadlines Staff Reporter
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will present the Singur land in the assembly today. The bill aims at revoking the lease of land by state government to Tata Motors and will enable the government to take back 997 acres leased to Tata Motors. She has promised to return 400 acres to Singur farmers keeping with the first decision that was taken by Mamata’s cabinet.
This move of the West Bengal government has put the onus on Tata Motors for “non- commissioning” and “abandoning” its Nano project and ancilliary factories at Singur for which a Bill would be tabled in the Assembly tomorrow to vest the land with the state.
The Singur Land Rehabilitation Bill, 2011, which was circulated in the House on Sunday, said it was to provide for taking over the land covered by the lease granted to Tata Motors in view of “non-commissioning and abandoning of the small car project and ancillary factories and to return a portion to unwilling owners and utilise the remainder in public interest.”
As per the Bill, Tata Motors and the vendors were required to vacate possession of the land in favour of the Hooghly District Magistrate failing which the district administration was empowered to take steps and “use such force” required to take possession.
The Bill sought “to take over all assets, rights, leaseholds and all properties movable and immovable standing thereon and vesting them all with the state government.”
Once notified, the land, by virtue of this Act, stands transferred to and vest in the state government free for any lease or allotment.
As regards compensation, it would be adjudged by the district judge of Hooghly and the amount would carry a simple interest rate of six per cent per annum, it said.
The Bill also said the state government would pay compensation to the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) which had earlier acquired the land on behalf of it and paid Rs. 137 crore to the landowners.
In the new dispensation, the WBIDC would no longer be the owner of the land which would be vested with the state with the government agreeing to reimburse WBIDC for the amount of compensation paid.
