The Hindu Business Line : Work at Tatas’ Singur plant hits a roadblock

Kolkata/Pune, Aug 29 Work at the Tata Motors’ small car project at Singur, about 35 km from Kolkata, came to a standstill on Fridaywith the company deciding not to send any of its employees, engineers and contract workers into the plant premises for any work.

The company’s spokesperson issued a statement saying “our workers are not attending work today.”

Tata Motors’ decision follows Thursday’s incident when cars and buses carrying Tata Motors’ employees were prevented from going out of the plant till late in the evening. Engineers and workers were intimidated by those opposed to the project and, consequently, the company decided to keep its employees and workers away from any work at the project site, at least for today.

A company spokesperson said today’s decision was taken keeping in view “the overall situation that has prevailed over the last few days.” On whether work on the project site would resume n Saturday, he said: “We are assessing the situation for tomorrow.”

Trinamool Congress leader, Ms Mamata Banerjee, who is spearheading the agitation at Singur demanding that 400 acres acquired from “unwilling farmers” be returned to them, today said her party had not restricted anyone from entering or leaving the plant premises. She said the Trinamool Congress could not be held responsible for something it had not done.

The Chairman of the Left front, Mr Biman Bose, wondered if Ms Banerjee had lost control over her allies. He said that, in the event of the Tatas abandoning the project, the prospects of gainful engagement for many would be lost.

The Centre said it had no role to play in the Singur issue and it was for the State to find a solution. “There is no role for the Central Government…it is for the State Government to decide,” the Union Minister for Science & Technology, Mr Kapil Sibal, said in New Delhi.

Uttarakhand’s role

With the Singur agitation gaining momentum, it increasingly appears that the first commercial Nano may roll out from Tata Motors’ plant at Uttarakhand where trial production has begun. However, informed sources at Pune assert that at a current capacity of 100 cars a day, the facility can at best play a supportive role.

“The production at Uttarakhand of around 3,000 cars per month expandable to 5,000 cars in time is nowhere near the projected demand. But it will help Tata Motors honour its promise to launch the Nano in October,” the sources who requested anonymity said.

Tata Motors produces the Ace and its variant at the Uttarakhand plant . “If the company is really pushed to the wire, there is enough space to add new lines here and ramp up production further, but that process will take at least a year,” the sources said.

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Mukesh Ambani decries Singur agitation
Singur deadlock continues, worker attendance falls below 15%

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