Lower attendance affects work at Tata Motors' plant in Singur

While recent agitations by Trinamool Congress (TMC) activists crippled the attendance of local labourers at the Tata Motors' small-car plant site, the Engineers and directly employed workers reported for work today.

Tata Motors (TML) engineers and the directly employed workers have reported for work, according to sources in TML.Attendance was, however, hit among the local labourers employed by the contractors working at the site. Work has been partially crippled as construction, electrical, as well as materials handling contractors have been facing issues with labour attendance. Sterling and Wilson Electricals private limited, one of the associate companies of Shapoorji Pallonji & Company limited, is one of the national level contractors working at the site that faced problems with labourer attendance.

Emboldened by the recent victory at the panchayat elections in Singur, TMC has ramped up its campaign demanding the 400 acres acquired from 'unwilling' farmers back. TMC today blocked trains including even long-distance ones like the Rajdhani Express at the Dhaniakhali railway station in the morning.

TMC and the Krishi Jami Rakkha Committee(KJRC) have allegedly issued notices to outstation labourers to leave the plant site. Migrant labourers staying at Singur village were attacked during the week, causing panic and apprehension.

When contacted, Tata Motors spokesperson said that the sense of ambience at the work site should be positive. "Sporadic lack of attendance should not hamper work in the long run.Though most of the work was done, the remaining had to be completed for the Nano to roll out during the October-December quarter", he said. The spokesperson ruled out any possibility of the first car being rolled out of TML's Pune or Pantnagar plants.

The Communist Party of India-Marxist(CPIM) backed workers' union called Nirmaan Karmi Union will take out a procession in protest against TMC 'atrocities' today in the afternoon starting from the small car site.

As for today, an additional 1,000 policemen have reportedly been deployed in and around Singur. The regular force at the plant is around 1,800 police personnel. The security has been tightened in the last two weeks after reports of a possible attack by Maoist rebels first flowed in, followed by TMC agitations. S Patra, the Tata Motors security in-charge at the site, is in talks with both intelligence sources and the state police to ensure security of the company's employees.

TMC leader Mamta Banerjee will visit Singur tommorrow while the local Congress leadership planned to block the National Highway 2 on the same day.