Singur villagers back down, want jobs

A group of about 100 villagers held protests today by demanding jobs at the Tata Motors small car plant here, shortly after the arrival of company managing director Ravi Kant "" his first visit to the area after the recent panchayat elections, which had forced the ruling Left Front to review its land acquisition policy.

The villagers had lost their land to the Tatas for its small car project. This was a major shift from the farmers' previous stance in which they had demanded their land back and said they wanted no contact with the company.

Police fired teargas shells on the villagers, who had assembled under the banner of the Trinamool Congress-affiliated Krishi Jami Raksha Committee around the boundary wall at Khasherbheri-Monsatala villages, and began demonstrations. According to eyewitnesses, a part of the boundary wall was also damaged.

 

Kant was on a routine visit to Singur to assess the progress at the plant site and the vendor park. He was joined by senior members of the project management team, officials of the West Bengal Industrial and Development Corporation, suppliers and project contractors during his visit to the plant, said a Tata Motors spokesperson.