People's Democracy

WEST BENGAL

Two Years of TMC Rule: An All Round Decline

From Our Special Correspondent

TWO years of TMC rule in West Bengal has seen an all round decline of development, thus destroying the remarkable achievements of the Left Front government. Biman Basu, Left Front chairman, said, on the occasion of the two years of Mamata Banerjee government. 

Basu said that TMC came to power with a slogan to establish democracy, but shamelessly established the party rule in every sector of the government. The state has already witnessed autocracy, and severe anarchy. Comparing first two years of Left Front with this government, Basu noted that after 1977, wide ranging land reforms were initiated and three tier panchayat elections were held for the first time. Food-deficit West Bengal began turning self sufficient with tremendous impetus in agricultural production. In the last two years, on the contrary, peasant suicides have taken place and agriculture is in deep crisis.

Leader of the opposition Surjya Kanta Mishra said, the state had never experienced such high magnitude of scams as it witnessed in the last two years of TMC rule. TMC is running neck to neck with the UPA at the centre on the issues of corruption and misrule, he commented. The prime minister is protecting his law minister and rail minister on the one hand and the chief minister is giving excuses in favour of her MPs and ministers in Saradha chit fund scandal on the other, Mishra said. From the trident lights scam of Kolkata to the highest magnitude of financial corruption, the chief minister has consistently tried to save the accused persons. Saradha group and the state government have looted the people of the state in collaboration, he said. 

Misra said, to hide the failure and corruption of their own the state government is also extending attacks on democratic rights. The freedom of speech and expression is also under attack in this regime. The agrarian sector of the state is under unprecedented crisis. The farmers are committing suicide because of non-receipt of the value of their crops. Instead of buying crops from the farmers the government is making arrangements with the rice mill owners. West Bengal used to enjoy the first position in rice production but during last two years the production has deteriorated by eight million tonnes yearly in average. Production of winter (boro) rice has also come down. The government did not show any intention of setting up cold storage in any block. The state government did not renew the insurance scheme for the farmers to protect them from the natural calamities which was in action during the Left Front regime. The state has been lagging behind in the NREGA project. Several social allowances have been discontinued, said Surjya Kanta Mishra.

The state government is only propagating provisions of investment instead of matured investment. According to the data of Directorate of Industries, the last few years of Left Front government attracted yearly investment of three to four thousand crores of rupees. It even reached to nine thousand crore rupees in one year. The amount of investment has drastically reduced during the new regime, said Surjya Kanta Mishra. Due to obvious reason, the state government is presently silent on Singur issue. Nor they are uttering anything about the projects of Infosys, NTPC or Jindal Group, he said. Haldia port was doing well; it was in a profit-earning condition but due to the anarchy of the ruling party that too is running through a bad phase, he added.

The new government has not been able to set up a single new unit for electric current. Additionally the setting up of 200 new sub-stations initiated by the Left Front government has also been discontinued. The new government did not co-operate in the expansion of the National Highways. The non co-operation went to such an extent that the National Highway Authority had to stop the work and leave the state. It is becoming tough to find out contractors to execute the jobs under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana due to financial extortion by the cadres of the ruling party. Nobody knows when the East-West Metro project will be completed in Kolkata, he said.