No land acquisition,says Bengal,scraps expressway

The announcement was made in the Assembly by state Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta,who was replying to the debate on West Bengal Appropriation Bill.

Dasgupta also said that the Barasat-Raichak expressway project of the Salim Group of Indonesia stood cancelled. We do not think it is required any longer, he said. The Salim group was to construct the 85-km-long expressway between Barasat in North 24 Parganas district and Raichak in South 24 Parganas district,which required 3,000 acres of land.

The Salim Group is also supposed to build a bridge across the river Bhagirathi between Raichak and Haldia.

Dasgupta also said that from now on industrialists would have to purchase land to set up industries. To acquire land for big industries,investors will have to go in for direct purchase of land. And in case they get stuck in getting a small piece of land,the state government will come forward, Dasgupta said.

The state governments decision marked a climb-down from Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjees efforts for quick industrialisation of the state. Without land acquisition,the states industrialisation process will hit a roadblock,political and industrial circles say.

The minister also said that the state government was going to create a land bank by investing Rs 500 crore and industrialists would be asked to choose land from that bank.

Earlier,state Minister for Land and Land Reforms Abdur Rezaq Molah said in the Assembly that henceforth industrialists would have no freedom to choose land for industries. They would be offered land from the states own land bank.