Following Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee’s personal letter to Ratan Tata on Friday, urging him to reconsider Tata Motors’ apparent resolve to abandon work at the Nano car plant in Singur, the company has agreed to participate in a meeting with the CM and other officials on September 28.

At a CPI(M) state secretariat meeting held on Friday morning at Alimuddin Street, the Chief Minister told his party colleagues that even though the chances of the Tatas staying on in West Bengal were very slim, the Government would do its best to keep the Nano project in the state.

Quoting Buddhadeb’s letter to Ratan Tata, Commerce and Industries Minister Nirupam Sen said: “You will not encounter any problems in continuing work at Singur. There are adequate security arrangements. If needed security can be increased¿ (the) people of Singur as well as the state want the Nano plant to stay in West Bengal.”

Sen as well as Left Front chairman Biman Bose also appealed to the Tatas along the same lines. “The opinion of a handful of people cannot be held as the ultimate decision. Out of 13,000 land losers, 11,000 had accepted compensation. So how can one say that majority do not want the Nano plant?” said Sen. Biman Bose, on the other hand, said, “I can understand that the small car will miss its deadline but I still fell that the Tatas should stay in Bengal.”

Meanwhile, Trinamool chief, Mamata Banerjee remained defiant in her speech after the Trinamool Congress held a protest rally in front of the Tata plant earlier in the day. “What is the problem if the Tatas leave? There are many investors who want to invest in West Bengal,” she said. Nonetheless, she also made an attempt to deflect any ‘blame’ on herself for the company’s exit. “The Tatas have already acquired agricultural land. If they leave now, Bengal will have neither the factory nor the farmers their land. Bengal will have neither industry nor agriculture. The West Bengal Government should be held responsible for this, not me,” she said.