A few days after Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee inaugurated the East-West Metro project with much fanfare, CITU activists today stalled work at Pranab Nagar station, a part of the Metro extension project from Tollygunge to Garia.

Around 30-40 activists of the CPM’s trade union wing, CITU, raided the site office at Pranab Nagar demanding that the locals recommended by them be given jobs. Following the intervention of the police, work was resumed in the evening. Incidentally, the state government has contributed to the extension project by forking out a portion of the cost.

The contractor, Ratan Das, said that 30-40 youth came to the office on motorbikes around noon. They wanted the supervisor of the site office to appoint 25-30 locals and place them in charge of security. “A few days ago, the CITU office at Naktala also sent me a letter with the same demand,” he said.

Das alleged CITU activists often pressured him to appoint some locals, which he had even done. Das said he had got a contract worth Rs 8 crore to develop the Pranab Nagar Station at Garia.

The contractor said with the Metro railway authorities fixing March 31 as the deadline for finishing the job (the station would be handed over to Metro railway then), it was not possible to recruit any person in the time being.