Govt website junks Mamata claims on Left’s dismal show

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Industry Minister Partha Chatterjee miss no opportunity to accuse the Left Front for "ruining the industries" in the state and blame the Marxists for harming the investment prospect during their 34-year rule.

However, the investment related figures, put on the official website of West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC), a government body, nullify the CM's accusations.

Contrary to the claims made by the one-year-old Trinamool government, WBIDC, which is under direct control of Partha Chatterjee, states that Bengal has "experienced rapid growth" over the last decade and the growth rate of the state is even above the national average during that period.

"Over the last decade, West Bengal has experienced rapid growth. Today, the state has an industrial growth rate of 1.1 per cent higher than the national average," the web page of WBIDC under the section — West Bengal attracts mettle — states.

The agency, set up during the Left regime to promote industry in West Bengal and to turn the state into a major investment destination, states that over "Rs 9,000 crore worth of new projects have been commissioned in the last four years".

Moreover, it states "West Bengal is second only to Maharashtra in terms of companies established, 72,437, with paid up capital of Rs 39,753 crore."

"In the year 2004 alone, 196 projects involving an investment of Rs 2,394 crore have been implemented in the state," it adds.

In the run-up to the Assembly poll last year, Trinamool leaders had alleged that over 56,000 factories were closed during the Left Front rule. The alleged failure of the government in securing investment was the prime focus of the Opposition.

Even charges of irregularities in distributing plots to industries were levelled against the Left Front by the Trinamool.

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