Protesters holding up work at Tata Motors' Nano project in Singur agreed to talks over land seizures, a protest leader said on Tuesday, raising hope the world's cheapest car will roll out on time.

The talks offer is seen as a marginal softening in the stand of Trinamool Congress, after it said parts of the factory had to relocate from land farmers did not wish to give up.

The protests slowed work at the factory for months, threatening to derail Tata Motors' plans to launch the $2,300 car in October to coincide with the Indian festive season.

Such has been the acrimony that Tata Motors Chairman Ratan Tata said he was prepared to move the plant from Singur despite having invested $350 million in the project.

The Trinamool has also come under pressure to find a way out of the stand-off after industry lobbies and analysts warned the protests could scare away investors.

"Doors are now open for talks. Things are getting eased," Partha Chattopadhayay, a top Trinamool Congress leader, said even as thousands of Nano workers stayed away from work for the fifth day on Tuesday in the face of protests.

The protests in Singur reflect a larger stand-off between industry in India and farmers unwilling to part with land in a country where two-thirds of the billion-plus population depend on agriculture.

The trouble began after the government took over 1,000 acres (400 hectares) of farmland for the factory. The government offered compensation, but some farmers with smaller land holdings said it was inadequate and demanded their land be given back to them.

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