Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee’s largesse for West Bengal with an eye on the 2011 Assembly elections has rattled the CPM which has painted the Rail Budget as the Trinamool Congress’s manifesto for the polls.

The party on Friday found itself in some kind of a dilemma. It could neither criticise Banerjee for announcing more trains and a host of railway-related projects for Bengal nor welcome it. While the Politburo was silent on this aspect, CPM’s Parliamentary Party leader in Lok Sabha Basudeb Acharia said the budget was aimed at the elections.

“Yes, it is almost that,” he said when asked whether the budget was the Trinamool Congress’s manifesto for the Assembly polls two years from now. “The new trains, most of them for Bengal, have been announced keeping the elections in mind....Most of the new trains announced outside Bengal were announced by (her predecessor) Lalu Prasad earlier,” he said.

He said instead of announcing new lines, the Railway Ministry should focus on areas like modernisation of signalling system, bringing in new coaches, getting more passengers and freight traffic, replacing old rail bridges and increase the average speed of trains.

He said the proposed Nandigram-Singur rail line is not feasible. “I don’t know why she wants it. The already announced Jhargram-Purulia route can address the needs of all these areas,” he said. Interestingly, Banerjee also talked about plans to set up a power project at Adra, which falls in Acharia’s Lok Sabha constituency Bankura.

“I don’t know how she will acquire land for the project. At least, 1,000 acres would be required for the project. She has been opposing

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