“Earlier, I used to sell goods of Rs 5,000 daily. Now, I hardly get Rs 100. At that time, the market bustled with crowds of workers, officers, contractors. Now, it is barren as we wait for a customer,” adds Pakhira.

Then there are over 300 people who pooled in the money they got as compensation against their land to form syndicates to supply raw materials to the factory. After work stopped in the Nano plant in September last year, these people are yet to get their money back.

“What will I say? Now they are launching the Nano in Mumbai. The Nano was a dream for us, the people of Singur, but now that dream has been shattered. Imagine if it was launched from here,” says Debi Das, a resident of Gopalnagar. “I am yet to get around Rs 6 lakh from various companies, that got raw materials from us. They promised me they would pay back,” adds Das.