Nano becomes mega issue in Hooghly

For Hooghly, Arambag and Sreerampore, the three parliamentary constituencies of the Hooghly district in Bengal, all major national political issues are non-existent. The entire campaign revolves around a single-point issue: the Nano pullout from Singur.

CPI(M) candidates Rupchand Pal (Hooghly), Shakti Mohan Malik (Arambag) and Shantashri Chakraborty (Sreerampore) have a single-point agenda. In all rallies and road-shows, they are emphasising that the Nano pullout will not just affect the development of Singur, but also the entire Hooghly district. Therefore, the Trinamool Congress, which is responsible for forcing Tata Motors out of the region, should not be given a single vote, they say, adding “Courtesy Mamata, Sanand smiles at the cost of Hooghly’s tears”.

For Ratna Dey Nag and Kalyan Bandopadhyay, Trinamool candidates from Hooghly and Sreerampore, the task is bit complicated. Besides highlighting the alleged state government-conducted “atrocities” on farmers in the name of industrialisation, they are making efforts to explain to the voters that Trinamool is not anti-industry.

In her campaigns, Nag generally starts with a statement that Trinamool leaders are not lunatics that they will oppose industry. “We still want Nano factory at Singur but only after returning 400 acres to the unwilling farmers. We are also against forceful farmland acquisition by the state government in the name of industrialisation,” Nag said.

Pal was prompt enough to retaliate to her comments when he said that after driving out Nano, such explanations sound meaningless. “Equally meaningless is the persisting demand for return of 400 acres. Even if the land is returned, it is not suitable for agriculture. So, we want an industrial unit there only. I have talked to the people and the entire district wants industry there,” Pal said.