Singur: The scandal surrounding the acquisition of land to set up a small Tata Nano car factory at Singur in West Bengal’s Hooghly district 12 years ago is well known today. Although the previous Left government had planned to set up the factory to revive the booming industrialization of the state, its implementation was marred by socio-political problems. The decision to set up the factory was taken by the Tatars when the Communist Party led by Buddhadeb Bhattacharya returned to power with a huge majority in early 2006.
Buddhadeva was then known as ‘Brand Buddha’; The better-left front was then seen as an alternative to the left. Therefore, Buddhababu was seen as the biggest hope to restore the economic health of West Bengal. At the same time, the overwhelming majority of 2006 reinforced the question in his favor.
Who Finally Got Singure?
But then how did Singu’s plan lose its direction and the strong political storm that started there finally overturned Buddhababu i.e. Ganesha of the Left, then the present Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee came to power; That is history today. Now the question is: who finally got the last laugh after various political-legal squabbles and negative social impact in Singur? How much did this ‘victory’ really benefit the common man for whom the leaders of the country shouted so much and bragged that it was a ‘historic victory?
Political history of singur
A recent report on Singur in India’s The Wire captures the realities of the locals. One and a half years ago today, Mrs. Banerjee demanded that history be reversed – at the time of returning the land to the farmers in Singur; In fact, it has pushed Singur’s rural economy to the brink of collapse.
Some farmers are working day and night to implement this project, which is almost impossible and unbelievable, after the demolition of the concrete factory and the resumption of cultivation on that land, but they know how difficult this task is. Carrying a piece of brick-stone concrete on that land may be as easy as blowing the trumpet to the political leadership, but anyone who looks at the land closely knows that it is nothing more than an attempt to bring a dead child back to life.
Singur’s Description Is Not Limited To Land Law; Its Scope Is Huge
The Singur crisis is not limited to land or crops. In fact, the massive political turmoil in Singur has shaken the economic and social life there. The Mamata government has provided cheap rice and thousands of rupees for the farming families, but that is not a solution, but another populism to keep one populism afloat. The urgent need for long-term and in-depth economic planning to completely cure the current situation in Singur is not reflected in the work of the political or social leadership in West Bengal.
Singur, which was supposed to be a model village in front of the whole country, is now poorer and darker, due to the incompetence of the Left government and the politics of destruction of the opposition.
The first movement that started around Singur was led by civil society. But the opportunistic political leadership soon realizes that this is the ultimate opportunity to bite to death in the left fortress. Ms. Banerjee was waiting like a wounded tiger to defeat the arch-enemy Left after winning two Assembly and three Lok Sabha elections in Lezgobar after founding her Trinamool Congress. Singur and Nandigram gave him that opportunity.
In the days of protests in Singur, Mamata Banerjee fought for her political goals in the name of saving ‘fertile land’ and ‘unwilling farmers’. The leader’s mission did not allow her strong public base to grow over the years and, on the other hand, three decades of anti-institutionalism against the Left. Tatara Singur left in October 2008; Buddhababu was deposed in May 2011. Since then, the politics of Bengal has only been sympathetic.
But who will account for the fact that so many people and their families have lost their way of life in this game of political conspiracy? No cultivable land; The future of Karkhana-Singur is facing an unknown darkness today. Old-young-women-men all have one question today- what is the future? Building a factory doesn’t just mean cars made there; A large ancillary economic system developed with it. From car-making engineers to suppliers, blacksmiths, and even small tea stalls at the entrance to the factory, open-air beneficiaries benefit.
A whole new economic satellite could be built around the Singur factory; Geographically, it could reduce the pressure on the city of Calcutta. But none of that happened. From the middle, the possibility of industrialization of West Bengal became more stagnant.
After Singur-Nandigram, no political leadership in the state seems to be able to show the courage to acquire land. This is further clarified by the position of the present Chief Minister that the government will not take the land itself. Grameen Votebank is one of Mamata’s biggest electoral strengths today, and so the prospect of anti-agriculture rhetoric on her face is nonsense. But, why are the opposition forces silent? According to The Wire, they are silent because they do not want to buy the anti-agricultural stigma themselves by speaking out for the lost prospects of industrialization in Singur. In the next election battles, Mamata Devi will be the ultimate winner.
But the most worrying of these is totalitarian politics. Although the return of Singur’s land was termed as ‘Renaissance’ by the followers of Mrs. Banerjee, it was in fact a legitimacy of political oppression. The horrific precedent set by West Bengal in destroying the path of complete economic progress through gambling politics, while still in opposition to the Left during the Congress rule, is still alive today.
Thinking that the Singur farmers are doing well, in fact, the defeat we have inflicted on them has completely escaped our notice in the cries of majority democracy. We are pretending not to know everything; Because of our selfish politics, we have lost our ‘responsibility to be great’. Now they understand their problem.
But the history that started in Singur and Nandigram will one day swallow us all like Frankenstein. Just as politics is omnipotent, it is also a double-edged sword. The ‘representative of the proletariat’ left has realized this essence one day; Their heirs are no exception.
Singur Movement UPSC
FAQs
Q. Why did nano fail in India?
A. The Nano had poor ride comfort and stability issues due to the lightweight body.
Q. What was the Singur movement?
A. The Tata Nano Singur controversy was generated by land acquisition of a proposed Tata Motors automobile factory at Singur in Hooghly district, West Bengal, India. The factory would have been used to build the compact car Tata Nano. The project was opposed by activists and opposition parties in Bengal.
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