DIDI`s DATE with History as Bengal is NO More MARXIST!'Govt to return 400 acres to Singur farmers'!

DIDI`s DATE with History as Bengal is NO More MARXIST!'Govt to return 400 acres to Singur farmers'!

Industrialists hail West Bengal's 'historic day'!

Indian Holocaust My Father`s Life and Time - SIX HUNDRED FORTY TWO

Palash Biswas

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Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Friday opened another front against the Tata group, hours after being sworn in as the chief minister of West Bengal.

 

"My first decision as chief minister is to return the 400 acres to the unwilling farmers of Singur," Banerjee said after the first cabinet meeting on Friday.

This 400 acres is part of the 1,000 acres acquired for the Tatas' Nano factory. Trinamool says it was acquired forcibly.

"It has been decided at the cabinet's first meeting that the Tatas are welcome to build their factory on 600 acres. But 400 acres will be given back to the farmers," she said.

The Nano project became a big political issue in 2008 when Banerjee sided with the farmers and asked the state government to return the land acquired forcibly.

The Tatas were forced to shift the project to Sanand in Gujarat.

While Banerjee could not give a deadline by when the land would be returned, she said the action would be in accordance with law.

A Tata Motors spokesperson said, "We have no guidance."

The decision dashes hopes that the new government may become friendly with the Tatas to send a signal that it welcomes investments into the state – the numerous Trinamool Congress agitations against industry notwithstanding.

The Tata group had kept a communication channel with the Trinamool Congress open by informing it about the launch of its cancer hospital on May 16. The hospital was inaugurated by Group Chairman Ratan Tata.

The senior Tata executives invited for Banerjee's swearing-in ceremony did not turn up. The Trinamool Congress had sent invites to Ratan Tata, Tata Sons Director R Gopalakrishnan, Tata Steel Vice-Chairman B Muthuraman and Tata Motors Vice-Chairman Ravi Kant.

Asked if the move would make future investments by the Tata group uncertain, Banerjee said, "Bengal will be such a place that I will not have to invite the Tatas. They will come and invest."

Banerjee said she would make the state government's lease agreement with Tata Motors public. The Left Front government had put it partially in the public domain.

Experts say the main impediment in returning the land is law. Under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, land once acquired for a public purpose cannot be returned. However, a new legislation can be passed.

The previous Left Front government, under which the land was acquired, claimed that only 181 acres was disputed.

Industrialists hail West Bengal's 'historic day'

Industrialists hailed Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee after she became the chief minister of West Bengal Friday, saying it was a "fantastic" and "historic" day.

Inventor, entrepreneur and policy maker Sam Pitroda said: "I was looking forward to this day. I know Mamata Banerjee as a friend since the day of Rajiv Gandhi. I will continue to advice and assist her in all her endeavours."

Tata Ryerson Managing Director Sandipan Chakravortty said it was a "fantastic change".

"We were looking for the significant change to come which will benefit the state and the industry. In my expectations she will focus on education and small and medium scale enterprises. She will also try in her own way to get big industries," he said.

According to Chakravortty, Banerjee did not have an anti-industry image.

He said: "She is pro-agriculture. She never said that she is against industry or the Tatas. As regard to industry, it will take time. But she will try to deliver."

Following intense anti-land acquisition protests in Singur led by the Trinamool Congress , Tata Motors had pulled out its Nano project from the town in Hooghly district.

On the Singur land, Chakravortty said: "Something has to be done there. It is an idle asset. There are legal aspects involved in it. The land is still owned by the Tatas."

RPG Group chairman Sanjiv Goenka hoped that Banerjee would come with a lot of positivity for industry.

"She has the rare quality of relating to the poorest of the poor and richest of the rich, which very few politicians have," he said.

On his expectations from the new government, Goenka said: "It is not the time to express our expectations, but to ask what she expects from us. We are confident that she will try her best to achieve long-term growth, especially for industry."

According to Sanjay Budhia, managing director of Patton International, it was a "historic day".

"Only Mamata Banerjee has the power to bring industry to Bengal. She will be able to achieve growth with a human face," he said.

 

WB assembly: Amit Mitra allocated Finance, Partha gets commerce, industries

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today allocated the key Finance portfolio to former FICCI secretary-general Amit Mitra and Commerce, Industries and Parliamentary Affairs department to her close aide Partha Chatteerjee .

Portfolios of other cabinet ministers and ministers of state would be announced soon, the chief minister told her maiden press conference after holding the first cabinet meeting at the Writers' Buildings.

"I will keep some departments with me," Banerjee said without disclosing the ones she would keep.

A few days ago, Banerjee had said that she would like to hold the Home, Health and Education departments.

She said that beside herself, 35 ministers took oath. "Congress (Trinamool Congress ally) will communicate the names of five ministers of state," Banerjee added.

'Govt to return 400 acres to Singur farmers'

In her first major policy decision, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday announced that her government would return 400 acres from the abandoned Tata Motors plant at Singur to farmers who unwillingly parted with their land.

"The first decision taken in the cabinet is return of 400 acres from the abandoned Tata Motors plant in Singur. If the Tatas are willing, they can set up the factory on 600 acres," she said at her maiden press conference after holding the first cabinet meeting at Writers' Buildings.

To a query whether she would make the agreement between the Tatas and the previous Left Front government public, she said, "We have asked for a copy of the agreement.



The agreement will be made public. I believe in transparency."

When pointed out that the land was with the Tatas on lease and how leased land could be returned, Banerjee retorted "You do not have to worry. The government will act as per law."

Asked whether the Tatas would be invited to invest in West Bengal, she said, "I wish that they invest in the state." Sought a reaction, a Tata Motors spokesman said "no comment".

Following the pull-out of the Nano project from Singur because of agitation by the Trinamool Congress, the Tatas had shifted the mother plant to Sanand in Gujarat in October 2008.

Subsequently, the company continued to hold the land by paying the yearly lease rentals.

Mamata Banerjee, who ended the uninterrupted 34-year reign of the Left in West Bengal, on Friday scripted history when she was sworn in as the first woman Chief Minister of the state at the head of a Trinamool Congress-Congress coalition government.

The 56-year-old leader was sworn in as the 11th Chief Minister of the state at an impressive ceremony here by Governor MK Narayanan, who also administered the oath of office and secrecy to her.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi, who were invited by Banerjee for the ceremony, did not make it to the function which was attended by Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Union Home Minister P Chidambaram.

Along with her, 37 MLAs - 35 from Trinamool Congress and 2 from ally Congress - took oath as ministers of the two-tier ministry. Four of the Trinamool Congress MLAs were sworn in as Ministers of State.



Contrary to speculation, Mukherjee's son Abhijit, who was elected as an MLA, failed to make it to the ministry.

Clad in a simple white sari and wearing a tricolor 'uttariya' (long scarf) that has by now become her trade mark, Banerjee took the oath in Bengali in the name of God.

Partha Chatterjee, Deputy Leader of the Trinamool Congress Legislature party, former FICCI Secretary General Amit Mitra and WBPCC chief Manas Bhunia and CLP leader Abu Hena were among those who were inducted into the Cabinet.

While Mitra, a TC MLA who quit as FICCI general secretary, was alloted Finance portfolio, Chatterjee will be the Industries and Parliamentary Affairs Minister.

Banerjee, who left the Congress in 1997 to form her own party to take on the Left, took the oath exactly at 1.01 pm, a time chosen by her in the presence of over 3,000 guests including the defeated Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya and Left Front convener Biman Bose.

After the swearing-in, Banerjee took everyone by surprise when she hit the road to go to Writers Building to assume office, a distance of 1 km, that took a long time as she was caught in the milling crowds that wanted to have a glimpse of her and greet her.

After holding a cabinet meeting, the Chief Minister announced that the government would return 400 acres from the abandoned Tata Motors plant in Singur to farmers who unwillingly parted with their land.

She also said if Tatas are interested to set up a factory on 600 acre in Singur, they are welcome. Former Finance Minister Ashim Dasgupta and former Assembly speaker HA Halim were among those who attended the ceremony that lasted for one hour and 35 minutes. Former Governor Viren J Shah was also present.

Film actors Prasenjit, June Malia and singer Sandhya Mukherjee were among the other invitees to the ceremony throughout which the Trinamool Congress leaders kept shouting slogans hailing Banerjee.

Captains of industry including Sanjiv Goenka, Harsh Neotia, SK Roy, Sanjay Budhia, Sandipan Chakraborty were present. Also present were sports administrator Jagmohan Dalmiya, sports personalities Chuni Goswami and PK Banerjee.

Chidambaram walked to the dais after the ceremony and congratulated Banerjee.

Subrata Bakshi, state party president, Subrata Mukherjee, party vice-president, Sadhan Pandey, senior leader, Rabindranath Bhattacharjee, MLA from Singur, Manish Gupta, former chief secretary, and Upen Biswas, a former CBI Additional Director, took the oath.

Tatas are welcome in Singur, but minus 400 acres: Mamata Banerjee

Monideepa Banerjie, Updated: May 20, 2011 22:15 IST
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Kolkata:  Hours after taking oath as West Bengal Chief Minister, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has made it clear that she will return the disputed land at Singur to farmers.

Addressing the media after her first Cabinet meet, Mamata said, "The Cabinet has decided to return the disputed 400 acres of land at Singur to farmers. Processes will be set into motion for this. The Tatas are welcome to have industry on the balance 600 acres."

The West Bengal government had leased almost 1000 acres of land at Singur to Tata Motors in 2006 for a Nano factory.

A section of farmers whose land totalled 400 acres had given the land unwillingly, refusing to accept payment for it. TwitterNDTV SocialLive MessengerGmail BuzzPrint

Making it clear that her government means business, Mamata said the Cabinet will meet once a fortnight from now on, adding that ministers must come to work on Saturdays too.

She also said that the government will invite ex-Justice Sachchar to help us formulate a package for minorities.

The Trinamool chief created history by uprooting the Left Front government from West Bengal after 34 years. And today, accompanied by thousands of people, Mamata walked the 20 minutes from Raj Bhawan to Writers Building, her new office. Jostled and pushed around in the massive rally, Mamata was actually cut on her arm and foot but kept on reaching out to her supporters in her typical style.

When asked about this, she said, "I could not have come by car because there was a sea of people on the roads. I took the Governor's permission before walking from Raj Bhawan to the Writers' Building."

Mamata also announced that former FICCI Chief Amit Mitra will be West Bengal's new Finance Minister. (Read) Senior Trinamool leader Partha Chatterjee will be minister for industry and commerce.

She reiterated that this is the government of Ma Mati Manush. "I thank them for their support. People are emotional; democracy minus people is not possible," Mamata said.

Earlier on Friday, at one minute past one in the afternoon, Mamata Banerjee took oath to become the first woman Chief Minister of West Bengal. (Read: Mamata Banerjee sworn in as West Bengal Chief Minister)

It was a historic moment for the state and personally, one that the diminutive giant-slayer has waited for all her life. Mamata took oath in Bengali marking a change of guard that will see the end of 34 years of uninterrupted rule by the CPM-led Left Front.



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Story first published:
May 20, 2011 19:20 IST

Tags: Mamata Banerjee, Mamata Cabinet, Mamata government

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Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/tatas-are-welcome-in-singur-but-minus-400-acres-mamata-banerjee-107219?cp

 

Mamata talks tough, to return Singur's 400 acres to farmers Business Standard - ‎26 minutes ago‎ Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Friday opened another front against the Tata group, hours after being sworn in as the chief minister of West Bengal. "My first decision as chief minister is to return the 400 acres to the unwilling farmers of ... Mamata defends large size of ministry IBNLive.com - ‎1 hour ago‎ PTI | 11:05 PM,May 20,2011 Kolkata, May 20 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today defended the large size of her ministry saying it reflected representation of all districts.On being reminded that she had earlier spoken about a small ... Tatas are welcome in Singur, but minus 400 acres: Mamata NDTV.com - ‎2 hours ago‎ Kolkata: Hours after taking oath as West Bengal Chief Minister, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has made it clear that she will return the disputed land at Singur to farmers. Addressing the media after her first Cabinet meet, Mamata said, ... "My first decision as chief minister is to return the 400 acres to the unwilling farmers of Singur," Banerjee said after the first cabinet meeting on Friday. more by Mamata Banerjee - 26 minutes ago - Business Standard (1 occurrences) Mamata sworn in as 1st woman CM of Bengal Financial Express - ‎1 hour ago‎ Kolkata: Mamata Banerjee was sworn in as the 11th — and first woman — chief minister of West Bengal on Friday, riding a huge mandate with her alliance, Trinamool Congress-Congress, winning 227 of the 294 seats in the assembly. ... Collective responsibility to rid WB of financial crisis: WBPCC IBNLive.com - ‎2 hours ago‎ PTI | 10:05 PM,May 20,2011 Kolkata, May 20 (PTI) WBPCC chief and newly sworn-in minister in the Mamata Banerjee cabinet Manas Bhuina today said West Bengal was in a debt trap and it is the collective responsibility of the new government to tide over ... Seizure of illegal arms to be stepped up: Mamata IBNLive.com - ‎2 hours ago‎ PTI | 10:05 PM,May 20,2011 Kolkata, May 20 (PTI) Following the seizure of illegal weapons from various parts of South Bengal, particularly West Midnapur district and CPI(M) offices in the last few days, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said her ... Will Talk to Sachar About Special Provisions: Mamata Outlook - ‎55 minutes ago‎ PTI | Kolkata | May 20, 2011 Keeping an election pledge, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said the state government would talk to Justice Rajinder Sachar for making special provisions for minorities. "The condition of Muslims in the ... Mamata orders committee to review cases of political prisoners IBNLive.com - ‎2 hours ago‎ PTI | 10:05 PM,May 20,2011 Kolkata, May 20 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said that a committee would be formed soon for a case-by-case review of the release of political prisoners in the state."A 10-member expert committee will ... Mamata for Efficient Disaster Management in Bengal Outlook - ‎1 hour ago‎ PTI | Kolkata | May 20, 2011 West Bengal's new Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said her government was keen on strengthening the department of Disaster Management and set up a separate department to expedite 100-days work under NREGA and ... Industrialists hail West Bengal's 'historic day' Economic Times - ‎2 hours ago‎ KOLKATA: Industrialists hailed Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee after she became the chief minister of West Bengal Friday, saying it was a "fantastic" and "historic" day. Inventor, entrepreneur and policy maker Sam Pitroda said: "I was looking forward ... All 231 related articles »

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Tehelka A new chapter begins Daily Pioneer - ‎22 minutes ago‎ With Ms Mamata Banerjee formally taking charge as Chief Minister of West Bengal on Friday afternoon, a new chapter has begun in the State's history. Once-envied education system looks to Mamata for 'poriborton' Hindustan Times all 4 news articles » Email this story Two from West Bengal scale Kanchenjunga IBNLive.com - ‎3 hours ago‎ Biswas and Singharoy are the members of MAK and are based in Nadia district of West Bengal. Roy claimed they are the first civilian Indians to have reached the Kanchenjunga (8586 mt). Hindu Business Line TCS launches iON in West Bengal Business Standard - ‎May 18, 2011‎ When asked about whether the late launch of iON was releated to the political situation or elections in West Bengal, V Ramaswamy, Global Head of iON, said, "Our national launch was on February this year and we were launching it state wise. TCS launches SMB solution iOn in West Bengal Hindu Business Line TCS eyeing $1 bn from small Indian establishments Sify indiablooms all 18 news articles » BOM:532540 Email this story Return of the brash politician Times of India - Chetan Bhagat - ‎41 minutes ago‎ In West Bengal or Tamil Nadu, the government has fallen, and the opponent has emerged - in the former case with a resounding majority. Amit Mitra appointed as West Bengal finance minister NDTV.com - ‎3 hours ago‎ Former Ficci secretary general Amit Mitra has been appointed as finance minister of West Bengal. After a long stint of 16 years, Mitra resigned from industrial chamber Ficci to pursue his political career in West Bengal. In the just-concluded state ... Rediff Nothing to do with individuals: Karat The Hindu - ‎May 18, 2011‎ NEW DELHI: Under attack over successive electoral losses, Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Prakash Karat has refused to quit his post saying he alone will not take the responsibility for the massive debacle in West Bengal. WB polls: Karat admits failure India Today I have no reason to quit, says CPM general secretary Prakash Karat Economic Times iNewsOne - Express Buzz - IBNLive.com - Tehelka all 30 news articles » Email this story Italy to promote food, literature in West Bengal Times of India - ‎May 19, 2011‎ Italy will promote its food and literature in West Bengal by opening a new restaurant in the city and becoming the theme country in next year's Kolkata Book Fair, an Italian envoy said Wednesday. More arms seized in West Bengal, three skeletons dug up Hindustan Times - ‎May 18, 2011‎ PTI Firearms and bombs were seized from two CPI(M) party offices by the joint forces during searches today, while three skeletons were dug up by villagers in the continuing hunt for illegal arms in West Bengal. Two pistols and daggers were seized by ... Blind to anger and discontent Daily Pioneer - Hiranmay Karlekar - ‎22 minutes ago‎ The resultant authoritarianism brought about its fall in West Bengal. The Communist Party of India (Marxist)'s rout in the recent West Bengal Assembly election has been attributed to several factors - its vaulting arrogance; forcible acquisition of ... IT solutions for small, medium business in West Bengal launched by TCS Calcutta Tube - ‎22 hours ago‎ Kolkata, May 19 (Calcutta Tube / IBNS): Information Technology services firm, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), announced the launch of iON, the fully integrated information technology solution for small and medium businesses (SMBs) in West Bengal on ... BOM:532540 - EPA:MLGIT Business Today Rajiv Kumar tipped to be next Ficci Secy Gen Business Today - Anuradha Shukla - ‎May 19, 2011‎ Senior economist Dr Rajiv Kumar is tipped to be the next secretary general of industry body Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci), after Amit Mitra has resigned to pursue a political career in West Bengal. Amit Mitra quits FICCI, tipped to become W Bengal finance minister news domain-B Amit Mitra steps down as FICCI secretary-general The Hindu Businessworld - Economic Times - mydigitalfc.com - NDTV.com - Wikipedia: Amit Mitra all 32 news articles » Email this story

Featured video Historic day for Mamata Banerjee NewsX all 655 news articles » Images Hindu Business ... Korea Times Hindu Business ... India Today domain-B Moneycontrol.co... India Today The Hindu Indian Express All related images »

Tagore songs played to celebrate Mamata Banerjee's swearing-in as chief minister

Daily News & Analysis - ‎2 hours ago‎

Place: Kolkata | Agency: PTI Trinamool Congress workers and supporters sang Rabindrasangeet outside Writers' Buildings as new chief minister Mamata Banerjee today entered the historic building to formally take charge of the state administration. ...

Govt to prepare special economic package for Maoist-hit region: Mamata Banerjee

Daily News & Analysis - ‎2 hours ago‎

Place: Kolkata | Agency: PTI New West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee today said that the state government would prepare a special economic package for the people of Maoist-hit Jangalmahal and was serious about solving the problem within three ...

Mamata Banerjee says no to bullet-proof car

Daily News & Analysis - ‎2 hours ago‎

Place: Kolkata | Agency: PTI Mamata Banerjee, who took over as the new West Bengal chief minister today said she would not use a bullet-proof car. "I will not take a bullet-proof car. I don't want a bullet-proof car. I don't have any vehicle on my own. ...

Historic day for Mamata Banerjee

NewsX - ‎2 hours ago‎

West Bengal witnessed history today as Mamata Banerjee became the first woman chief minister of the state. Watch for some incredible scenes from Kolkata as she was welcomed in to her first day on the job by tens of thousands of supporters.

Tatas are welcome in Singur, but minus 400 acres: Mamata

NDTV.com - ‎2 hours ago‎

Kolkata: Hours after taking oath as West Bengal Chief Minister, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has made it clear that she will return the disputed land at Singur to farmers. Addressing the media after her first Cabinet meet, Mamata said, ...

Mamata talks tough, to return Singur's 400 acres to farmers

Business Standard - ‎31 minutes ago‎

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Friday opened another front against the Tata group, hours after being sworn in as the chief minister of West Bengal. "My first decision as chief minister is to return the 400 acres to the unwilling farmers of ...

Mamata keeps vow for 18 years

Hindustan Times - ‎4 hours ago‎

PTI Railway Minister and Trinamool Congress party leader Mamata Banerjee gestures as she arrives at a...... Eighteen years after she vowed never to set foot again in Writers' Building from where she was forcefully evicted while on dharna with a rape ...

Mamata sworn in as CM

Business Standard - ‎11 minutes ago‎

A sea of humanity, including industrialists, artistes, litterateurs and the who's who of Kolkata, cheered as the first female chief minister of the state, Mamata Banerjee, was sworn in today. Amid the pomp and celebrations, the way West Bengal greeted ...

Mamata Govt to follow 'action agenda'

Hindu Business Line - ‎1 hour ago‎

The Governor of West Bengal, Mr MK Narayanan, administers the oath of Chief Ministership to Ms Mamata Banerjee at the Raj Bhavan in Kolkata on Friday. — Arunangsu Roy Chowdhury The euphoria over, Trinamool's self-imposed action countdown began on ...

Mamata defends large size of ministry

IBNLive.com - ‎1 hour ago‎

PTI | 11:05 PM,May 20,2011 Kolkata, May 20 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today defended the large size of her ministry saying it reflected representation of all districts.On being reminded that she had earlier spoken about a small ...

Mamata walks the launch of paribartan

Hindu Business Line - Pratim Ranjan Bose - ‎2 hours ago‎

Reaching out: The Chief Minister of West Bengal, Ms Mamata Banerjee, walks to her office at the Writers' Building from Raj Bhavan in Kolkata on Friday. — A. Roy Chowdhury "Exciting! I have attended such occasions many times. But, never before, I could ...

Mamata orders committee to review cases of political prisoners

IBNLive.com - ‎2 hours ago‎

PTI | 10:05 PM,May 20,2011 Kolkata, May 20 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said that a committee would be formed soon for a case-by-case review of the release of political prisoners in the state."A 10-member expert committee will ...

Mamata scripts history

The Hindu - ‎5 hours ago‎

Trinamool Congress chief and former Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee walked her way into Bengal's history as she became the State's first woman Chief Minister as well as the first non-Marxist Chief Minister in three decades. ...

Mamata takes charge as West Bengal CM

Livemint - ‎2 hours ago‎

Kolkata : What Mamata Banerjee started 18 years ago as a street campaigner, she completed on Friday as West Bengal's chief minister with her victory march to the Writers' Building. Followed by tens of thousands of followers, she entered the state ...

Sea of humanity along Mamata's road to Secretariat

The Hindu - ‎5 hours ago‎

PTI PTI A large crowd near the State Secretariat building in Kolkata waits for a glimpse of the new West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Photo: PTI It was a sea of humanity on both sides of the street which Mamata Banerjee took to walk from the ...

Mamata to return 400 acres of Singur land to farmers

Hindustan Times - ‎4 hours ago‎

PTI In her first major policy decision, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday announced that her government would return 400 acres from the abandoned Tata Motors plant at Singur to farmers who unwillingly parted with their land. ...

Seizure of illegal arms to be stepped up: Mamata

IBNLive.com - ‎2 hours ago‎

PTI | 10:05 PM,May 20,2011 Kolkata, May 20 (PTI) Following the seizure of illegal weapons from various parts of South Bengal, particularly West Midnapur district and CPI(M) offices in the last few days, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said her ...

A pilgrim spot? No, it's Mamata's home

Hindustan Times - ‎7 hours ago‎

Mamata Banerjee's single-storey house at the dingy Harish Chatterjee Street in south Kolkata almost turned into a pilgrim place as people thronged in thousands to congratulate her on Friday, the day she became West Bengal's first woman chief mi People ...

Mamata Banerjee becomes first woman CM of Bengal

NewsX - ‎10 hours ago‎

Mamata Banerjee has taken oath as the New Chief Minister of West Bengal. It's a historic day for West Bengal as 34-year long rule of Left front ends. Mamata becomes the first woman Chief Minister of West Bengal.

Mamata Banerjee sworn in as Bengal CM

Hindu Business Line - ‎10 hours ago‎

The Union Finance Minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, the Union Home Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, and the Minister of State for Railways, Mr K. Muniappa, greet Ms Mamata Banerjee after her swearing-in as Chief Minister at Raj Bhavan in Kolkata on Friday. ...

Buddhadeb, Biman, Mamata at same function - at long last

Hindustan Times - ‎7 hours ago‎

PTI The swearing-in ceremony of the Trinamool Congress-Congress ministry in politically polarised West Bengal here Friday presented a rare sight - new Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee sharing the same public space with her predecessor Buddhadeb ...

Mamata promises to work day and night for next seven days

IBNLive.com - ‎6 hours ago‎

PTI | 06:05 PM,May 20,2011 Kolkata, May 20 (PTI) West Bengal's new Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today promised to work day and night for seven days without break to learn the state of affairs of the administration.Stating that she would not take a ...

Mamata prefers to be called a "commoner"

IBNLive.com - ‎7 hours ago‎

PTI | 05:05 PM,May 20,2011 Kolkata, May 20 (PTI) Shortly after her swearing-in as West Bengal's first woman chief minister today, Mamata Banerjee said she would prefer to be called a commoner. Asked how she was feeling now that she has become the chief ...

Industrialists hail West Bengal's 'historic day'

Economic Times - ‎2 hours ago‎

KOLKATA: Industrialists hailed Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee after she became the chief minister of West Bengal Friday, saying it was a "fantastic" and "historic" day. Inventor, entrepreneur and policy maker Sam Pitroda said: "I was looking forward ...

Now A Documentary On Mamata Banerjee's Life

NDTV.com - ‎11 hours ago‎

The educated middle class has a strange snobbery about people like Mamata and I think it is high time they change their attitude," he says. On Banerjee's recent victory Ghose adds, "The Left party ruled for 33 years and a single party ruling for such a ...

Historic day in WB, Mamata takes oath today

IBNLive.com - ‎11 hours ago‎

New Delhi: It is a historic moment in West Bengal for more reasons than one - Mamata Banerjee sworn-in as the state's first woman chief minister on Friday. Not just that she is the first non-Marxist leader to take over in 34 years. ...

Mamata Banerjee sworn in as West Bengal chief minister

Times of India - ‎14 hours ago‎

PTI | May 20, 2011, 01.09pm IST KOLKATA: Mamata Banerjee was on Friday sworn in as the first woman chief minister of West Bengal heading a Trinamool Congress-Congress alliance government, marking a change of guard that saw the end of 34 years of ...

Mamata makes history as she becomes WB CM

IBNLive.com - ‎11 hours ago‎

Kolkata: Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has taken over as the first woman chief minister of West Bengal. Mamata, the first non-Marxist to hold the post in 34 years, was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor MK Narayanan at ...

Mamata to be sworn-in as Bengal's first woman CM today

Hindustan Times - ‎15 hours ago‎

Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee poses for a picture with her family members and party...... Buoyed by her resounding victory in the West Bengal assembly elections, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has envisaged a swearing-in ceremony ...

Mamata & Co ready for D-Day, Cong to join govt

Hindustan Times - ‎15 hours ago‎

After the change, the challenge: chief minister-designate Mamata Banerjee and her council of ministers will begin their stint of governance with the oath at the Raj Bhavan on Friday. Banerjee will have a 43-member council of ministers - one short of ...

 

Mamata Banerjee: Hysterics to history

TNN |

 May 14, 2011, 06.50am IST

KOLKATA: From a street fighter to a change agent. And now an icon. Mamata Banerjee's single-handed demolition of the Left Front in Bengal is the stuff legends are made of.

Over the years, the Trinamool Congress supremo has transformed herself from the mercurial, impulsive boss of a regional party to the responsible leader of a state. The metamorphosis has come through times that have been rough, tough and testing. Under her, the Trinamool can now boast of stronger national ambition. All because a hurt, humiliated woman refused to be cowed down.

The impulsive Mamata, who went into isolation after she quit the NDA ministry in early 2001, held her nerve after the Jnaneswari Express disaster in 2006. She carved out a tangible development model for West Bengal using the railway ministry, which helped her earn the confidence of the industry without comprising on her achievements in Singur and Nandigram.

This was not the case in 2001. At the end of polling in the 2001 assembly polls, Mamata flashed the 'V' sign, only to shut herself in her modest home at 30B Harish Chatterjee Street, a nondescript locality in south Kolkata, after the crushing defeat. Those were the days when the only 'mantra' of Mamata's politics was blind opposition to CPM, when she would switch alliance without much thought so long as she was facing away from the Left. This was a time when Mamata liked to hog the limelight in her own party meetings by denying others present an opportunity to speak.
Not any more. "I am not going to resign. Even if there are accidents, I will not quit," she had said after the Jnaneswari Express disaster. For, she had realized that the railway ministry was important for her to do something positive for Bengal before the all-important assembly elections in 2011.

Despite a now-bitter-now-bland relation with Congress and the breakdown in seat sharing arrangement in the municipal elections in 2010, she did not leave the UPA, nor did she throw tantrums, correctly assessing that the relationship with Congress would be necessary to prevent a split in Opposition votes. It would also help immensely if she was on the right side of the Centre in the run-up to the elections. She rejected all overtures by BJP, realizing the importance of retaining Muslim support.

Embracing Rizwanur Rahman's family after the tragic death of the computer graphics engineer could have been part of a shrewd political strategy but the way she did it — with a humane touch — is remarkable and could be a lesson for leaders who would rather maintain a stiff upper lip.

Less obvious, but no less important, is the gradual shaping up of her political ideology. Those who admired Mamata for her raw courage against the CPM — that no other person in the Opposition could even remotely match — could find in her a mature politician who talked about "badal" (change), and not "badla" (revenge against CPM). "I am against CPM, but I am not against communists. There are good people among Left sympathizers, but they should leave the company of CPM which has lost its moorings and deviated from the path of socialism," she keeps repeating in public meetings.

Sensing the depth of the sentiment against forcible land acquisition, she took up in Delhi the question of amending the Land Acquisition Act 1894, a relic of the British era.

Her detractors are often sarcastic about the lack of sophistication in her speeches in public meetings, but this possibly builds a bridge with the poor and the uneducated who still comprise the multitude in Bengal. Her slogan — Ma Mati Manush — could touch hearts more than the Left jargons could.

There have been occasions when her supporters, some from Left background, would sing songs of the IPTA or lyrics from Salil Chowdhury during the anti-land acquisition stir. Mamata would sit in the audience and encourage speakers and singers to harp on the Left cause that the CPM party managers have unlearnt.

In an effort to build mass contact, she would walk tirelessly for miles on 'padyatras', something rarely done these days by politicians used to air-conditioned SUVs or bulletproof Ambassador cars. Mamata took meticulous care to prepare herself for these hardships — insiders say it would not have been possible without regular physical exercise. What is remarkable is her disregard for danger, as she does undergo considerable personal risk in such mass contact programmes.

The change has not come suddenly. The successive reverses in 2001 and 2006 assembly elections and 2004 Lok Sabha election gave Mamata time to reflect. "I would sit alone in Parliament and think," she had said on one occasion. She must have understood that with her brand of impulsive politics it would not be possible to achieve her goal of unseating the Left Front government. Then came Singur and Nandigram and she grabbed the opportunity with both hands. The maltreatment she had received when being brought from Singur to Kolkata in a police vehicle — which she recounted on occasions — must have steeled her resolve to fight till the last. It would have brought back memories of the brutal beating at Hazra crossing.

Gone were the histrionics — past acts like wrapping a shawl round her neck and threatening to hang herself in public or squatting in front of the chief minister's chamber at Writers' Buildings and being thrown out.
Instead, she stunned the government by the way she organized a 'dharna' outside the Nano factory gates at Singur and forced Tata Motors to withdraw, and at the same time garnered support of powerful people for her cause. Instead of trying to hang herself, she went on a life-threatening 26-day fast, knowing that in the land of Mahatma Gandhi fasting is more powerful a weapon than violence.

She also realized it would not be possible to fight this battle on her own along with the band of leaders who had left Congress to join Trinamool, particularly in a state where the Left ideology is deep-rooted.
She needed people who knew the agrarian scene, who could take on CPM on its own turf. Which made her turn to parties like SUCI, to former CPM leaders as well as Naxalites. Some of them played an important role in shaping Mamata's political strategy, helped her in winning the support of farmers in rural Bengal. She became the messiah of all victims of forcible land acquisition in the state and the rallying point of the multitude of poor people who felt left out as they were not with the ruling CPM.

This has admittedly made Trinamool a broad spectrum political party, with people from different walks of life drawn to it. Critics may call it a hotchpotch set-up, but Mamata has made it clear she wants to take everyone along in the road to prosperity for Bengal.

Today, Mamata, too, harps on the need for industrialization. But, she wants to take the public sector route. With the railway ministry under her control, she wants to make railway projects the fulcrum of industry in Bengal. Where private industries are concerned, she wants them to buy land on their own, allowing the market mechanism to operate down the chain. The Left Front's has been a mixture of laissez-faire and state intervention, allowing the private sector to do unfettered business, but the state acquiring land for them. It has paid the price for the confusion too.

Her plain saree, her hawai chappal, her 'jhola bag', her preference to travel in a non-air-conditioned small car, all these make Mamata a picture of plain living. Though her entire life revolves around politics, she is still an intensely private person, who likes to paint, write poems, take care of her mother, get up late but work till late in the night and eat 'muri' and 'telebhaja' over 'adda'. Even during the height of poll campaigning, when Mamata was travelling the length and the breadth of the state, she took time off to return to her Kalighat home on 'Nababarsha', the Bengali New Year's Day, to pay respects to her mother.

Administrative stints are not new to her, she has been railway minister and held other portfolios in the Union cabinet. Now one has to watch how she reconciles her personal life with her new and more demanding role as the chief minister of West Bengal.

Mamata Banerjee

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Mamata Banerjee মমতা বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়
11th Chief Minister of West Bengal
Incumbent
Assumed office  May 20, 2011
Governor	M. K. Narayanan
Preceded by	Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee
Minister of Railways
In office May 22, 2009 – May 19, 2011
Preceded by	Lalu Prasad Yadav
Succeeded by	Manmohan Singh (additional charge)
Member of Parliament
Incumbent
Assumed office  1991
Preceded by	Biplab Dasgupta[1]
Born	5 January 1955 (1955-01-05) (age 56) Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Nationality	Indian
Political party	All India Trinamool Congress
Spouse(s)	Unmarried
Residence	Harish Chatterjee Street, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Alma mater	Jogamaya Devi College (B.A.) University of Calcutta (M.A.) Shri Shikshayatan College (B.Ed.) Jogesh Chandra Chaudhuri Law College (LL.B.)
Profession	Politician Advocate Social Worker
Religion	Hindu
Signature
Website	Mamata Banerjee

Mamata Banerjee (Bengali: মমতা বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়, [mɔːmoːt̪ʰaː bɛːnaːrjiː]; born 5 January 1955) is the current Chief Minister of the Indian state of West Bengal and the founding chairperson of the Trinamool Congress.^[2][3][4] She is also the first woman Chief Minister of West Bengal^[5]. Noted as a firebrand orator and popularly known as "Didi" (meaning the elder sister) to all her followers, she pulled off a landslide victory for the All India Trinamul Congress in West Bengal by defeating the world's longest-serving democratically-elected communist government, i.e. Communist Party of India (Marxist) led Left Front government, eliminating the 34 years of Left's rule in the state.^[6][7][8] In the cabinet of the Government of India she was the Minister of Railways twice, Minister of Coal once, and Minister of State for Human Resource Development, Department of Youth Affairs and Sports and Women and Child Development once.^[9] She opposes Special Economic Zones and forceful land acquisition for industrialization in West Bengal at the cost of agriculturalists and farmers.^[2][8]

Contents [hide] 1 Biography 2 Education 3 Political career 3.1 Indian National Congress 3.2 Trinamool Congress 3.2.1 Railway Minister, first tenure 3.2.2 Split with NDA 4 Nandigram protests 5 2009 Indian election 5.1 Railway Minister, second tenure 6 2011 Assembly Election 6.1 Chief Minister 7 References 8 External links

[edit] Biography

Mamata Banerjee was born to Shri Promileswar Banerjee and Smt. Gayetri Banerjee on 5 January 1955, Kusumba in Birbhum, West Bengal, India. She is Brahmin.She grew up from a lower middle-class family and then started her political career with the Congress. And, as a young woman in the 1970s, she quickly rose in the ranks to become the general secretary of the state Mahila Congress (1976–80).^[2] She was a College-going adult in the mid-1970s when politics in Bengal had begun to accommodate the riffraff. Uninhibited, she jumped up and danced on the bonnet of Jaiprakash Narayan's car. Throughout her political life she maintained an austere lifestyle and never spent money on clothes, cosmetics and jewellery and slung a cotton bag on her shoulder. She has remained single throughout her life.^[10][11]

[edit] Education

She graduated with an honours degree in History from the Jogamaya Devi College, an undergraduate women's college in southern Kolkata.^[12][13] Later she earned a master's degree in Islamic History from the University of Calcutta. This was followed by a degree in education from the Shri Shikshayatan College. Later, she earned a law degree from the Jogesh Chandra Chaudhuri Law College, Kolkata.^[14]

[edit] Political career

In the West Bengal Assembly elections of 2011, Trinamool Congress and congress parties combined, spearheaded by Mamata Banerjee successfully won with over 77% of the total seats. This is considered a historic victory over the Left Front rule. She will be the 11th Chief Minister and the first woman chief Minister of the state. The highlight of the election was that only four ministers out of the twenty eight of the outgoing regime were able to retain their seats. Even the outgoing Chief Minister Mr Buddhadev Bhattacharya lost in his own constituency.

[edit] Indian National Congress

She started her political career with Congress(I), and as a young woman in the 1970s, she quickly rose in the ranks of the local Congress group, and remained the General Secretary of Mahila Congress (I), West Bengal, from 1976 to 1980.^[15] In the 1984 general election, she became one of India's youngest parliamentarians ever, beating veteran Communist politician Somnath Chatterjee, from the Jadavpur parliamentary Constituency in West Bengal. She also became the General-Secretary of the All India Youth Congress. Losing her seat in 1989 in an anti-Congress wave, she was back in 1991 general elections, having settled into the Calcutta South constituency. She retained the Kolkata South seat in the 1996, 1998, 1999, 2004 and 2009 general elections.^[16]

In the Rao government formed in 1991,(she)Mamata Banerjee was made the Union Minister of State for Human Resources Development, Youth Affairs and Sports, and Women and Child Development. As the sports minister, she announced that she would resign, and protested in a rally at the Brigade Parade Ground in Kolkata, against Government's indifference towards her proposal to improve sports in the country.^[17] She was discharged of her portfolios in 1993. In April 1996, she alleged that Congress was behaving as a stooge of the CPI-M in West Bengal. She claimed that she was the lone voice of reason and wanted a "clean Congress". At a private rally at Alipore in Kolkata, Mamata Banerjee wrapped a black shawl around her neck and threatened to make a noose with it.^[18] In July 1996, she squatted at the well of Lok Sabha to protest against the hike in petroleum price, though she was a part of the Government. In that very time she clasped the coller of Amar singh, MP of Samajwadi Party, in the well of the parliament. In February 1997, on the day of railway budget presentation in Lok Sabha, Mamata Banerjee threw her shawl at the railway minister Ram Vilas Paswan for ignoring West Bengal and announced her resignation. The speaker, P. A. Sangma, did not accept her resignation and asked her to apologize. Later she came back as Santosh Mohan Deb mediated.

[edit] Trinamool Congress

Flag of Trinamool Congress

In 1997, Mamata Banerjee came out of the Congress Party in West Bengal and established the All India Trinamool Congress. It quickly became the primary opposition to the long-standing Communist government in the state. On 11 December 1998, she controversially held a Samajwadi Party MP, Daroga Prasad Saroj, by the collar and dragged him out of the well of the Lok Sabha to prevent him from protesting against the Women's Reservation bill.^[19]

In 1999, she joined the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government and was allocated the Railways Ministry.^[16]

[edit] Railway Minister, first tenure

In 2000, Mamata Banerjee presented her first Railway Budget. In it she did not fulfil many of her promises to her home state West Bengal.^[20] She introduced a new biweekly New Delhi-Sealdah Rajdhani Express train and four express trains connecting various parts of West Bengal, namely the Howrah-Purulia Rupasi Bangla Express, Sealdah-New Jalpaiguri Express, Shalimar-Bankura Arannyak Express and the Sealdah-Amritsar Superfast Express (weekly).^[20] She also increased the frequency of the Pune-Howrah Azad Hind Express and extension of at least three express train services. Work on the Digha-Howrah Express service also hastened during her brief tenure.^[21]

She also focused on developing tourism, enabling the Darjeeling-Himalayan section with two additional locomotives and proposing the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited. She also commented that India should play a pivotal role in the Trans-Asian Railway and that rail links between Bangladesh and Nepal would be reintroduced. In all, she introduced 19 new trains for the 2000–2001 fiscal year.^[21]

[edit] Split with NDA

In early 2001, after making allegations against the BJP, she walked out of the NDA cabinet and allied with the Congress Party for West Bengal's 2001 elections, amidst speculation that the move could unseat the Communist government. She returned to the cabinet in January 2004, holding the Ministry of Coal and Mines portfolios until the 2004 Elections, in which she was the only Trinamool Congress member to win a Parliament seat from West Bengal.^[16]

On 20 October 2005, she protested against the industrial development policy of the Buddhadev Bhattacharya government in West Bengal. Benny Santoso, CEO of the Indonesia-based Salim Group had pledged a large investment to West Bengal, and the West Bengal government had given him farmland in Howrah, sparking protest. Despite soaking rain, Mamata and other Trinamool Congress members stood in front of the Taj Hotel where Santoso had arrived, shut out by the police. Later, she and supporters followed Santoso's convoy. A planned "black flag" protest was avoided, when the government had Santoso arrive 3 hours ahead of schedule.^[22][23]

Mamata Banerjee suffered further setbacks in 2005, when her party lost control of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and the sitting Mayor defected from her party. In 2006, the Trinamool Congress was defeated in West Bengal's Assembly Elections, losing more than half of its sitting members.

On 4 August 2006, she hurled her resignation paper at the deputy speaker Charanjit Singh Atwal in Lok Sabha. The provocation was the speaker's (Somnath Catterjee) rejection of her adjournment motion on illegal infiltration by Bangladeshi's in West Bengal. The motion was turned down by the speaker on the ground that it was not in proper format.^[24][25]

In November 2006, Mamata Banerjee was forcibly stopped on her way to Singur for a rally against a proposed Tata Motors car project. Mamata reached the West Bengal assembly and protested at the venue. She addressed a press conference at the assembly and announced a 12-hour shutdown by her party on Friday.^[26] The Trinamul Congress MLAs protested by damaging furniture and microphones in the West Bengal Assembly.^[26][27] A major strike was called on 14 December 2006.

Now in parliament election 2009 where TMC was with alliance with UPA and people of WestBengal acted against the Left front and elected Congress-TMC alliance cccin 26 seats, which made Mamata Banerjee again the Indian Railway Minister for next 5 years.

In the 2010 Municipal Elections in West Bengal, TMC won Kolkata Municipal Corporation in a margin of 62 seats. TMC Also won Bidhan Nagar Corporation in 16-9 seats margin. In 2011, she won a sweeping majority and is going to assume the position of chief minister of the state of West Bengal. Her party ended the 34 year rule of CPM.

[edit] Nandigram protests

Main article: Nandigram violence

The Nandigram violence was an incident in Nandigram, West Bengal where, on the orders of the Left Front government, more than 4,000 heavily armed police stormed the Nandigram area with the aim of stamping out protests against the West Bengal government's plans to expropriate 10,000 acres (40 km²) of land for a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) to be developed by the Indonesian-based Salim Group. The police shot dead at least 14 villagers and wounded 70 more.

The SEZ controversy started when the government of West Bengal decided that the Salim Group of Indonesia^[28][29][30] would set up a chemical hub under the SEZ policy at Nandigram, a rural area in the district of Purba Medinipur. The villagers took over the administration of the area and all the roads to the villages were cut off. A front-page story in the Kolkata newspaper, The Telegraph, on 4 January 2007 was headlined, "False alarm sparks clash". According to the newspaper that village council meeting at which the alleged land seizure was to be announced was actually a meeting to declare Nandigram a "clean village", that is, a village in which all the households had access to toilet facilities. The administration was directed to break the Maoist backed Bhumi Uchhed Pratirodh Committee's (BUPC) resistance at Nandigram and a massive operation with at least 3,000 policemen along with armed cadre of the Marxist ruling party was launched on 14 March 2007. However, prior information of the impending action had leaked out to the BUPC who amassed a crowd of roughly 2,000 villagers at the entry points into Nandigram with women and children forming the front ranks. In the resulting mayhem, at least 14 people were killed.^[31] Many common people were homeless due to this political carnage.^[32] A large number of Intellectuals protested on the streets and this incident gave birth of a new hope for movement to ouster the left from government headed by the CPI(M).^[33][34][35] Mamata Banerjee wrote letters to the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil to stop the violence promoted by CPI(M) in Nandigram.Agitation in Nandigram has subsided, after the State Govt. shelved the proposed chemical hub project.

[edit] 2009 Indian election

Trinamool congress performed well in the 2009 parliamentary election, bagging 19 MP seats, among them 5 women (including her), reiterating her faith in the Women's Reservation Bill. It's allies Congress and SUCI also got 6 and 1 MP seats respectively. This is the best performance by any opposition party in West Bengal since the start of the left regime. Till date, the Congress victory of 16 seats in 1984, by the sympathy vote after the death of Mrs. Indira Gandhi, was considered the best opposition show.

[edit] Railway Minister, second tenure

This section may require copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone, or spelling. You can assist by editing it. (May 2011)

In 2009, Mamata Banerjee became Railway Minister for the second time. Thereafter, she declared many new initiatives in the Railway Budget 2009, which reflects her clear inclination towards her home state (West Bengal) though eventually she took measures to show her willingness to work for the entire country. She decided to develop about 50 stations as world class stations with international level facilities. These will be developed, through innovative financing and in Public Private Partnership mode. Besides, she also declared railway's decision to develop another 375 stations as Adarsh (Ideal) Stations. She also announced construction of Multi-functional Complexes in station premises for providing rail users facilities like shopping, food stalls and restaurants, book stalls, PCO/STD/ISD/Fax booths, medicine & variety stores, budget hotels, underground parking etc. She announced that this complexes will also be built in Public-Private Partnership. Besides, she also decided to set up Scholarships for higher education of girl children of group D staff for promoting their economic independence. She proposed to open seven Nursing Colleges on Railway land."Railway Budget 2009-2010". Indian Railways. http://www.indianrail.gov.in/Speech_English_2009-10.pdf. Retrieved 16 October 2009. </ref> She also introduced some new concept of Trains like "Duronto", "Yuva" in budget. Now "Duronto" is the fastest train service in India.^[36] To relieve women passengers during rush hour, Mamata started Ladies Special Train on 19 July between Bandel and Howrah.^[37] Later, some more Ladies Special has been introduced by her, e.g. Kalyani-Sealdah, Panvel-Mumbai CST.^[38]

Mamata Banerjee flagged off the Duronto Express – a non-stop train, fastest train of India between Sealdah and New Delhi on 18 September.^[39] Super fast Duronto Express train between Chennai and New Delhi was introduced on 21 September. She also took steps to spread railway in terror hit regions of Kashmir. Anantnag-Qadigund Railway line was inaugurated in October.^[40]

On 7 February 2010, Banerjee will start as many as nineteen new train services.^[41] Due to repeated sexual harassment and/or sexual assault of India's women commuters, eight trains will be designated as women-only.^[42]

[edit] 2011 Assembly Election

Mamata Banerjee's All India Trinamool Congress along with SUCI & Indian National Congress Alliance won the state assembly election against Left Ruling party by securing 227 seats. Trinamool Congress alone won 184 seats with the INC winning just 42 seats where the other ally SUCI secured 1 seat. Throughout the 34 year regime, the LF has never won fewer than two-thirds of the 294 seats, but this time they could only manage just 62 seats.

[edit] Chief Minister

She was sworn in as Chief Minister of West Bengal on May 20, 2011. She is the first woman Chief Minister of West Bengal.

[edit] References

1. ^ Kolkata Dakshin (Lok Sabha constituency)
2. ^ ^{a b c} Yardley, Jim (January 14, 2011). "The Eye of an Indian Hurricane, Eager to Topple a Political Establishment". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/15/world/asia/15india.html. Retrieved January 14, 2011. 
3. ^ "Council of Ministers - Who's Who - Government: National Portal of India". http://india.gov.in. Government of India. http://india.gov.in/govt/cabinet.php. Retrieved 11 August 2010. 
4. ^ "Mamata Banerjee sworn in as West Bengal chief minister". http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-13465915?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter. 
5. ^ http://www.theindiadaily.com/mamata-banerjee-takes-oath-as-first-woman-chief-minister-of-west-bengal/
6. ^ BBC News (13 May 2011). "BBC News - India: Mamata Banerjee routs communists in West Bengal". http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-13374646. Retrieved 14 May 2011. 
7. ^ "Indian state election expected to end Kolkata's 34-year communist rule". London: The Guardian. April 18, 2011. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/apr/18/india-state-election-kolkata-communist. Retrieved 18 April 2011. 
8. ^ ^{a b} "The woman taking on India's communists". BBC World News. April 15, 2011. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-13077902. Retrieved 15 April 2011. 
9. ^ "Detailed Profile = Km. Mamata Banerjee". http://india.gov.in. Government of India. http://india.gov.in/govt/loksabhampbiodata.php?mpcode=39. Retrieved 11 August 2010. 
10. ^ "Article in ExpressBuzz.com". Expressbuzz. http://expressbuzz.com/magazine/an-irascible-leader-who-rose-from-middle-class/179876.html. Retrieved 12 Jun 2010. 
11. ^ "Blog article in IBNLive.in.com". CNN-IBN. http://ibnlive.in.com/blogs/diptoshmajumdar/5/61837/mamata-express-you-cant-stop-her-anymore.html. Retrieved June 03, 2010. 
12. ^ "History of the College". Jogamayadevicollege.org. http://jogamayadevicollege.org/history.htm. Retrieved 2011-05-13. 
13. ^ http://www.hindustantimes.com/My-focus-is-always-to-be-with-the-people/Article1-688732.aspx
14. ^ "Parliament of India-Biodata". http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/ls/lok10/mp52.htm. 
15. ^ "Mamta Banerjee Profile". incredible-people.com. http://profiles.incredible-people.com/mamta-banerjee/. 
16. ^ ^{a b c} "Mamata, the street-fighting politician and Left nemesis". India Today. May 13, 2011. http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/story/trinamool-congress-chief-mamata-banerjee-a-profile/1/138015.html. 
17. ^ "Mamata mum on relations with BJP". 6 January 2003. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20030107/nation.htm#1. Retrieved 2 December 2006. 
18. ^ Ashis Chakrabarti (8 November 1998). "Theatrics of a Bengal tigress". The Indian Express. http://www.indianexpress.com/res/web/pIe/ie/daily/19981108/31250764.html. Retrieved 12 November 2007. 
19. ^ "National Events in December 1998". The Hindu. http://www.hinduonnet.com/revents/01/19980112.htm. Retrieved 12 November 2007. 
20. ^ ^{a b} "New trains for West Bengal". The Tribune. 26 February 2000. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2000/20000226/main2.htm#4. Retrieved 12 November 2007. 
21. ^ ^{a b} "Railways to focus on tourism, trans-Asian role, hardselling freight services". Rediff.com. 25 February 2000. http://www.rediff.com/business/2000/feb/25rail2.htm. Retrieved 12 November 2007. 
22. ^ "Weather plays spoilsport for TMC". 21 October 2005. Archived from the original on February 18, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20070218074247/http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/oct212005/national18114720051020.asp. Retrieved 2 December 2006. 
23. ^ "Missing on bandh day: its champions -- Mamata stays indoors, Cong scarce". 10 October 2006. http://www.telegraphindia.com/1061010/asp/bengal/story_6851157.asp. Retrieved 2 December 2006. 
24. ^ "Mamata Banerjee's unending tantrums". The Hindu (Chennai, India). 8 August 2005. http://www.hindu.com/2005/08/08/stories/2005080804081000.htm. Retrieved 2 December 2006. 
25. ^ "Mamata casts shame at House Paper throw at Speaker". 4 August 2005. http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050805/asp/frontpage/story_5077148.asp. Retrieved 2 December 2006. 
26. ^ ^{a b} "Trinamool unleashes violence in W Bengal". 30 November 2006. http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1856399,000900030001.htm. Retrieved 2 December 2006. 
27. ^ "Heritage vandalised in Bengal House". The Times Of India. 2 December 2006. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/NEWS/India/Heritage_vandalised_in_Bengal_House/articleshow/678018.cms. Retrieved 2 December 2006. 
28. ^ For more information on the Salim Group please see Sudono Salim
29. ^ "Asia Week". Asia Week. http://www.asiaweek.com/asiaweek/97/0822/biz1.html. Retrieved 2011-05-13. 
30. ^ "Far Easter Economic Review October 1998". Saliltripathi.com. 1998-10-08. http://www.saliltripathi.com/articlesReview/8Oct98Review.html. Retrieved 2011-05-13. 
31. ^ "Stockpile squad trail heads towards party - Phone records spill Nandigram secret". The Telegraph. 19 March 2007. http://telegraphindia.com/1070319/asp/frontpage/story_7537027.asp. 
32. ^ "Red-hand Buddha: 14 killed in Nandigram re-entry bid". The Telegraph. 15 March 2007. http://www.telegraphindia.com/1070315/asp/frontpage/story_7519166.asp. Retrieved 15 March 2007. 
33. ^ "Nandigram people's struggle "heroic": Clark". One India. http://news.oneindia.in/2007/11/30/nandigram-peoples-struggle-heroic--clark-1196438590.html. 
34. ^ Kirschbaum, Stevan. "Nandigram says 'No!' to Dow's chemical hub". International Action Center. http://www.iacboston.org/india/1207-nandigram-says-no.html. 
35. ^ "The Great Left Debate: Chomsky to Saddam, Iraq to Nandigram". Indian Express. 5 December 2007. http://www.indianexpress.com/story/246969.html. 
36. ^ "train travel just got better for women youth". Breaking News 24/7. http://blog.taragana.com/n/train-travel-just-got-better-for-women-youth-98762/. Retrieved 16 October 2009. 
37. ^ "Ladies Special Rolls Out". Express India. http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/mamata-keeps-word-ladies-special-rolls-out-today-metro-link-on-track/491276/. Retrieved 16 October 2009. 
38. ^ "New CST Panvel Ladies Special". Bombay-Local. http://bombay-local.blogspot.com/2009/08/new-cst-panvel-ladies-special-trains.html. Retrieved 16 October 2009. 
39. ^ "mamata-flags-off-sealdah-new-delhi-duronto-express". Armoks News. http://trak.in/news/mamata-flags-off-sealdah-new-delhi-duronto-express/5901/. Retrieved 16 October 2009. 
40. ^ "PM to inaugurate new Railway line in Kashmir today". Sindh Today. http://www.sindhtoday.net/news/1/65481.htm. Retrieved 13 November 2009. ^{[dead link]}
41. ^ "Mamata Banerjee to start 19 new trains on 7 February". Business Standard. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/mamata-banerjee-to-start-19-new-trainsfebruary-7/384573/. Retrieved 4 February 2010. 
42. ^ "A New Way to Commute: Women-Only Trains in India". Marie Claire. http://www.marieclaire.com/world-reports/opinion/india-women-only-trains. Retrieved 27 January 2010. 

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mamata Banerjee

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Mamata Banerjee

• Official biographical sketch in Parliament of India website
• Official Party website
• Profile: by BBC News dated 13 May 2011

Political offices
Preceded by Lalu Prasad Yadav	Minister of Railways 20 May 2009-	Incumbent

[show]v · d · eChief Ministers of West Bengal Prafulla Chandra Ghosh (15 August 1947-14 January 1948) · Bidhan Chandra Roy (14 January 1948-1 July 1962) · (President's rule) (1 July 1962-8 July 1962) · Prafulla Chandra Sen (8 July 1962-15 March 1967) · Ajoy Kumar Mukherjee (15 March 1967-2 November 1967) · Prafulla Chandra Ghosh (2 November 1967-20 February 1968) · (President's rule)  (20 February 1968-25 February 1969) · Ajoy Kumar Mukherjee (25 February 1969-19 March 1970) · (President's rule)  (19 March 1970-2 April 1971) · Prafulla Chandra Ghosh (2 April 1971-28 June 1971) · (President's rule) (28 June 1971-19 March 1972) · Siddhartha Shankar Ray (19 March 1972-21 June 1977) · Jyoti Basu (21 June 1977-6 November 2000) · Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee (6 November 2000-20 May 2011) · Mamata Banerjee (20 May 2011- present ) ·

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Persondata
Name	Banerjee, Mamata
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Date of birth	January 5, 1955
Place of birth	Kolkata, West Bengal, India
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Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamata_Banerjee"

Categories: 1955 births | Bengali politicians | Living people | People from Kolkata | Alumni of Jogamaya Devi College, Kolkata | Alumni of Jogesh Chandra Chaudhuri Law College | University of Calcutta alumni | Indian anti-communists | 14th Lok Sabha members | 15th Lok Sabha members | Indian women in politics | Members of the Cabinet of India | Railway Ministers of India | Members of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly | All India Trinamool Congress politicians

 

Singur Tata Nano controversy

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Tata Nano Singur Controversy refers to the controversy generated by the Nano factory of Tata Motors at Singur in Hooghly district, West Bengal, India.

Singur gained international media attention since Tata Motors started constructing a factory to manufacture their $2,500 car, the Tata Nano at Singur. The small car was scheduled to roll out of the factory by 2008.^[1]

The state government of West Bengal facilitated the controversy by using an old rule to conduct an eminent domain takeover of 997 acres of farmland to have Tata build its factory.^[2] The rule is meant for public improvement projects, and the West Bengal government wanted Tata to build in its state. Opponents included displaced farmers and land-rights people.

Contents [hide] 1 Small car manufacturing facility 2 Perspective of those who favour the Tata project 2.1 The land acquisition controversy 2.2 Fencing off the land 2.3 Construction of plant 2.4 Procedural lacunae 2.5 Business houses' role 3 Tata pulls out 4 References

[edit] Small car manufacturing facility

The choice of Singur was made by the company among six sites offered by the state government. The project faced massive opposition from displaced farmers. The unwilling farmers were given political support by West Bengal's opposition leader Mamata Banerjee. Banerjee's "Save Farmland" movement was supported by celebrity environmental activists like Medha Patkar, Anuradha Talwar and Arundhati Roy. Banerjee's movement against displacement of farmers was also supported by several Kolkata based intellectuals like Aparna Sen, Kaushik Sen, Shaonli Mitra and Suvaprasanna. Ultra left activists also shared the platform with Banerjee's Trinamool Party. The Tatas finally decided to move out of Singur on 3 October 2008. Ratan Tata blamed violence by Banerjee and her supporters for the pullout decision. On 7 October 2008, the Tatas announced that they would be setting up the Tata Nano plant in Sanand, Gujarat.

[edit] Perspective of those who favour the Tata project

In the 1950s the Indian state of West Bengal was one of the most industrialized states in the country. Bidhan Roy, its first chief minister, founded large industrial plants in Durgapur, Asansol, Kalyani, Howrah and Calcutta proper. In the 1960s and 1970s, disruptions by the Bangladesh War, the Naxal movement and militant trade unionism by leftist parties led by Jyoti Basu slowed down industrial development. Consequently other states such as Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka attracted industrial investment and experienced job growth.

The rapid rise in the population of West Bengal has not been accompanied by significant economic growth. Key indicators such as unemployment rates, poverty rates, infant mortality rates, job growth rates, per capita income, mobile phone penetration rates lag the more industrialised states of India. Local politicians gained power by promising agricultural land to landless farmers, but given West Bengal's population density, the land-holdings are small and the yields are insufficient to sustain poor families. While the shift from agriculture to industrial jobs requires re-training, given India's economic growth, it provides an opportunity for earning higher income.

Several states have proposed to offer land to Tata Motors if they abandon the project in Singur.

The people staying in the proposed land were forced to evacuate by the government. The compensation given was considered inadequate and the new housing facilities offered were delayed. This led to the protest of the peasants backed by opposition political parties, who thought it would be a good opportunity to end the communist rule of Bengal.

The company has made substantial promises. According to their claims, Singur would become a mini-auto city and approximately 70 vendors would set up shop along with the factory. The total investment planned is to the tune of Rs 1,000 crore.^[3] The project had, however, generated controversy right from the start, particularly on the question of state acquisition of fertile agricultural land for private enterprises.

[edit] The land acquisition controversy

On 23 September 2008, Tatas decided to leave Singur in West Bengal, the decision is reported to have been made by the Tata management and the Bengal government had been informed. On 3 October it became official that TATA will leave Singur (WB) when Ratan Tata announced it in a press conference in Kolkata.

While the ruling party has gone all out^[4] for acquisition of 997 acres (404 ha)^[2] of multi-crop land required for the car factory, questions have been raised about the party forcible acquisition which was made under the colonial Land Acquisition Act of 1894.^[2] Others say the provisions of this act were allegedly not been met.^[5]

The law has provisions for state taking over privately held land for public purposes but not for developing private businesses. The illegality of the acquisition has been substantially conceded by the Kolkata High Court.

The Tata Motors site is the most fertile one in the whole of the Singur, and the Singur block, in turn, is among the most highly fertile in West Bengal. Consequently, almost the entire local population depends on agriculture with approximately 15000 making their livelihood directly from it.^[6] With the number of direct jobs to be created no more than about 1,000, many of which are expected to go to outsiders, the local populace feel understandably threatened for their livelihood.^[7] Environmental degradation is also feared.

Chief protesters include the opposition parties spearheaded by the Trinamool Congress under Mamata Banerjee and Socialist Unity Centre of India. The movement has received widespread support from civil rights and human rights groups, legal bodies, social activists like Medha Patkar and Anuradha Talwar, Booker prize-winning author Arundhati Roy and Magsaysay and Jnanpith Award-winning author Mahasweta Devi.^[8] Other intellectuals, writers like the poet Joy Goswami, artists like Suvaprasanna, theatre and film personalities like Saonli Mitra, Aparna Sen etc. have pitched in. The state police force has been used to restrict their access to the area.^[9] The Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen has on the other hand appeared to defend the decision to set up the factory. He however opposed forcible acquisition of land.[3]

The protesters have been trenchantly attacked, verbally by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) leaders and physically by the party's supporters. Benoy Konar, member of the party's state committee, famously declared that protesting intellectuals would be greeted by women supporters of the party by baring their behinds [4].

Preliminary surveys by officials of the state and Tata Motors faced protests, and manhandling on one occasion, from the villagers organized under the Save Singur Farmland Committee with Trinamool Congress forming its chief component.^[10] It is reported that Naxalite elements hold sway over the direction the agitation takes and the Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee takes no decisions without consulting them.^[11]

The state government imposed the prohibitory Section 144 of the Indian Penal Code for initially a month and then extended it indefinitely. The imposition has been declared illegal by the Kolkata High Court ^[12]

While landless peasants and share-croppers fear losing out entirely, sections of the locals, particularly those owing allegiance to the CPI(M) have welcomed the factory. These count chiefly among the owners of bigger portions of the land even as discrimination in the compensation has been alleged.^[13]

A section of those promised jobs at the factory have boycotted classes while training in protest against the alleged going back on the promise.^[14]

In the 2011 state assembly elections, while the sitting Trinamool Congress MLA, Rabindranath Bhattacharya retained the Singur seat, Becharam Manna, the convener of Krishi Jami Raksha Samiti, won the adjoining Haripal seat ^{[15] [16]}

[edit] Fencing off the land

The land earmarked for the project was taken control of by the state administration amidst protests and fencing off commenced on December 1, 2006. Mamata Banerjee, who was prevented from entering Singur by the state police, called a statewide bandh in protest while legislators belonging to her party turned violent in the legislative assembly causing damage to furniture. [5] Later, she went on a 25-day hunger strike [6].During this period she presented affidavits of farmers apparently unwilling to part with their land.^[17]

The fenced off area has been regularly guarded, besides large contingents of policemen, by cadres of the CPI(M) party. They were accused of the multiple rape followed by burning to death of teenage villager Tapasi Malik who was active in the protests, on December 18, 2006.^[18] Negligence and political interference in the probe into her death have been alleged.^[19] Later, CPI(M) activist Debu Malik and based on his statement, CPI(M) zonal committee secretary Suhrid Dutta were arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation in connection with the crime.^[20]

Intermittent attacks by villagers have since continued on the fence. However, continuing agitations against the project appeared to have proved ineffective and a farmer who lost land committed suicide^[21]

On the other hand the pro-factory villagers siding with the CPI(M) have made accusations against the Naxalite faction of the 'Save Singur Farmland Committee' of threats and violence against them.^[22]

[edit] Construction of plant

Tatas ceremonially initiated the construction of the plant on 21 January 2007.^[23] The Tata Group announced on October 3, 2008 that they are pulling out of Singur due to the political unrest and agitation by the Trinamool Congress against the construction of the plant.

[edit] Procedural lacunae

Other aspects of the process of setting up the factory that have come under severe criticism are the government's secrecy on the details of the deal and the chief minister's furnishing of false information, including in the legislative assembly Vidhan Sabha. In particular, the concessions being given to Tata Motors have not been publicly revealed. The falsehoods of the chief minister chiefly pertain to claims made by him of having acquired 912 acres (3.69 km²) ^[24] through voluntary consent of the owners without the use of force.

The Kolkata High Court declared the acquisition prima facie legal.^[25] The air seemed to have cleared somewhat when the High Court ordered the state government to submit correct figures following which an affidavit but was not satisfied with the result [7]. In a fresh affidavit filed later in June 2007, the government admitted to 30 per cent of the land was acquired from farmers without consent.^[26] The affidavit remains unclear on whether the lack of consent is based on insufficiency of the compensation or refusal to sell altogether.^[27]

[edit] Business houses' role

The critics of the government's industrialization policy have argued on the other hand that while India is moving towards a "free market" economy, government has been acting as a broker for the private sector by forcing private citizens to give up their property at throw away prices.^[who?]

[edit] Tata pulls out

On October 3, 2008, after a brief meeting with the Chief Minister, Mr. Ratan Tata declared his decision to move the Nano Project out of West Bengal. Mr. Tata specifically mentioned his frustration with the opposition movement at Singur Project led by Trinamool Congress chief Ms. Mamata Banerjee. Ms Banerjee responded by referring to actions by Tatas and the state government.^[28][29]

The CM of Gujarat, Narendra Modi then sent an SMS to Mr. Ratan Tata, which simply said "Suswagatham", to persuade him to relocate the Nano factory to Gujarat.^[30]

It took 14 months to build a new factory in Sanand, Gujarat compared with 28 months for the Singur factory.^[31]

[edit] References

1. ^ The Hindu Business Line, 26 November 2006
2. ^ ^{a b c} The Economist August 30, 2008 edition. U.S. Edition. "Nano wars". Page 63.
3. ^ The Hindu Business Line, 13 December 2006
4. ^ The Telegraph 14 October 2006
5. ^ The Business Standard
6. ^ Countercurrents.org, 30 December 2006 Headline Singur
7. ^ Tehelka Mar 03, 2007
8. ^ doccentre.net Report on Public Hearing
9. ^ The Times of India December 8, 2007: Do you need a visa to enter Bengal?
10. ^ The Indian Express 15 January 2007
11. ^ Banerjee doesn't take decisions without Naxal elements' OK:The Indian Express August 31
12. ^ The Times of India February 15, 2007
13. ^ The Telegraph December 10, 2006
14. ^ The Telegraph 23 June, 2007 Job cry from Tata trainees
15. ^ "Haripal". Assembly Elections May 2011 Results. Election Commission of India. http://eciresults.nic.in/ConstituencywiseS25196.htm. Retrieved 2011-05-19. 
16. ^ "Singur". Assembly Elections May 2011 Results. Election Commission of India. http://eciresults.nic.in/ConstituencywiseS25188.htm. Retrieved 2011-05-19. 
17. ^ The Statesman 23 December 2006
18. ^ The Statesman 19 December 2007
19. ^ The Statesman 22 January 2007
20. ^ The Indian Express 29 June 2007 CPM local boss arrested for Singur girl's murder
21. ^ The Indian Express 26 May 2007
22. ^ DNA - India - 'Save Singur' turns sour - Daily News & Analysis
23. ^ The Telegraph 22 January 2007
24. ^ The Indian Express November 24, 2006
25. ^ The India Daily February 24 2007 Calcutta High Court says Singur land acquisition appears illegal -all eyes now on communists in West Bengal
26. ^ IBN 10 June 2007: 30 pc Singur farmers not compensated
27. ^ The Times of India 8 June 2007: State files Singur affidavit
28. ^ "Tata pulls out of Singur, blames Trinamool stir - The Financial Express". www.financialexpress.com. http://www.financialexpress.com/news/Tata-pulls-out-of-Singur-blames-Trinamool-stir/369241/. Retrieved 2009-03-10. 
29. ^ "If Tata pulls out, Trinamool will be solely responsible: CM". Chennai, India: www.hindu.com. 28 September 2008. http://www.hindu.com/2008/09/28/stories/2008092859731000.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-10. 
30. ^ [1]
31. ^ [2]

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The battle within - singur on the eve of the Panchayat elections, 2008 - May 5, 2008
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Updates on Singur: AIFB wants Tatas to move; Tata's car an "environmental nightmare" - January 6, 2008
Singur sharecropper commits suicide - December 17, 2007
Singur - An update, post land-acquisition, from APDR and Manthan - August 2007. In Bengali.
CPI(M) lies about Tapasi Malik's death - apologist Vijay Prasad disseminates untruths - June 29, 2007
Singur Update from APDR (Association for Protection of Democratic Rights) - June 19, 2007
PAMANGGAS condemns Nandigram massacre, Italian Metal Unions react to Singur - March 14, 2007
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Singur and the Official Left's Crisis in India - By Pratyush Chandra, Sanhati
Neoliberalism And Primitive Accumulation In India - By Dipankar Basu and Pratyush Chandra, Sanhati
In the Name of Development - By Somnath Mukherji, Sanhati
Peasant Hares and Capitalist Hounds of Singur - By Sumanta Banerjee
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India's Left Going the Lula Way? - By Praful Bidwai
Land Grab and "Development" Fraud in India - An Analytical Monthly Review article
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The Singur Smokescreen : Twists of the Mainstream Media - By Aniruddha Dutta
The sorrows of Singur are typical of India's feudal globalization - By Aseem Srivastava
Singur: where the Left turns right - By Vijayan MJ, Tehelka

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Mamata defends large size of ministry

Press Trust Of India
Posted on May 20, 2011 at 11:01pm IST

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Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday defended the large size of her ministry saying it reflected representation of all districts.

On being reminded that she had earlier spoken about a small ministry, Mamata told a press conference, "We had to give representations to all districts, the minorities and schedule castes and schedule tribes."

She said that another six ministers would join. "Of them the Congress will give the names of five."

Along with her, 37 MLAs -- 35 from Trinamool Congress and 2 from ally Congress -- took oath as ministers of the two-tier ministry. Four Trinamool Congress MLAs were sworn in as Ministers of State.

The erstwhile Left Front government had 44 ministers.

Told that she had faced assaults in the past, Mamata replied, "I have been beaten up a number of times. I have suffered a lot of atrocities, but I choose not to remember them.

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/mamata-defends-large-size-of-ministry/153051-37-64.html

20/05/2011

Mamata takes over, walks history road

Kolkata: As tens of thousands crowded the streets of this grand old city and millions more watched on TV, Mamata Banerjee made history Friday by becoming the first woman chief minister of West Bengal, breaking 34 years of uninterrupted Left rule in the state.

Trinamool Congress supremo, Mamata Banerjee (C) waves to supporters after the swearing-in ceremony as Chief Minister of West Bengal on the balcony of Writer's Building in Kolkata. AFP

Clad in her trademark white sari and rubber slippers, a beaming Banerjee was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor M.K. Narayanan at the Raj Bhavan here in a ceremony attended by more than 3,000 invited guests.

Alongside Banerjee, 33 cabinet ministers and four ministers of state were also sworn in, exactly a week after her Trinamool Congress-led alliance made the Left Front bow out of power by winning 227 seats in the 294-member assembly.

There were milling crowds at Banerjee's residence in South Kolkata's Kalighat, on the seven-kilometer route to and outside Raj Bhavan, where the programme came to an end to the strains of Tagore's immortal song "Nai, nai bhoi", as per her wish.

After the swearing-in, Banerjee walked the distance from Raj Bhavan to the state secretariat, Writers' Building, about two kilometres away, amid swirling crowds, instead of going in a car like her predecessors of the Left Front era.

West Bengal Governor MK Narayanan administers the oath to Trinamool Congress supremo, Mamata Banerjee (R) as Chief Minister of West Bengal during the swearing–in ceremony at Governor's House in Kolkata. AFP

People rushed from all directions, police barricades gave way, and security personnel were in a tizzy. Over the entire route, Banerjee shook hands with the masses and exchanged pleasantries.

The 56-year-old Trinamool Congress chief becomes the state's eighth chief minister and the first non-Left front leader to occupy the post since Congress leader Siddhartha Shankar Ray's government was formed in 1972. She took her oath in Bengali at 1.01 p.m., a time she had herself chosen in the belief that it was auspicious.

Among those present were union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Home Minister P. Chidambaram, former state chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Left Front chairman Biman Bose and other top leaders of the opposition combine.

The ceremony presented a rare sight of Banerjee, Bhattacharjee and Bose gracing the same function in a state known for its sharp political polarisation.

Thirty-one of the cabinet ministers were from the Trinamool, and two others from Congress - which would later announce five other ministers of state. Apart from Banerjee, the council of ministers has only one woman - Sabitri Mitra.

Trinamool Congress party leader Mamata Banerjee, left, accepts sweets offered by Governor M.K. Narayanan after taking oath of office as Chief Minister of West Bengal state in Kolkata. AP

Among the Trinamool ministers are Partha Chatterjee, economist and former FICCI secretary general Amit Mitra and former minister Subrata Mukherjee.

State Trinamool president Subrata Buxi, Singur legislator Rabindranath Bhattacharya, theatre personality Bratya Basu as also three retired Indian Police Service officers - Upen Biswas, H.A. Sawfi and Rachpal Singh - also took oath, as did former chief secretary Manish Gupta, who humbled Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee at Jadavpore.

Lawmakers from the minority community, including Firhad Hakim, Javed Khan and Abdul Karim Chowdhury, also took oath.

The two cabinet ministers from the Congress were Manas Bhuniya and Abu Hena.
Thirty-four of those sworn-in took the oath in Bengali, two in English, and one each in Santhali and Urdu.

Banerjee later met Governor Narayanan. "I will talk to him once a week. We will work for the people of the state," Banerjee said. Celebrations broke out across the state with Trinamool supporters bursting crackers and exchanging sweets.

Former West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, center, is flanked by former state Finance Minister Ashim Dasgupta, left, and Communist Party of India-Marxist leader Biman Bose as they attend the swearing in ceremony of the new Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata. AP

In the morning, the sound of conch shells and ululations filled the air and Mamata Banerjee's single-storey house at the dingy Harish Chatterjee Street almost turned into a pilgrim place as people thronged there.

Chants of 'Maa Maati Manusher Jai' (victory of mother, motherland and people) - Banerjee's pet slogan - and 'Mamata Banerjee Zindabad!' could be heard.

At the Raj Bhavan, the guests included leading industrialists like Sanjiv Goenka, writers Sirshendu Mukhopadhyay and Mahasweta Devi, and a Who's Who of politics, business, art, sports and culture.

Representatives from the working classes, including rickshaw-pullers, farmers, slum-dwellers and representative organisations of sex workers and the disabled, also graced the function.

Relatives of the victims in Singur, Nandigram - synonymous with peasant protests against farmland acquisition that changed the poll script in favour of Trinamool - and Netai, the site of an alleged Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) activists, were also present.

They were witnessing history - having helped Banerjee make it.

Trinamool Congress (TMC) supporters celebrate Mamata Banerjee taking the oath of office as Chief Minister of West Bengal, in Siliguri. AFP

Thousands throng to see Banerjee walk to Writers' Building

In scenes never before seen in the state, Mamata Banerjee Friday walked amid tens of thousands of commoners after after being sworn in as the eighth chief minister of West Bengal. She walked her way to the Writers' Building, the state secretariat, from Raj Bhavan the venue of the swearing-in ceremony.

In a sharp departure from practice - her predecessors of the Left Front era chose to go in a car from Raj Bhavan to the state secretariat about two kilometres away - the state's first woman chief minister walked the distance amid the swirling crowds after taking oath.

Thousands flooded the Netaji Subhas Bose Road as Banerjee continued her walkathon. Atop the buildings the only thing visible was innumerable heads. People scrambled and jostled to get a glimpse of the leader who has been touted as the voice of the oppressed and the needy.

There was a near-stampede situation as people rushed to touch Banerjee's feet, to congratulate her, to shake her hands. Police had a harrowing time controlling the crowds as they kept on swelling by every second. It was irrefutable evidence of the mass appeal of the charismatic leader.

Banerjee kept shaking and folding her hands, greeting the people. She along with other Trinamool Congress leaders like Firhad Hakim and Partha Chaterjee also tried to manage the crowd, which had broken the barricades put by the police.

The security personnel were visibly anxious as Banerjee, unconcerned about her security, freely mingled with the people. Hundreds of banners and Trinamool flags fluttered as Banerjee walked on followed by her infinite swarm of admirers.

Banerjee started off at 4.10 p.m. and reached the secretariat at 4.45 p.m. On reaching, she garlanded former chief minister Bidhan Chandra Roy's bust.

Banerjee's black Santro that had been parked outside the Writers' Building also became the centre of attraction as hundreds touched the tyres of the car in reverence.

"This not a car, it's a chariot. Didi has conquered the whole state riding this chariot. It's sacred for us," said Suman Batyabal who came from Tamluk in East Midnapore.

Source: IANS

20/05/2011

After 34 years, swearing in the name of god

In the first sign of change in West Bengal, most ministers in the new Trinamool Congress-led government Friday took oath of office in the name of god - quite unlike the Marxist ministers who would swear allegiance to the constitution.

The Left Front, which ruled the state uninterruptedly from 1977, was led by the communists, who are atheists by political belief. The communist leaders would "solemnly" affirm their allegiance to the constitution.

In contrast, most Trinamool Congress and Congress leaders, who took oath of office Friday, used the expression "do swear in the name of god". Purnendu Bose, a Trinamool legislator, was a rare exception as he simply said "solemnly affirm".

Banerjee struck other different notes as well. While her predecessors of the Left Front era chose to go in a car from Raj Bhavan to the state secretariat, Writers' Building, about two kilometres away, the state's first woman chief minister walked the distance amid the swirling crowds after the swearing-in.

And though, Banerjee, 56, is not one to be formally dressed, she imposed a dress code on ministers -- the men were asked to take oath in dhoti and kurta and the women in saris.

A pilgrim spot? No, it's Mamata's home

The sound of conch shells and ululations filled the air. Mamata Banerjee's single-storey house at the dingy Harish Chatterjee Street in south Kolkata almost turned into a pilgrim place as people thronged in thousands to congratulate her Friday, the day she became West Bengal's first woman chief minister.

People started flooding the Kalighat area from early morning. Chants of 'Maa Maati Manusher Jai' (victory of mother, motherland and people) - Banerjee's pet slogan - and 'Mamata Banerjee Zindabad!' could be heard. Supporters wearing Trinamool caps and T-shirts stood on both sides of the road beating drums while hundreds danced with joy.

The admirers came from across the state, including far off districts, to be part of a historic event in Bengal's politics - the swearing in of the eighth chief minister and one who had dislodged the ruling Left Front after 34 years.

"I have been here since 7 a.m. to get a glimpse of her," said a man who had come from Barrackpore in neighbouring North 24 Pargans. "But I have been waiting for this moment for the past 34 years," said a man who had come from Burdwan to see Banerjee.

Seven-year-old Rupsha Debnath said: "I am here to shake hands with Didi."
Mir Kamaluddin, a juggler, had come from Sankrail in Howrah on a bicycle with a ball on his head to honour the leader. "I have a request for Didi. If she can provide me an opportunity to display my juggling skills at the Raj Bhavan."

He will cycle the whole day carrying a ball on his head in front of her residence. To mark the occasion, a tram has been decorated with garlands and balloons and banners.

A banner in front depicted Banerjee in front of Writers' Buildings and said: "Welcome our beloved chief minister" while one at the back read, "Greetings to Maa Maati Manush." One more banner read, "Agriculture is our inspiration, industry our conscience."

As Banerjee stepped out of her house at 12.35 p.m. to head for the Raj Bhavan seven kilometres away for the swearing in, there was a mad rush. She shook hands with as many people as she could. People showered flower petals as the 56-year old moved towards her car.

Before boarding her usual black Santro car instead of the official bullet-proof vehicle, she said to the maddening crowd: "You all have been waiting since morning. I was too busy; I wanted to meet you all. You have chosen me. It's all because of you. You all keep well. Bless me so that I can work for your welfare."

"I will not meet you for the next seven days as I have to work for you all through the week. Then I will meet you once a week and listen to your problems and grievances. All this will be done in a systematic manner ensuring transparency. You will later get to know when and where I will meet you," said Banerjee.

Before boarding the car, she said: "I need to see my mother once more". And went back to her spartan home to seek her blessings.

She left for Raj Bhavan at 12.40 p.m. along with her sister-in-law as well as Trinamool leader Gautam Sanyal. The security personnel had a harrowing time controlling the crowds. For many in Bengal, such a day had arrived after 34 years.

Source: IANS

20/05/2011

Mamata Banerjee becomes West Bengal CM

Kolkata: Amid heightened security at the Raj Bhavan here, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee was today sworn-in as West Bengal's first woman chief minister, with the Who's Who of politics, business, art and culture in attendance.

Along with Banerjee, a 43-member ministerial team - 36 from the Trinamool and seven from alliance partner Congress - took oath, marking the beginning of the journey of the first non-Left Front ministry in the state in 34 years.

Banerjee, who has become the state's eighth chief minister, took oath in Bengali at sharp 1.01 p.m. from Governor M.K. Narayanan in the presence of around 3,200 guests that included union Home Minister P Chidambaram, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, outgoing chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Left Front chairman Biman Bose and leaders of other LF partners.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi did not attend the historic regime change-over in the state.

Banerjee resigned from the railway ministry during the day, and will be the first non-Left Front chief minister to be sworn in since 1972, when the Congress ministry led by Siddhartha Shankar Ray took oath.

Among the Trinamool ministers are leader of opposition in the previous assembly Partha Chatterjee, former FICCI general secretary and renowned economist Amit Mitra and former minister and Kolkata mayor Subrata Mukherjee, who served in the Ray ministry between 1972 and 1977.

State Trinamool president Subrata Buxi, Singur legislator Rabindranath Bhattacharya, theatre personality Bratya Basu also figure in the ministry that also includes former Central Bureau of Investigation joint director Upen Biswas and Indian Police Service officer H.A. Sawfi.

Several lawmakers from the minority community, including Firhad Hakim, Javed Khan, Nure Alam Chowdhury and Abdul Karim Chowdhury are in the list that includes representatives from most of the districts. Relatives of the victims in Singur, Nandigram and Netai have been invited to the ceremony.

Singur and Nandigram - synonymous with intense peasant protests against the acquisition of farmlands - have earned the credit for changing the poll scripts of the state.

Family members of Singur resident Tapasi Malik, who was raped and killed by alleged local Left leaders during the heydays of anti-land acquisition movements, have been invited to the oath-taking ceremony.

The kin of the 14 people who died in the police firing in Nandigram in 2007 and others who died during the 10-month long agitation against the land acquisition there, and family members of those nine victims who were killed by alleged Left goons in the Netai village of West Midnapore district earlier this year have also been invited.

The Trinamool Congress has also invited at least one representative each from all the working class sections of society, which includes rickshaw-pullers, farmers, slum-dwellers and representative organisations of sex workers and the disabled.

Meanwhile, the city police deployed Quick Response Teams (QRTs) under the command of senior deputy commissioners in and outside the Raj Bhavan compound and in front of Writers' Buildings - the seat of power.

Special arrangements were also made to sanitize a two-km radius around Raj Bhavan, Shahid Minar and the state secretariat Writers' Buildings.

Source: IANS

Will not trust N-plant safety reviews by vendors: Banerjee
NEW DELHI: Seeking to allay apprehensions on the Jaitapur nuclear power project, Atomic Energy Commission Chairman Srikumar Banerjee today said India would do its own safety reviews on the nuclear reactors it plans to purchase from French company Areva.

"We are not trusting the safety reviews done by the vendors. The licensing and safety reviews for the Jaitapur reactors will be done by our own nuclear regulators," he said in an interactive session at the National Physical Laboratory here.

He pointed out that the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) has been working closely with Russian companies for the Kudankulam nuclear power plant.

Banerjee sought to downplay suggestions that the European Pressurised Reactors (EPR) were "untested" and contended that the reactors were based on an evolutionary design.

"Ours will be the fifth reactor. Finland, France and China have already signed up for installing the EPR reactors," he said adding that the nuclear power plants being set up in Jaitapur will have several additional safety measures.

The Jaitapur nuclear power project has run into controversy with anti-nuclear activists voicing apprehension on the safety of the project and its impact on the sensitive bio-diversity and marine life in the Konkan region.

Banerjee said eight universities and ecology departments had carried out studies on the impact on the environment due to the project.

He said the studies had concluded that the rise in sea temperature due to discharge of hot water from the plant would not be more than 4.5 degrees Celsius in the hottest months.

Banerjee said the water from the plant would be discharged at a distance of 1.5-2.5 km from the sea shore in an area of about 500 meter diameter.

He pointed out that Europe allowed a 10 degree Celsius rise in the sea water temperature due to discharge of hot water from power plants.

However, considering the tropical conditions in India this has been capped at less than seven degrees Celsius.

On concerns related to seismicity of the Jaitapur site, Banerjee said the plant site was located in seismic zone III and not in seismic zone IV as has been the belief.

"We will have to design the plant for that level. All the equipment will be seismically qualified," he said.

Areva and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited plan to build six nuclear reactors each of 1650 MW capacity at Jaitapur.

Agreements have been signed for building two reactors to start with.