Final nail in Nano factory coffin

SINGUR: Villagers in this part of Hooghly never had it so bad. They refused to give up even after the Tatas packed up from the Singur site, hoping against hope that the Nano, after all, would return one day. But not anymore. Even the smallest sliver of hope is now gone after news spread in the villages that the car will be launched from Mumbai in March.
Joydeb Ghosh of Gopalnagar was staring blankly at the deserted factory, while others flocked around Singur bazar with their eyes glued to TV sets.He gave 65 bighas for the factory. His was the second-largest patch of land within the compound. He got the money and assurance for a Nano dealership. So, Ghosh even bought a plot near the market.
"I have nothing against the Tatas. They tried their best. It is another thing that we could not hold them back. While I was bargaining with the government over giving my last 20 bighas, state officials promised me a Tata Nano dealership in presence of the company officials. I hope that Tata Motors won't let me down," said Ghosh.
His neighbour, Saila Ghosh, has returned to his family business of milk supply after a brief stint as an employee of the medical unit the Tatas had set up for the villagers. "It is history now. I am back to my old business. The political tamasha is over. No one cares for us any more," said Ghosh.
Pintu Das, a marginal farmer from Beraberi Bazar, has nothing to fall back on except the appointment letter he got for working in the upcoming engine shop. "I had just one bigha of land. I gave it for the factory, hoping to get a job there. I did get the job, but they shut shop, days after I joined. Now, I am waiting for Tata Motors to take me somewhere far away from Singur," he said.
Malati Das, a housewife, was elated to get a job stitching dress for Nano employees. "It was a dream come true. Earlier, I used to set out for the fields at dawn and work till dusk. The new assignment brought a change in our lifestyle. My husband gave up drinking. We are back to the old drudgery now," she said.
Even the secretary of the Singur Syndicate, Manas Ghosh, who is a Trinamool Congress supporter, is yet to come to terms with his fate. "I gave my land for the factory. Later, we were called for supplying materials for the construction. We gathered the initial fund from the money we got for the land. My neighbours rebuked me as we brought the materials. Trinamool did this damage to us, though I belong to that party," he said.
Pointing at the branch offices of banks, now lined up in the area, Gautam Polen, a syndicate member, reminisced how the financial institutions started coming to the area, as work started for the factory. "A total of nine banks have their branches here. Some apartments also came up for the officers working in the factory. Now, the area has no hope. So, when Tata officials get in touch with us, we keep on requesting them to come back," said Polen.
Local leader of the Krishsi Jami Raksha Committee, Becharam Manna, stayed away from Singur on Thursday. "We are not against the Tatas. We are against the government," said the leader, busy moving bail for his supporters in Chandernagore court.