Duttapukur (WB): West Bengal Chief Minister
Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Sunday accused Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee of "lying" about setting up railway industry
in the state and said she would not set up a single unit.
"She is lying. Industry cannot be set up by lying. It
does not require hard work to lie, but it needs hard work to
set up industry," Bhattacharjee said at a Left Front rally
here in North 24-Parganas district.
Charging the Trinamool Congress with opposing industry,
the Chief Minister said, "It will not deter us. We will
certainly listen to what the Opposition has to say, but we
will not stop the drive for setting up more industries."
Despite the Trinamool`s opposition to industry, the state
had attracted Rs 9,000 crore of investments during 2009-10, he
said, adding projects like the Jindal group`s steel plant
at Salboni, Essar`s fertiliser unit at Panagarh, an airport
and a township at Andal and a second electronics park at
Siliguri were also coming up.
"The youth want jobs, but the Opposition does not. This
year, 10 lakh students will appear for secondary examinations.
There are eight engineering colleges, besides ITIs and
polytechnics. Their students want jobs. For that, we need
industry. And we need a peaceful environment if we are to set
up industries," Bhattacharjee said.
Claiming that the Maoists had killed 200 CPI-M workers in
the western districts ever since their upsurge began, the
chief minister charged Trinamool Congress with joining hands
with the ultras to spread violence in the state and stall
development.
"I have told the Opposition that people do not want
violence and it should talk to the government on any issue.
But they said they will do whatever they want. And that is
what they are doing," he said.
He said Trinamool activists were attacking CPI(M) workers
and setting fire to their houses at Nanoor, Ilambazar and
Bolpur in Birbhum district and Ketugram and Mongolkot in
Burdwan district.
"What is the Trinamool`s policy on agriculture, industry
or panchayats? Ask them and they will not be able to reply. It
is a party thriving on lies," Bhattacharjee said.
Admitting that a section of voters had supported the
Trinamool during the last Lok Sabha, municipal and panchayat
elections in the state, he said, "A section of people have
felt hurt by our mistakes. Otherwise they would not have
supported the Trinamool."
The chief minister called upon his partymen to reach out
to the disgruntled people.
"Some people are still unhappy. We will have to reach
out to them. Our partymen must not show high-handedness or
indulge in financial irregularities. If they cannot follow
this, let them leave the party," he said.
PTI
