Krishnagar: After dubbing a farmer a Maoist for questioning the high price of fertilisers at a rally last month, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday replied to a similar query saying that she has taken it up with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
When a youth shouted `fertiliser, fertiliser` referring to its high price at the far end of a public meeting in Nadia district, Banerjee said, "this is a central subject and not a state subject. As such we cannot do much about the prices.
"But I have taken up the issue with the Prime Minister. I told him about the plight of farmers during my last visit to Delhi," the chief minister said.
She told the people to bring black marketing and hoarding of fertiliser to the notice of the authorities for prompt action.
Shiladitya Chowdhury, a 35-year old farmer from Binpur in West Midnapore district, had asked about rising fertiliser prices during the chief minister`s public meeting at Belpahari on July 8.
The chief minister had dubbed him a Maoist and asked the police to arrest him. He was detained and let off, but was arrested on July 11 and remanded to judicial custody for 14 days before being released on bail.
Speaking on the development programmes taken up by the state government, the chief minister said "we have done in one year what the Left Front government could not in 34-years.
"We have set up three new universities in a year, while they managed only one in 34 years," Banerjee said.
"We have completed 90 per cent work in a year. Instead of spreading canards, they should keep quiet and take rest."
About bad road conditions, Banerjee said that national highways 34, 31 and 2, maintained by the Centre, were in bad shape.
"I have talked to the Prime Minister about the situation," she said.
She said that a central team would see the condition of the roads and repairs would be taken up before the pujas.
Banerjee said that 371 cold storages and 371 kishan bazaars would be set up in three years in the state.
She said that a Rs 16 crore medical hub would come up in the district and local hospitals would be modernised.
She said that industrial training institutes would be set up in all blocks of the district.
PTI
