Nano Plant Work Closure Declared by Tata Motors

The Tata Motors authority declared stoppage of work at Nano Plant at Singur in West Bengal from today the 2nd September ’08. In a press statement, they declared that since 24th August ’08, due to constant intimidation, violence and physical manhandling of engineers, staffs and workers working in the plant, the attendance of the workforce was reducing constantly and after the incident on 28th August ’08 when workers were locked up inside the plant and released only after threatening them not to come to work. Under the circumstances, for security reasons, Tata authority decided to stop work and, as such, no work could be done in the last four days, as the situation in and around Tata Motors Plant remained hostile.

Tata Motors also said in the press statement that the main vendors have already invested Rs.500 crores ($120 million) and they would also stop all sorts of further work. They however made it clear that the local people who have been trained in the Tata Motors plant elsewhere to eventually work at Singur plant would be readjusted in other plants of Tata Motors in Pune or Pantnagar.

It is well known that  Mamata Banerjee is staging a sit in ‘Dharna’ (demonstration) around Tata Motors’ Nano Plant at Singur since 24th August ’08 and had been congregating around some hundred thousand political followers who are not only blocking the plant’s work but have also blocked the Durgapur expressway which is not only the life line for supply of construction material at the Nano Plant, but also a main supply route to Calcutta for all essential commodities.

Meanwhile six Japanese experts who were technically helping the Tata Motors Nano production have left Calcutta by Thai Airways due to the blockade at the Nano plant site. One of them, Naotaka Ishikawa said, “We had to leave because of the political turmoil at the project site. We have never seen anything like this.”

A casual worker, Rajendra Singh from Bihar, said, “We never saw this kind of protest in Bihar. They are making fun on the highways blocking it completely."