Ratan Tata, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee

Calcutta, Sept. 14: The Bengal government is expecting Tata Motors to provide “very soon” an idea about the company’s plans to resume work at Singur.

“We are expecting them (the Tatas) to offer an idea tomorrow,” said chief secretary Amit Kiran Deb, adding that the statement issued by Tata Motors today in support of the government’s initiative to break the deadlock was an “indication of the company’s current thinking”.

“The government is in constant touch with them. Let’s see how things shape up, the picture will be clearer in the next few days,” said Deb who played a key role in formulating the package in consultation with the chief minister and his core team of senior ministers.

An identical sentiment was expressed by housing minister Gautam Deb, who said the Tatas could be expected to restart operations. “We think they will address this issue in a day or two,” he said.

No comment, however, was readily available from Tata Motors. In private, senior officials said the company would wait for a conducive environment to return. “But the current signs are encouraging,” one of them said from Mumbai.

In the most positive statement yet since the run-up to the siege and after, the company said today: “Tata Motors appreciates and supports the recent initiatives of the government of West Bengal for the residents of Singur area where it had acquired land for the Tata Motors Nano project.”

The vocal support came on a day the government brought out newspaper advertisements that listed the components of the rehabilitation package which Mamata Banerjee has so far not accepted. Offering a mix of cash and jobs, the scheme has already stoked high interest among Singur villagers.

Like the government, Tata Motors took its case directly to the people. “Tata Motors decided to set up its Nano plant at Singur to play an active role in the re-industrialisation of the state and make a contribution to the economic development of the region, providing direct and indirect employment opportunities and participating in the overall community development. Tata Motors hopes that these initiatives will evoke a positive response from the residents of Singur and that all stakeholders will contribute to create a congenial environment conducive to the long-term sustained operations of an industrial enterprise.”

The statement came on the eve of a Left Front rally in Singur in support of industrialisation. Mamata will hold a rally in Singur the next day.

“At this point, I cannot predict when construction will resume or what the company’s plans are,” said state CPM secretary and politburo member Biman Bose, also the front chairman. “But I am optimistic that things will change for the better and soon.”

Chief minister Bhattacharjee and industries minister Nirupam Sen will stay away from the rally. The meeting will be addressed by leaders of all constituents and staged off the main road so that the front cannot be accused of blocking the road and violating the law like Mamata did. However, a CPM official said: “We will not block the road, but our worry is the crowd may spill onto it and cause disruption.”

The government’s optimism on the Singur plant stems also from an assessment that the Trinamul Congress is in a dilemma on how to deal with the government’s rehabilitation initiative.

The suspicion was confirmed when Mamata and her key aide Partha Chatterjee stayed away from the two hour-long meeting of the Save Farmland Committee this evening. “What is significant is that we did not discuss any programme for a strong movement,” said one of the participants. “The emphasis was on exploring ways of negotiation.”

Mamata is said to have decided to wait for the governor to return from Delhi on Thursday night.

Trinamul and its allies feel that Gopalkrishna Gandhi would set up another meeting between the chief minister and Mamata and facilitate “some sort of accommodation” of her demand.

“True, the government cannot give us 300 acres within the project area, but it can surely give us 100 acres,” said a senior Trinamul functionary. “Once it is done, the Nano can easily roll out of the Singur plant.”

A sizeable section of Trinamul leaders is believed to be resisting the suggestions coming from fringe groups that Mamata accelerate the movement. Some Trinamul leaders are trying to convince her that she could claim victory even if she accepted Bhattacharjee’s package.

Chatterjee, however, said there was no question of letting up at this point. If the government tried to go forward without addressing Mamata’s concerns, Trinamul would “go into a political war”.

“But let me also say Trinamul is always open for discussions,” Chatterjee added.

Mamata is understood to be planning to needle the government by teaming up with anti-Left forces like Nabaparjay, a union of government employees, and fanning the current agitation for salaries on a par with central employees.