The newly elected BJP government in Bengal will prepare a comprehensive land policy, revisit the archaic Urban Land Ceiling Act, allow special economic zones and permit contract farming in agriculture, state party president Samik Bhattacharya told a gathering of industrialists on Tuesday.
During the interaction, the first time a senior Bengal BJP functionary had met industry representatives after the party formed its maiden government in the state, Bhattacharya outlined a road map to revive business in the state. He said it was the government's responsibility to create an investor-friendly environment in the state.
Marking a clear departure from the hands-off policy of the Mamata Banerjee government, Bhattacharya made a strong pitch for an administrative role in arranging land for industry.
“The previous governments never had a comprehensive land policy. Land reforms happened in this state; much of the land belongs to small farmers. Eighty-two per cent of land is owned by small farmers. Without government intervention or a land policy, industrial revival in Bengal will never be possible,” Bhattacharya said, addressing the members of the Bengal National Chamber of Commerce & Industry, a Calcutta-based industry body.
While making it clear that he is not part of the government and there will be a new industry minister in due course, Bhattacharya said the BJP had promised to restore investor confidence, both for those operating in the state and outside, including overseas.
“From Day One, we have said we want an investment-friendly state. Big industries must come to Bengal. There is no future otherwise,” he added.
Bhattacharya called for a “partnership” between industry and agriculture.
“The model that succeeded in Punjab, Haryana and Maharashtra — if 100 or 1,000 acres are needed, acquire 1,100 acres. After development, return 100 acres appropriately to those whose land was acquired. Sector V was built without conflict. The Golden Quadrilateral project (to build highways during the Vajpayee regime) involved land acquisition by the central government without any issue. Yet 63 railway projects are stuck (in Bengal) solely because of land acquisition problems and lack of government cooperation,” Bhattacharya said.
The state BJP chief also signalled a departure from the policy of previous governments on the Urban Land Ceiling Act (ULCA), which has often been cited by industry in general and real estate players in particular as a restrictive law that hinders growth. No other state has the ULCA, according to real estate consultancy Anarock.
Bhattacharya also advocated contract farming, which allows the participation of organised players in agricultural activities. “There is no contract farming in this state. Urban land ceiling laws are a major obstacle. We are thinking of removing them, and we will,” he said.
The Left dispensation under chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee had flirted with the idea of contract farming. PepsiCo subsidiary Frito-Lay was allowed to work closely with farmers in the state for the procurement of food-processing-grade potatoes for the MNC’s factory in Sankrail. Faced with steep resistance from non-CPM Left Front constituents, particularly the Forward Bloc, the experiment had only limited success.
Bhattacharya on Tuesday indicated that the BJP government would allow special economic zones in a small way, possibly mindful that large SEZs may not be a practical option in a land-scarce state such as Bengal.
“We want to establish law and order in the state. Through all of you, we want to send a message to the people: in the future, no political party worker will come asking for money if someone wants to build a factory. Our only aim is that industry comes up, FDI grows, flight of capital stops, and our educated young generation stops going outside the state for jobs. Our policy is to modernise agriculture, increase farmers’ income, initiate a cooperative movement, allow contract farming, and bring in special economic zones on a small scale (simito porisore),” Bhattacharya noted.
Mamata, who rose to power in 2011 on the back of anti-land acquisition movements, never allowed SEZs in Bengal — not even for information technology, which requires only 25 acres for the tag.
IT giants Infosys and Wipro, which already had unencumbered land provided by the state government itself, were not given SEZ status, holding up their projects in Bengal for years.
Industry observers welcomed the comments of the Bengal BJP chief, saying the new government was sending out the right signals. “It will certainly improve the image of Bengal. However, the key would be ground-level implementation for which we need to wait and watch,” an observer summed up the mood.