The state government can clean up its act, but only if it wishes to do so. With the high court sitting on its head, the Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government has taken the first step towards fulfilling what had seemed like mission impossible — cleaning up the Calcutta Maidan.

The effort to clear the post-fair rubble and rubbish from the greens bordering the Victoria Memorial Hall worked wonders on Friday and the new-look stretch even drew praise from the final custodians of the Maidan, the army.

The mood in Calcutta High Court for Friday’s hearing of the fairground cleaning case was as bright as the look the Maidan around the Memorial sported on Friday, 48 hours after the state government had been hauled up for failing to demolish the makeshift toilets and clear the filthy grounds.

On Wednesday, the division bench of Justice A.K. Ganguly and Justice Soumitra Sen had directed the state government — on the basis of a report furnished by the court-appointed special officer — to remove all garbage from the fairground before 1 pm on Friday, when the next inspection would be carried out.

Friday’s report from the spot, placed before the division bench, found special officer Dipak Deb all praise for the government. “It is a miracle. The ground is sparkling clean.”

Petitioner Subhas Dutta said: “I have visited the ground, and the impossible has been made possible only due to the court’s intervention.” State pollution control board lawyer Manik Das also admitted that the government had done a good job.

Government pleader Rabilal Moitra’s response: “We do it every time, but for some odd reason, such good work never gets commented upon.”

The government has already announced a shifting-out of all fairs from the ground adjacent to Victoria Memorial to a permanent site off the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass. The court has given the government time till April 14, 2004, for the new venue to be finalised and the shift effected.

Friday also saw GOC Bengal area Z.U. Shah meeting chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee at Writers’ Buildings. “We discussed the Maidan and the role the army can play to keep it clean. Our aim is to cooperate with the police and the public works department to keep the Maidan clean and free from pollution and crime. The chief minister understands and agrees,” said GOC Shah.

The security of Fort William is linked to the Maidan and it must be kept crime-free, stressed GOC Shah. “We also want to prevent lighting of any fire on the Maidan, as it causes pollution and harms the greenery,” he added.

The army is discussing the handing over of some portions of the Maidan used for civil purposes to the state government.

Asked if the army had agreed to give up the section adjacent to Shahid Minar, as transport minister Subhas Chakraborty had claimed a few days ago, GOC Shah said: “That is not known to me.”