West
Bengal may be the first state to lay down a comprehensive
land use policy, reports CNBC-TV18.
The
Singur flare up appears to have taught the Left Front
government of Bengal that it needs to build a positive
public opinion on farmland acquisition. It needs to illustrate
that agriculture was not being sacrificed for industrial
growth, before more land was acquired.
And
that has led the administration to identify zones, acre-by-acre,
for industrial use, and demarcate fertile spaces that
are going to be spared for agriculture.
"The
government is preparing a map of areas that could be transformed
into townships or industrial zones. Once it is ready,
we''ll circulate it amongst people of the state and political
parties so that everyone gets a comprehensive picture
of what we are planning to do," said Nirupam Sen,
Commerce and Industries Minister, West Bengal.
At
present, agriculture accounts for about 26 per cent of
Bengal''s state domestic product. Industry contributes
24 per cent, and the booming service sector accounts for
the balance 50 per cent.
The exercise to separate industrial zones comes at a time
when the Bengal government has committed to acquire close
to 50,000 acres of farmland for development of infrastructure
and industrial use.
Unless
the government had people''s support in its drive for industrialisation,
Singur could repeat itself in a bigger form and seriously
undermine the Left Front''s support base in Bengal.
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