The BJP has advocated the return of the Tata Group to Singur, saying it could give a new impetus to investment and industrial development in West Bengal.

Tata returns to singur

West Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya said the state government wants the Tata Group to return to Singur in Hooghly district. He described it not only as an economic necessity but also as a strong message that Bengal is ready for investment again.

The Bengal BJP chief said in an interview with PTI that the Tata Group's return to Singur nearly two decades ago sent a wrong message to investors after the Nano project left the state, and that now needs to be erased. "We want the Tata Group to come back, and that too to Singur," he said.

Tata Group should return to Bengal in any form: Bhattacharya.

West Bengal, once India's industrial hub, has steadily declined over the past several decades. Referring to the 2008 withdrawal of Tata's Nano project from Singur and the subsequent controversy surrounding the anti-land acquisition movement led by Mamata Banerjee, Bhattacharya said the removal of the Tata Motors plant had become a symbol of Bengal's anti-industry image. When asked whether Tata's return to Singur could be seen as an "atonement" for the previous government's mistakes, he said the departure of Tata Motors had caused long-term damage to the state's investment climate.

He said, "We want the Tata Group to return to Singur or Bengal in some form, whether it's the automobile sector or any other sector. They are one of the oldest, most respected and trusted industrial groups in the country."  

Mamata Banerjee came to power by opposing the Nano project.

The movement against Tata Motors helped bring Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee to power and end 34 years of Left Front rule. On the other hand, it also became a symbol of Bengal's industrial decline in the eyes of many investors. The loss of the Nano project in 2008 and the subsequent demolition of the nearly completed factory dealt a major blow to the corporate world. This created a lasting perception of policy uncertainty and resistance to large industrial investments in the state.

Nearly two decades later, the BJP wants to transform the same place from a symbol of industrial migration to a symbol of industrial return. Bhattacharya said that industrial renaissance in Bengal is impossible without fundamental changes in land acquisition policies. He said, "We did not have a comprehensive land policy. Mamata Banerjee announced that the government would not acquire even an inch of land for industries and that companies would have to buy land directly. Under such an impractical and flawed policy, industrialists cannot go door to door and buy land."