West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said she cannot get land for another airport in Kolkata, three weeks after TMC leader Mohammed Ghulam Rabbani invited American billionaire Elon Musk to invest in the state.
The response came after Civil Aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia accused the West Bengal CM of delaying the approval for the project and thereby halting the state’s development.
Lashing out at the centre, Mamata Banerjee questioned the central government over the need to have 1000 acres of land for building an alternative airport for Kolkata. “They need 1000 acres of land for another airport in Kolkata. Can I bulldoze existing houses? We can’t just evict people.” said Mamata clarifying the challenges before land allocation of the airport. Further alleging that the Central Government is doing politics, Mamata Banerjee in reference to the farmer protests said, “I’m not like them who killed farmers”
They need 1000 acres of land for another airport in Kolkata. Can I bulldoze existing houses? We can’t just evict people. The minister (aviation) shouldn’t do politics.I’m not like them who killed farmers:WB CM Banerjee on Centre saying that WB govt not giving land for 2nd airport pic.twitter.com/dfQLZKT11y
— ANI (@ANI) February 7, 2022
The Centre had earlier come up with an idea to build a second airport for the city since the existing Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) Airport has reached its capacity. It has been learnt that the Bengal state government, despite many correspondences from the Centre has failed to allocate land for the same and give a suitable response to them regarding the same.
Earlier in the day, Jyotiraditya Scindia had launched a scathing attack on Mamata Banerjee for not clearing the land for the airport on time. In a press conference in Kolkata, Scindia said, “We want a new airport to be built in Kolkata. The existing one is at present running at maximum capacity and for several years, letters and views are being exchanged for a new site, but no concrete step has come from the state government” Scindia highlighted the concern for commencement of the work for the new airport since no land has been made available.
According to Scindia, the Central Government has elaborate plans for the development of civil aviation in West Bengal. “We are investing Rs 700 crore for the present (NSCBI) airport. A new technical block cum control tower will be made operational at a cost of Rs 300 crore,” said Scindia. While a new taxiway is being built for Rs 265 crore, Rs 110 crore is being invested for connecting the Metro Railway with the airport terminal building – the minister informed. Scindia has alleged that The central government has written to the state several times for early handing over of land, but there is no reply from the Bengal state officials. “The (state) government is stuck in files” he added while urging the chief minister to work in tandem with the Centre for development of the state.
Bengal Minister’s invitation to Elon Musk
While the state government of Bengal is dilly-dallying with a singular allocation of land for the airport in Kolkata, the challenges in Bengal when it comes to Land allocation are seen far from gone. Ironically, on January 15, Minister-in-Charge for minority affairs and Madrasa education, Mohammed Ghulam Rabbani had invited Tesla maven Elon Musk to set up a manufacturing facility in West Bengal. He tweeted, “Drop here, we in West Bengal have the best infra & our leader Mamata Banerjee has got the vision. Bengal means Business …”. This was in response to Elon Musk’s allegation of having to ‘work through a lot of challenges with the government’ when asked by a fan about the launch of Tesla in India.
Drop here, we in West Bengal have best infra & our leader @MamataOfficial has got the vision.
— Md Ghulam Rabbani (রাব্বানী) (@GhulamRabbani_) January 15, 2022
Bengal means Business … https://t.co/CXtx4Oq7y5
Speaking about Mamata Banerjee’s vision, the biggest blow to Bengal’s industrial development ever was her infamous protests at Singur. When Ratan Tata’s Tata Motors was about to set up a factory in Singur for the production of its Tata Nano, it was Mamata Benerjee who led the protests following which, Ratan Tata had to shift his facility to Sanand in Gujarat. While her government is ready to invite a foreign conglomerate in Bengal, Mamata Banerjee should keep aside land for an alternative airport in Kolkata as well. Also, before showing a willingness to partner with Musk, a lesson or two in cooperative federalism is a must for Mamata.
