Salim chief visits land for SEZ

Haldia, West Bengal, June 15 (UNI) Foiling a Trinamool Congress plan for agitation, the administration today took Salim group chief Benny Santoso for a highly guarded visit to a Special Economic Zone in the district.

During the three-and-a-half hour visit to this industrial town and its adjoining rural areas, the Indonesian industrialist sought 27,000 acre of land for the proposed SEZ.

Wary of the Trinamool Congress, announcing an agitational programme in protest against Mr Santoso's visit, the district administration kept his schedule a top secret and played hide-and-seek with the opposition party workers, laying seige to different roads and awaiting to block the industrialist's motorcade.

Mr Santoso was accompanied by NRI industrialist Prasun Banerjee and Haldia Development Authority Chairman Laxman Seth, MP.

The Trinamool Congress had planned the agitation alleging that the state Government was 'hoodwinking' the people in the name of industrialisation and its objective was to take away the farmers' plots and hand them over to industrialists at hefty prices.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee had alleged that Mr Santoso was a 'blacklisted' industrialist in Indonesia.

The party had organised an elaborate agitational programme in Kolkata a few months back, when Mr Santoso met Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee for signing of an agreement for setting up industries in the state. But that too was foiled by police, chalking out a clever itinerary.

Mr Santoso is scheduled to meet the Chief Minister in Kolkata tomorrow to submit the Detailed Project Report for his proposed industrial project in South Twentyfour Parganas distirct.

UNI KDG SJC RA GC2050