TMC's tactics to employ glitz and glamour are failing to attract the people of Purulia. The ruling party is worried. The farmers of Purulia are tired of listening to the false promises made by Didi. People are beginning to ask unpleasant questions, making the TMC think twice before approaching people.
People of the constituency were promised many things. They have been hearing about a super specialty hospital at Ketoka, first promised by Mamata Banerjee when she was the Railways Minister. When she became the Chief Minister she came up with another super specialty hospital at Hatowara, only to be soon forgotten and suddenly Raghunathpur was promised with a super hospital. Ironically when these promises were being made, the existing sub divisional hospital at Raghunathpur closed down half of its departments, without recruiting a single health worker, let alone a physician. The promise of a super specialty hospital remains elusive to the people of Purulia.
They were promised more. A power plant, cold storage, market facilities for farmers and development of tourism. In October 2010 Ms. Banerjee suddenly announced a power plant project at Monpura Forest of Adra, and went on to lay its foundation stone and even signed an agreement with NTPC – all of this completely ignoring the fact that the earmarked land was leased to the forest department for its social afforestation programme. The Monpura forest was ruthlessly chopped down in the name of the power plant depriving more than seven thousand people of their livelihoods who depended on the forest for its minor produce. Moreover, people are still not aware as the mystery of who pocketed the money by selling the trees robbed from the forest. In the last three years, the Chief Minister has visited this region thrice. But the promise of the farmer's marketing centre or cold storage was never mentioned and conveniently forgotten. Even worse, the two cold storage facilities at Bandwan and Manbazar built by the Left Front government were shut down.
This is true for all projects planned by the Left Front. The girls hostel for Muslim students named after Begum Rokeya was ready to function when its inauguration was postponed in 2011 due to code of conduct for the state elections. But it remains abandoned to this day awaiting the Chief Minister's attention. Same is the case with Sidhu Kanu university. The Act was passed, classes were started and land allotted by the Left Front government. The TMC government just had to find a proper functional space for the university. But the students are condemned to have their classes in kitchen and portico of JBT college and in another private engineering college 42 kms away.
The failures are out in the open for all to see. People are demanding answers now. The Left candidate Narahari Mahato is raising important issues of the people. People are looking for real commitments and the Left's campaign is reassuring to Purulia and its toiling farmers.
May 4, 2014