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Bangalore, September 18,
2008 (IANS)
Karnataka
Thursday offered 1,000 acres of land and incentives
to Tata Motors to shift their troubled Nano small
car project from Singur in West Bengal. The auto
major has suspended work at the Singur plant as
Trinamool Congress led by Mamata Bannerjee is
agitating for the return of 400 acres within the
Nano complex to farmers. The West Bengal government
has offered to give back around 70 acres which
Bannerjee is not willing to accept. Tata Motors
is also against giving back such large tracts
of land as the Nano is an integrated project and
needs ancillaries to function within the complex.
"There will be not be
any protest (by farmers) or agitation (like in
Singur) against the project," Karnataka Chief
Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa told Tata Motors managing
director G. Ravi Kant at a meeting here. "We
have very good relations with the Tatas and they
are receptive to our offer," Yeddyurappa
told reporters after the meeting.
Karnataka proposes to give
the land in the state's northern district of Dharwad
where the Tata Group has equipment manufacturing
facility spread over 600 acres. Dharwad is 420
kilometres from Bangalore and 550 kilometres from
Mumbai. Ravi Kant told reporters that Yeddyurappa
has promised all support, encouragement and incentives
if his company decided to relocate the Nano project
from Singur to Karnataka.
"Since Nano is an integrated
project, it requires about 1,000 acres of land,"
he said, and added that no decision has been taken
to relocate Nano from Singur as yet and Karnataka's
offer would be discussed with group chairman Ratan
Tata.
"We are considering
alternatives," he said when asked whether
a decision has been taken to move out of Singur.
Tatas have offers from several other states to
locate the Nano plant there.
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