Ratan Tata going off his head: Bengal minister Amit Mitra

Kolkata, Aug 7 :

A day after Ratan Tata said he could not see much of industrial activity in West Bengal, state Finance and Industries Minister Amit Mitra hit back, saying the Tata Sons chairman emeritus has “gone off his head”.

“He should carry on with his hobby of flying. I am surprised that his company officials did not brief him properly. He does not know about the expansion of his own group companies in West Bengal… he has gone off his head,” Mitra told mediapersons here.

Mitra said that several companies, including the Tata Consultancy Services and Tata Metaliks, are expanding their operations in the state.

He also said the Anil Ambani Group has cleared a Rs.600 crore cement plant, while the Emami Group was setting up a similar unit.

“The list of industries eager to set up shop here in Bengal is so long that I will take a whole day to read it out,” asserted Mitra.

Tata, who was forced to relocate a car manufacturing unit to Sanand in Gujarat from a “hostile” Singur, Wednesday had said he could not see much signs of industrial development here.

“Certainly there is unbelievable change in terms of buildings and development, but it still looks like a countryside underdevelopment. There is a great deal of movement both commercial and residential but you don’t see that much signs of industrial development,” Tata had said at a programme.

Tata Motors had to relocate the plant to Sanand in 2008 following sustained agitation led by the then opposition leader and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee.

Mitra’s comments have attracted criticism from the CPI-M and the BJP with both the parties asserting that the state’s industrial scenario was far from the rosy picture painted by the industries minister.

(IANS)