Comrades may fault 123, but Buddha differs

KOLKATA: West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Monday indicated that India cannot avoid the advent of nuclear power even though his CPM colleagues in Delhi were strongly opposing the Indo-US nuke deal. Mr Bhattacharjee, who is a senior politburo member, said price of nuclear power and its impact on environment are two crucial issues that need to be examined before taking a final call.

“We just cannot avoid nuclear power. We should move ahead taking into account the price of nuclear power and its impact on environment. Let scientists debate, we will take a decision later,” the CM said on Monday in Kolkata at an interactive session of the national council meeting of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

The nuke issue was raised by CII president Sunil Mittal. After hearing the CM’s reply, Mr Mittal said: “It’s a clear ‘yes’ on nuclear power, but a cautious ‘yes’.”Mr Bhattacharjee said the state requires more power in the coming years as the growth rate is increasing and FDI is pouring in. “We need green energy. Scientists are advising us on green power. In our state, there is a mismatch between thermal power and other renewable sources of power. Nearly 96% of our power requirement is generated from coal and balance 4% from other sources.”

In this light, Mr Mittal said the CII is taking the help of the UK government to introduce clean coal technology in India. “We are planning a pilot project for the country and we would like to bring West Bengal under this project,” he added.

Interestingly, the industry captains raised questions on the conservative mindset of the Left parties that was coming in the way of industrial development of the country. In reply, Mr Bhattacharjee said: “We are closely following developments in China and Vietnam. We are changing our stance according to the needs of the day.”

The old people in the party are on their way out. The new generation is gradually taking over and the change in mindset is palpable. Most of the people in the party’s central committee understands the change. We are ‘realists’ and not ‘pragmatists’. The word pragmatist smacks opportunity.”

On SEZs, Mr Bhattacharjee slammed the Centre for “unplanned decisions” on the issue. “In our country, we started with 400 SEZs. It is sheer madness,” he said.With Bharti group CMD Sunil Mittal beside him, the chief minister made his stand clear on retail.

Indian companies from Reliance to Spencer’s should be allowed in the state retail business with some regulations, he said. “We have requested Reliance not to touch foodgrains,” he said, adding retail shops should not be opened within the core area of the city. He also urged the CII members to participate in the state’s healthcare system under the public-private partnership model.