West Bengal govt won’t collect revenue for agricultural land: Mamata Banerjee

KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced on Monday that her government would no longer collect revenue for agricultural land.

"Our farmers have suffered a lot financially due to demonetisation. They are also facing with a financial crisis as Kharif crops cultivation was not satisfactory. To give them some relief, we have decided not to collect revenue for agricultural land," the chief minister announced during a function at Kharagpur in West Midnapore district on Monday.

At the same time, the chief minister also urged the Union government to waive agricultural loan. "Before elections, the BJP had promised to waive agricultural loan. After winning the polls, the party is keeping mum on this issue. They have done nothing in this regard," Mamata alleged.


The chief minister also inaugurated and laid the foundation stones for a bouquet of developmental projects for the West Midnapore district from a public meeting at Kharagpur College Maidan. The projects inaugurated on Monday included a Krishak Bazar, a market complex, water supply projects, a flood rehabilitation centre, road projects, government buildings, godowns among others.

Opposition parties, however, dub Mamata's act of giving relief to the farmers as her calculated move to woo them before next year's panchayet elections.

"There are speculations among the ruling Trinamool Congress that the chief minister might go for early panchayet polls next year. After bulldozing the opposition parties by using the police and her party cadres, the Trinamool Congress supremo is now planning to go for early elections next year and her announcement on Monday is nothing but a ploy to win votes of the farmers next year," said a senior CPIM leader.