State finalises design of monument to commemorate martyrs of Singur

Kolkata: The state government has finalised the design based on which a monument at Singur will be installed, to mark the sacrifice of the martyrs of the movement.

Sources said that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday has given approval to one of the designs out of three to four which were placed before her. Based on the design, the sculpture will be developed on a pedestal close to the 997 acres of the multi-crop land, that was once taken away from farmers to set up Tata's small car project.

It was on August 31 in 2016, when the farmers got back their land after a fight spanning a period of 10 long years, following a landmark judgment of the Supreme Court, stating that the acquisition for the project was unjustified. The Chief Minister had announced setting up of the monument to mark the sacrifice of the martyrs during the Singur movement, when she went there after the historic win of the farmers.

The decision to set up the monument was taken so that the future generations would get to know the sacrifice of 14 people, who gave their lives protesting against the forceful acquisition of the land.

The work to set up the same had started and artists were engaged to design the same. According to the sources in the state secretariat, the Chief Minister has given approval to a design of the monument, depicting farmers with sickles and wheat stalks in their hands, standing around ploughs.

The height of the statue will be around 25 to 30 feet and it will be placed on a 15 feet high pedestal. An undertaking company of the state government will be developing the monument.

A one-acre plot has been identified off National Highway 2 at Singer Bheri area in Singur, where a park with beautiful landscape will be developed, with the statue being set up at the centre of the park.

Fourteen people, who had laid their lives down while protesting against the Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government's move to acquire the land, include Tapasi Malik and Rajkumar Bhul. Tapasi, a teenage girl, was burnt to death after being allegedly raped and her body was found on the acquired plot. It had given momentum to the movement against the land acquisition.

Similarly, 26-year-old Bhul was beaten up by the police in this connection and he later succumbed to his injuries. His mother wrote an open letter to the then Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, holding him responsible for her son's death.

The Mamata Banerjee government had provided all support to the land losers to get back their land. Moreover, the Singur movement, starting from day one to the day the land was returned to farmers after the present state government came to power, has once again seen Singur turn into its previous cultivable condition and has been included in the history book of Class VIII.