Mamata begins party evaluation before next year’s election

Ahead of next year’s assembly polls in West Bengal, Trinamool Congress supremo and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday started district-wise evaluation of the party organisation.

In the first meeting which was held with West Midnapore unit, Banerjee reviewed the organisational strength of the party in the district and asked its leaders not to be provoked by the Jathas of CPI(M).

She asked them to speak to the people about the developmental work carried out by TMC government in the last four and half years in Junglemahal, which was once the hotbed of Maoists, according to senior TMC leaders.

From now on Banerjee will conduct meetings and evaluation of organisational strength in every district every week, they said.

“Our leader Mamata Banerjee has told us not to step into any kind of provocation by CPI(M) leadership. We will do counter rallies to publicise the developmental work that we have done in last four and the half year. We will carry out door-to door campaigns in each and every part of the district,” a senior TMC leader of West Midnapore district said after the meeting on condition of anonymity.

The instruction comes at a point when TMC and CPI(M) are engaged in a war of words with TMC accusing the Left party of trying to capture villages in the guise of taking out rallies.

 This announcement came at the heels of Mamata Banerjee’s announcement on Friday to make Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove forest, a separate district next year. Banerjee, on a visit to North 24 Parganas district, said the decision was taken because people in the riverine area have specific set of problems.

“We will create a new district for Sunderbans by Durga Puja next year,” she said while addressing a rally at Sandeshkhali in the district.

The Indian part of Sundarbans is estimated to cover an area of about 4,110 square kilometres of which about 1,700 square kilometres is now under South 24 Parganas district.

Banerjee, also the Trinamool Congress supremo, also declared constitution’s prime architect B.R. Ambedkar’s 125th birth anniversary celebrations will be held in every block of the state on December 30. A chair will be named after him at Calcutta University and a Panchayat Training Centre, named after him will be set up.