DMs told to submit list of abandoned land

Kolkata: The state government has directed the District Magistrates (DMs) of all the districts to identify land parcels across Bengal and submit a list so that the government can set up clusters of green firecrackers.

Sources said that the state on Monday had asked the DMs to submit the list of the lands which can be sued for the purpose. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee earlier this month had formed a committee led by the Chief Secretary for identifying land parcels across the state for developing clusters of green firecrackers. The committee led by Chief Secretary H K Dwivedi has officials from Finance, Home, MSME, Fire, Environment, Panchayat and Municipal Affairs among others. The committee is expected to submit a report within two months.

Sources said that the Chief Minister had asked the committee to identify land from the state’s existing land bank and other vested lands for setting up green cracker manufacturing clusters. The District Magistrates will also assist the committee in identifying such lands. The move assumed significance after many had lost their lives due to blasts in illegal cracker manufacturing units at Egra, East Midnapore and Budge Budge in South 24-Parganas. The livelihood of lakhs of people in the state is dependent on the firecracker industry and the state government is pushing those associated with the industry to manufacture only green firecrackers.