[Assam] TATA's paying Rs 1,700 @ Singur TATA Nano plant !!

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http://www.telegraphindia.com/1080904/jsp/frontpage/story_9786156.jsp

Father of project workers kills himself
  IMRAN AHMED SIDDIQUI         (Fom top) Sushil, Bibhas and Balika Santra.
Pictures by Pradip Sanyal

*Singur, Sept. 3: *Sushil Santra, 55, who had happily given his land for the
Tata small-car plant and whose three sons had found work in the project,
drank pesticide and died this morning in his house 100 metres away from the
factory.

The resident of Joymollah village had heard on television last night that
the Tatas could leave, his family said.

"He watched television at the local club till late night and was shocked to
know that the Tatas would leave Singur. Around midnight he came home very
agitated. He asked me how the family would survive now and went to sleep,"
wife Balika said.

The farmer woke up early today and went to a nearby market. He returned
around 9am and headed straight to his room. "After half an hour, I found him
vomiting and called my sons. A bottle of pesticide was lying near him,"
Balika sobbed.

Santra died on way to hospital on a cycle van.

Her husband had been upset their sons could not go to work since Mamata
Banerjee began her siege outside the factory gates on August 24, Balika
said.

Uttam and Subhas, the older sons, each earned Rs 109 a day at housekeeping
company BVG at the project site. Bibhas, the youngest, got around Rs 80 as
day labourer at the mother plant.

Santra had willingly given up his one-bigha plot two years ago for Rs 3
lakh, money that he used to build a pucca house for his family and marry off
his sons.

"Earlier we had a mud house but after getting the money, my father decided
to build a one-storey house for us. We were very happy and the construction
was completed a year ago," said Subhas.

As soon as the house was ready, Sushil got Subhas and Bibhas married off on
the same day. Uttam was married about five years ago.

"We were very happy as our sons started working at the factory site," Balika
said.

But the family of 10 had been hard pressed after the three stopped going to
work last month.

"They were the principal earning members of the family and we survived on
their income. But they stopped going to work out of fear over the past 11
days. We had no money and my husband became very tense," the widow said, as
tears rolled down her cheeks.

Santra died around 10am while he was being taken to Singur hospital 6-7km
away on a cycle van. Angry villagers took his body on the same cycle van to
Durgapur Expressway, 2km from Mamata's seat of agitation, to protest against
the suspension of work at the factory.

District magistrate Neelam Meena refused to comment. "I am yet to receive
the post-mortem report," she said.

Tata Motors described the death as "unfortunate".

Suspension of work at the factory has hurt the villagers, most of whom had
given up land for the car plant and found employment at the project site.
They demanded immediate resumption of work at the factory.

"Many of the farmers will have no option but to commit suicide if the Tatas
leave Singur. Our land was acquired for the project and now we have lost our
jobs because of the agitation. It's a dead end for us," said Narayan Chandra
Pakira, Santra's neighbour.

Vikash Pakira, another neighbour, was working as an apprentice at the Nano
plant since January 15, after completing his ITI course from Ramakrishna
Mission in Belur.

"I used to get Rs 1,700 a month as stipend but do not know how my family
will survive if the Tatas pull out from here," the family's breadwinner
said.

Santra's nephew Vidyut is also an apprentice at the Nano plant.

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