Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Monday handed over compensation cheques of Rs 5,00,000 each to the family members of 11 migrant workers from the state killed at NHPC Limited’s under-construction tunnel at Namchi in Sikkim on July 20.
At the same time, the Chief Minister also promised jobs as home guards in the state police to one member of each of these 11 families.
The Chief Minister landed at the temporary helipad of the Jalpaiguri SAI Sports Complex by a chopper from Bagdogra Airport in Siliguri on Monday afternoon. From there, he travelled by road to the Jalpaiguri District Magistrate’s office and met the families of the deceased workers.
Speaking to media persons, Adhikari said that because of employment opportunities shrinking in the state following the flight of industrial units during the previous Trinamool Congress regime, many youths were forced to work as migrant workers in other states.
“The deceased workers went to other states for work. There is no employment in West Bengal. But the state government is trying to change the situation by gradually creating job opportunities. I will ask the migrant workers to start returning to the state gradually. We will arrange work in big factories and small and cottage industries.
Also, employment will start at the government level. It has been just 10 weeks since the new state government came to power. So far, there has been a legal complication regarding OBCs. The previous state government created complications regarding OBCs by playing the politics of appeasement. We have passed the Bill in the Assembly and amended it. This time we will start all the work quickly,” the Chief Minister said.
He also announced that of the 25 closed tea gardens in North Bengal, around 12 will be reopened within three months. At the same time, he said that nationally acclaimed milk-products manufacturing companies would be provided 15 acres of land each in South Bengal and North Bengal for setting up manufacturing units.
“These industrial units will provide additional employment opportunities. At the same time, the tea gardens will benefit from the Pradhan Mantri Cha Shramik Protsahan Yojana (PMCSPY),” Adhikari said.
(IANS)
