Infosys, Wipro projects kept on hold, not scrapped: West Bengal

KOLKATA - West Bengal’s ruling Left Front Wednesday said the IT township project involving giants Infosys and Wipro has only been kept on “hold” and not cancelled.

“The state government has not abandoned the township project. It is not turning down the proposals from Wipro and Infosys. Only the way it was to be implemented has been kept in abeyance,” Left Front Chairman Biman Bose told reporters here.

Bose said Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee had briefed a meeting of the Front on the logjam surrounding the IT project.

“The partners had a specific discussion on Wipro and Infosys. The state government will now decide where and how the project can be set up,” he said.

His comments come days after the state government cancelled land allotment to IT majors like Infosys and Wipro at Rajarhat in the city’s northeastern fringes following Vedic Village land controversy.

The proposed IT township at Rajarhat near Salt Lake had become controversial in recent weeks following allegations that land sharks - allegedly backed by promoters of Vedic Realty - had been involved in acquisition of land there.

The state government depended on Vedic Realty, which set up a joint venture (Akash Nirman) with Webel, the state’s key IT agency, to get land for the 1,600-acre IT project.

Both Infosys and Wipro had sought 90 acres from the state government for their ventures. Even ITC Infotech was eyeing for space in the IT hub.

Bhattacharjee reportedly told Front partners that the project had not been rejected but there was a problem with the location of the township following allegations of forcible land acquisition.