Making jobs in City of Joy

We have an optimum mix of big and small

- ISHITA AYAN DUTT

Less than a year to go before the Assembly election, reports of attack on Bengali-speaking migrant workers across BJP-ruled states have taken centre stage in West Bengal politics.

While Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has launched Bhasha Andolan (language movement), parties in Opposition — the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Bharatiya Janata Party — are citing the lack of job opportunities that led to migration of workers, bringing the spotlight on what West Bengal has to offer.

Banerjee has appealed to the state's 2.2 million migrant workers to return home. But, are there enough opportunities for them?

Titans touchdown

Before the political din in Bengal reached a crescendo, however, an unexpected visitor came calling — Tata Group Chairman N Chandrasekaran.

On July 9, the CM held the first formal meeting with the chairman of India's largest business conglomerate — since coming to power in West Bengal 14 years ago following a high-voltage agitation against land acquisition that led to the dramatic pullout of Tata Motors' Nano project from Singur.

The conversation between Chandrasekaran and Banerjee is said to have focused on deepening the Tata group's presence in the state.

The details were still under wraps when another corporate bigwig made his way to Nabanna, the state secretariat. On August 4, Gautam Adani, chairman of the Adani group, called on Banerjee, adding to the buzz around Bengal's corporate courtship.

Past shadows, present pitch

Bengal has long grappled with a legacy of capital flight through the 1970s, the 1980s, and later. This was followed by what is called the "brain drain". And finally, a steady migration of people in blue collar jobs.