It also wreaked havoc in Odisha damaging power and telecom infrastructure in several coastal districts. The communist leaders defamed the industrialist as bourgeois and kept them at bay. famine in the middle of World War II, the Communist party formed many voluntary groups and many people who were not from the party – intellectuals, democrats, apolitical groups– joined in support,” says Salim. Those in the Sunderbans say it is too early to estimate casualties in the area, which is now cut-off from the mainland by the storm. “We have tried and helped people in as many states as possible. Its roads are flooded and the city was without power for more than 14 hours. Now, only a regime change could bring back the golden days of ‘Amar Sonar Bangla’. The CPM-led Left Front Government that has been ruling West Bengal undefeated since 1977 is facing the worst crisis in its 33 years of hegemonic rule. This competition is within the framework of constitutional democracy and does not negate the essence of Indian pluralism. VideoBigfin squid spotted in Australia for first time, Why 2020 is not the same as the 2000 recount. But assessment of the damage is being hampered by blocked roads and flooding in all these areas. .css-8h1dth-Link{font-family:ReithSans,Helvetica,Arial,freesans,sans-serif;font-weight:700;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;color:#FFFFFF;}.css-8h1dth-Link:hover,.css-8h1dth-Link:focus{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;}Read about our approach to external linking. But will this new found connection with the people reflect in the 2021 Assembly elections? Also read: Trinamool Must Check Its Own Intolerance to Counter the Rise of BJP in Bengal. Today it is making one missile after another. Indian tanks can destroy them in minutes, Every French product is now Haram in Pakistan. Though French fighter jets and submarines are not, China came as an investor in Nepal and soon became the Master. Most said that they did not see it as a party activity. Mukherjee adds, “Therefore their alliance is a political necessity. Credit: PTI. I just saw young college going boys and girls working all day and night for relief after the cyclone and thought I should join them too. Nehru’s massive strategic blunder – How Nehru gave Coco Islands to Burma that China later grabbed, Hagia Sophia is not the only one: Turkey has a shameful history of desecration, Akshay Kumar’s film Laxmii is a massive insult to Hindus, transgenders and logic, After becoming IT hub for the West, India is now dominating IT operations of East Asian firms, ‘People are travelling with a vengeance,’ Revenge Tourism wave hits India as hotels start registering 80% occupancy, After Reliance vs Amazon, it is now Reliance vs Google and the result will be great for India, Bangladeshi human traffickers on Interpol’s radar, It’s my story to tell, my truth to reveal: Sonam Kalra, Twitter removes Home Minister Amit Shah’s DP, reinstates, Rahul Gandhi has nervous, uninformed quality, says Barack Obama in ‘A Promised Land’ (Lead), ‘Nervous, uninformed quality’: Barack Obama on Rahul Gandhi, Karnataka to soon upgrade PHCs to function 24/7, ‘Pack up and get out of there,’ Japan to spend $2.2 billion to get Japanese companies to exit China, The man who bullied the Bully – How Ajay Devgn made Karan Johar’s monopoly a joke and forced him to apologize, ‘Our survival is at stake now,’ Chinese Telecom giant Huawei crumbles after US ban on Semiconductor exports, T-Series forced to take down Atif Aslam’s video, Divya Khosla trolled. But they turned him a thousand times more powerful, Zubin Irani, Guv Swaraj, Mr Sitharaman and more – Dear Barkha, there are many happy Indian husbands of successful women, Ravish Kumar perfectly analyses Chirag Paswan’s strategy without tearing up and it is commendable, A delicious affair: BJP is voraciously eating into the vote bank of Bihar’s caste-based parties, Extending its PLI scheme, Modi govt is set to cover 10 sectors with a whopping Rs 2 lakh crore package, The Tata vs Mistry feud is all set to bring billions of rupees to the Indian govt’s coffers, Manufacturing up. Mamata Banerjee has also contributed to this. If the government does not have money, how it will spend on welfare schemes like health, education and PDS? Kolkata: Khejuri village in West Bengal’s East Midnapore has been witness to a symbolic political epoch in the last few weeks. What really changed, GHATAK- How India’s stealth combat drone programme promises to make it a military superpower, Turkey may be sanctioned by US for using F-16s as target practice for Russian S-400s, Chinese light combat tanks are not meant for battle in Ladakh. The affected areas include the Sunderbans, mangroves spread over an area of more than 10,000 square kilometres that spans both India and Bangladesh - the swampy islands are home to more than four million of the world's poorest people. Photo: Author provided. “Despite being on fertile land, Bengal used to be prone to crisis and famine. Now an independence struggle has started, Are the US and China going to war? Some of these businessmen were operating in Bengal since the Mughal period. Senior CPM leader and politburo member Mohammad Salim credits the quick reaction of the party to the lockdown and necessity of relief to the tradition of the left political movement in the state and a culture of sharing. He recalls cyclone Bulbul in November 2019, which was followed by a huge incidence of fever, diarrhoea and flu, and is afraid that that the same may happen again. Some of these are absolutely new faces and some are from traditionally Left families whose children had somehow been removed from politics because of their jobs or because they were not interested. Lower capital expenditure threatens the sustainability of the state’s growth path, as well as the state’s ability to lower the debt-GDP ratio. .css-14iz86j-BoldText{font-weight:bold;}Millions of people across Bangladesh and eastern India are taking stock of the devastation left by Cyclone Amphan. Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal, and one of India's biggest cities has been devastated. But the hardships of the lockdown implemented to combat COVID-19 and the destruction caused by cyclone Amphan ensured a change of heart for the people in the village for the party as its cadres and volunteers rushed in to help with basics like soap, food grains, cooked food and tarpaulin for people whose homes were destroyed. Mishra sees many Left-minded people voting for the Trinamul to keep BJP at bay. Even during the Bengal A massive clean-up operation has begun after the storm left at least 96 dead and flattened homes, uprooted trees and left cities without power. Belgium expels Danish right-wing activists over plot to burn Koran, New Yorker fires Jeffrey Toobin for exposing himself on Zoom, France honours six-year-old WW2 Resistance agent, TripAdvisor warns users over Thai hotel that legally pursued reviewer. Basu explains that though the Left has gained in acceptance in the last few months, it is yet to position itself as a likely winner in the state. Now, the state is among least industrialized states and fares much worse in all socio-economic indicators. People often say nostalgia is not a good thing because it prevents you from moving forward in time. Officials also said people were afraid and reluctant to move to shelters for fear of contracting the virus. Your email address will not be published. A Left rally in Khejuri. Shiv Sena wanted to intimidate Arnab. Professionals, students and local businessmen joined in. Exports up. The Congress and the left are fighting for survival in the 2021 elections. In many states we are not even contesting,” says veteran CPI(M) leader Rabin Deb. A stupid Ad and a dumb explanation: What Tanishq lost in last 48 hours? The CPM is down to 26 seats in an assembly of 294 seats. US results: How will this endless election end? Some like Omprakash Mishra, professor of International Relations at Jadavpur University, who was also a senior Congress leader and is now with the Trinamul, do not see the Left as an alternative in the state. How can you find out if you're getting equal pay? This is quite the feat considering the near oblivion it had been sinking into after the 2019 Lok Sabha election with zero seats and only 6.34% of the vote share. “And that becomes a crucial factor in how people vote.”. The state's chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, said the devastation in Kolkata was "a bigger disaster than Covid-19". Deb, however, claims that the party has got a strong momentum from the work. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived in West Bengal state to conduct an aerial survey. Three districts in India's West Bengal - South and North 24 Parganas and East Midnapore - were very badly hit. When the communist regime started harassing these Gujarati and Marwari businessmen, most of them migrated to other parts of the country like Delhi and Mumbai. This village was at the heart of the Nandigram agitation to protest land acquisition for a special economic zone in 2007, which was one of the factors that led to the fall of the Left Front government in the state in 2011. West Bengal was ranked as one of the worst performing states in providing government jobs to Muslims. Killed in 2019: Who has been brought to justice? There are people from my locality who support other parties but they too joined in to help,” says Chakraborty. Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal, and one of India's biggest cities has been devastated. Non-political organisations that do not align with the CPI(M)’s politics, NGOs and other bodies also joined hands in large scale relief work in cities and villages. Indian economy is recovering at breakneck pace, The unique nature of Indian economy is visible again, MNCs ride high on rising domestic demand, For 6 decades DRDO was not up to the mark. The cyclone arrived with winds gusting up to 185km/h (115mph) and waves as high as 15ft. “Many young boys and girls have come forward to participate. The Left’s competition with the TMC is on aspects of governance and administration, like violence, corruption, nepotism. “For many such people in the state who organised such relief activity or even participated in it, BJP still remains the ideological