Salboni, West Midnapore: Rice-Beer, Wild Boars & a Failed Industry

The 4,300 acre land accquired for the Jindals’ steel plant in Salboni is only being partly utilised now.

The Jndals’ recently inaugurated 800- acre cement plant at Salboni, West Midnapore. (Photo: Abhirup Dam/ The Quint)

“Kaaj bolte dada oi rasta ghat, tao ei voter agei hoyeche. Ei election ta gayer jorei hobe. (If you talk of development, it’s just the laying of roads. That too happened right before the elections. This election will be won from arm-twisting people).”

Bhabatosh Mahato, or Dipu, as he prefers to be called, lives near Jhargram town with his family. He makes a living by driving rental cars. Dipu drove me to Salboni – a town with a police station in Medinipur Sadar subdivision of West Midnapore district in West Bengal. Knowing that I was a journalist covering the West Bengal assembly elections, Dipu decided to share a bit.

Bhaabatosh Mahato, aka, Dipu.(Photo: Abhirup Dam/ The Quint)

“Ei je Narada holo na, tarpor Jhargram town Sukumar Hansda-r (Trinamool’s standing MLA and candidate from Jhargram) nameo besh kichu poster porechilo (After Narada happened, posters appeared around Jhargram town featuring Sukumar Hansda.” “What kind of posters?” I ask him. “Oi taka poesha noi choi korechen (That he was involved in money laundering).”

Kintu tao mone hoi Trinamool jitbe. BJP esheche, tobe kichu korte parbe na. Gorib, mukhkhu manush ke ja bojhaben, tai bujhbe. Aar bhoi to achei (But I think Trinamool will win. The BJP won’t make a difference. Poor, guileless people will believe what you tell them. And there’s always fear).

A BJP campaign van in Jhargram town. (Photo: Abhirup Dam/ The Quint) 

On the Way to Salboni: Hunting for Rice-beer and Wild Boars

Saraswati Hansda and Jaba Murmu. (Photo: Abhirup Dam/ The Quint)

Salboni was the site for Sajjan Jindal-led JSW Group’s 4,300-acre steel plant. But the plan was abandoned after then Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya and Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan’s convoy was attacked by Maoists. They were returning from the site after laying the foundation stone for the project in 2008. A protracted tribal movement that followed also led to the abandonment of the project.

About 10 km from Jhargram, we came across a group of Santhali women selling haria – a kind of rice beer consumed copiously by the Santhals. Made from fermented rice, and served cold with a pinch of chilli-salt, it’s a wonder drink. We decided to make a pit stop.

A bowl of haria, a traditional Santhali rice beer. (Photo: Abhirup Dam/ The Quint)

Jaba Murmu, Rupi Bhaskey, and Saraswati Hansda – the women selling the haria – were from the nearby Bheemshul village. For Rs 5 a bowl, the rice-beer eased the conversation. Jaba Murmu seemed happy that there were no Maoists left in the area. But that was followed by a tone of disappointment.

Nothing much has changed in their quality of life. Jaba told me about her friend, a woman from her village whose son had gone missing in 2009. He might have been picked up by the police. No one really knows. In the meantime she lost her husband to a terrible illness. She still waits for her son to come back. Jaba asked me to enquire about him at the Salboni police station, when she heard I was headed there. My heart broke as I lied – “Don’t worry, he will come back.”

Rupi Baskey. (Photo: Abhirup Dam/ The Quint)

Rupi’s interjection broke the ensuing awkward silence. “Thaak oshob, Shonkranti’r age shikaar ache. Porob ta katiye jao (There’s the ritual hunt before Sankranti [a traditional Santhal festival (parob) around this time of the year]. Stay for the festival.” I thanked her for the invitation and left for Salboni soon after.

The hunt’s on. (Photo: Abhirup Dam/ The Quint)

As we drove, Dipu pointed to a group of men carrying axes, bows and arrows, and other hunting implements. The hunt had already begun. “The hunt will go on for two days,” they told me. “What kind of game do you get,” I asked. “Wild boars, rabbits, wild fowl.” 

The Jindal Jeopardy: A Waste of Land and Resources

The boundary across the 4,300 acre of land in Salboni, most of which now lies unused. (Photo: Abhirup Dam/ The Quint)

It took us another hour to reach Salboni. We crossed the Reserve Bank of India mint, which covers a vast expanse of land. Right off the road from Sundhra, there is a culvert that leads to the Jindal site. Just a few months ago, Mamata Banerjee inaugurated a Rs 800-crore Jindal cement plant, seven years after the Rs 35,000-crore, 10-mt integrated steel project fell through.

But the plant only covers 800 acres of the total 4,300 acres of land initially acquired. Effectively, more than 3,000 acres is now lying unused. For the villagers who gave up land for the project, the future is bleaker than ever. The acquired land can neither be cultivated, nor is it being utilised for industrial purposes.

For Swarup Rana, the entire process has been a waste of land and infrastructure. “Vote er agey boltey bhoi kore dada, kintu amader poristhiti besh kharap (I feel apprehensive talking before the elections, but our situation is not good.)” Disappointment also marks the voices of Saresh Mahato and Nityasundar Das. Both now graze their cattle in the acquired land, entering through gaps left in the boundary.

Saresh Mahato and Nityasundar Das. (Photo: Abhirup Dam/ The Quint)

As elections begin in West Bengal on Monday - West Midnapore is one of the districts polling in the first phase - one cannot help but note that an industrialised Bengal is still a distant reality. All defunct industrial projects in the state have resulted in massive misuse and waste of space and resources. Could Didi not have done more to resolve such deadlocks and revive stalled projects? Will this failure to address the situation reflect in votes?

We will soon find out.