Is it the end of the road for Tata Motors at Singur? Frustrated with unending turmoil over the company's upcoming Nano car plant, the company appears to have "run out of patience" and is making a "final assessment" of the situation, highly placed company sources told TOI.
The company, which has been made "more or less a hostage" in the state because of continued protests led by Mamata Banerjee's Trinamul Congress, is close to taking a final call over its continuation, sources said. "We are contemplating whether to walk the talk," the sources said, referring to the threat issued by Ratan Tata a few days back of withdrawing from the state if the tensions — giving a security threat to the company's employees — continue.
Tata Motors' frustration with the "out of control" situation can be gauged by the fact that the company decided not to send its workers to the factory site on Friday. "Our workers are not attending work today," a Tata Motors spokesperson said in a statement. Sources said the company might do the same on Saturday. However, no senior official came on record.
The sources said top officials of the company have taken a very grim view of the continued troubles. "It is as if we are under siege. While a majority of the casual workers have stopped coming to the plant, things have become worse, forcing the company to go for a shutdown today," the sources said.
However, no replies come on the crucial question of how long the company decides to stay put. "This is something which is being actively considered. Any final decision will be taken at the highest level, though no concrete timeframe can be given," the sources said. The decision would be taken only after Ratan Tata, currently abroad, returns to the country early next week. "We are still hopeful that some solution is arrived at and things are normalised," the sources added.
Tata Motors' 700-odd engineers; executives and technocrats have been coming in a police-protected cavalcade for the last few weeks. Not only that, the strength of the casual workers, so crucial to the development of the plant, has come down to only around 15%. Also, the blockade of the highway because of the protests has virtually made it impossible for trucks and other vehicles to enter the plant smoothly. "Workers cannot come in, trucks cannot ferry. The situation cannot be worse," the sources said.
While Tata Motors tries to resolve the tensions, it is understood to have asked vendors to gear up to produce a couple of thousand units monthly from its Pantnagar plant in Uttarakhand to meet the October launch deadline.
Sources said the company is planning to produce around 100 units daily from Uttarakhand, a state that gives lucrative tax breaks.
The company, which has been made "more or less a hostage" in the state because of continued protests led by Mamata Banerjee's Trinamul Congress, is close to taking a final call over its continuation, sources said. "We are contemplating whether to walk the talk," the sources said, referring to the threat issued by Ratan Tata a few days back of withdrawing from the state if the tensions — giving a security threat to the company's employees — continue.
Tata Motors' frustration with the "out of control" situation can be gauged by the fact that the company decided not to send its workers to the factory site on Friday. "Our workers are not attending work today," a Tata Motors spokesperson said in a statement. Sources said the company might do the same on Saturday. However, no senior official came on record.
The sources said top officials of the company have taken a very grim view of the continued troubles. "It is as if we are under siege. While a majority of the casual workers have stopped coming to the plant, things have become worse, forcing the company to go for a shutdown today," the sources said.
However, no replies come on the crucial question of how long the company decides to stay put. "This is something which is being actively considered. Any final decision will be taken at the highest level, though no concrete timeframe can be given," the sources said. The decision would be taken only after Ratan Tata, currently abroad, returns to the country early next week. "We are still hopeful that some solution is arrived at and things are normalised," the sources added.
Tata Motors' 700-odd engineers; executives and technocrats have been coming in a police-protected cavalcade for the last few weeks. Not only that, the strength of the casual workers, so crucial to the development of the plant, has come down to only around 15%. Also, the blockade of the highway because of the protests has virtually made it impossible for trucks and other vehicles to enter the plant smoothly. "Workers cannot come in, trucks cannot ferry. The situation cannot be worse," the sources said.
While Tata Motors tries to resolve the tensions, it is understood to have asked vendors to gear up to produce a couple of thousand units monthly from its Pantnagar plant in Uttarakhand to meet the October launch deadline.
Sources said the company is planning to produce around 100 units daily from Uttarakhand, a state that gives lucrative tax breaks.
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