Many hurt in India farm clashes

By Subir Bhaumik
BBC News, Calcutta

Nandigram has been rocked by clashes in the past

At least seven people have been injured in fresh clashes between supporters of the main ruling Communist Party and the opposition in West Bengal, east India.

The two sides have traded gunfire and hurled bombs at each other in the run-up to village council elections in the embattled enclave of Nandigram.

Nearly 600 people have fled their homes after Monday's clashes.

Locals oppose plans for an economic zone. At least 40 people have died in clashes in the area this year.

Doctors said two of the seven injured were in serious condition after the clashes in the Satengabari and Jambari areas.

The opposition-backed group in the area has opposed efforts to hand over land to the government for an economic zone.

People who fled their homes after the latest clashes have taken shelter in two relief camps opened by the administration at Maheshpur and Nandigram, officials said.

Bloody protests

Opposition candidates contesting the upcoming rural polls in West Bengal have demonstrated before the state election office in Calcutta.

They have asked for additional security to ensure free and fair polls. These are due to take place in three phases and start on 11 May.

The opposition alleges that the Marxists have unleashed "a reign of terror" in Nandigram ahead of the polls.

Nandigram has been in turmoil since local peasants led by the state's major opposition parties opposed the state government's plan to acquire thousands of acres of lush croplands to set up a hub for chemical industries.

The government backed out of the project in the face of stiff resistance. In March last year, police opened fire in clashes in which 14 peasants were killed.