Ambadas Danve says Maharashtra govt failed to deliver Marathwada dvpt promises

Ambadas Danve

The Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council Ambadas Danve criticised the state government on Monday for failing to keep their promises made for Marathwada's development last year.

Speaking to the media, the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Ambadas Danve stated that the administration had not provided even 5 per cent of the funding it had previously promised. He stated that Chief Minister Eknath Shinde is expected to make additional announcements on September 17, despite earlier commitments remaining unfulfilled, reported PTI.

According to Danve, the government committed Rs 37,016 crore for Marathwada, including Rs 14,000 crore for bringing water from western rivers to address drought difficulties. However, just Rs 60 crore has been earmarked for a project study, leading to concerns that the project may take 20 years to complete.

"Chief Minister Eknath Shinde will come and make new announcements here on September 17. Last year, the state government announced Rs 37,016 crore for Marathwada. It announced Rs 14,000 crore to bring water from the western rivers to prevent drought in Marathwada. The state recently allotted just Rs 60 crore to make a project report a year after announcing funds for the water scheme. If this is the pace of work, the project will not be completed for 20 years," Danve alleged per the PTI report.

Similarly, just Rs 304 crore of the anticipated Rs 12,938 crore for PWD projects has been approved. He also attacked the administration for postponing the memorial for independence hero Dagadabai Shelhe and reconsidering the Rs 3,255 crore milch animal distribution scheme.

According to the report, Danve accused the state of disregarding Marathwada's development and asked why such promises were made if they couldn't be kept.

"The state government has ignored Marathwada's development and not acted on its announcements. If the government cannot fulfil the promises, why did it make such announcements?" he said.

Maharashtra Dy Speaker Zirwal questions need for inclusion of Dhangars in ST category

Meanwhile, in another unrelated development, Maharashtra Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal was questioning the need to include the Dhangar community, classified as Nomadic Tribes, in the Scheduled Tribe category, a day after the government announced a panel to resolve the issue.

Dhangars, a shepherd tribe from western Maharashtra and the Marathwada region have been advocating for inclusion in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) category. The community alleges it has been denied the quota since the Centre's database makes no mention of 'Dhangar' and instead lists 'Dhangad' as part of STs, reported PTI.

On Sunday, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde presided at a meeting with community representatives, after which the government announced the formation of a panel consisting of three IAS officers to determine if 'Dhangar' and 'Dhangad' are different names for the same group.