North Indians in Mumbai have adapted to Maharashtrian culture: Fadnavis

In a bid to woo north Indian voters ahead of the civic polls in Mumbai, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Friday said people from north India who have been living in the city for over three generations are now Mumbaikars.

The former chief minister was speaking at the inauguration ceremony of Babu R N Singh Guest House for cancer patients' relatives and pilgrims in Uttar Bharatiya Sangh (UBS) Bhavan in the western suburb of Bandra.

North Indians who have been living in the city for three to four generations have adapted to Maharashtrian culture, he said.

Cancer patients and their relatives, who have been coming to Mumbai from all over the country for treatment at Tata Memorial Hospital, have to go through hardships, Fadnavis said.

The initiative will provide relief to the relatives of cancer patients, who will be provided food and accommodation at the newly-inaugurated guest house at nominal rates, he said.

Sharing his experience when his father underwent treatment at the Hospital, Fadnavis said that he had seen how relatives of cancer patients live on the streets and pavements.

Speaking about the project, Santosh RN Singh, president of UBS, said the guest house will be operated on "no profit, no loss" for cancer patients coming to Mumbai especially from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and rural parts of Maharashtra.

The newly constructed marriage hall of the UBS will be made available to the economically weaker north Indian families of the city at affordable rates, he said.