Use Maha share in bullet train project to waive off farmers'

A Shiv Sena MLA today suggested in the Legislative Assembly that Maharashtra Government's "share of Rs 25,000 crore" in the proposed Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project could be diverted to waive off loans of farmers.
"The amount of Rs 25,000 crore which is the state government's share in the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train (project) could be diverted to (grant) the farm loan waiver," the legislator, Vijay Avati said.
The proposed Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed rail corridor is said to be the dream project of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Keeping heat on the BJP-led state government over the loan waiver issue, the Sena MLAs said they would continue to highlight the plight of farmers through the legislative forum.

Speaking through a Point of Information, Anil Kadam (Sena) wondered why the government cannot accept the demand for waiving off the loans of farmers though Prime Minister Narendra Modi has promised loan waiver for farmers in Uttar Pradesh.
"If a handful of industrialists can get their loans worth several lakh crores written off, then what is wrong with the loan waiver for farmers, which is about Rs 30,500 crore," he asked.

Avati said Sena will continue to highlight the need to "free farmers of the debt", in the legislature.
Sena MLAs Shambhuraje Desai and Jaiprakash Mundada echoed their colleagues.
BJP legislators like Ashish Deshmukh and Bhimrao Dhonde said various initiatives and schemes undertaken by the state government will make farmers financially strong so that they could repay their debt.

The demand for the loan waiver has affected the functioning of the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council since the beginning of the Budget session this month.
Apart from the Congress and the NCP, the Sena, which is a junior alliance partner of the BJP, too is aggressively raising the demand in the legislature.
Yesterday, nineteen MLAs--nine from the Congress and 10 from the NCP--were suspended from the Assembly for nine months for creating a ruckus during the Budget presentation in the House last week.