Page 113 - Maharashtra

Siv Sena won't win more than 5 seats in 2024 Maha elections: Narayan Rane

Union minister Narayan Rane on Thursday claimed the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) will not win more than five seats in the Maharashtra Assembly elections due next year. Taking a dig at Uddhav Thackeray for meeting leaders of various political parties to garner support, Rane told reporters here that Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray never visited offices or residences of other political leaders. Amid Prime Minister Narendra Modi's push for implementation of a Uniform Civil Code in the country, Rane said the central government has done many things for tribals and to help entrepreneurs from the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities. "I firmly believe that we will be able to convince them on this issue," the minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises said in reply to a question. Rane was here to address the media over the completion of nine years of the BJP-led central government under PM Modi. After the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly polls, Uddhav Thackeray-led

Politics overshadows governance as Shinde govt completes year in office

Bitter non-stop wrangling with the Uddhav Thackeray-led outfit and intermittent exchanges between the ruling partners have stood out as the Shiv Sena-BJP government in Maharashtra, steered by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, completes a year in office on Friday. The Sena and Shiv Sena (UBT) labelled each other gaddar (traitor) after Shinde's rebellion split their original party last year, while Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis publicly asserted he had exacted revenge on Thackeray for his betrayal. Though comfortably placed to form the government after the 2019 Assembly elections, the undivided Shiv Sena and BJP ended their decades-long ties over the CM's post. Thackeray then allied with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress to become the CM until Shinde toppled his cart. About 50 MLAs on his side, Shinde took oath on June 30, 2022, and Fadnavis, a former chief minister whose party BJP has 105 legislators in the 288-member Assembly, became his deputy in what was seen

Fadnavis 'misusing' Sharad Pawar's name to outshine Maha CM Shinde: NCP

The Nationalist Congress Party on Thursday accused Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of trying to garner publicity by "misusing" NCP president Sharad Pawar's name to outshine CM Eknath Shinde. Bharatiya Janata Party leader Fadnavis in an interview to a TV channel recently claimed Pawar agreed to form government with the BJP in 2019 and then backed off after three-four days. Reacting to the deputy CM's claim, NCP national spokesperson Clyde Crasto in a statement said, "After being subdued by Eknath Shinde in advertisements in the past few days, Devendra Fadnavis is now trying to garner publicity on his own, he is therefore misusing the name of Sharad Pawar in interviews, to gain free publicity and outshine Eknath Shinde." After the 2019 Assembly elections in Maharashtra, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (then undivided) snapped ties with long-term ally BJP over the issue of sharing the chief ministerial post. Later, Fadnavis was sworn in as the chief minister and

EV plant, battery manufacturing unit to come up in Pune and Aurangabad

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday said an electric vehicle facility and an EV battery manufacturing unit in Pune and Aurangabad, respectively, are among the Rs 40,000 crore worth of projects sanctioned by the state government. Talking to reporters here, Shinde said the EV and battery manufacturing units will come up with an investment of Rs 12,482 crore. He said a private company, Gogora India Pvt Ltd, will set up 12,000 battery swapping stations across the state in the next few years. A battery swapping station is a place where EV owners can quickly exchange their empty battery with a fully charged one. The CM said these projects will provide a boost to the fast-growing EV sector.

ED attaches Maharashtra-based steel company's assets worth over Rs 517 cr

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday said it has attached a Maharashtra-based steel company's assets worth more than Rs 517 crore under the anti-money laundering law in connection with an alleged bank loan fraud of over Rs 895 crore. The assets, including land, building and machinery, belong to SKS Ispat and Power Limited, the ED said in a statement. A provisional order for attaching these assets has been issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and their total value is Rs 517.81 crore. The investigation pertains to a money laundering case based on a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) FIR against Tiruchirappalli-based boiler manufacturing company Cethar Limited that "availed" credit facilities of Rs 895.45 crore from a consortium of lenders led by the Indian Bank, SAM branch in Madurai. The ED said accounts of Cethar Limited turned NPA (non-performing asset) on December 31, 2012 and subsequently proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC

Maharashtra govt's flagship health insurance scheme to cover all: CM Shinde

Maharashtra government's flagship health insurance scheme will cover the entire population of the state, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said on Wednesday. The premium of the Mahatma Jyotirao Phule Jan Arogya Yojana (MPJAY) has been increased from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh, Shinde told reporters after attending the state Cabinet meeting. "The health insurance scheme will cover the entire 12.5 crore population of the state," he said. This health scheme provides end-to-end cashless services for identified diseases through a network of service providers from the government and private sector. As of now, the beneficiaries of the scheme include holders of the yellow ration card, Antyodaya Anna Yojana ration card (AAY), Annapurna ration card, and orange ration card, besides white ration card-holder farmer families from 14 agriculturally distressed districts, and other sections. The chief minister also said the "aapla davakhana" scheme for providing health services to common people will be .

Maharashtra govt working day and night for state's development, says Shinde

Maharashtra is the land of saints and it will become more prosperous with the presence of monks like Acharya Shree Mahashraman, said Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday. The government is working day and night for the state's development, he said. The CM was speaking at a function organised here at the start of the Chaturmas' (period of penance) by the Acharya, who is from the Jain Terapanth sect. Shinde said the spiritual leader working on drug de-addiction in a mission mode. Shinde said his government has been working day and night for the development of Maharashtra as he sought the spiritual leader's blessings to make the state happy and more prosperous. Like your drugs-free efforts, the state government has taken up a Drugs-Free Mumbai Mission, the CM said.

Sena (UBT) leaders meet police officials to discuss protest march route

A Shiv Sena (UBT) delegation on Tuesday met senior officials of Mumbai Police to discuss the route of the party's march on July 1 to protest against alleged irregularities in the Mumbai civic body. Party leader and Lok Sabha MP Arvind Sawant told reporters that police requested the party to take the 'morcha' to Azad Maidan in south Mumbai. The party did not oppose it but it would be little inconvenient as the road leading to Azad Maidan is narrow, he said. We suggested that the march will start from Metro Cinema, take a turn at Crawford Market and end near the Times of India office. We will have a stage there. They have not given a reply," Sawant added. Police have not denied permission to the march either, he said. The party has planned a mega march led by Aaditya Thackeray to protest against "scams" in the civic body which is currently under an administrator, blaming the Maharashtra government led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde for the state of affairs.

DealShare to invest Rs 1,000 cr in SMEs in 5 yrs, assist its private labels

Social commerce firm said it will help brands find wider appeal, ensure manufacturing quality

18 former Cong corporators disqualified for cross-voting in mayoral poll

As many as 18 former Congress corporators of Maharashtra's Bhiwandi Nizampur City Municipal Corporation (BNCMC) have been disqualified from contesting any elections for the next 6 years for voting against their party's official mayoral candidate in 2019. In an order issued on Monday, the Urban Development Department headed by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said that the ex-corporators defied the whip issued by the Congress. Despite the Congress having 47 corporators in the 90-member BNCMC House, its mayoral candidate Rishika Raka lost the poll in December 2019 due to cross-voting by 18 corporators from the party. Pratibha Patil of the Konkan Vikas Aghadi, which had only 4 members in the House, got the support of 20 BJP corporators, the 18 Congress corporators and seven members of smaller allies to secure the mayor's post with 49 votes. Raka's defeat prompted the local Congress leaders to file a petition with the Konkan Divisional Commissioner seeking the disqualification of those who

Storage capacity of Maharashtra dams to increase by 230 mn litre: Official

The storage capacity of dams in Maharashtra's Akola district will increase by 23 crore litre because of the implementation of the state government's Galmukt Dharan Galyukt Shivar Yojana, an official said on Tuesday. Under the state government scheme, silt is dredged from dams and other water bodies to increase their storage capacity and it is then used on agricultural land to improve soil fertility. "With the help of the district administration, 23.05 lakh meters of silt has been dredged from water bodies so far and more than 600 farmers have used the same on 700 acres of agricultural land," district water conservation officer Haribhau Geete said. The exercise will increase the water storage capacity of dams in the district by 23 crore litre, he said. Some of the major dams in the district are Katepurna, Morna, Nirguna, Uma, Dagadparwa, and Van. "Non-governmental organisations are working to remove silt from 22 lakes and ponds and the silt is provided to farmers for free and it ha

Raut calls BRS B-team of BJP; KCR dubs party as a team of farmers, Dalits

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao's visit to Maharashtra's pilgrimage town of Pandharpur on Tuesday drew a sharp reaction from Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut, who called the former's Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) a B-team of the BJP. Addressing a rally in Sarkoli village, some 20 km from Pandharpur, Rao countered the charge asserting that they are a team of farmers, marginalised communities, minorities and Dalits and wondered why there is a hue and cry over his party's efforts to expand its base in the neighbouring state. Rao, also popular as KCR, and his cabinet colleagues arrived in Pandharpur on Monday in a motorcade with 600 vehicles. He offered prayers at the Vitthal Rukmini temple in the town on Tuesday, ahead of Ashadhi Ekadashi on June 29. Talking to reporters here, Raut said BRS has no other intention in Maharashtra other than trying to hurt the prospects of the Maha Vikas Aghadi, comprising the Shiv Sena (UBT), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress,

Maha Dy CM Fadnavis dares Uddhav to release details of family properties

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has dared Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray to put details of his family's properties in the public domain. Fadnavis and Thackeray have been trading barbs after the BJP leader termed the meeting held in Patna last week as the gathering of parties with an agenda to save their "families and dynasties". Speaking in Chandrapur on Sunday night, Fadnavis reiterated that the work done by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the last nine years forced the "family-centric" parties to come under one roof to save their political heirs. He was addressing BJP leaders and others at an event to mark the Modi government's completion of nine years in power. A book titled 'Architect of New India' (Marathi version), written by BJP leader and state minister Sudhir Mungantiwar was released on the occasion. "The work of PM Modi has forced the family-dominated parties to gather under one roof to save their dynasties at Patna. The meeting's agenda was

Temples in Maharashtra begin dress code 'vastra sanhita' for devotees

Ripped jeans, transparent and tight clothing will no longer be allowed in 100 temples across Maharashtra, more temples may follow suit

Telangana CM Chandrasekhar Rao leaves for visit to Solapur in Maharashtra

Ruling BRS president and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday left for a visit to Solapur in Maharashtra. Rao, who was travelling by road in a massive convoy of about 600 vehicles, was accompanied by state ministers, MPs, MLCs, MLAs and party senior leaders, an official release said. During his two-day visit to Maharashtra, Rao would reportedly offer prayers at Lord Vitthal temple at Pandharpur town near Solapur and at Goddess Tulja Bhavani temple at Osmanabad and also attend an event where a popular leader from NCP would join the BRS. After renaming the TRS as BRS in December last year, Rao, also known as KCR, has been making efforts to strengthen the party in neighbouring Maharashtra. He has addressed public meetings at Nanded and other places in Maharashtra, highlighting his 'Telangana model' of development. Several activists and leaders from NCP and other parties in Maharashtra joined the BRS during the last six months.

Opposition unity: Is well begun, half done?

Previous experiments with Opposition unity have shown that forming an alliance does not ensure electoral victory by itself. Public perception of the incumbent leader and the govt also has to change

Heavy rainfall likely in Mumbai, Madhya Maharashtra in next 48 hrs: IMD

The coastal region, including Mumbai and Madhya Maharashtra, is likely to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall in the next 48 hours, an IMD official said on Sunday. The synoptic situations such as a low-pressure area formed in the eBay of Bengal, cyclonic circulation over the Kutch region of Gujarat and an active trough spread over Maharashtra to coastal Karnataka would bring heavy to very heavy rainfall in the next 48 hours over Konkan including Mumbai and Madhya Maharashtra, the official said. After a long gap, the southwest monsoon has been speedily progressing and covering more and more areas, the official added. Mumbai and its suburbs received heavy rains in the last 24 hours, resulting in water-logging at various places and affecting vehicular movement on some roads. In a rare event, the monsoon on Sunday covered both Delhi and Mumbai together. The Colaba observatory here, representative of the island city, recorded 86 mm of rainfall in the 24 hours ending at 8.30 am on Sund

Thackeray family looted Mumbaikars in last 15 years: Shrikant Shinde

Shiv Sena leader and Kalyan MP Shrikant Shinde on Sunday launched a scathing attack on former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and his MLA son Aaditya Thackeray, accusing them of looting Mumbai and pushing the 'Marathi manoos' out of the city in the last 15 years. Shinde, the son of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, was addressing the party's 'Shakha Sampark' drive at Versova in Mumbai. He sought to know why the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had acquired body bags during the COVID-19 pandemic period at a cost of Rs 6,719 apiece, whereas the same body bags were bought for Rs 350 each by the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC). Shinde also accused Uddhav Thackeray of leading the BMC to become the most corrupt municipal body in Asia. The Shiv Sena undivided ruled the BMC for more than 25 years. The party split last year following the rebellion by Eknath Shinde and 39 other party MLAs against Uddhav Thackeray. "How is it possible that TMC buys body bags at Rs 350 each

Maha CM lauds underground water tank system to prevent flooding in Mumbai

As Mumbai received its first heavy rainfall of the season, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday reviewed the functioning of an underground water tank installed at the Milan subway here to prevent flooding and said the system has worked. Milan subway, Hindmata and a couple of other locations in Mumbai are prone to water-logging during rains every year. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has constructed underground water tanks in these areas to prevent flooding. Mumbai and its suburbs received heavy rains in the last 24 hours, resulting in water-logging at various places and affecting vehicular movement on some roads, as the monsoon advanced over the city. Speaking to reporters, Shinde said, I personally came to review the situation at the Milan subway and the new system has proved that it works. More than 70 mm rainfall was reported in one hour, still the system that we have developed has worked. Despite such excessive rain, the Milan subway remained open fo

Telangana CM on 2-day Maharashtra tour from June 26, to visit temple towns

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao will visit Pandharpur and Tuljapur temple towns during his two-day visit to Maharashtra starting from Monday, a functionary of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) said. The BRS has been trying to make inroads into Maharashtra ahead of the state Assembly polls due next year. Rao, popularly known as 'KCR', will arrive at Omerga in Osmanabad district on Monday and will then leave for Solapur. On Tuesday, he will visit the Lord Vitthal temple in Pandharpur town of Solapur and offer prayers to the deity, the BRS functionary said. The CM will also attend a locally arranged programme in Sarkoli village of Solapur. Rao will later depart for Tuljapur in Osmanabad, where he will visit the famous Tulja Bhavani temple on Tuesday afternoon, he said. On June 15, BRS president Rao inaugurated his party's first office in Maharashtra at Nagpur as part of his ambitious plan to increase the organisation's footprint outside his home state. He had expressed