Maharashtra Dy CM Postpones Discussions for Raigad & Nashik Annual Plans
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Synopsis
Maharashtra's Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar postponed the District Annual Plan meetings for Raigad and Nashik due to ongoing political disputes. The meetings will now occur on Tuesday, aiming to finalize plans for fiscal year 2025-26 ahead of the state budget presentation.
Key Takeaways
- Meetings for Raigad and Nashik are postponed due to the lack of a guardian minister.
- The ongoing rift between NCP and Shiv Sena is affecting district appointments.
- Upcoming state budget presentation is scheduled for March 10.
- Meetings for Thane and Mumbai City were also delayed.
- Ajit Pawar is overseeing the annual plan discussions as Finance Minister.
Mumbai, Feb 10 (NationPress) The Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Ajit Pawar, did not convene the District Annual Plan meetings for the fiscal year 2025-26 concerning the Raigad and Nashik districts on Monday.
This decision follows the designation of NCP minister Aditi Tatkare as the guardian minister for Raigad and BJP minister Girish Mahajan for Nashik in January, which faced strong criticism from the Shiv Sena. This led to a hold on those appointments by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
In light of the upcoming state budget presentation slated for March 10 in the legislature, Pawar has been actively engaging with various departments.
Additionally, Pawar, who oversees the Finance Ministry, has been in discussions with district officials regarding the annual plans for fiscal year 2025-26.
On the same day, Ajit Pawar conducted meetings for the Konkan and Nasik divisions. However, the meetings for Raigad and Nashik were cancelled due to the absence of a guardian minister, stemming from the ongoing discord between the NCP and Shiv Sena.
Interestingly, Shiv Sena ministers Bharat Gogawale and Dada Bhuse have claimed the guardian minister roles for Raigad and Nashik respectively. Eknath Shinde, the Shiv Sena chief leader and Deputy Chief Minister, has expressed that aspiring for the guardian minister position is justified. Both parties have asserted their unwillingness to relinquish these claims.
A senior official from the Finance Department stated, "The issue was addressed with the Chief Minister’s Office. According to current regulations, if a district lacks a guardian minister, the divisional commissioner can represent that district."
The discussions for the District Annual Plans for Raigad and Nashik are now rescheduled for Tuesday.
Meetings for Thane and Mumbai City were also delayed after Deputy Chief Minister and Guardian Minister Eknath Shinde failed to attend the meeting. He also called off a review meeting for the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation on Monday.
Shinde leads the MSRDC, the central agency for numerous road and highway projects, including the 701 km Nagpur Mumbai Samruddhi Mahamarg.
He notified that he could not attend the meeting due to health issues.
As a result, Ajit Pawar opted to postpone the meetings until Shinde is available, with both meetings set for Tuesday.
This marks the third occasion in three weeks that Shinde has missed vital meetings. He was absent from a Cabinet meeting two weeks ago and skipped a war room meeting chaired by the Chief Minister last week.
Besides these four districts, no meeting has occurred for Ahilyanagar (Ahmadnagar) district either.
The officer is optimistic that the District Annual Plans for Raigad, Nashik, Thane, Mumbai City, and Ahilyanagar (Ahmednagar) will finally be addressed during the meeting scheduled for Tuesday.
