Maharashtra Government Demands Completion of Mumbai Road Concretisation by End of May
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Synopsis
The Maharashtra government has mandated that all contractors finalize ongoing road concretisation projects in Mumbai by May 31 amid allegations of irregularities and demands for an investigation by the Economic Offences Wing.
Key Takeaways
- The Maharashtra government has set a deadline of May 31 for road concretisation projects in Mumbai.
- The BMC is prohibited from starting new projects during this period.
- Legislators are scrutinizing road construction irregularities.
- Meetings are being held to assess ongoing work and future plans.
- Concerns over cost escalations and funds have been raised.
Mumbai, March 24 (NationPress) In light of accusations of fraud and calls for an investigation by the Economic Offences Wing, the Maharashtra government took decisive action on Monday, instructing contractors to finalize all current road concretisation projects in Mumbai by May 31.
Additionally, the government has instructed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) not to initiate any new projects.
“The meeting was highly productive in addressing the concerns of Mumbai's residents. All matters were discussed constructively. It has been resolved to complete the work by May 31 and no new projects will commence. A review meeting will be conducted by the end of April,” stated Maharashtra minister and guardian minister for Mumbai suburbs, Ashish Shelar.
On Monday, Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar convened a meeting with all Mumbai legislators to address the alleged mismanagement and irregularities related to the road concretisation initiative in the city. Recently, all party legislators criticized the Urban Development Department, led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, prompting the Speaker to organize this meeting.
Furthermore, the government has mandated that Additional Municipal Commissioners will engage with officials from various underground utilities, while assistant commissioners are to develop a schedule for the ongoing road concretisation efforts. “We also discussed evaluating whether smaller roads can be constructed using asphalt rather than concrete,” noted BJP legislator Amit Satam.
Shiv Sena (UBT) legislator Aaditya Thackeray raised concerns regarding the irregularities in the construction of Mumbai's roads.
Last week, he submitted a request to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for an investigation by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai police concerning the alleged 2023-24 Mumbai road scam.
No conclusions on this matter were reached during today’s meeting.
Following the meeting, Thackeray remarked that he had highlighted issues regarding cost escalations and the advance mobility funds allocated to road contractors.
“It has been instructed to furnish relevant documents for these concerns,” he stated.
On Friday, both ruling and opposition members in the state assembly confronted DCM and Urban Development Minister Eknath Shinde regarding the road concretisation issue in Mumbai.
Legislators from all parties criticized the state government for alleged irregularities in the concretisation work. On Monday, Shinde was absent for most of the meeting, arriving only at the conclusion. This marked the first occasion after the Shiv Sena split that Shinde and Aaditya were present together, although they did not engage in conversation.
