Mumbai: It is a very common practice by the ministers to grab government schemes and funds, and to implement them in their own respective assembly constituencies so as to ensure that their vote bank remains intact. In present government led by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, ministers including Ajit Pawar, Yashomati Thakur, Aditi Tatkare, KC Padvi, Shambhuraj Desai, Dhananjay Munde and others have been successful in making provisions for funds for the schemes in their constituency through annual budget presented by Finance and Planning minister Ajit Pawar.
Anil Parab, minister for Transport will get Rs 700 crores for his transport department. The provision of Rs 200 has proposed for modernization of bus depots and Rs 500 will be given to Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) to purchase 1,600 new luxury buses.
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Shambhuraj Desai, MoS for Finance will get maximum fund to develop his constituency Patan and his native district Satara. A Industrial estate of international standard will be developed by incurring Rs 4,000 crore expenditure in Satara district under Bengaluru-Mumbai Economic corridor on the line of Delhi-Mumbai Economic Corridor.
A rural hospital in Patan – Desai’s constituency will be upgraded to a 100-bed hospital. Though the outlay has not been proposed, it will prove to be an asset for vote bank of Desai. The government has planned to start a medical college in Satara – home district of MoS Desai in the year 2021-22
The other beneficiaries of setting up of new medical college are Women and Child Welfare minister Yashomati Thakur (Amravati), MOS Aditi Tatkare (Alibaugh) and Tribal minister K V Padvi as government plans to start Government Medical college in Nandurbar in 2020-21.Housing minister Jitendra Awhad will get Haj House in his constituency – Mumbra-Kalwa in Thane district.
Aaditya Thackeray, minister for Environment is also the beneficiary of this budget largesse. The allocation of Rs 100 crore has been proposed for his department for tourism in Mumbai. The state has proposed to build Tourism complex of international standard at Worli Dairy, Mumbai at an estimated cost of around Rs 1,000 crores. International standard aquarium will be built therein. This will directly benefit Aaditya Thackeray as Worli is his own constituency.
Ashok Chavan, Dhananjay Munde, Eknath Shinde, Jayant Patil get benefit as the Finance Minister Ajit Pawar has assured to make provision for development of pilgrim places located in constituency of these ministers. The places included Mahurgad (Dist Nanded), Aundha Nagnath (Parli, Beed), and ancient Shiv Temple at Ambernath (Thane).
Nothing great for Mumbai
Apart from tourism complex in Mumbai, there is nothing much for Mumbai in the budget presented by Ajit Pawar. Pawar mentioned that the proposal to start tourist and passenger transport from Mira-Bhayander to Dombivli on Vasai-Thane-Kalyan water route has been approved in principle. However he did make provision in the budget for the same.
