Latest news with #EknathShinde-led
NDTV
4 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
With Foundation Day Teasers, Shiv Sena Factions Set Tone For Civic Body Battle
Mumbai: As both factions of the Shiv Sena prepare to celebrate the party's Foundation Day on Thursday, a teaser video war has broken out between the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT), highlighting their ongoing rivalry ahead of the crucial Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections. The Sena led by Mr Shinde released a cartoon showing Eknath Shinde walking beside the party's traditional tiger symbol, carrying a saffron flag, with the caption, "With Hindutva as our foundation, Maharashtra stands behind us." The image was seen as a statement of confidence and an attempt to claim the legacy of Bal Thackeray's original Sena, with Hindutva at its core. In response, the UBT faction released its own teaser promoting its Foundation Day event. The teaser reads, "The saffron will soar - a call of Hindutva. The Marathi identity will awaken. The voice of Thackeray will echo. A family celebration of the loyal and devoted." The duelling teasers come at a politically sensitive time with the BMC elections in the offing. Both factions are aggressively trying to project strength, loyalty and ideological clarity. Asia's richest civic body is functioning without elected representatives since 2022, a first in its 137-year history. It has traditionally been a Thackeray stronghold, and the outcome of the polls is expected to influence Mumbai's political landscape. Both events on June 19 will feature key speeches and party strategy sessions. Mr Shinde's faction is expected to highlight its recent electoral gains and announce local-level appointments, while the UBT camp will focus on grassroots mobilisation and its alignment with the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance, which has the Congress and Sharad Pawar-led NCP as partners. The Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena will mark the occasion with a public event at NSCI Dome, Worli, while the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) will hold its separate celebration at Shanmukhananda Auditorium, Sion.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Phase 1 of 37k cr Virar-Alibaug multimodal corridor approved
Mumbai: The cabinet on Tuesday approved the construction of the first phase of the 126.1km Virar-Alibaug multipurpose transport corridor on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis. Phase 1, comprising 96.4km, stretches from Navghar in Palghar district to Balavali in Pen taluka. Land acquisition for it can begin immediately. The project, which aims to halve the travel time between Virar and Alibaug, will be executed by MSRDC at a cost of Rs 37,013 crore. "The corridor will connect JNPT to the proposed Navi Mumbai international airport and MTHL," said an official, adding that it will be a key connector for multiple highways and will act as a shortcut between various areas of MMR and Goa. Sources said the project was to be built on a hybrid annuity model but owing to financial constraints, govt decided to build it on BOT basis to attract private investors. Officials said the plan for the corridor has been in the pipeline since 2011. MSRDC had awarded contracts for phase 1 to seven firms during the tenure of Eknath Shinde-led govt, but the tenders were later scrapped when the investment model changed. —Chaitanya Marpakwar
Hans India
5 days ago
- Business
- Hans India
Maha Cabinet approves development of 126 km Virag Alibag Corridor
Mumbai: The Maharashtra Cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, on Tuesday gave approval to develop the ambitious Virar-Alibagh Multi Modal Corridor (VAMMC) Project on a "Build, Operate and Transfer" (BOT) basis. The state-run Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) had estimated the total cost of Rs 26,300 crore for the project, and it had earlier proposed the development on an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) basis. During the Eknath Shinde-led government, the MSRDC had awarded contracts to seven civil engineering firms for constructing the first phase, totalling 96.47 km, of the ambitious 126-km Virar–Alibaug Multi-Modal Corridor (VAMMC) project. However, these tenders now stand scrapped as the fresh tenders will be floated to build the entire project under the BOT model as per the Cabinet's decision. The Virar–Alibaug Multi-Modal Corridor project has been under the government's consideration since 2011. It is an 8-14 lane access-controlled expressway that was originally supposed to be built by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, but it was later handed over to the MSRDC in 2020. The 126-km corridor is expected to drastically cut travel time between Virar and Alibaug to just 1.5 to 2 hours. It will connect several key expressways, including the Mumbai-Ahmedabad, Mumbai-Nashik, and Mumbai-Pune corridors, making it a critical infrastructure link for the region. The project is planned in two phases, 98 km in the first and 29 km in the second. Further, it is expected to decongest Mumbai and boost economic growth in the surrounding areas. Meanwhile, the Cabinet also cleared the allotment of 29 hectares of land by the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation at Jambutke in Nashik district for the Tribal Industrial Cluster. 'This will encourage aspiring entrepreneurs from the tribal community, generate employment and boost economic development,' said the government release. Under the WINDS (Weather Information Network Data System) project of the Union government, automatic weather stations (AWS- Automatic Weather Station) will be set up at the gram panchayat level. For this, it has been decided to extend the deadline of the Mahavedh project, which proposes to provide accurate weather information to all the villages in the state. 'This is an important project for weather-based agricultural advice and guidance to farmers,' said the government release. The Cabinet has also approved the Maharashtra Agriculture- Artificial Intelligence MahaAgri-AI Policy 2025-2029 to transform the agriculture sector by using artificial intelligence and emerging technologies. 'The use of artificial intelligence, generative artificial intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT), drones, computer vision, robotics, and predictive analytics will help in taking forward projects like Agristack, Maha-Agristack, MahaVeda, CropSap, AgMarkNet, Digital Shetishala, and Maha-DBT in the state,' said the government release. The Cabinet also cleared the extension of loan from the Asian Development Bank and the New Development Bank for Mumbai Metro Route-2A, 2B and 7 metro projects. Furthermore, the Cabinet approved the increase in the honorarium given to those imprisoned during the Emergency. Surviving spouses will also get an honorarium. The Cabinet has approved the amendment to the Admission and Fees Regulation Act, 2015. With this decision, the children and dependents of NRIs will get admission for professional courses. The Cabinet also approved the change in the definition of NRI for admission to courses in unaided private professional educational institutions.
Time of India
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Mumbai's rail overbridge opens amid claims for political credit
Mumbai: As the BMC opened the Vikhroli rail overbridge (ROB0 —a key east-west connector—at 4pm on Saturday, political sparring broke out, with both the UBT Shiv Sena , the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, and the BJP rushing to claim credit for the project. The bridge saw political party flags and banners being displayed on it even before it was opened to motorists. The area is represented by Sena MLA Sunil Raut, who broke a coconut at the site on Saturday, signalling the opening of the bridge. The 615-metre bridge, which links Lal Bahadur Shastri Marg in Vikhroli to the Eastern Express Highway, was on the drawing board for the past 15 years, with the work order being issued in 2018. It was completed seven years later, in 2025. No formal inauguration ceremony was held, with the Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis proposing to open it on Saturday evening. It is a two-way bridge. One of the political banners, put up by MLA Sunil Raut, claimed he was pursuing the project with the BMC and Central Railway since 2010. Another, bearing a photo of deputy CM Eknath Shinde and attributed to local neta Haroon Khan, declared the bridge a victory of his protest. Khan told TOI that in 2010, he and local residents staged a protest that brought train services to a halt. "There were repeated cases of people dying while crossing the tracks. We decided enough was enough and protested on the tracks. It was only after we received an assurance that the bridge would be constructed that we called off the agitation," he said. However, former BJP MP Manoj Kotak said he consistently followed up with the railways and the BMC to push the bridge work forward. "Those claiming credit don't understand the complexities involved. From acquiring land on the eastern side to ensuring minimal disruption to students near the school on the west, we worked persistently with the authorities to bring the project to completion. While COVID caused delays, the work picked up pace again after the pandemic," said Kotak. Follow more information on Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad here . Get real-time live updates on rescue operations and check full list of passengers onboard AI 171 .
India Today
10-06-2025
- Politics
- India Today
Reality hits Mahayuti's Ladki Bahin scheme: 1 million ineligible beneficiaries
It is widely credited as the welfare scheme that ensured the BJP-led Mahayuti's return to power in Maharashtra last year after a debacle in the Lok Sabha elections. However, a scrutiny by the state government has detected that around 885,000 women had claimed more cash doles under the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana than they were eligible for. The government has also struck off over 2,000 government employees from the list of the drubbing in the Lok Sabha elections, the erstwhile Eknath Shinde-led Mahayuti regime had rolled out multiple welfare schemes. The flagship scheme was the Ladki Bahin Yojana, under which over 25 million women from indigent families were given doles of Rs 1,500 per month—a replica of a similar cash benefit scheme for women in neighbouring and BJP-ruled Madhya schemes, such as stipends for apprentices, free visits to pilgrimage centres for senior citizens, and a waiver on the toll levied on passenger cars at the five entry points to Mumbai, served as force-multipliers in the assembly leaders say the Ladki Bahin scheme led to this 'silent' voter segment of women, whose financial and social autonomy is otherwise constrained, voting for them with their feet. During the campaign, Shinde had promised to increase the dole to Rs 2,100 if elected, and the Opposition, unable to come up with a credible counter-narrative, said it would double this to Rs 3,000. However, financial constraints have held back the Devendra Fadnavis government from increasing the stipend. Disbursements under the scheme, which had some 24.6 million beneficiaries in April, are also under collected and churned around 120 million data sets from departments such as food and civil supplies, women and child development, agriculture, general administration, police and transport to de-duplicate Ladki Bahin beneficiaries,' said a senior official from the state information technology department.'We located 885,000 [women] farmers who were drawing Rs 12,000 annual benefits under the Namo Shetkari Mahasanman Nidhi Yojana (NSMNY). Their benefits under Ladki Bahin will be cut to Rs 6,000 annually. This will save around Rs 1,056 crore every year,' the official who get Rs 1,000 per month under NSMNY will get the difference between this and the Ladki Bahin dole of Rs 1,500, translating into a bracket amount of Rs 500 per official said it was also found that 108,000 beneficiaries were above the age cap of 65 years. The government also identified around 2,289 women who are government employees but benefitting under the scheme, in violation of norms. Cash transfers to them have been state government has also received the Union government's nod to link the database of Ladki Bahin beneficiaries with income tax PAN (Permanent Account Number) data and sent a proposal to the Union government. Additionally, it will cross-verify vehicle ownership data available with the state to weed out those with Pawar, Maharashtra deputy chief minister and finance minister, admitted that the authorities had not been able to conduct a scrutiny before extending the scheme to women. 'We had little time when the scheme was rolled out. There were just two to three months to go to polls,' he Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut alleged this amounted to fraud and sought Pawar's resignation. 'You (Ajit Pawar) must resign. This is a scam in the finance department. Money from the state exchequer has been looted under your watch,' Raut, a Rajya Sabha MP, charged. He also alleged that men had taken benefit of the scheme intended for women by changing their January, women and child development minister Aditi Tatkare had said that district administrations had received complaints about those with annual incomes above the Ladki Bahin scheme's threshold of Rs 2.5 lakh getting the cash benefit. Some beneficiaries had also come forth and said that since their income had increased above the ceiling, they wanted to voluntarily give up the the Ladki Bahin scheme is restricted to women domiciled in Maharashtra, those married into other states will also be excluded. While those who own a two-wheeler are eligible, there were complaints that some households with four-wheelers had been covered. These complaints had come forth from the Wardha, Palghar, Yavatmal and Nanded official from the women and child development department said that the list had already been trimmed by around 600,000 beneficiaries. This included those whose applications had been rejected at the field level and those who were taking benefits under welfare schemes such as the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Yojana. 'Now, the state government will recover the Ladki Bahin dole from government employees who took these benefits, and also initiate disciplinary action,' the official be eligible for cash aid under the Ladki Bahim scheme, the women should be between 18 and 65 years of age and permanent residents of Maharashtra. Their annual family income should not cross Rs 2.5 lakh. Those employed with the government or owning a four-wheeler are not eligible. While these beneficiaries can receive support from other welfare schemes, the total monthly benefit from all these schemes must not cross Rs 1,500 per to India Today MagazineTrending Reel advertisement
