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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

Fadnavis writes off Rs 48,000 crore

Mumbai: In a clear indication that the Maharashtra government is leaving no stone unturned to keep the state’s agrarian base happy, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has unleashed yet another massive populist measure. Hot on the heels of relaxing the eligibility criteria to ensure a blanket farm loan waiver, the Chief Minister announced a sweeping Rs 48,000 crore waiver on the pending electricity bills of farmers across the state. Addressing a ‘Krutadnyata Sohala’ (gratitude ceremony)...

Fadnavis writes off Rs 48,000 crore

Mumbai: In a clear indication that the Maharashtra government is leaving no stone unturned to keep the state’s agrarian base happy, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has unleashed yet another massive populist measure. Hot on the heels of relaxing the eligibility criteria to ensure a blanket farm loan waiver, the Chief Minister announced a sweeping Rs 48,000 crore waiver on the pending electricity bills of farmers across the state. Addressing a ‘Krutadnyata Sohala’ (gratitude ceremony) organized by the BJP Kisan Morcha at Mumbai’s Yashwantrao Chavan Pratishthan on Wednesday, Fadnavis declared that farmers using agricultural pumps of up to 7.5 horsepower will see their historical electricity dues completely wiped out. The announcement was met with the traditional sounding of the Tutari and thunderous applause from hundreds of farmers who had gathered from every corner of the state. The Chief Minister framed the mega-sop as a necessary step to “wipe the farmers’ slate clean,” enabling them to write a new chapter of prosperity. Calculated Pitch The timing and scale of the announcement underscore a government that is boldly embracing populist economics to solidify its political footprint in rural Maharashtra. While Fadnavis maintained that these decisions were taken purely in the interest of the farmers—pointing out that the original loan waiver was announced when no elections were in sight—the political undertones were unmistakable. Taking a sharp dig at the opposition, the Chief Minister accused rival parties of running “political shops” in the name of farmer agitations without understanding the government’s genuine intent. Asserting his grassroots connection, Fadnavis proudly claimed, “I do not make decisions sitting in my house. I am a farmer myself, a man of the soil.” He openly defended the government’s recent move to strip away the stringent conditions attached to the blanket farm loan waiver, signaling that his administration will not hesitate to clear bureaucratic hurdles if it means putting money directly into the hands of the rural voter. Balancing Sops Even as he rained freebies, the Chief Minister attempted to balance the populist optics with a dose of economic pragmatism. He acknowledged that handing out repeated loan waivers is a symptom of deep-rooted agrarian distress, not a permanent cure. Pointing to the Rs 95,000 crore in aid currently being pumped into the agricultural sector by the state and central governments, Fadnavis outlined his administration’s shift toward an investment-driven agricultural model. He championed the success of schemes like ‘Jalyukt Shivar’ and ‘Magel Tyala Shettale’ (farm ponds on demand), claiming these initiatives have already empowered farmers to harvest multiple crops a year. Addressing the core issue of farming costs, he noted that the government already subsidises power to the tune of Rs 25,000 crore annually. By coupling this with a push for solar pumps and solar agricultural feeders, he promised that 100 percent of the state’s farmers would receive uninterrupted daytime electricity by the end of the year. Infra Dream Looking beyond immediate financial relief, the Chief Minister laid out a grandiose vision to permanently drought-proof Maharashtra’s most vulnerable regions. A staggering Rs 6 lakh crore infrastructure pipeline is being planned to ensure the next generation never witnesses a drought. Fadnavis detailed ambitious river-linking projects, including the Wainganga-Nalganga link, to divert excess floodwaters to parched regions. The state plans to construct 24 new dams and raise the height of 16 existing ones to ensure not a single district in Vidarbha faces water scarcity. Furthermore, massive engineering feats are on the drawing board to divert 200 TMC of floodwater from Western Maharashtra to Marathwada, and lift 275 TMC of wasted water from the Ulhas basin to quench the thirst of North Maharashtra and Marathwada. By marrying immediate, massive debt relief with long-term infrastructure promises, the Fadnavis administration is aggressively cementing its pro-farmer narrative. As the Yashwantrao Chavan auditorium echoed with whistles and cheers, it became highly evident that the government’s strategy of pairing mega populist waivers with big-ticket rural dreams is striking a powerful chord with the state’s agrarian voters.

From Waste to Worth: Lessons from India's Waste Pickers

Waste pickers are not a burden on cities—they are among their most valuable environmental service providers.

Last week's article examined how exclusionary policies continue to undermine the livelihoods of waste pickers despite their indispensable contribution to urban waste management. However, exclusion is not the only story. Across India, waste pickers have shown that when they organise, they can secure recognition, protect their rights, and become valued partners in building cleaner, more sustainable cities.


This week, we look at one of the country's earliest and most influential examples—the Kagad Kach Patra Kashtakari Panchayat (KKPKP), a pioneering movement that transformed both the lives of waste pickers and public perceptions of their work.


Today, KKPKP has more than 9,000 members, nearly 80 per cent of whom are women. Members receive identity cards endorsed by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and can access benefits such as educational support for their children.


In 2005, KKPKP launched a pilot project in collaboration with the Pune Municipal Corporation to integrate waste pickers into door-to-door waste collection. The success of this initiative paved the way for SWaCH, a workers' cooperative operating as a pro-poor public-private partnership. The pilot was implemented in collaboration with the Department of Adult Education at SNDT Women's University between 2006 and 2008. It enabled 1,500 waste pickers to become recognised service providers, delivering door-to-door waste collection to 125,000 households across Pune.


The initiative significantly improved working conditions and livelihoods while effectively bridging the gap between households and the municipal waste collection system. KKPKP's experience demonstrates that when waste pickers are recognised, organised and supported, they become not only beneficiaries of inclusive policies but also key partners in building cleaner cities and advancing a circular economy.


This significantly improved their working conditions and livelihoods, while effectively bridging the gap between households and the municipal waste collection system. A case study by KKPKP revealed that the recovery of recyclable materials by waste pickers saved the Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporations several crores of rupees in waste handling costs.


These success stories demonstrate what is possible when communities, waste pickers, and urban local bodies work together with a shared sense of purpose. Similar cooperative initiatives are operating across many parts of India, improving livelihoods while recovering valuable recyclable materials. However, despite these inspiring efforts, the collection, segregation, and management of waste—particularly plastic waste—remain far from satisfactory.


As I conclude this series, I would like to emphasise the role of the most important stakeholder: ordinary citizens like you and me. Plastic waste management is not the responsibility of governments and industries alone. The success of any waste management system ultimately depends on the active participation of every household.


The first and most important responsibility is to segregate waste at source and hand over recyclable plastics to authorised waste collectors or waste pickers, rather than discarding them indiscriminately. Every piece of plastic carelessly thrown away has the potential to pollute the environment for decades, while every piece that is properly segregated and recycled becomes a valuable resource.


Simple practices such as carrying reusable shopping bags, refusing unnecessary plastic packaging, using refillable water bottles, and choosing products with minimal packaging can significantly reduce plastic consumption.


Equally important is responsible disposal. Plastic waste should never be thrown onto roadsides or into drains, rivers, lakes, or open spaces, where it can clog drainage systems, contribute to flooding, harm wildlife, and eventually find its way to the oceans.


Recent heavy rains and the flooding they caused served as a timely reminder of how plastic waste can obstruct drains and worsen urban flooding. Open burning of plastic is equally dangerous, releasing toxic gases that pollute the air and endanger public health.


If every citizen embraces the principles of Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, India can move significantly closer to a cleaner environment and a truly circular economy. Plastic itself is not the problem; the real challenge lies in how we use it and how we dispose of it. Thank you for joining me on this journey through India's plastic waste management landscape. Have a great weekend!


(The author is an environmentalist. Views personal.)

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