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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

NDA power matrix reshaped after success

AI generated image Mumbai: A quiet coup in the state has triggered a loud shift in the power dynamics of the nation’s capital. By engineering the defection of six additional MPs, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has nearly doubled his parliamentary muscle, transforming his Shiv Sena faction from a junior regional partner into an indispensable pillar of the NDA. Now sitting on a commanding 13 seats, Shinde has dramatically increased his political leverage—leaving a cautious BJP to weigh the...

NDA power matrix reshaped after success

AI generated image Mumbai: A quiet coup in the state has triggered a loud shift in the power dynamics of the nation’s capital. By engineering the defection of six additional MPs, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has nearly doubled his parliamentary muscle, transforming his Shiv Sena faction from a junior regional partner into an indispensable pillar of the NDA. Now sitting on a commanding 13 seats, Shinde has dramatically increased his political leverage—leaving a cautious BJP to weigh the cost of an emboldened ally demanding a bigger slice of the pie in both the Union and state cabinets. In a masterstroke of political engineering that has profoundly jolted political landscape, Shinde has once again demonstrated his formidable capacity for disruption. The rebellion of six out of nine Lok Sabha Members of Parliament from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), ostensibly joining Shinde’s ranks under the banner of “Operation Tiger,” is not merely a regional skirmish. It is a calculated power play that reverberates through the highest corridors of power in New Delhi. By nearly doubling his party’s strength in the lower house from seven to thirteen MPs, Shinde has dramatically altered his own political trajectory, elevating his faction from a helpful regional ally to an indispensable pillar of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Shinde’s Stature The immediate consequence of this crossover is a massive surge in Shinde’s stature within the NDA hierarchy. With thirteen parliamentarians, his Shiv Sena is now poised to become the fourth-largest bloc in the ruling national coalition, sitting just behind the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Telugu Desam Party, and the newly formed Nationalist Citizens Party of India. This numerical leap is of immense strategic value to the BJP-led central government. In a parliamentary environment where the ruling coalition possesses only a modest majority, every single seat counts. The central leadership is acutely aware of upcoming legislative hurdles, particularly ambitious constitutional amendments like the proposed delimitation bill, which will require a formidable two-thirds majority. By acting as the architect of this crucial numerical boost, Shinde has cemented his reputation as a reliable and highly effective operator for the NDA, significantly increasing his bargaining power and political leverage. National Relief For the BJP, this development evokes a complex mixture of profound national relief and acute regional anxiety. From the vantage point of PM Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Shinde’s successful poaching operation is a clear windfall. It simultaneously fortifies the NDA’s numerical strength in New Delhi while severely crippling a vocal opposition force in Maharashtra. The central BJP leadership views Shinde as a vital asset capable of bridging the gap between their current numbers and the overwhelming mandates of the past. However, the perspective from the Maharashtra BJP headquarters is noticeably more apprehensive. State BJP leaders openly acknowledge Shinde’s soaring political equity, but they are increasingly wary of his expanding ambitions. They recognize that an emboldened Shinde, eager to fill the political vacuum left by Uddhav Thackeray and a fragmented Nationalist Congress Party, will aggressively attempt to expand his footprint across the state, potentially encroaching upon the BJP’s own traditional support bases. Power Sharing This dramatically enhanced political heft immediately raises pressing questions regarding power-sharing arrangements, both at the Centre and in the state. Armed with thirteen MPs, Shinde’s camp is undoubtedly preparing to seek greater political rewards. In the Union Cabinet, his demand for an additional, high-profile ministerial berth is now backed by solid arithmetic. Given his heightened utility to the national coalition, the BJP high command is highly likely to accommodate this request during the next cabinet reshuffle. However, the power struggle within the Maharashtra state cabinet promises to be far more contentious. Shinde, who had to settle for the Deputy Chief Ministership behind Devendra Fadnavis following the last assembly elections, may now feel emboldened to petition the BJP leadership for the top job. The BJP’s state unit is actively preparing to fiercely resist any such demand. Senior BJP leaders are quick to emphasize that despite his parliamentary gains, Shinde’s legislative strength in the state assembly hovers around 57 MLAs, dwarfed by the BJP’s commanding 132 legislators. Consequently, conceding the Chief Minister’s chair remains highly improbable. Instead, the BJP will be forced into a delicate balancing act, likely appeasing Shinde by granting his faction a larger share of influential, heavyweight portfolios within the state government to keep the alliance stable. Ultimately, through sheer political audacity, Eknath Shinde has ensured that neither New Delhi nor Mumbai can afford to govern without catering to his increasingly formidable political weight.

Mad Over Modular

Kolhapur: Infection control has become central to modern hospital design. The concept of modular infrastructure, encompassing modular operation theatres (OTs) and modular intensive care units (ICUs), has gained considerable traction for its ability to minimise hospital-acquired infections and improve clinical outcomes. By ensuring sterile air circulation, sealed interiors, and contamination-resistant surfaces, these systems are designed to shield patients from secondary infections and enable faster recovery. Given their widespread adoption in private hospitals, the decision to replicate such facilities in government medical colleges is, in principle, welcome.


The question that has triggered unease within sections of the medical fraternity, however, is not about necessity but about cost. And, increasingly, about clinical rationale.


Modular Mayhem

Over the past year, Maharashtra's Medical Education Department has aggressively sanctioned modular facilities at Rajarshi Shahu Government Medical College and Chhatrapati Pramilaraje (CPR) Government Hospital in Kolhapur. Between October 2023 and July 2024, seven separate administrative orders were issued, cumulatively approving Rs 126.12 crore for 21 modular facilities across departments. Work orders have reportedly been issued and several projects inaugurated.


The approvals include seven modular OTs for the Surgery Department at Rs 1.98 crore per unit; a single modular OT for Cardiac Surgery at Rs 51.27 crore; a modular ICU with equipment for Medicine at Rs 26.50 crore; a Trauma ICU at Rs 11.20 crore; a Respiratory Care ICU at Rs 7.20 crore; a paediatric NICU at Rs 15.43 crore; a Burn Care Complex at Rs 14.29 crore; a Nephrology Dialysis ICU at Rs 25.88 crore; and a modular physiotherapy laboratory at Rs 13.69 crore. The total number of units ordered was 21, and a total amount of Rs 126.12 crore was sanctioned.


Surgeons and physicians who are expected to use these facilities privately admit that the sanctioned amounts appear significantly higher than prevailing market benchmarks.


Comparisons with reputed private hospitals, including a recently commissioned super-speciality hospital in Kolhapur, suggest that modular OTs there were developed at approximately Rs 30–50 lakh per theatre, while modular ICUs typically ranged around Rs 1 crore, depending on specifications.


At CPR, the per-theatre cost in certain cases approaches Rs 2 crore, and in some approvals, even higher. In certain approvals exceeding Rs 20 crore, documentation reportedly does not clearly delineate item-wise cost components, raising further questions about financial transparency.


Market logic would ordinarily suggest that large-volume government projects attract cost efficiencies through negotiation leverage. That the sanctioned amounts are, in some cases, reportedly double or triple private-sector benchmarks has, understandably, raised eyebrows.


Nowhere is this scrutiny sharper than in the case of the physiotherapy laboratory. On 9 July 2024, the Medical Education Department issued an administrative order (Machinery-2024/PR.430/Pr.Sha-1) sanctioning Rs 13.69 crore for establishing a modular physiotherapy lab at CPR. Modular OTs and ICUs emerged from advances in infection control, particularly for patients with compromised immunity, where controlled airflow and sterile environments are medically justified.


But physiotherapy departments typically cater to patients undergoing rehabilitation for orthopaedic or musculoskeletal conditions. These are individuals who are otherwise stable and not immunocompromised. Whether a fully modular setup is clinically essential for such services, or an overextension of a concept designed for high-risk zones, is a question now being raised not only by citizens but by administrators of large private hospitals in Kolhapur itself.


A closer look at comparable institutions in the city, including four private hospitals with capacities exceeding 300 beds, suggests that fully equipped physiotherapy departments have been established at costs well below Rs 1 crore. Even voluntary organisations such as the Rotary Club, which have invested consistently in modern physiotherapy services over decades, have reportedly not incurred expenditure anywhere near the sanctioned figure.


'Excessive' Risk

Faculty members within the institution have privately described the broader trend as excessive, warning that indiscriminate “modularisation” risks turning into a contractor-driven exercise rather than a patient-centric reform. Public funds, not private capital, are at stake, and that demands stricter scrutiny. Without detailed cost audits and public disclosure of tender comparisons, suspicions are unlikely to abate.


For Kolhapur's citizens, and for taxpayers across Maharashtra, the issue is straightforward: public money must deliver public value. Modernisation, if not matched by accountability, risks blurring the line between legitimate upgrade and avoidable expenditure.

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