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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.

No cylinders for 11 days, says popular restaurant

Mumbai: The war in West Asia has affected the commercial restaurants all over India. It has led to the shortage of the LPG (Liquified Petroleum Gas) supply to local restaurants in Mumbai.


One such restaurant experiencing this disruption of supply is the Stadium Restaurant located at Churchgate. Owned by an Iranian, the restaurant started in 1946 a year before independence. After 80 years, the restaurant is very well-known in South Mumbai and is mostly packed throughout the day.


India is totally dependent on West Asian countries for the LPG, PNG (Piped Natural Gas), CNG (Compressed Natural Gas), fuel, etc. Due to the shortage the government has evoked the Essential Commodities Act,1995, that allows the government to control all the supply. The government has said that their main focus is domestic gas supply which has caused disruption in the commercial gas supply.


When asked to the Chief Manager of the restaurant about the crisis, he told the The Perfect Voice on the basis of anonymity that we are managing the days somehow. He mentioned that the restaurant needs two cylinders per day, totalling to 60 to 62 cylinders per month. A commercial 19 kg cylinder costs around Rs 2000 to the restaurant.


“We do not have any cylinder now and it has been 10-11 days since we ordered cylinders but there is not one delivered yet,” he added.


If not cylinder then what? To this question the manager replied, “We have switched to Electric Induction that has led us to reduce the items we serve.”


He said that there around 100-120 items on the menu and it is now drastically reduced to serve only 20-24 items, resulting in a 20 per cent drop.


When questioned about the change in number of customers, he said, “Now there amid crisis we are facing a 50 to 60 per cent drop in the customers.”


The term, ‘fog of war’, where a lot of rumors are spread amid war, has now travelled to India from West Asia as the manager mentioned, “More than the gas the rumours are affecting us, and we are only focusing on what the government says.”


The Chief Manager also mentioned about the Black Marketing of cylinders. He said, “The insufficient supply can maybe because of these black-marketing guys, because if new ships are coming and the gas is still less then, it might be a conspiracy by them.”

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