Govt has Rs 86,000 crore for Shaktipeeth Expressway, but not for farmers: Uddhav

Shiv Sena UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray on Friday criticised the Maharashtra government for allocating Rs 86000 crore to contractors for the construction of the Shaktipeeth Expressway while reportedly failing to provide relief to farmers affected by heavy rains reported the PTIUddhav Thackeray has been touring Marathwada since November 5 meeting farmers whose crops were destroyed by severe rainfall in the last week of SeptemberOn Friday Uddhav visited Pardi village in Nanded Dongarkada and Jawla Bazar in Hingoli as well as Pingali in Parbhani to check whether the financial aid and relief measures announced by the Fadnavisled government had reached themSpeaking in Hingoli Uddhav Thackeray said ldquoThe state government has Rs 86000 crore to give contractors to build the Shaktipeeth Expressway yet there is no money for distressed farmers There is no immediate need for this expressway But when I point this out the ruling party claims I am opposing developmentrdquo according to the PTIHe further criticised the project claiming middlemen were purchasing land along the expressway route and selling it at higher pricesldquoSimilarly middlemen benefited from soybean purchases They will sell it later to official procurement centres at a profit while farmers get nothingrdquo he said the news agency reportedResponding to Chief Minister Fadnavisrsquo remark that he merely taunts Uddhav Thackeray said ldquoSpeaking up for farmers and seeking justice is not taunting it is a dutyrdquoThackeray urged the CM guardian ministers and MLAs to visit villages and check on compensation distribution adding ldquoThe government must ensure relief reaches farmers but the ruling party seems unconcerned about these issuesrdquoMeanwhileUddhav Thackeray had on Thursday targeted the Maharashtra government over the farm loan waiver issue alleging that distressed farmers were yet to receive any financial aid despite the governmentrsquos claim of announcing the ldquobiggestrdquo relief package reported the PTIUddhav Thackeray interacted with farmers at Karajkheda village in Dharashiv district on the second day of his fourday tour of the Marathwada region aimed at assessing the hardships faced by cultivators following the heavy rains and floods during monsoon seasonHe is scheduled to visit Bhusni and Thorlewadi villages in Latur and Pardi in Nanded later in the dayLast month the Devendra Fadnavisled government announced a Rs 31628crore relief package for farmers whose crops were damaged across 687 lakh hectares in 29 districts during the AugustndashSeptember deluge The Chief Minister had described it as an ldquounprecedented effortrdquo by the state to stand by farmers in their time of crisisHowever Uddhav Thackeray claimed that no assistance had yet reached the intended beneficiariesldquoEarlier the ruling parties asked women about the benefits of the Ladki Bahin scheme Why arenrsquot they asking farmers what theyrsquove received from this socalled biggest relief packagerdquo he questioned according to the PTIldquoThey are not asking because nothing has been delivered The package was merely announced Irsquoll be the happiest man if farmers actually get their compensationrdquo he addedThackeray also played an old audio clip purportedly featuring Fadnavis promising a loan waiver if the Mahayuti alliance came to powerResponding to criticism from ruling leaders that he was being sarcastic Thackeray said ldquoIs demanding a loan waiver and Rs 50000 per hectare in compensation for farmers a taunt When my government was in power we implemented a loan waiver without boasting about itrdquo the news agency reportedwith PTI inputs