Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajastan and Madhya Pradesh : Political Discussions

Shinde-Fadnavis govt restores 4 decisions scrapped by MVA​

The Eknath Shinde-led coalition government has decided to bring back four policy decisions that had been taken by the Devendra Fadnavis-led BJP government during its tenure in 2015-2019, but were subsequently scrapped by the Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA government.

These decisions include restoring voting rights of farmers to APMC markets, restarting pension to people jailed during Emergency and electing village heads and municipal council presidents directly from the people.

Currently, the Maharashtra Agriculture Produce and Marketing (Development and Regulation) Act 1963 allows only members of gram panchayats, agriculture credit societies, and multi-purpose cooperative societies, to elect the members of Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC). In August 2017, the BJP state government brought an amendment in the legislation and gave farmers the right to elect the members and chairperson of APMC in the area where they sell their produce.

In January 2020, the MVA government cancelled the provision and went back to the older procedure where members of gram panchayats, multi-purpose co-operative societies and agriculture credit societies elected the APMC board, claiming that the APMC does not have enough funds to conduct elections on such a large scale.

“We have decided to restore the voting rights of the farmers who have 0.25 acre (1,000 square metre) land and have sold his produce in the APMC market at least three times in the last five years where he or she seeks to be a voter,” chief minister Eknath Shinde announced on Thursday. The electoral changes were seen as a bid by the government to break the stronghold of the NCP and Congress in the co-operative sector and local bodies.

In another decision taken by the state cabinet, those who were jailed for more than a month during Emergency will get ₹10,000 as pension from August 1. If the person is deceased, their spouse will get ₹5,000 as pension. In case the jail term was less than one month, then the figures will stand at ₹5,000 and ₹2,500 respectively. The decision was first implemented by the Fadnavis government in 2017 and later scrapped by the MVA government in 2020 on the grounds that most of the beneficiaries were affiliated to Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

On Thursday, the state cabinet also decided to amend the Gram Panchayat Act, 1958 to allow direct election of sarpanch (village head) for local self-government bodies (gram panchayats). The state government has decided to add a provision that the gram panchayat will not be able to move a no-confidence motion against the sarpanch or deputy sarpanch in the first two years after election and six months before the next election, the chief minister said. Similarly, it has also decided to elect municipal council presidents directly from the people by bringing an amendment in the Maharashtra Municipal Council, Nagar Panchayat and Industrial Towns Act, 1965.

The then Fadnavis government had in 2017 made the amendment to make way for direct election of sarpanchs. This was done to make inroads in village panchayats, traditionally controlled by the Congress and NCP, even though the elections are rarely contested on party symbols. In January 2020, the MVA government decided to overturn the decision on grounds that the differences between ideologies of sarpanchs and members of gram panchayats were a hurdle in developmental work.

The candidates with the backing of the ruling parties are said to benefit from direct elections. Fadnavis clarified that direct election has become a practice in all the big states as it provides a level playing field to all candidates. “In the indirect elections, the deserving candidates get sidelined and thus the Maharashtra Sarpanch Parishad has recently demanded bringing back the method of direct elections in the rural local bodies,” Fadnavis told reporters.

Politically, the BJP had reaped dividends from the direct elections in the past and thus the MVA allies had overturned the format, according to political analyst Abhay Deshpande.

The Congress opposed the decisions. “The Shinde-Fadnavis government has been changing the decisions of the previous government ever since they have come to power. They should have studied the impact of the direct elections before taking the decision,” said Balasaheb Thorat, former revenue minister and Congress leader.
www.hindustantimes.com

Shinde-Fadnavis govt restores 4 decisions scrapped by MVA

These decisions include restoring voting rights of farmers to APMC markets, restarting pension to people jailed during Emergency and electing village heads and municipal council presidents directly from the people.
www.hindustantimes.com www.hindustantimes.com
 
I can't understand two things-

Why isn't there a dedicated thread for Congress president elections?
Why isn't modiji standing for election s as congress president?
 

Lower Parel in Mumbai has probably the single largest concentration of the tallest skyscrapers in not just the city but if I'm not mistaken in all of India.

To think about 4 decades ago it housed most of Mumbai's textile mills which were a feature of the city for nearly a century before the great strike of 1981 shut them down for good .

The same textile mills which saw the Communists try to control the unions against whom the then ruling Congress in the 1960s propped up the Shiv Sena under Balasaheb Thackeray who used the same strong arm tactics the Communists used to muscle them out of the scene .

Here's a glimpse of it as has never been see before.

How things change in 4 decades ?!
 
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_Anonymous_ said:

Lower Parel in Mumbai has probably the single largest concentration of the tallest skyscrapers in not just the city but if I'm not mistaken in all of India.

To think about 4 decades ago it housed most of Mumbai's textile mills which were a feature of the city for nearly a century before the great strike of 1981 shut them down for good .

The same textile mills which saw the Communists try to control the unions against whom the then ruling Congress in the 1960s propped up the Shiv Sena under Balasaheb Thackeray who used the same strong arm tactics the Communists used to muscle them out of the scene .

Here's a glimpse of it as has never been see before.

How things change in 4 decades ?!
Click to expand...
Yes indeed. And now the vast land area of BDD under redevelopment is going to lead further real estate development along with Sewri Nhawaseva sealink. Even the common man could purchase a 1 BHK flat under 65 lakhs just a year ago, nowadays it is ranging around 85 lakhs / flat of 1 BHK on lower end. Imagine a residence in Mumbai City, not Mumbai Suburban, makes a big difference, both from quality of time, security and economic opportunities, most important of all rickshaw mukt zone!
 
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