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Shiv Sena-led BMC unveils record budget in poll year, with an ‘Aaditya Thackeray’ imprint

BMC’s budget of Rs 45,949 crore for FY23 is 17.7% more than FY22. Allocations have been increased for a number of projects and sectors personally pushed by Aaditya Thackeray.

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Mumbai: In the run up to Mumbai civic polls this year, the Shiv Sena-ruled Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), touted to be the country’s richest civic body, has announced its highest-ever budget, bearing a clear imprint of Thackeray scion, Aaditya Thackeray.

On Thursday, the BMC presented a budget of Rs 45,949 crore for 2022-23, a 17.7 per cent jump over the last fiscal. 

The budget, which proposes increased allocations for a number of projects and sectors that 31-year-old Aaditya has personally pushed over the last year. These include the Marine Drive-Worli coastal freeway, the Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan known as Byculla Zoo, budget for BMC’s education sector and so on.

The move comes at a time when the junior Thackeray has visibly taken over his father’s role of overseeing BMC work.

Speaking to ThePrint about Aaditya’s responsibilities for BMC election campaign, Shiv Sena MP Arvind Sawat said: “There are no two opinions about it, Aaditya Thackeray will lead the BMC elections. He has worked in the city for past 10-12 years so he knows the city, the issues, the solutions so he is the right person to lead the election.”

Political commentator Hemant Desai told ThePrint: “The Thackeray family has been Mumbai centric always and Aaditya is carrying on with this tradition. With Uddhav Thackeray’s frail health and him being the CM, he had announced to his party workers a couple of months ago via a Facebook live that Aaditya will take more responsibility of the BMC.”  

He added: “Aaditya is very studious and a shrewd politician, so definitely he must have taken interest in the budget.”


Also read: Tunnelling work of MCGM water tunnel project to be completed by Dec: Patel Engineering


The Aaditya Thackeray imprint

The BMC has been the home turf as well as a major power centre for the Shiv Sena and the Thackerays to flex their political muscle. The Shiv Sena has ruled the BMC for over 20 years and Uddhav Thackeray has always taken an interest in the civic body’s functioning, political watchers say. 

While Aaditya Thackeray has been taking up issues related to Mumbai’s development ever since he officially entered politics as Yuva Sena chief in 2010, he has now, more or less, taken over his father’s role with regards to the BMC.

Aaditya, a minister in his father Uddhav Thackeray’s cabinet in the Maharashtra government holding the portfolios of tourism and environment, in a tweet called the civic budget “progressive, compassionate, sustainable development oriented, one of hope and aspirations”. He said the budget was backed by “substance and commitments.”

For the ambitious coastal road project, which Aaditya has been monitoring personally and pushing forward as a showpiece work of the BMC, the corporation has set aside Rs 3,200 crore. The project work is 50 per cent complete and BMC says it wants to take it to 90 per cent this fiscal.

With Aaditya having steered the rebranding of BMC schools as ‘Mumbai Public Schools,’ pushing for better schools and more boards, including international ones, the BMC has increased the education budget to Rs 3,370 crore from last year’s Rs 2,945 crore.

For the Mumbai Zoo, also called as Veermata Jijabai Udyan, a whopping Rs 115 crore has been set aside, up from a Rs 30 crore last year. Here too, Thackeray junior expressed interest in bringing in exotic animals and including jungle safaris to improve tourism, a ministry that Thackeray holds.

In line with Aaditya’s push for environment friendly policies, the BMC has also made a budgetary allocation of Rs 1 crore for a Climate Action Cell.

“Two new schemes have been launched for the health and well-being of every Mumbaikar. Climate change mitigation is what Mumbai is looking at… How to achieve a carbon neutral scenario is another aspect of it. In 2022-23, we will give a major push to the climate action plan,” Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal said while reading out the budget. 

The BMC has also set aside Rs 800 crore for its Brihanmumbai Electric Supply & Transport (BEST) undertaking, which runs public transport buses in Mumbai, largely with the plan of increasing the bus fleet with electric vehicles. Aaditya was instrumental in getting the Maharashtra government to clear a policy to encourage electric vehicles in the state.


Also read: Why delimitation of civic wards in Mumbai ahead of BMC polls is likely to benefit Shiv Sena


Property tax waiver for small houses, more money for health

The BMC budget fulfills one of Shiv Sena’s mainstay poll promises made before the previous BMC election — waiving property tax for residential units up to 500 sq. 

“About 1,614,000 citizens will get 100% property tax relief. The amount of exemption to citizens is to the tune of Rs 462 crore per annum,” Chahal said in his speech.

With Mumbai having been badly affected in all three waves of the Covid-19 pandemic so far, the BMC has made a significant allocation to health, with the sectoral budget being 15 per cent of the total.

“This year we have allocated nearly Rs 7,000 crore only for health. Nowhere in the country, you will find this,” said Chahal. The health budget for the upcoming fiscal is up 44 per cent from Rs 4,814 crore in the ongoing fiscal.

The BMC has also announced opening up of 200 health care centres in the neighbourhood in the name of ‘Hinduhridaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray’ and 200 ‘Shiv Yoga Kendra’.

‘Only Aaditya’s wishes fulfilled’

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has slammed the BMC budget as having nothing for common Mumbaikars, and one that fulfils only Aaditya Thackeray’s wishes.

“This budget is nothing but a script by Yuvraj Aaditya Thackeray being presented as the budget in the standing committee,” Vinod Mishra, group leader of BJP in BMC, told ThePrint.

“The property tax was waived for 500 square feet houses, but nothing was thought for fishermen, auto drivers, etc. The budget lacked the concept, scheme beyond water, gutter, and tender,” BJP MLA Ashish Shelar said in a tweet.

Speaking to ThePrint, Shiv Sena’s Yashwant Jadhav, Leader of the House in BMC, rubbished BJP’s allegations while accepting that Aaditya and Uddhav Thackeray have always been interested in the corporation’s functioning, being citizens of Mumbai.

“BJP has no other point to make hence saying baseless things like this is just a congratulating Aditya Thackeray budget. If he has worked, why shouldn’t we congratulate him? They haven’t taken out any points or issues or flaws in the budget because they have nothing more to add. We are confident 101 per cent that Mumbaikars will give us another chance to serve them again,” said Jadhav.

(Edited by Amit Upadhyaya)


Also read: Shiv Sena prepared to go solo in BMC, to win over 100 seats: Anil Desai


 

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