Shiv Sena manifesto promises durable roads across urban Maharashtra, stays silent on Aarey

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray & son Aaditya release manifesto for 21 October Maharashtra polls, say ally BJP will release its own & they'll work together.

File photo of Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray with son Aaditya and party leader Sanjay Raut (right) | PTI photo

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena often gets criticised for the poor condition of Mumbai roads, which are constructed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) that it leads. But in its manifesto for the 21 October Maharashtra assembly polls, the party has promised durable highways across urban Maharashtra using state funds.

The manifesto, called ‘Vachanama’ and released Saturday by Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and his son Aaditya Thackeray, aims to introduce a ‘Mukhyamantri Shahar Sadak Yojana’ and include funds in the state budget for construction of roads under the jurisdiction of all urban local bodies (ULB), municipal councils and municipal corporations.

“We have proposed the scheme on the lines of the ‘Mukhyamantri Gram Sadak Yojana’. For urban roads, after the introduction of schemes such as the Goods and Services Tax, civic bodies don’t have sufficient funds left and need aid,” said Aaditya Thackeray, who will contest the polls from Mumbai’s Worli constituency.

While passing the Goods and Services Tax Bill, the Maharashtra government had approved a plan to compensate ULBs for the loss of local body tax and octroi with an 8 per cent compounded rise each year. The BMC had received around Rs 7,200 crore for octroi loss in the first year.

No mention of Aarey in main manifesto

The Sena’s other promises for urban areas include budgeting funds for footpaths in all A, B and C class municipal corporations, starting electric bus services in places not connected by public bus transport, concretising Mumbai’s arterial Eastern and Western Express highways with state funds, and pushing for a comprehensive plan to develop Mumbai’s eastern waterfront.

While the manifesto promises to create urban forests on vacant government land in Mumbai’s island city, suburbs and Thane, it is silent on the proposal for a Metro car shed at Aarey Colony — a bone of contention between the Shiv Sena and BJP. While the BJP is rallying for it, the Sena is strongly against building the shed.

Aaditya Thackeray, who has been vocal about the Aarey issue, said: “We have smaller manifestos for each region, which we will circulate soon. Aarey is definitely there as part of our manifesto for the Mumbai region. This is our ‘Vachanama’ for the entire state. Had we included regional promises too, it would have become a very bulky document.”

Party chief Uddhav Thackeray simply added that Aarey was an important matter for Mumbai and all political parties. “Every party should be questioned and made to clear its stand on Aarey, not just the Shiv Sena,” he said.

Populist promises

The Shiv Sena’s manifesto makes a slew of populist promises too — from centres where medical checkups will be available for Re 1, canteens that will serve nutritious food for Rs 10, a 30 per cent cut in the residential electricity rate for up to 300 units, and a complete farm loan waiver. The senior Thackeray had mentioned these promises during his annual Dussehra rally earlier this week.

Besides, the party also plans to give Rs 10,000 per year to farmers from the economically weaker sections with small landholdings, and stabilise the prices of seeds and fertilisers over five years.

The Sena has also promised to roll out scholarship schemes titled ‘Yuva Sarkar Fellow’ for 15 lakh graduates, implement reservation for people under 35 in the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation, and also have a 2 per cent quota for them in the affordable housing schemes implemented by state government agencies.

Perhaps for the first time, Shiv Sena and the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) alliance are on the same page when it came to reservation for locals. In its manifesto released earlier this week, the Opposition alliance has promised 80 per cent jobs to locals in Maharashtra’s new industries. The Sena too has promised the same.

“When Shiv Sena and Balasaheb Thackeray were demanding this 50 years ago, we were called parochial, regional. Now that the Congress has become ‘bekar’ (useless), it remembers the sons of the soil,” remarked the Sena chief.

Separate manifestos for BJP, Shiv Sena

Despite contesting the assembly elections as an alliance, Shiv Sena and the BJP have decided to release separate manifestos this time. On the other hand, the Congress-NCP alliance, which has been showing some weaknesses in its ranks, has released a common manifesto.

Commenting on the allies’ separate manifestoes, Uddhav Thackeray said: “In the heat of the election work, the chief minister and I could not sit together to work on the manifesto. The BJP will probably release its manifesto in the next two days.”

He shrugged off questions about any differences between the two parties on the manifesto and said: “Ultimately, the BJP and Shiv Sena will work together. We will accept some good points from the BJP’s manifesto and they will do the same with regards to our manifesto. Both parties will fulfil all the promises together.”