While the criticism for railway minister Suresh Prabhu's maiden budget came in from usual quarters — Congress — BJP's ally Shiv Sena also accused the Narendra Modi-led government of neglecting the state and Mumbai.
While the criticism for railway minister Suresh Prabhu's maiden budget came in from usual quarters — Congress — BJP's ally Shiv Sena also accused the Narendra Modi-led government of neglecting the state and Mumbai.
Shiv Sena MP from Mumbai North Central Gajanan Kirtikar lamented that the budget had nothing new on offer for Maharashtra and Mumbai in terms of basic infrastructure and facilities. "We got little," he charged, adding that the budget had little in terms of new rail overbridges, increasing the height of platforms at one go, drinking water and sunroofs for suburban platforms, where 15-coach local trains stop.
Kirtikar said Sena had met Prabhu with a list of problems regarding the railway network, and added that the Harbour Line from Andheri to Goregaon, which was supposed to be extended till Dahisar, was stuck.
Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee chief Manikrao Thakare alleged that the budget entailed a "massive disappointment" to Maharashtra and said that though the Centre was patting itself on the back for not increasing fares, a fare and freight hike had been introduced last year. He also accused the railways of not passing on the benefit of the fall in diesel rates to consumers.
Thakare said while the budget was mum on demands for new railway routes in Maharashtra — Gadchiroli-Mul, Wardha-Yavatmal-Nanded, Kalyan-Ahmednagar and Pune-Nashik — the government was claiming credit for the idea of air-conditioned locals, among others, which were initiated by Congress.
However, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis lauded the budget as an outstanding one. He said it had addressed MUTP-III and projects related to Vidarbha, Marathwada and Western Maharashtra, which would promote development. "As it will raise passenger and freight traffic, it will grant a boost to the country's economy in the true sense," said Fadnavis.
Finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar described the budget as one which did not cater to a particular region, but instead, had the common man and all elements of society as its focus.
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