Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis introduces 150-day roadmap with focus on e-governance, administrative reforms, and raising Maharashtra’s status
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis at a function to mark the 300th birth anniversary of Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Holkar, at Chaundi in Ahilyanagar, on May 6. PIC/X/@Dev_Fadnavis
Hours after the Supreme Court directed the Maharashtra government to notify local body elections within four weeks and try completing the process within four months, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis welcomed the decision and claimed to be ready for the polls.
The CM even maintained that the forthcoming polls would be contested jointly by members of the Mahayuti alliance, which comprises the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Shiv Sena faction headed by Eknath Shinde.
Stating that his government would urge the State Election Commission (SEC) to start preparations for local body polls, Fadnavis said, “We [the Mahayuti] will contest the polls as one block.” This statement assumes significance as the BJP, Ajit Pawar-led NCP and Shinde Sena leaders, in some pockets, during public meetings, openly talked about or hinted at single-handedly contesting local self-governing or urban civic body elections.
Fadnavis was speaking to media persons after concluding the state cabinet meeting held at Chaundi in Ahilyanagar, formerly known as Ahmednagar. The meeting was held to commemorate the 300th birth anniversary of 18th century Maratha ruler of the Malwa territory, Ahilyabai Holkar, who was born in Ahilyanagar.
Elections to local bodies in Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Vasai-Virar and other urban areas have been delayed for years. For Mumbai, elections were scheduled to be held in 2022, but had been on hold due to a stay on the same in the court.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court directed the state to hold polls, with Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservation set to the percentage that existed before the submission of the Jayant Kumar Banthia Commission report in July 2022.
In 2022, the state government had set up the commission to examine the question of OBC reservation in local bodies. The commission recommended 27 per cent representation for OBCs within the existing reservation ceiling of 50 per cent. The report has been challenged in the court, and the apex court bench, while hearing the case, mentioned that the polls would be subject to the outcome of the petition challenging it.
Leaders from the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, comprising the Congress, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) and NCP faction headed by Sharad Pawar, have also welcomed the move and claimed to be ready for the polls.
Three key issues in focus
After successfully implementing the 100-day programme and releasing its results, the state government has now set a new goal — a 150-day roadmap. Fadnavis, while announcing the second programme, maintained that this time it will focus on three key issues — e-governance, administrative reforms and Maharashtra’s status by 2047.
In January, Fadnavis had instructed all departments to submit their action plan for 100 days. Accordingly, the submitted goals and deliverables were evaluated by an external agency, the Quality Control of India. On May 1, the CM made the evaluation list public on social media. As per the list, 12 out of 48 departments successfully completed all the objectives given to them.
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