New Delhi: Ever since the MVA government came into existence in 2019, Maharashtra is in a state of consistent decline with CM Uddhav Thackeray at the helm. What began as a collapse of political integrity when Shiv Sena insulted the people’s mandate and formed a post-poll coalition with the rejected NCP-INC duo has metamorphosed into economic decline of the state.
Starting from the inept response to the pandemic to a series of corruption and incompetence at the highest level, the MVA government’s failures are seeping into the grassroots level and reflecting in the economic statistics.
Firstly, Maharashtra holds the dubious record of most casualties due to Covid-19 despite several attempts by the government to hide the statistics. The corruption in handing out contracts for Covid Jumbo hospitals is a perfect example of profiting from the ruin of the masses.
If deaths weren’t bad enough, the alive could foresee a bleak future going by the economic decline of the state. As per the Economic Survey 2020-21, Maharashtra has already slipped to the third position in FDI investment.
The state slipped to third place in the first six months of the financial year as per the Economic Survey by receiving only Rs. 27143 crore in FDI between April and September 2020. In 2019-20, the state had received Rs. 77389 crores which was around 29% of the total inflows into the country.
Gone are the days of the Fadnavis regime when Maharashtra boasted of its No.1 position in several indices and an ambitious vision for the future. When big ticket projects like Nanar project which can provide employment to a huge number of people are actively opposed by the party in power, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s credibility crisis further compounds the issue.
The quarterly unemployment rate, according to current weekly status for urban areas, registered a rise during 2019-20, states the economic survey report.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had tried a hand at playing Fadnavis and even declared the second installment of the global investors summit under Magnetic Maharashtra 2.0. Last year, the state decided to provide ‘Maha Parwana’, a master permission to the new industrial units within 48 hours of application.
This permission ensures the investor won’t need any other permission and they can start construction work on the site immediately. Despite these desperate attempts to address the downfall by the MVA government, the State of Maharashtra is only going downhill. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s attempts to replicate the Fadnavis model of development faces an uphill task being a battle of credibility which the MVA government lacks. When the BJP government under Fadnavis made promises, the investors believed.
In contrast, CM Uddhav Thackeray claimed huge investment during the Covid-19 pandemic even though those MOUs were signed and the land was alloted during the Fadnavis government.
In Infrastructure development, CM Uddhav Thackeray is seeking to emulate Devendra Fadnavis when talking about the vision of 1$ trillion economy; and failing miserably. The unjustified delay of Metro 3 work due to opposition to Arey car shed by his party Shiv Sena has led to delay in the project and will lead to cost escalation.
During the Fadnavis regime, projects like Metro and Roads were the highest priority and regular status update was undertaken by the Chief Minister himself. The MVA government has not just slowed down the process but also stopped several projects works. On one hand, the MVA government is focused on denying credit to Fadnavis by not extending an invitation to the inauguration of Metro 2A and Metro 7.
On the other hand, the Thackeray government seems least inclined towards completing the remaining projects. It’s like MVA government is intent on appropriating and claiming credit for all Fadnavis regime initiatives with no regard to their own dubious record in infrastructural development.
The proposed inauguration of the first phase of Nagpur Mumbai Samruddhi Mahamarg project is another instance where MVA government isn’t interested in getting the work done but is vying to claim credit.
Whether it’s FDI inflows or infrastructure development, the MVA government has proved its incompetence and ensured the decline of the state. The MVA government should realise that at the root of Fadnavis regime’s success is the credibility it enjoyed among the people and investors and the competence it displayed.
The MVA government with its poor trackrecord in delivering governance can’t replicate economic success and its continuation in office will only speed-up the downfall of the state to the point that every developmental index will get impacted negatively. The Fadnavis regime is a perfect example of how right intention and vision can take Maharashtra ahead while the present Thackeray government is a case study on how opportunist politicians, incompetent and criminal ministers combined with corruption can ruin a state.
On the occasion of the 42nd BJP foundation day, the Bharatiya Janata Party under Modi Ji has gone from strength to strength with maximum Rajya Sabha MPs belonging to the party. The people of Maharashtra has richly rewarded its performance and sent maximum MLA’s from BJP into the Vidhan Sabha making it the No. 1 party in the State.
Despite the people’s blessings to BJP, a state as big as Maharashtra is in doldrums because it doesn’t have a BJP government which wants to make Maharashtra No.1.
Maharashtra wanted BJP when it voted for the Mahayuti government under Fadnavis in 2019. More than 2 years later, Maharashtra today needs BJP to stop the state from faltering.
