Mumbai, Nov 6 The Maharashtra government will extend its housing ownership scheme to civic sanitation workers across the state, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Friday, asserting that the initiative would continue until all eligible workers were provided with homes.
Fadnavis was speaking after handing over keys to civic employees to their newly constructed residential quarters under Phase II of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) ‘Ashray Yojana’ at Panchsheel Nagar, Colaba, in south Mumbai.
The CM said 400 homes had already been allotted to sanitation workers in Nagpur under the ‘Shram Safalya Yojana’ and efforts were underway to extend the initiative to Mumbai.
Over the past 10 years, he claimed, the government had consistently attempted to transform Mumbai but did not receive the desired support from the civic body, referring to the period when undivided Shiv Sena, headed by Uddhav Thackeray, controlled the BMC.
Fadnavis said the “triple-engine government”, referring to the Centre, the Maharashtra government and the BMC, would work together to accelerate Mumbai’s infrastructure development and transform the city’s face over the next three to four years.
With the BMC now extending cooperation, development work would be expedited at twice the earlier pace, he said.
Congratulating the BMC administration and the project team, Fadnavis said the new buildings had been constructed using advanced technology and were designed to have a lifespan of 100 years.
The buildings have 30 to 40 per cent open space, community facilities, including a hall, and a provision for 10 years of maintenance by the developer, he said.
Sanitation workers who keep Mumbai clean and protect the health of its residents had themselves been living in extremely poor conditions, and the housing initiative marked a beginning towards ensuring a dignified life for them, Fadnavis said.
The redevelopment project, spread over 4,166.90 square metres, comprises two three-storey buildings with 140 apartments, each measuring 300 square feet and equipped with independent toilet and bathroom facilities.
Fadnavis said the Maharashtra government will also extend its housing ownership scheme to sanitation workers employed by municipal corporations, municipalities and other local self-government bodies in the state. The initiative would continue until all eligible workers are provided with homes, he said.
The event was also attended by Deputy CM Eknath Shinde, Legislative Assembly Speaker and local MLA Rahul Narwekar, Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde and Deputy Mayor Sanjay Ghadi.
Taking a swipe at the previous dispensation without naming the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), Shinde said, “Instead of cleaning Mumbai, some people cleaned out the treasury.”
He also appealed to people to help drought-hit farmers. He said the government had deposited Rs 5,000 each into the bank accounts of such farmers before Diwali as immediate assistance. Further relief and concessions under drought-related provisions would also be extended to them, he said.
(PTI News)
