Maharashtra Contractors Threaten Statewide Halt Over ₹96,400 Cr Unpaid Dues As Debt Soars To ₹9.3 Lakh Cr

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government, which is staring at the prospect of a public debt of Rs 9.3 lakh crores in 2026-27 fiscal, is under tremendous pressure from contractors who said that they are yet to be paid Rs 96,400 cr for different works carried out by them in the state.

April 7 Ultimatum

In a joint letter to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar, the Maharashtra State Contractors' Federation, State Engineers' Association and the Maharashtra State Water Supply Contractors' Association have threatened to halt all development works across the state if the humongous arrears are not cleared by April 7.

Past Threats vs. Current Seriousness

In a letter to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy CMs Sunetra Pawar and Eknath Shinde, industry bodies warned of a statewide halt to development works from April 7 if payments were not cleared. This is not the first time these associations have issued similar threats. ``But every time we threaten to strike work, the government releases some amount which hardly adds up to anything substantial. But this time around, we are very serious and will not relent if the payments are not made," a senior contractor stated. ``The government is wasting money on unproductive schemes like ladki bahin, but has no money to pay contractors who are executing development work," he added.

``During the previous fiscal 2025-26, development works across various departments were not sanctioned, and even where some were approved, the government has become financially crippled. This is a grave matter,” the letter stated. This government assumed office in November, 2024 and since then it has only been making rosy promises, but not doing anything to clear the arrears, the letter noted.

Political Implications

The contractors' claimed that Public Works Department had arrears of Rs 29,000 cr, Jal Jivan Mission & Jivan Pradhikaran Rs 35,000 cr , district planning and other departments Rs 11,000 cr. The letter has been signed by office-bears of the associations, including Milind Bhosale, Sunil Nagrale, Rajesh Deshmukh, Sanjay Maind and others. If the development works come to a grinding halt, it will have serious political implications.

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