Pune Rains: Aaditya Thackeray Hits Out At BJP Over 'Failure Of Governance'

Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray on Friday took to X (formerly Twitter) and targeted the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government over the “failure of governance.”

Thackeray said Thursday’s rainfall in Pune wasn’t in the category of a cloudburst or exceptionally high precipitation over a period of four hours, but “what was exceptionally visible is the failure of governance.”

“The hardships faced due to waterlogging yesterday weren’t because of an overnight incident, but a sustained ignorance adopted by the government and the ruling establishment of the visible signs of environmental disaster,” he said.

The Worli MLA noted that environmentalists, urban planners, engineers, civil society and politicians have been raising their voices for the last four years against “flawed projects and policies” like the riverfront development project, the placement of metro pillars, encroachments into the riverbed, changing of red and blue flood lines of rivers, and the proposed destruction of Vetal Tekdi.

“Let me reiterate, simply pouring concrete mindlessly isn’t development. For the entire last decade, there has been a triple-engine sarkar in Pune, which has only led to a disaster. If this so-called development is carried out, Pune will face this more often. Unfortunately, even as the triple-engine sarkar shows a mirage of development,” Thackeray said.

He added that during his time as Environment Minister of Maharashtra, he had halted and asked for the riverfront development project to be better aligned with the needs of Pune. He said he had restored the Salim Ali Bird Park, which is now again filled with debris. “Saving Vetal Tekdi and other open spaces is important. The choice to make is out there, and the impact was felt yesterday,” he concluded.