In a fiery address in the Maharashtra Assembly, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde promised a pothole-free Mumbai for the next 25 years, while launching veiled yet sharp attacks on Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray.
Shinde accused Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray of prioritising contractors over citizens. “For us, it’s ‘Mumbai First’. For them, it was always ‘Contractor First’,” he said during a discussion held under Rule 293, which permits debate on issues of public interest.
He also slammed Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray for reviving the ‘Mumbai should be separated from Maharashtra’ narrative ahead of elections. “Every time polls are near, these issues come up. But we are working to unite Mumbai — with Atal Setu, Coastal Road and the Metro,” Shinde added. He referred to such political ploys as driven by “Swarthacha Zenda, Satecha Agenda” — flags of self-interest and hunger for power.
Shinde recalled that in the previous government, he and Devendra Fadnavis had summoned BMC Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal to question the poor quality of city roads. When told that only 50 km of roads were concretised annually, Shinde asked if any rule limited road upgrades. “There was none,” he said, explaining how that led to a new plan to concrete all of Mumbai’s roads by December 2027, in two phases.
“This step will ensure that for the next 25 years, Mumbai won’t suffer from potholes,” he said confidently, taking a jibe at the opposition’s silence when it came to real civic action.
