Mumbai: On a day when the ruling coalition in the state sorted out the portfolio division among partners, scores of NCP cadre thronged the city to celebrate party chief Sharad Pawar’s birthday.
The party, to mark the occassion, set up a corpus fund to help the children of farmers who have committed suicide in the state. As a token, its state unit presented Rs 1.80 crore collected from workers to party chief Sharad Pawar. Pawar, the architect of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in the state, turned 79 on Thursday.
Pawar, at the function held here, said the corpus will be maintained by the party's welfare trust. As a beginning, Rs 50,000 will be deposited in the name of the wife of the deceased farmer in her bank account for the education of their children and balance Rs 50,000 with the trust which can be used as per their requirement. Pawar said it is NCP's effort to support the children in education and build their career.
NCP on Saturday had urged the party supporters to celebrate Pawar's birthday by donating money for the welfare of the farmers. The party had requested the supporters to observe Pawar's birthday as farmers' day and contribute money for the welfare of farmers affected by unseasonal rains.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray met Pawar at the latter's residence here and extended birthday greetings.
The meeting between the two leaders took place after portfolios were distributed among the Shiv Sena, NCP and the Congress which have formed the MVA government.
Thackeray's office later tweeted that he along with his wife Rashmi and MLA-son Aaditya extended birthday greetings to Pawar and also shared their picture. NCP leaders Ajit Pawar and Supriya Sule, too, were present on the occasion along with other members of the Pawar and Sule families.
Thackeray described Pawar as the "guide" of the Maharashtra Vikas Agadhi, the front set up by the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress to form government in the state last month.
The chief minister, in a message posted on micro- blogging site Twitter, extend his good wishes to Pawar and prayed for his long and healthy life.
