On Monday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde conducted an inspection of pre-monsoon works in Thane city, his hometown. The inspection took place from 5:30 pm to 10 pm and included activities such as road repairs and cleaning of nullahs. During the inspection, the Chief Minister urged the officials to expedite their efforts to ensure the completion of work by the deadline of May 31.
Shinde was accompanied by Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) Commissioner Abhijit Bangar besides other officials during the inspection. Expressing his overall satisfaction with the progress, Shinde emphasised the need for a swift and focused approach to ensure that the work is completed within the given deadline. He stressed that the work should be carried out with utmost urgency, comparing it to a war footing, to meet the set target.
"The inclusion of a penalty clause of Rs1 lakh for each pothole identified by the TMC in the contract will serve as a strong incentive for contractors to deliver quality work. In addition, third-party testing and audit conducted by IIT will further guarantee the implementation of high-quality work," Shinde said.
During the inspection, the chief minister instructed the civic chief to issue show cause notices to a contractor and an official due to their failure to provide Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits to workers and for the delay in completing the work. he also conveyed to TMC chief Bangar that if the responses from TMC officials and contractors are not satisfactory, strict action should be taken against them.
When asked about the Jalayukta Shivar program, Shinde stated, "It has been reinstated and is being accorded the highest priority. The initiative, aimed at raising the groundwater level through the construction of ponds in farms was initially launched during the first term of Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis as Chief Minister (from 2014-19). Furthermore, the process of providing 75,000 jobs to those in need has already commenced."
