Mumbai: Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, on Monday, urged members of the parliament from Maharashtra to jointly take up a host of issues pending with the Central government for an early solution. He announced that a committee of MPs will be soon formed with Shiv Sena MP Arvind Sawant as coordinator to pursue issues with various departments of the central government.
Thackeray was addressing a maiden meeting with the MPs ahead of the commencement of the budget session of the parliament from January 31. He suggested the MPs to form subject-wise committees, keeping aside party affiliations, in a bid to put forth issues in the parliament and pursue them with the concerned departments. Twenty such issues were discussed in all.
Thackeray strongly appealed to the MPs to show unity in taking up the Maharashtra Karnataka border issue, especially to safeguard the constitutional rights of the Marathi-speaking people in the disputed border area. Besides this, he asked the MPs to insist the Centre to implement the recommendations made in the report of the minority commission and take an impartial stand in the court proceedings.
Thackeray's focus on the Maharashtra Karnataka border issue comes close on the heels of the partial cancellation of bus services after heightened tensions along the border between the two states.
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Further, Thackeray called upon MPs to take up issues with regard to the improvement in the crop insurance scheme as well as the early disbursement of central aid to assist farmers impacted due to untimely rains and hailstorm. He informed that of the Rs 15,000 crore demand, the centre has so far sanctioned Rs 110 crore for farmer assistance.
Thackeray also raised issues with regard to conferring the status of ''classical language'' to Marathi, the rehabilitation and rejuvenation of 21 rivers, additional fund for BharatNet II, change in the name of Bombay High Court to Mumbai High Court, administrative approval for fishing harbours, the diversion of the forest land of Karnataka for the Tillari hydro project, changes or amendments to the Kharland Development scheme in the Coastal Zone Regulation, 2018, and compensation to the state under the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
