Nana Patole asks why Centre not conducting Census and sitting on previous data

Nana Patole, the president of the Maharashtra Congress said that the Centre should carry out the decennial census, which has been pending till 2021, in order to create financially and educationally sound communities for the nation.

He said the INDIA bloc allies of Congress have decided to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha polls on merit in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra and elsewhere. According to Patole, the Congress party structure is being set up across eight districts in Marathwada and about 70 per cent of work is complete.

Marathwada region was considered the stronghold of Shiv Sena (undivided) and its former ally BJP. We have asked urban units of Congress to complete setting up of the party structure in a month while rural units have given a two-month time," Patole told reporters after chairing the regional level meeting of the party in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.

Soon Congress will become a cadre-based party, he added. The Centre didn't conduct the Census in 2021. They have also not released the previous Census data. If we want financially and educationally sound communities, the Census should be conducted, he said.

Congress leader alleged the Union government has failed to double the income of farmers as promised earlier, on the other hand, the number of suicides by farmers has gone up four-fold. The BJP should take the responsibility of suicide by farmers. The government should declare drought in Marathwada as many areas have not received enough rain this year, he said.