Nagpur: It is the responsibility of members on the opposition bench to raise issues of Vidarbha in Vidhan Sabha. However, this opposition which lacks confidence and consensus was unable to do their job. According to the assembly convention, it is the opposition that has to put forth a proposal for Vidarbha discussion. The Opposition failed to do this until the very last day. To cover up their incompetence, they resorted to a house boycott, replied CM Eknath Shinde while talking to the press.
Shinde was briefing the press on the matters discussed in the house after the conclusion of the winter session. Deputy Ministers Devendra Fadanvis and Ajit Pawar were present for the briefing.
While the opposition was utterly incompetent in raising the Vidarbha issue, the government took the initiative by discussing farmers' problems. An amount of 44 thousand crore has been announced as compensation for farmers battered with irregular rains and hailstorms. We will be giving a green signal to 29 irrigation projects in Vidarbha with a fund of 6 thousand crore. Among these, Gosikhurd alone has received 1500 crore from the government.
The winter session in its 10 days of working saw the tabling of 17 bills of which 12 were passed. We have passed the important anti-corruption Lokayukta bill. A bonus of 20000 as compared to last year's 15000 has been announced. Keeping in mind the losses experienced by onion producers, 20 onion banks will be established on the Samruddhi Mahamarg for preservation.
Government aware of the reservation responsibility Both houses conducted a thorough discussion on the Maratha Reservation issue, stated the Chief Minister. The government must provide reservation to not only the Marathas but every section of the society. We are committed to providing reservations on constitutional grounds and are aware of our responsibility. Without disturbing the existing system of reservations, we are consulting Backward Class Commission and Constitution Experts to execute our promises. Given the intricate nature of the reservation, we will be requiring more time. Young men are requested to not take extreme life-threatening steps while the decision awaits, appealed Shinde. He further stated that the Backward Class Commission will be submitting a report in a month. Then, a special session will be called to finalize the reservation decision.
Not a single minute was wasted in the assembly- Deputy CM Fadanvis Not a single minute of discussion was wasted during the winter session that lasted from 7 to 20 December, commented Devendra Fadanvis. This assembly was also special because former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackrey was present for two days. The opposition failed to table discussion on Vidarbha until the last week of the session, something which has never happened before.
A Historic session in 33 years- Deputy CM Ajit Pawar Meanwhile, Deputy CM Ajit Pawar commented that in his political career of 33 years, this session turned out to be a historic one. If the Vidhan Sabha Recommendation Committee had instructed us to increase the duration of the session, we would have obliged. However, the opposition was not ready to accept the extension. During the session, a total of 101 hours of work took place within 15 days. We will be prioritizing issues of ethanol and milk imports by discussing them with the union government to help our farmers. Pawar also mentioned that no issue in the session was left without discussion in the assembly.