CM Eknath Shinde tells HPC to address needs of ST employees; submit report in a week

The Maharashtra Cabinet led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has approved several significant projects and policies aimed at improving infrastructure agriculture and public services across the stateIn response to the agitation called by the State Transport Corporations trade unions the Chief Minister chaired a meeting on Wednesday and instructed the High Power Committee HPC to address the unions demands and submit a report within a week Additionally the state government plans to purchase 2000 new buses to increase the corporations incomeIn the cabinet meeting the Chief Minister instructed the High Power Committee HPC to hold a meeting in connection with the demands of the committee and submit its report within a week The Chief Minister also said that the state government is positive for purchasing two thousand new buses to increase the income of the corporation said a statement by the Chief Ministers OfficeDuring this discussion several employee demands from ST Corporation have been considered The demands include paying the seventh pay commission to the employees paying the difference in the previous salary increase paying the arrears of dearness allowance fixing the previous contracts errors changing the discipline and application process and implementing the medical cashless scheme for all employees among other things The salary to be paid to the ST employees on the line of state government employees is also one of the demands the statement saidDeputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar Chief Ministerrsquos Additional Chief Secretary IS Chahal Chief Ministerrsquos Additional Chief Secretary Vikas Kharge Additional Chief Secretary of Transport Department Sanjay Sethi Additional Chief Secretary of Finance Department OP Gupta Action Committees Sandeep Shinde Hanumant Tate along with office bearers were present in this meetingIrrigation and AgricultureThe Cabinet has approved the ambitious WainGangaNalGanga River interlinking project valued at Rs 8734286 crore This project aims to provide irrigation to 375 lakh hectares of land particularly benefiting the droughtprone Marathwada regionHar Ghar Tiranga CampaignStarting on 9 August the state will celebrate the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign with the Tricolour being unfurled on 25 crore houses and establishments Various programs will be organised during this periodHousing for ProjectAffected PeopleThe Cabinet has given the green light to a policy for providing flats to those affected by various projects Authorities like the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation Slum Rehabilitation Authority and MMRDA are tasked with preparing a blueprint to construct and provide sufficient flats over the next 15 yearsUrban InfrastructureTo accelerate infrastructure development in small cities the Cabinet has approved raising funds through loans from the Maharashtra Urban Infrastructure Fund MUIF This initiative aims to support urban local bodies in securing the necessary funds for developmentEducation and Tribal WelfarePrimary teachers in tribal regions will receive a twoyear extension to pass the education qualification test This decision aims to support teachers recruited under a special drive initiated in December 2018Caste Validity CertificatesAmendments will be made to the act governing the issuance of caste validity certificates to address difficulties faced by Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe membersEnvironmental ProtectionA fine of INR 50000 will now be imposed on those cutting down trees without prior permission a significant increase from the current fine of INR 1000Logistics PolicyThe Maharashtra Logistics Policy 2024 has been approved aiming to generate INR 30573 crore in income and create five lakh jobs over the next five years The policy includes measures to reduce logistics costs and time as well as initiatives to promote green logisticsNew Educational InstitutionsAn Ayurveda college will be established in Kagal Kolhapur and a Yoga and Naturopathy college will be set up in Uttur village Aazra talukaRetirement Benefits for JudgesIn the cabinet meeting on Wednesday CM Shinde and other authorities decided that retired judges of the Bombay High Court and their spouses will now receive domestic worker and chauffeur services enhancing postretirement benefitsStamp Duty WaiversThe Army Welfare Education Society and Radha Kalyan Das Dariyanani Charitable Trust have been granted 100 per cent stamp duty waivers benefiting educational and charitable initiativesFinancial AssistanceReportedly CM Shinde had also announced a onetime financial assistance of Rs 2 crore has been approved for the Shree Kukdeshwar Adivasi Hirda Audyogik Sahkari Sanstha in Junnar aiding medicinal plant processing effortsMinority Research and Training InstituteA new Minority Research and Training Institute MRTI will be established to address the backwardness of minority communities in Maharashtra with an initial allocation of INR 625 crore according to a statement from the CMO