Mumbai, Sept 24 (PTI) MNS president Raj Thackeray and his nephew Aaditya Thackeray of Shiv Sena (UBT) on Wednesday separately appealed to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to provide immediate relief to agriculturists
affected by heavy rains and crop loss.
In a letter to Fadnavis, the MNS chief demanded that the government declare "wet drought" in the state.
He demanded an assistance of Rs 30,000 per acre to affected agriculturists, noting that it would take at least a year for farmers to recover from the natural calamity.
Several regions in Maharashtra, particularly Marathwada, have been affected by wet spells, resulting in wide-scale devastation.
Raj Thackeray demanded that the government seek a relief package from the Centre for farmers. The Union government has issued similar packages to other states, and there should be no problem in extending help to Maharashtra, he added.
The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president highlighted the adverse impact of natural calamities on children’s education and urged necessary assistance.
Taking a dig at the state government, he stated that it should show the same alacrity in addressing the problems of flood-affected students, which it had shown while "imposing" Hindi in the state.
He appealed to the chief minister to ensure a quick response by the Public Health Department to prevent the spread of communicable diseases and ensure the availability of medicines.
Thackeray said banks should also be directed not to deduct loan instalments from the bank accounts of farmers.
In his letter, Aaditya reminded the chief minister of the loan waiver assurance given during elections.
The Worli MLA claimed Rs 15,000 crore compensation related to natural calamities is pending with the state government, which should be disbursed immediately.
He suggested that the funds of Rs 2,339 crore sanctioned by the government are inadequate, highlighting the time lag till the amount reaches farmers.
Aaditya demanded that farmers get help without any preconditions or norms, considering the scale of the damage and the urgency of the situation. PTI PR NSK
