No differences with partner,says CM

Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and Union Heavy Industries Minister Praful Patel had been named as NCP nominees to the committee,and Congress general secretary Mohan Prakash and the CM were the Congress nominees.

Chavan cited Gujarat by-polls as the reason for the delay in convening meetings. “Both were busy with polls and thus the meetings could not be held,” he said. Chavan added that after consulting with Patel,the next meeting would be held.

Talking about fodder camps in the state,Chavan said the camps would operate as long as needed. “Many parts of the state are getting good rainfall but the scarcity would not be solved overnight,” he said.

Commenting on traders resisting the decision to implement Local Body Tax (LBT),Chavan said it was uncalled for. “We will be changing the Bombay Municipal Act,in the monsoon session and we add LBT there. I have asked local leaders to hold talks with traders so that all misconceptions about LBT are removed,” he said. Traders in Pune had gone on strike in protest against implementation of LBT.

‘Considering alternative location for new airport’

Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Friday said that an alternative location for the proposed Pune International Airport is being considered. While the site is believed to be near Chakan,Chavan did not disclose the location and said that a survey by officials of Airports Authority of India (AAI) is under way.

Chavan’s comment came against the backdrop of recent disclosure by Mahratta Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture officials who on Wednesday said that the AAI officials have submitted the survey report to the state government.

Talking about the status of Pune Metro,Chavan said he had a meeting with chairman of the Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia on the issue. He said that a high-level committee is being formed by the Prime Minister to look into the delayed projects across the country. “This (the Pune Metro) is one of those projects,” said Chavan.

Reacting to recent reports where Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde was quoted as saying that Pune faces a threat from Naxalites,Chavan said,“I recently had a meeting with the Home Minister and no special mention of the Naxal threat to Pune was made. I am not aware of any such things but we are keeping a close watch on the situation.”

On foreign direct investment,Chavan said that efforts are being made to attract investments in the state,primarily from China. He said that during his recent meeting with the Chinese premier,he assured the latter that if Chinese companies come here (Maharashtra) we could create enclaves for them. “The Chinese premier said that if India and China work together,two- thirds of the world’s population will be working together,” Chavan said,adding, Chinese truck manufacturer Foton Motors is in the process of setting up a plant at Chakan.