Fadnavis asks officials to speed up development projects

A senior official said, “During the Congress-NCP regime, a Rs 4,000 crore bogus scholarship scam had come to light.” It had been under probe by various departments.

The money for education of scheduled caste, scheduled tribe and other backward category students was allegedly siphoned off by several educational institutions using bogus beneficiaries. The figure touted is Rs 4,000 crore over the past 15 years.

The chief minister also reminded officials about completion of 25,000 homes for dalits in the state and 10,000 houses for homeless adivasis, and expand power connection coverage, with special attention on farmers.

Fadnavis said, “Power for agricultural pumps in backward Vidarbha and Marathwada should be given top priority. Farmers cannot be made to wait for electricity.”

Demand for power, other than to farmers, in rural Maharashra should also be addressed, he said. All cases, including paid, pending, and new connections, should be cleared by December 2016, he said.

In the power sector, he said transmission and distribution losses need to be brought down and plant load factor, which had improved from 60 to 74 per cent, needed to be hiked further.

He expressed concern over neglect of interior roads connecting towns with villages and asked PWD officials to plan short and long term plans to address the issue so that all rural areas across the state are well-connected by 2021.