Governor CP Radhakrishnan being welcomed by CM Devendra Fadnavis and others | FPJ/ Vijay Gohil
Governor CP Radhakrishnan said the government will implement the new Maharashtra Electric Vehicle Policy from April 1. The new policy includes providing incentives for electric vehicles and encouraging the scrapping of old vehicles. It focuses on reducing the state’s carbon footprint and making transportation more eco-friendly.
The Governor was addressing the joint session of both houses at Vidhan Bhavan on the first day of the state budget session on Monday.
The government has decided to construct 7480 km long roads with cement concretisation under various schemes across the state, he said. The toll collection will be done through FASTag only at all toll plazas across the state from April 1. Under the PM e-Bus Sewa Yojana, the first phase will introduce 1,290 electric buses across 20 municipal corporations, along with financial assistance for bus depots and charging infrastructure.
Namo Drone Didi
The ‘Namo Drone Didi’ scheme will provide 325 women self-help groups with agricultural drones in 2024-25 to enhance agriculture productivity. The government has also proposed hostels for working women in urban areas to ensure safe and affordable accommodation. To boost employment, recruitment is underway for 18,000 Anganwadi worker positions, and the ‘Lakhpati Didi’ initiative has already helped 17 lakh rural women increase their household income to Rs1 lakh or more. The government aims to empower 2.6 million women under this scheme by the end of 2024-25.
Incentives for industry
The government has earmarked Rs5,000 crore in incentives for industrial development and plans to allocate 3,500 acres for industrial purposes, with an additional 10,000 acres under consideration. To enhance Maharashtra’s textile industry, the state has introduced the “Maharashtra Technical Textile Mission”, making it the first state to align with the National Technical Textile Mission.
MaaGeL Tyala Solar Pump Yojana
The government has implemented key initiatives to support farmers, including the ‘MaaGeL Tyala Solar Pump Yojana’, under which 3,12,000 solar pumps have been installed, with a target of 1 million pumps in next five years. Maharashtra aims to become the first state in India to fully solarise its agricultural power supply under the PM-KUSUM and Mukhyamantri Solar Krushi Vahini Yojana.
Under the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana, over 9.5 million farmers have been selected as beneficiaries, and 8.7 million have received Kisan credit cards to facilitate financial support.
Project to generate 55,970 MW power
The government has signed Memorandums of Understanding with 13 agencies for electricity storage and grid stability by implementing Pumped Storage Projects through Public-Private Partnership for 38 projects. Accordingly, these projects will generate 55,970 megawatts of power, and the state is expected to receive an investment of Rs 2.95 lakh crore and create more than 90,000 employment opportunities.
