Mumbai, Feb 12 (IANS) The state public works department (PWD) has appealed to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar to soon release Rs 10,000 crore to clear the payment of the striking contractors.
The state PWD Minister Shivendraraje Bhosale said he has talked to the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister and both are positive regarding the demands raised by contractors.
“The department is positive about our demand of Rs 10,000 crore to be released at the earliest. It will help pay dues of the contractors,” said state’s PWD minister Shivendraraje Bhosle.
Contractors from Maharashtra have gone on strike since February 5, stopping all ongoing infrastructure works alleging that payments worth Rs 89,000 crore from different departments have allegedly not been paid since July 2024.
Among the alleged Rs 89,000 crore dues of the contractors include Rs 46,000 crore from the state’s Public Works Department (PWD), Rs 18,000 crore from the Jal Jeevan Mission under Water Supply and Sanitation Department, Rs 8600 crore from the Rural development department, Rs 19,700 crore from the Irrigation department and Rs 1700 crore from the works done under DPDC, MLA fund and MP fund.
Bhosale accepted that there are certain issues regarding the payment to contractors.
“However, the dues are not from one year only. Some dues are from the previous years as well,” he said, adding that a major chunk of payments is for road and bridge works.
“These are district-level works where small contractors are suffering. We understand their problems and we are working towards solving those,” said the minister.
He pointed out that a total of around Rs 18,000 crore is needed in the current fiscal.
To a question on a large number of work orders issued in the poll year, the minister defended the move saying that the issue of clearing pending bills to the contractors will be sorted out soon.
–IANS
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