State to demand Rs 50,000 crore financial aid for city from union

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has decided to demand Rs 50,000 financial aid in five years from the Centre for the development of Mumbai by giving special status, and Rs 25,000 crore each for the Vidarbha and Marathwada statutory boards. The 15th finance commission will visit the state on Tuesday but the meeting with the state government has been postponed till September, said finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar.

The Union government-appointed 15th finance commission under the chairmanship of N.K. Singh will visit the state on Tuesday. However, the commission will hold meetings with experts from the Gokhale Institute in Pune.

Earlier, there was a meeting scheduled with the finance minister but that has now been postponed, Mr Mungantiwar told The Asian Age.

“There was a provision for giving special status to some city or area in the 12th finance commission, which was cancelled later on. But the Union government is giving financial assistance to Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir and a few other states. Mumbai is the financial capital of the country and a city of international repute. So, we expect financial aid from the Union government for infrastructure projects other than those underway. The state government is expecting Rs 10,000 crore aid per year for five years for Mumbai,” said Mr Mungantiwar.

“Statutory boards have also been appointed for the development of Vidarbha and Marat-hwada regions as per provisions of the Constitution. But the Union government is not contributing financially to this underdeveloped area. So, the government will demand Rs 5,000 crore per year for five years totaling Rs 25,000 crore,” he said.