Thackeray’s remarks came after Fadnavis rejected the Opposition’s demand to declare a wet drought in Maharashtra saying such a term does not exist officially
Mumbai:A day after CM Devendra Fadnavis expressed the inability to announce the ‘wet drought’ in Maharashtra saying there was no term like this, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray hit back at him producing a letter written by Fadnavis himself asking the state government to declare wet drought in Maharashtra in 2020.
“How can you deny the crisis because there is no mention of wet drought? Can you deny the damage caused because the term ‘wet drought’ is not in the government manual? Do words sometimes change according to the status of people? Let’s not play with useless words,” Thackeray said on Wednesday.
Thackeray’s remarks came after Fadnavis rejected the Opposition’s demand to declare a wet drought in Maharashtra saying such a term does not exist officially. While he stated the term wet drought does not exist in official manuals, his government has promised to extend the same relief benefits that are given for a typical drought.
Reacting to this, Thackeray read out the letter written by Fadnavis, when he was the Leader of the Opposition on October 16, 2020, during the Uddhav-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government’s tenure, demanding the declaration of a wet drought. “Given the extent of the damage and the widespread devastation, a wet drought should be declared immediately and this aid should be provided as per the drought criteria,” the letter read.
“It seems he (Fadnavis) understands the plight of flood-hit farmers only while sitting in the opposition,” Thackeray said while taking a jibe at the CM.
The Sena (UBT) chief urged the government to provide Rs 50,000 per hectare in aid to flood-stricken farmers and to waive their loans, recalling a time when Fadnavis demanded similar measures as Leader of Opposition.
Thackeray also accused the central government of ignoring flood-affected farmers in Maharashtra while extending special aid to women in poll-bound Bihar.
Thackeray alleged that the Centre was neglecting Maharashtra's flood-affected farmers while Modi announced a scheme providing Rs 10,000 to 75 lakh women in Bihar. Calling it an ‘injustice’ to Maharashtra, he accused Modi of prioritizing Bihar due to the upcoming Assembly elections there.
