In a rebuke for the government led by his own party, senior BJP leader Eknath Khadse claimed Wednesday that Maharashtra has witnessed the highest number of malnutrition deaths in the last five years.
He was speaking during a discussion in the Legislative Assembly on ashram-shalas (residential schools for tribal children) run or aided by the Tribal Development Department.
A code prescribing mandatory facilities at these schools was prepared eight months ago but its copies were yet to be made available and therefore it could not be implemented, the BJP leader alleged.
The code also prescribes how much salary the security guard employed at ashram schools should get. Guards get Rs 5,000 per month for round-the-clock duty at present, and their duty hours should be curtailed, he said.
Tribal Development Minister Ashok Uike said the decision on pay scale of security guards would be taken soon.
Khadse said decisions taken by the government are not implemented immediately.
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"The number of malnutrition deaths is the highest in the last five years," he added.
Khadse resigned from the state cabinet in 2016 after facing allegations of misusing his office for a land deal involving his family.