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A farmers' NGO here Wednesday urged Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan to "emulate the example of Delhi government" if he wants to save his government from a humiliating defeat in the next elections.
Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti (VJAS) president Kishore Tiwari said though Delhi is a small state with a budget of only Rs.4,000 crore, its new Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has given water and power subsidies to the poor people of his state.
"In contrast, Maharashtra with a budget of over Rs.160,000 crore cannot extend similar benefits to the poorer sections, the food-starved tribals and debt-hit farmers in this state," Tiwari told IANS.
Lauding the Kejriwal government, he said "the neo-globalisation Brand Ambassador Prithviraj Chavan" should extend similar subsidies if he wanted to save the ruling Democratic Front government from biting the dust in the next assembly elections.
Terming Kejriwal's initiative as "people friendly", Tiwari said in Maharashtra and other states, water and power supplies have been largely privatised since the free trade era started in 1991.
These have led to strong protests throughout the country as private players have virtually taken over water and power distribution in connivance with the political parties across the political spectrum.
The VJAS has urged Chavan to ensure that free of charge water and power were given to the poor, tribals, and farmers without going for budgetary provisions as the state has already failed to utilise several central welfare schemes for the downtrodden.
Simultaneously, Tiwari urged the Bharatiya Janata Party ruling some states in the country to emulate the AAP decision in Delhi if it wanted to avoid defeat for its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.
