Opposition Congress today sought resignation of Maharashtra Tribal Development Minister Vishnu Savara over alleged death of children due to malnutrition in the state.
Savara should take moral responsibility for the state of affairs in his department and resign without any further delay, party leader Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil said.
If Savara does not resign on his own, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis should sack him if he has any regards for the families who lost their children due to malnutrition, said the Leader of Opposition in Assembly.
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Savara yesterday faced the anger of a tribal woman whose two-year-old son died last month apparently due to severe malnutrition in adjoining Palghar district, the video of which has gone viral on social media.
During his visit to the grief-stricken family in Mokhada taluka, villagers claimed over 600 children had died in the tribal-dominated district due to malnutrition since January last. Savara is also guardian minister of Palghar.
Savara told the villagers that the government is taking necessary steps to prevent cases of malnutrition.
"The issue of malnutrition is only getting serious with each passing day. In Savara's own constituency, children are dying as they are not receiving any government help.
"The minister's lack of sensitivity towards the issue forced the Governor to direct him to take necessary measures. The Governor's intervention is a matter of shame for a Government," Vikhe-Patil said.
He said whenever the issue of malnutrition was raised in the assembly, the minister kept repeating that all was well within his department, but the "death figures" have painted a different story altogether.
Vikhe-Patil said he, along with other Congress leaders would undertake a tour of tribal regions like Palghar, Nandurbar and Melghat, to take stock of the situation.
"We will see first hand, what all has the Government done for the people in these regions. We will start our tour from September 19, with a visit to Jawhar and Mokhada talukas in Palghar district," he said.
Governor C Vidyasagar Rao held a meeting on Wednesday with Savara, Health Minister Deepak Sawant, and Pankaja Munde, the Women and Child Development Minister, and gave them directions to take steps to prevent death from malnutrition. After the meeting, Savara visited Mokhada.
On Tuesday, Sawant had visited Mokhada and met the two families who had lost their children apparently due to malnutrition.
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Meanwhile, Savara denied having made any controversial remarks about the malnutrition deaths.
"How will I say such a thing," the minister told reporters here today.
NCP Maharashtra unit president Sunil Tatkare said when Savara visited a tribal hamlet in Khoch village in the worst-hit Mokhada sub-district of Palghat yesterday, angry locals confronted the minister.
"Some infuriated tribals asked Savara that 600 children have died in the region this year and wanted to know what has he done on this issue. Savara replied: "So what? The government is doing its work," Tatkare said.
