After BJP and Shiv Sena, now Congress leaders eager to visit Marathwada

The drought in Maharashtra has led to a flurry of visits by political leaders to Marathwada, with senior Congress leaders being the latest addition to the list.

Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) chief Ashok Chavan on Friday announced that all senior leaders of the party will be travelling to the drought-hit districts to take stock of the relief work being provided by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-Shiv Sena-led state government.

Mr Chavan said that the party leaders are already holding review trips all over the state, but from May 5 to 7, they will go for an organised trip that will include interactions with people, party activists and government officers. “The state government has announced several measures to fight the drought in Marathwada but we need to see what is happening on ground and this is a part of that,” he said.

While Congress has planned its tour in the first week of May, leaders of other parties have already started visiting the areas or have sent their deputies.

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, went on a tour of Marathwada last week where he also attended mass wedding ceremonies organised by his party workers.

Maharashtra Navanirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray is already touring several districts and reviewing relief works carried out by his party and the government.

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP Supriya Sule too visited drought-affected Beed district along with her party legislators to take stock of the situation.

BJP ministers, who visited the region, landed in a controversy several times. Revenue Minister Eknath Khadse was criticised for wasting over 10,000 litres of water to build a helipad for his visit to Latur district, while Women and Child Welfare Minister Pankaja Munde was caught taking a selfie with a parched riverbed as the backdrop. Prior to the recently-concluded budget session of the state legislature, the BJP had asked all its ministers to visit several tehsils to take stock of the situation and relief works.

A senior officer, who is associated with the relief and rehabilitation work, told The Hindu that visits of ministers and legislators are not serving any purpose. “They come, they see and give statements. The entire government machinery travels around them for the purpose. They must supervise what is going on, but constant visits of VIPs hardly help to speed up the relief work,” he said.

Congress leaders have planned tours in the first week of May, MNS leader Raj Thackeray is already reviewing relief works