The Maharashtra Legislature was adjourned on Thursday after the Opposition created bedlam over free housing for the mill workers here.
Highlighting the workers plight, a morcha was organised on Thursday by the Opposition parties led by the Shiv Sena, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The Assembly witnessed noisy scenes as members protested in the well of the House with posters and shouted slogans against the government “apathy.” The Opposition wanted question hour suspended to discuss the issue, which was disallowed by Speaker Dilip Walse Patil. There were four adjournments in the Assembly and six in the Council.
Nationalist Congress Party members Shashikant Shinde and Jitendra Avhad added to the slanging match by stating that all parties were interested in the welfare of mill workers. Mr. Avhad said those instrumental in breaking up trade unions should not take to the streets to demand justice. Mr. Shinde said the BJP and the MNS members had bought mill land for developing real estate and these very parties were now showing double standards by taking up the workers' cause.
Official sources said that last year the government asked the mill workers to fill applications for housing. About 1.10 lakh families filled the forms and about 40,000 more were added as legal heirs of the families. Many of the mill workers were staying in slums or old government housing colonies.
Some 16,000 homes were possible on land made available by 47 mills, which had agreed to provide housing for workers on 30 acres. Of this, 6,900 were ready and the rest would be completed over six years.
Industries Minister Narayan Rane pointed out that the demand to build 1.5 lakh houses on the available mill land was impossible and the government was thinking of a course of action. “The government feels it should do something for the workers and I have suggested that these low-cost houses on mill land should be sold and the money from the sale distributed among all the mill workers.” This was one of the suggestions discussed at a meeting of MLAs held recently.
Mr. Rane said the government could not be forced on the issue of free housing. However, it was equally concerned about the welfare of mill workers.
He criticised the Shiv Sena for “remembering” the mill workers after so many years. He said this show of concern was politically motivated by elections to the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation next year. “The Shiv Sena was keen on selling mill land to the builders and now it wants to show that it is concerned about their housing,” he said.
Mr. Rane, a former Shiv Sainik, said he knew what the party was thinking at the time when mill owners wanted to sell their prime land. “At that time no one thought of the poor workers or the Marathi manoos,” he said adding that the mill workers' housing issue had come in handy for the Opposition before the elections.
