Metro Phase II & Nag River projects delayed due to MVA apathy, says Maharashtra minister Devendra Fadnavis

NAGPUR: A day after Union Cabinet cleared MahaMetro’s Phase II and Nag River Pollution Abatement projects, deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday accused Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, led by then CM Uddhav Thackeray, for delaying both the projects.
In the city for reviewing arrangements ahead of PM Narendra Modi’s visit on Sunday for inaugurating Samruddhi Expressway and other infrastructure projects, Fadnavis said proposals for MahaMetro’s Phase II and Nag River were submitted to the Centre for clearance in 2019.
“The Centre raised some queries regarding both the proposals, but the MVA government failed to resolve those for over two years. When our government (BJP-Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena) took over, we cleared all the doubts within 25-27 days and got both the projects cleared,” he said.
On the PM’s visit, Fadnavis said it would turn out to be “historic” for Nagpur city as he would be dedicating a slew of infrastructure projects that would change the city’s skyline.
“The PM is gifting Samruddhi Expressway, which would not only benefit Vidarbha and Marathwada, but also North Maharashtra and change the fortunes of all three regions. Even the Nag River project would be implemented in association with Japan International Cooperation Agency at a cost of Rs2,117.56 crore,” he said.
Accompanied by state BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule, MLC Pravin Datke, MahaMetro managing director Brijesh Dixit, Nagpur Municipal Corporation commissioner Radhakrishnan B, commissioner of police Amitesh Kumar, the deputy CM earlier reviewed arrangements for the PM’s visit.
Fadnavis had already announced that his dream project — Samruddhi Expressway — would be a new economic corridor of India and would change Vidarbha’s face. He had also announced a new highway connecting Nagpur to Goa, which would be built on the lines of Samruddhi.
“Vidarbha’s real estate would gain in a big way from the new expressway. With logistics and warehousing becoming the next big thing, it would help in India’s economic growth story. Expressways like Samruddhi open up vistas of real estate development, including townships and also sunrise sectors like logistics and data centres,” he had said.