Raj Thackeray Urges Konkan Residents Not to Sell Land for Third Mumbai Project
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray asserted on Sunday that sons of the soil should have the first right over the development of the Konkan region, particularly regarding the proposed Third Mumbai project. Speaking during a tour of Raigad district, where he visited Mangaon to attend an MNS function and toured stretches of the under-construction Mumbai-Goa highway to assess progress, Thackeray urged local residents not to sell their land for the project but instead become stakeholders in its development.
Thackeray criticized the Mahayuti government over its planning of the proposed Third Mumbai project, remarking that residents of Pen, Uran, and other parts of Raigad district had been completely excluded from the planning process. He questioned whether local residents knew what was going to come up in Third Mumbai, noting that the project is planned to feature an educational city, a sports city, a data centre, research institutions, and large-scale economic development.
The MNS leader alleged that the state government has kept local residents in the dark about details that people from other states already know. As a result, Thackeray claimed that individuals from other states will enjoy the fruits of these activities instead of youth from Maharashtra and Raigad district. He cautioned that original landowners in the region might eventually end up merely as ex-landowners if they continue selling their property.
Addressing the broader trend of land transactions in the region, Thackeray stated that selling land is currently the primary business going on in Maharashtra, with land sales happening on a huge scale particularly in Konkan. He reminded residents that he had previously urged them not to sell their land and questioned why the state government should use local land, water, and electricity for projects if the primary beneficiaries end up being outsiders.
During his visit to Raigad district, Thackeray also directly inspected the work on the incomplete Mumbai-Goa highway. He launched an attack on both the central and Maharashtra governments regarding the long delay in completing the stretch. He noted that people have been hearing about the Mumbai-Goa highway project for around 15 years, asserting that it could not be completed due to political intervention for kickbacks from contractors.
In response to Thackeray's criticism regarding the regional development plans, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde defended the proposed project, stating that the Third Mumbai development would ultimately provide jobs to lakhs of people.
