‘HAVE GOT ALL PERMISSIONS FOR AMBEDKAR MEMORIAL’

NAGPUR:WHILE the Opposition attacked chief minister Devendra Fadnavis in the legislative Council on Friday over the “delay” in work on the memorial of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar on Indu Mills premises, the CM refuted the charges.

Fadnavis said all formalities, including floating of tenders and making provisions for funds, have been completed and the memorial is likely to be completed by 2020. The CM alleged the previous Congress-ncp government did nothing in this regard, while his government completed all formalities to set up a grand memorial of Dr Ambedkar and a “letter of intent” was handed over to Shapoorji Pallonji Company to begin the work.

He said the project cost of the memorial was fixed at ₹709 crore, after negotiations with the company which had earlier quoted ₹786.04 crore. “All permissions for the memorial, barring a five-acre patch that falls in the coastal regulation zone (CRZ), have been obtained from the departments concerned. Also, directions have been issued to officials to complete the work in a time-bound manner,” the CM said, adding the CRZ nod for the plot was expected within a year.

the locals. “The Sena is with the people of these villages who have opposed the project. We believe it is a destructive project. We don’t want presentations. Just announce you are scrapping the project and take back the land acquisition notice,” he said.

Vikhe-patil pointed to Sena’s hypocrisy in opposing the project while staying in power.

Interestingly, even as Sena legislators were protesting in the well of the House, Sena minister of state Sanjay Rathod tabled a bill in the Assembly.

The state Assembly cleared three bills in the din over the project.