Mahayuti's Khatakhat Bonanza Gets A Bhakti Touch: Special Food Kit For Ganeshotsav, Pilgrimage Expenses For Senior Citizens

The ruling Mahayuti coalition in Maharashtra is on a spending spree in the run-up to the state assembly polls set to be held in October 2024. 

As per reports, the state government’s Food and Civil Supplies Department will be distributing special subsidised food kits known as ‘Anandacha Shidha’ through ration shops in the coming Ganeshotsav.

Each special food kit, costing Rs 100, will consist of 1 kilogram of semolina (that is, sooji), sugar, chana dal, and 1 litre of soybean oil. Nearly 1.70 crore saffron ration card holders across the state will be provided this food kit. 

The state government had distributed such food kits during the Dipawali, Gudhi Padwa, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, and Ganeshotsav festivities in 2023 as well.

In addition, the state government is soon expected to issue a notification for the implementation of the ‘Mukhyamantri Teerth Darshan Yojana’, announced in the recent financial budget for fiscal year (FY) 2024-25.

Under this scheme, senior citizens over the age of 60 with an annual income of less than Rs 2.5 lakh will be eligible to claim Rs 30,000 to cover travel, accommodation, and food expenses for religious pilgrimage. 

While the supply of special food kits for the upcoming Ganeshotsav will cost Rs 562.51 crore to the state exchequer, the outlay for the pilgrimage scheme has not been disclosed yet. 

These two schemes are in addition to the recently announced popular monetary assistance schemes for women and youth.

Under the ‘Mukhyamantri Ladki Bahin Scheme’, announced in June, all women between the age of 21-65 with an annual income of less than Rs 2.5 lakh will receive a monetary assistance of Rs 1,500 per month.

While the notification has been issued and the form distribution for the women-centric scheme is in full swing, the Maharashtra government is also expected to issue a notification for the ‘Mukhyamantri Yuva Karya Prashikshan Yojana’ soon. 

Under this scheme, students pursuing education in Maharashtra will be eligible to apply for state government-facilitated internships lasting six months.

After selection, each student will be paid a stipend ranging from Rs 6,000 to Rs 10,000 per month by the state government during the period of the internship.

The state government has estimated an expense of Rs 25,500 crore each year for the monthly aid to women below the povery line (BPL), while the internship stipend for youth is expected to cost Rs 5,500 crore each year.

In continuation of its efforts to reach out to the youth, the state government on 18 July also made it mandatory for all private medical colleges in the state to pay a monthly stipend of Rs 18,000 to all medical graduates undergoing residential internship, at par with the amount received by residents practising in government-run medical institutes.

With an eye on the rural vote, the state government has also earmarked Rs 7,775 crore for a free electricity scheme for farmers. This is apart from the monetary aid announced for cotton and soybean of Rs 1,000 for up to 2 hectare and Rs 5,000 for more than 2 hectares in the ongoing kharif season.

Mahayuti’s slew of welfare announcements anticipating a tough poll fight in October have invited criticism from the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi politicians as well as academicians concerned with the state’s fiscal health. 

The critics have pointed out that while the state government goes on devolving thousands of crores in monetary aid and subsidies, its pace of revenue growth hasn’t been able to match the increasing expenditure.

As per the recently released Maharashtra Economic Survey for FY23, the state’s fiscal deficit was seen to have widened sharply from Rs 67,602 crore in FY23 to the revised estimate of Rs 111,956 crore in FY24. And the overall debt obligation over the state government rose to Rs 711,278 crore in FY24.