What's age got to do with it: Sharad Pawar on Ajit's suggestion to retire
Mumbai (PTI): NCP chief Sharad Pawar has scoffed at estranged nephew Ajit Pawar's suggestion that he should retire from active politics, saying he will continue working as party workers want him to keep going.
"Do you know at what age Morarji Desai became the prime minister? I don't want to become the PM or a minister but only want to serve the people," Pawar said when asked about Ajit's remark that at 83 years, it was time for his uncle to retire.
Asserting that he was not old yet, Pawar echoed former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's words, saying, "Na tired hu, na retired hu." (I am neither tired nor retired).
"Who are they to tell me to retire? I can still work," Pawar said in an interview to Mumbai Tak, India Today's Marathi digital news channel.
To another query on the succession war in the family after Ajit Pawar's remarks that he was sidelined as he wasn't somebody's (Sharad Pawar's) son, the veteran politician said, "I don't want to say much on this topic. I don't like discussing family issues outside the family."
Pawar said Ajit was made minister and also deputy chief minister but no ministerial position was given to his daughter Supriya Sule even though it was possible.
Whenever NCP got a ministerial berth at the Centre, it was given to others but not to Supriya despite her being a member of Parliament, he added.
A week after Ajit and eight other NCP MLAs joined the Eknath Shinde-led ministry in Maharashtra, Sharad Pawar is kickstarting his statewide tour by holding a rally on Saturday at Yeola in Nashik district, the constituency of rebel party leader and minister Chhagan Bhujbal.
Pawar's choice of Yeola, a small town located 250 km north of Mumbai, to begin his party rebuilding exercise is seen as the octogenarian leader's attempt to rebuild the party.
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Mumbai-Pune Expressway ‘missing link’ to open on May 1; will improve travel safety: Shinde
Mumbai (PTI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday said the long-awaited ‘missing link’ on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, aimed at bypassing the winding Bhor Ghat section and improving safety, will be inaugurated on May 1.
Shinde, who inspected the project site, said the new stretch will make the expressway fully access-controlled, easing congestion in the hilly section.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is likely to inaugurate the 13.3-km-long missing link, which connects Khopoli on the Mumbai side to Kusgaon near Lonavala, on Maharashtra Day, which is celebrated on May 1, he said.
The deputy CM said that 99 per cent of the project work has been completed. “I personally inspected the quality of work and found it satisfactory. The remaining minor works will be completed in the next few days,” Shinde said.
Shinde said the new alignment will bypass sharp curves and accident-prone stretches in the ghat section, helping reduce delays and improve commuter safety. He claimed accidents in the section would reduce substantially once the project becomes operational.
“The missing link project will make travel between Mumbai and Pune quicker, safer and more convenient, and will contribute significantly to the state’s development,” he said.
The Rs 6,700-crore project, developed by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), includes two tunnels, high viaducts and a cable-stayed bridge over Tiger Valley.
The missing link will reduce the travel distance between Mumbai and Pune by approximately 6 km and shorten the journey time by 20 to 30 minutes, said officials.
Initially, only light motor vehicles and buses will be permitted on the new stretch to reduce congestion on the existing ghat section, officials said, adding that heavy goods vehicles will be prohibited due to safety concerns.
“There will be no toll hike because of the missing link project. No increase has been proposed at the Khalapur toll plaza either,” Shinde said.
The project comprises two eight-lane tunnels of 1.75 km and 8.92 km in length and two viaducts measuring 850 metres and 650 metres, said officials. It has been designed to bypass the old Khandala ghat section, a winding route that has long slowed down traffic and posed safety risks, said officials.
The 650-metre viaduct will feature what officials described as India’s tallest road cable-stayed bridge, with pylons rising to 182 metres, taller than those on the Bandra-Worli Sea Link.
Officials claimed that the tunnels have a width of 23.75 metres and are among the widest road tunnels in the world. An MSRDC official said the tunnel is likely to be included in the Guinness Book of Records.
The route runs beneath the Lonavala lake area and was executed in difficult terrain marked by heavy rainfall and strong winds, officials said.
Shinde said projects such as the missing link would boost access to tourist destinations such as Lohagad Fort, Visapur Fort and Karla Caves.
MP Shrirang Barne, former corporator Abasaheb Bagul, MSRDC Managing Director Anilkumar Gaikwad and senior engineers from executing agencies were present during the inspection, officials said.
Krishnamurthy Subramanian, executive chairman of construction and engineering company Afcons International Private Limited, said the journey to completion of “India’s highest road cable-stayed bridge” was challenging.
“The bridge, located in the Sahyadri region, presented extreme challenges, including narrow ridges that left little room for heavy machinery, sudden wind speeds reaching up to 100 kmph, and dense fog reducing visibility to a few metres. Despite these conditions, we are proud to deliver this engineering marvel,” he said.
The expressway, spanning approximately 95 km, holds the distinction of being India's first access-controlled highway.
