Maha govt planning to sell off Mahavitaran claims AAP

04 Jan 2023 CW Team

The Maharashtra government was accused of plotting to give the private conglomerate Adani group control of the state-run energy distribution utility Mahavitaran by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Mumbai unit president and AAP national executive member Preeti Sharma Menon stated that the Arvind Kejriwal-led organisation fully supports the proposed strike on January 4 called by a section of state electricity workers in Mumbai, Thane, Nashik, Raigad and other districts of the state against privatisation of government-run utilities.

An Adani group company applied for a licence to expand its electricity distribution operations into new districts of Mumbai in November of last year. Adani Electricity Navi Mumbai (AENM), along with its listed parent Adani Transmission, has stated that it had applied to the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) for a distribution licence in a few areas of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). The state-owned energy distribution company Mahavitaran, which provides electricity to villages in Maharashtra, is also being given to the Adani group by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, Menon said in the statement. These projects include airports, ports, BSES (a power company taken over by the group), and the Dharavi redevelopment project.

The AAP leader announced that on January 4, electricity employees from Mumbai, Thane, Nashik, Raigad, and other districts in Maharashtra will strike and demonstrate outside the district collector's office in opposition to this "privatisation" scheme. The AAP fully supports power workers and opposes crony capitalism and the government's privatisation strategy, she stated.

Infrastructure Transport

09 Jan 2026

India Becomes First to Produce Bio-Bitumen for Roads

India has become the first country in the world to commercially produce bio-bitumen for use in road construction, according to Road, Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari. Bitumen, a black and viscous hydrocarbon derived from crude oil, is a key binding material in road building, and the bio-based alternative is expected to significantly improve the sector’s environmental footprint.Addressing the CSIR Technology Transfer Ceremony in New Delhi, Mr Gadkari congratulated Council of Scientific and Industrial Research on achieving the milestone, noting that the initiative would help curb ..

HILT Policy Seen Boosting Telangana Revenue Sharply

The Hyderabad Industrial Land Transformation (HILT) Policy is expected to generate around Rs 1.08 billion in revenue for the Telangana state exchequer, according to Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu. Speaking in the Telangana Legislative Assembly, he said the policy would be implemented within a six-month timeframe in a transparent manner, with uniform rules applicable to all stakeholders. Mr Vikramarka noted that without the HILT Policy, the state would have earned only about Rs 1.2 million per acre. Under the new framework, however, revenue is projected to rise sharply to Rs 70 ..

India Post, MoRD Tie Up to Boost Rural Inclusion

The Department of Posts and the Ministry of Rural Development have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to accelerate rural transformation and expand financial, digital and logistics services for Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and rural households across India. The agreement was signed in the presence of Union Minister of Communications and Development of North Eastern Region Jyotiraditya M. Scindia and Union Minister of Rural Development and Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The collaboration aligns with the government’s “Dak Sewa, Jan Sewa” vision and seeks to repositi..