Maharashtra Assembly Elections: Free education, scrapping Dharavi project among Uddhav Thackeray Sena’s poll promises

With about a week remaining for the Maharashtra Assembly elections, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday unveiled the party's manifesto, ‘Vachan Nama,’ for the polls. 

In ‘Vachan Nama,’ the Shiv Sena (UBT) faction has assured free education for male students, stabilising prices of essential items and scrapping the Dharavi redevelopment project. The manifesto was released by Uddhav Thackeray and other senior leaders of his party.

Thackery added that the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance, which includes Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP and Congress, among others, will also release its manifesto ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly polls, reported PTI.

Under CM Eknath Shinde's governance in Maharashtra, female students receive free education at the state-run level, a move that has been seen as an effort to boost female literacy and empower women. Uddhav Thackeray assured that if the MVA comes to power, the same benefit will also be extended to male students in the state.

‘Do not say the alliance has been broken…’

The former chief minister said the Dharavi redevelopment project, which has been given to the Adani group, will be scrapped as it will have ramifications on Mumbai. 

If elected, the MVA also plans to scrap cluster development of Koliwadas and Gaothans—urban villages that house Mumbai's indigenous communities—after taking the residents into confidence.

Uddhav Thackeray further added that he would not be present at the upcoming press conference of MVA, as he was going out of Mumbai for campaigning.

"I am going out of Mumbai for campaigning, so at the forthcoming press conference of Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in Mumbai, if I am not here, kindly do not say that the alliance has broken. We have fulfilled all our promises so far, whether in BMC or the state," Thackeray said.

The voting for Maharashtra's 288 assembly seats will be held in a single phase on November 20, with the results scheduled to be announced on November 23. The current term of the Maharashtra assembly concludes on November 26, 2024.