03.03.2025:Speech of Governor of Maharashtra C. P. Radhakrishnan in the Budget Session
HON’BLE CHAIRMAN, HON’BLE SPEAKER AND HON’BLE MEMBERS
It gives me great pleasure to welcome you all to the first session of the State Legislature in the year 2025.
2. My Government will continue to follow the high ideals of Rajmata Jijau, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Bharatratna Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, Bhagvan Birsa Munda, Mahatma Jyotiba Phule, Krantijyoti Savitribai Phule, Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Holkar, Rajarshi Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj and many other great leaders and social reformers in serving the people of the State.
3. My Government is committed to resolve the Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute and has appointed expert advocates to represent Maharashtra before the Supreme Court to resolve this issue. My Government is implementing educational, healthcare and various other welfare schemes for the Marathi-speaking people in the border areas.
4. Maharashtra is a preferred destination for Foreign Direct Investment and Maharashtra contributes over 14 per cent to the country’s total GDP, being one of the leading industrial States in the country.
At the World Economic Forum held in Davos, Switzerland, in January 2025, my Government has signed Memorandums of Understanding worth of approximately Rs. 15 lakh 72 thousand crore of investment with 63 national and international companies. This will generate more than 15 lakh employment opportunities in the State.
5. My Government has planned to disburse the Investment Promotion Subsidy of about Rs. 5000 crore to different industries in the State, to attract investments, foster industrial growth and generate employment opportunities.
6. My Government through Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation has decided to allot industrial plots of approximately 3,500 acres to support and encourage the industrialization in the State.
7. Recognizing the growing demand for industrial land, my Government has decided to notify 10,000 acres land for the industrial purposes.
8. My Government has decided to develop 10 Integrated Industrial Parks and Integrated Logistics Parks to enhance industrial growth, improve supply chain efficiency and create a world-class business ecosystem.
9. My Government has approved to launch the “Maharashtra Technical Textiles Mission” to strengthen and expand the State’s textile sector. Maharashtra has become the first State in the country to launch such mission aligned with the Centre’s National Technical Textiles Mission, reinforcing its leadership in the textile industry.
10. My Government has participated as a Knowledge Partner State in the Global event organized by Government of India “Bharat Tex-2025” in New Delhi from 14th to 17th February 2025. This has helped, the textile products of the State to get access to the global market. It will generate investment and employment opportunities in the State textile sector.
11. My Government has set up an open market in Jalna district to purchase and sale of silk cocoons and to support the silk cocoons producer farmers in the region. The construction of the market has been completed and it will be opened soon to farmers. It will increase the production and productivity of silk coccon in the region.
12. My Government has launched “Chief Minister Yuva Karya Prashikshan Scheme” to increase the employability of the State’s youths and to provide skilled manpower for the industries. Under this scheme, more than 1 lakh 32 thousand youths have undergone the training. For the year 2024-25, Government has set a target to train 10 lakh youths and has allocated Rs. 5500 crore for this purpose.
13. In the year 2024-25, my Government has organized 611 “Pandit Deendayal Job Fairs” at the district level, across Maharashtra, to connect the unemployed youth with industries and create employment opportunities. In the State, over 19,000 candidates have secured jobs this year.
14. My Government is implementing the “Trisutri Program” to achieve the goal of dynamic and good governance. This program will focus on government process re-engineering, enhancing employee efficiency and developing an integrated human resource ecosystem.
15. To achieve transformation through training, my Government has initiated the registration process of approximately five lakh employees in the iGOT system under the “Karmayogi Bharat Program”. This will ensure that training is provided to all employees. The “Sevakarmi Award Program” will be implemented to encourage administrative departments in achieving dynamic and quality-oriented work objectives.
16. My Government has decided to undertake the construction of Nagpur Goa Shaktipeeth Expressway. This expressway will be completed after taking all persons into confidence. This expressway will connect major religious and pilgrimage sites along the route. This expressway will not only reduce travel time but also foster economic growth in the region. The estimated cost of the project is Rs. 86,300 crore.
17. My Government has decided to construct 7480 km long roads with cement concretisation under various schemes of Public Works Department to enhance road durability, improve connectivity and ensure safer and more efficient transportation across the State.
18. My Government has decided to collect toll charges through FASTag only at all toll plazas across the State from 1st April 2025 to enhance efficiency, reduce congestion at toll plazas and promote digital transactions.
19. Under the Centrally Sponsored “PM E-Bus Seva Yojana”, in the first phase, 1290 buses have been sanctioned for 20 Municipal Corporations and financial assistance will be provided for developing bus depots in these Municipal Corporations.
20. My Government has decided to implement the new “Maharashtra Electric Vehicle Policy” starting from 1st April 2025, for next three years. The New Electric Vehicle Policy includes providing incentives for electric vehicles and encouraging scrapping of old vehicles. It focuses on reducing the State’s carbon footprint and making transportation more eco-friendly.
21. My Government is dedicated to the effective implementation of the “Nagarotthan Mahabhiyan” across the State’s urban areas to improve urban living through better infrastructure. Under the scheme, the goal is to complete ongoing projects for water supply, sewerage and development within two years.
22. My Government has signed Memorandums of Understanding with 13 agencies for electricity storage and grid stability by implementing Pumped Storage Projects through Public Private Partnership for 38 projects. Accordingly, these projects will generate 55,970 Mega Watt of power and the State is expected to receive an investment of Rs. 2 lakh 95 thousand crore and create more than 90,000 employment opportunities.
23. My Government has installed 3,12,000 solar pumps under the “Magel Tyala Saur Pump Yojana” to help farmers access water for agriculture through solar-powered pumps in the State. Under this scheme, 10 Lakh solar pumps will be provided to the farmers in five years.
24. Maharashtra has set target to become the first State in the country to solarize all the agriculture feeders in the State under “PM-KUSUM” and “Mukhyamantri Saur Krushi Vahini Yojana” schemes. A total of 119 feeders, with a combined solar power capacity of 147 Mega Watt have been commissioned in a record time of just nine months.
25. My Government is implementing “Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban)” in 409 urban clusters across the State. Under this scheme, more than two lakh houses have been constructed and the constructions of more than 1 lakh 85 thousand houses are in progress.
26. My Government has completed more than 12 lakh 64 thousand houses in the State under the first phase of the “Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana – Gramin”. Under the “Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Gramin Phase 2”, my Government has decided to construct more than 16 lakh 81 thousand houses.
27. My Government is implementing the “Hilly Area Development Programme” in 77 full group hilly blocks and 101 sub-group hilly blocks talukas in 28 districts across the State to address the specific needs of hilly areas.
28. My Government has removed around four crore cubic meters of silt from 1274 water bodies under “Galmukt Dharan, Galyukt Shivar” scheme in the current year, which has been spread over 95,000 acres of land, benefiting more than 31,000 farmers.
29. My Government is creating awareness about the importance of watershed management and promoting public participation in it through the “Watershed Yatra”, organized under the “Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee yojana”. Watershed Yatra has started on 8th February 2025 and it will be conducted till 31st March 2025 in 140 projects in 30 districts across the State.
30. My Government is actively implementing “Atal Bhujal Yojana” in the State to promote sustainable groundwater management through community participation. Under this scheme, the expenditure of Rs. 1336 crore has been incurred for the institutional strengthening, capacity building and convergence component. More than 1,32,000 hector of agricultural land has been brought under micro irrigation.
31. My Government has launched a new scheme called “Agristack”-Digital Public Infrastructure for Agriculture to facilitate speedy and effective delivery of various government schemes to farmers using digital services in the agricultural sector of the State.
32. My Government has selected more than 95 lakh farmers in the State as beneficiaries under “Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sanman Yojana” and more than 87 lakh farmers have been provided Kisan Credit Card facility by banks. This initiative aims to empower farmers with financial support and access to credit facilities.
33. My Government has set a crop loan disbursement target of Rs.74,781 crore in the financial year 2024-25 to ensure timely financial support for farmers. The amount of Rs. 55,334 crore has been disbursed to farmers through banks. My Government is working diligently to complete this target.
34. My Government has taken initiative to boost the production and supply of ethanol, with an emphasis on using ethanol as an alternative fuel to promote energy sustainability and reduce carbon emissions. My Government will meet the target to supply 121 crore litres of ethanol by sugar mills in the State to the oil Marketing companies for ethanol year 2024-25.
35. Under “Minimum Support Price Scheme”, for season 2024-25, my Government has procured 11,21,385 metric tons of Soybean through 562 procurement centers to give relief to farmers.
36. During Kharif Marketing Season 2024-25, my Government has purchased more than seven lakh metric tons of paddy and 171 metric tons of coarse grain.
37. My Government is implementing the “Chief Minister One Taluka One Market Committee Scheme” to establish at least one separate agriculture produce market committee for each taluka.
38. Under the “Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Jan-Van Vikas Yojana”, my Government has disbursed grants upto Rs. 15,000 to more than 10,000 beneficiaries in sensitive villages to provide individual solar powered fencing. It will help to reduce human – wild life conflict in surroundings of Tiger Project and protected areas.
39. My Government has taken swift action to support farmers affected by natural calamities across the State. My Government has disbursed Rs. 814 crore to more than 7 lakh 80 thousand farmers as financial assistance.
40. My Government has decided to distribute the drones to 325 women self-help groups for agricultural purposes in the State in the financial year 2024-25, under the centrally sponsored scheme “Namo Drone Didi”.
41. To increase the female labour force participation rate and to provide affordable and safe housing to women in the cities, my Government has proposed to construct working women’s hostels under the Central Government’s “Special Assistance Scheme to States for Capital Investment 2024-25”.
42. My Government has started the recruitment process of approximately 18,000 vacant posts of Anganwadi Sevika to enhance employment opportunities for the women.
43. My Government has decided to celebrate “Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti” in Anganwadi every year to educate children about the life and contributions of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and to take inspiration from his life.
44. My Government is implementing “Lakhpati Didi” initiative to increase women’s household income. So far, 17 lakh women have successfully raised their household income to one lakh rupees or above. The goal is to empower 26 lakh rural women to become “Lakhpati Didis” by the end of 2024-25.
45. My Government has established 18 corporations for the upliftment of different communities in the State. Each corporation has been sanctioned a share capital of Rs. 50 crore.
46. My Government has decided to start coaching classes for Scheduled Tribes students for Engineering and Medical Entrance Exams with an aim to ensure admission of maximum number of students from Scheduled Tribes in Government Medical and Engineering colleges.
47. My Government has decided to establish Government Veterinary Colleges at Parali in Beed district and Baramati in Pune district.
48. My Government has launched the School Connect Part 2.0 contact campaign to create awareness among students from grades 9th to 12th about Higher Education opportunities, scholarship and other academic resources. Approximately 1200 collages, 4800 schools and more than one lakh students have participated in this initiative.
49. Maharashtra has secured the top position in the country for the highest number of National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) accredited colleges and universities. It highlights the state’s commitment to improving higher educational standards.
My Government is implementing “National Education Policy 2020” and my Government is committed to provide the required financial provisions for this purpose.
50. My Government has decided to implement RAM-KAL-PATH project at Nashik to preserve Nashik’s Ramayana linked heritage and transform it into holistic pilgrimage destination.
51. My Government has launched “The Maharashtra Cyber Security Project” equipped with cutting edge technology, skilled manpower and resources in Mahape, Navi Mumbai. This project will help the police personnel in investigation of cyber crimes specially related to women, children and senior citizens who are more vulnerable to cyber crimes.
52. Under the National Health Mission, my Government, has taken decision to regularize the contractual employees who have served for 10 years in the State. They will be accommodated against the approved equivalent posts in the health services.
53. My Government has decided to begin the “Post Basic Diploma in Oncology Nursing” course to ensure the availability of skilled oncology nurses for cancer patients in chemotherapy and radiotherapy centres. Additionally, three new B.Sc. Nursing colleges will be established in Nashik, Sindhudurg and Satara districts, for strengthening our healthcare workforce.
54. My Government has decided to establish a company, “Consortia For Health, Applied Knowledge and Research Autonomy”, to make Maharashtra a hub for medical research and innovation and to address public health challenges through advanced research and education. Maharashtra Post Graduate Institute for Education and Research under the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences, Nashik will work as Hub whereas, seven other Government Medical Colleges will function as spokes for the above research purpose.
55. My Government has started 7 Health Missions such as Blood Donation Drive, Organ Donation, Cancer Awareness and Treatment, Obesity Awareness and Treatment, Mission Thyroid, Cataract – Preventable Blindness, Oral Health Mission across the State. Approximately one lakh beneficiaries will be covered till March 2025 under these special missions.
56. My Government is implementing “Desh ka Prakriti Parikshan” to bring Ayurved to every individual’s doorstep. This campaign highlights Ayurveda’s time tested practices for maintaining health balance, promoting wellness and strengthening immunity. Under this campaign, more than 40 lakh citizens have been screened and State has secured first rank in the country.
57. My Government has launched a new and ambitious scheme, “Mission Lakshyavedh”, to establish State level six high performance centres and 37 Divisional Sports excellence centres with an aim to improve the performance of the state’s athletes in important international competitions, including the Olympics. It will focus on 12 Olympic Sports, namely Athletics, Badminton, Boxing, Weight lifting, Hockey, Wrestling, Archery, Shooting, Rowing, Sailing, Lawn Tennis and Table Tennis.
58. To provide international standard sports facilities to the athletes of the State, especially from Vidarbha, my Government has decided, to upgrade the status of the Divisional Sports Complex at Nagpur to a State Level Sports Complex as in Balewadi.
59. My Government has started “Ghar Ghar Constitution Program” on the occasion of completion of 75 years of Constitution of India to raise awareness among the citizens about the Constitution of India as well as their constitutional rights and fundamental duties.
60. I am delighted to share you that, the Central Government has recently granted the status of Classical Language to Marathi. My Government on behalf of people of Maharashtra is thankful to Hon’ble Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modiji and Union Government for this good gesture. Accordingly, my Government has decided to undertake following programmes – Classical Marathi Language day, Classical Marathi Language Week, honour of distinguished persons from the field of research in Classical Marathi Language, a documentary showcasing the history of Classical Marathi Language, establishment of Centre of Excellence and Translation Academy.
61. My Government is working to build an inclusive, progressive and developed Maharashtra by taking all sections of communities together.
Hon’ble Members, in this session, budget proposals for the new financial year, Appropriation Bills and other legislations will be put forth for your consideration. I am confident that, Hon’ble Members will participate and give their well-considered inputs on those proposals to propel Maharashtra towards greater prosperity.
Once again, I extend my warm greetings.
JAI HIND!
JAI MAHARASHTRA!