Mumbai, Jun 26 (PTI) – NCP(SP) working president Supriya Sule has urged the Maharashtra government to reconsider the proposed Rs 86,300 crore Nagpur-Goa Shaktipeeth Express project, emphasizing that the initiative would strain the "already depleted" state exchequer.
During a press conference, the Lok Sabha MP from Baramati in Pune district challenged the necessity of procuring a loan for the high-speed carriageway.
On Tuesday, the state cabinet greenlighted the 802-km-long Shaktipeeth Expressway project, which will connect Pavnar in Wardha district to Patradevi on the Maharashtra-Goa border in Sindhudurg district. Officials have stated that this expressway will cut travel time between Nagpur and Goa from 18 hours to eight hours.
The cabinet has sanctioned Rs 20,787 crore for the expressway, with implementation delegated to the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC). Of this required sum, HUDCO has approved a loan of Rs 12,000 crore for acquiring nearly 7,500 hectares of land, officials noted.
Sule pointed out significant public opposition to the expressway, suggesting instead that the existing corridor could be upgraded. “Elections will come and go, but the state’s financial condition will take years to stabilize. It will be a loss for the hardworking Marathi people,” the NCP (SP) leader remarked.
Following last year’s Lok Sabha and assembly elections, the upcoming local body elections in Maharashtra are anticipated to be another high-stakes political contest.
“The (state) finance ministry is against taking loans, and farmers refuse to sell their land. If 22 percent of the state’s budget goes toward loan repayment, how will development occur in sectors like education and health?” Sule asked, highlighting the state's already "depleted" exchequer.
Officials indicated that the expressway seeks to link major pilgrimage sites such as Mahur, Tuljapur, Kolhapur, and Pandharpur, along with notable spiritual and historical locations like Ambajogai. It also aims to connect two ‘Jyotirlings’ of Aundha Nagnath and Parli Vaijnath, as well as Karanja-Lad, Akkalkot, Audumber, and Narsobachi Wadi.
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