Mumbai, March 16 – NCP-SP legislator and former minister Jayant Patil said on Monday that the Maharashtra budget reflects a major shortfall in non-tax revenue, primarily due to a shortfall in financial assistance from the Central government.
Participating in the discussion on budgetary demands in the state Assembly, Patil claimed that there would be a deficit of nearly Rs 24,361 crore in the expected central aid.
He further expressed concern that with no specific budgetary provisions for newly announced projects, the state’s total debt could spiral to a staggering Rs 15–16 lakh crore.
Patil also cited what he described as discrepancies in road construction costs, claiming there were massive variations in per-kilometre expenditure across projects.
“While Union Minister Nitin Gadkari recently announced road projects worth over Rs 1 lakh crore for Maharashtra, a detailed analysis of the per-kilometre cost reveals startling discrepancies between projects handled by different agencies,” he said.
He cited the example of the Navi Mumbai–Pune Expressway (eight-lane), which is estimated to cost Rs 15,000 crore for 130 km (approximately Rs 115 crore per km), the Nashik–Solapur–Akkalkot corridor costing Rs 19,142 crore for 374 km (around Rs 51 crore per km), and the Jan Kalyan Expressway costing Rs 36,000 crore for 450 km (around Rs 80 crore per km).
However, Patil alleged that the cost of state-managed projects appeared significantly higher, raising questions of corruption.
“In the case of the Talegaon–Chakan project, the cost is Rs 6,499 crore for 25 km, with the per-km cost estimated at Rs 259 crore. Similarly, the Uttan–Virar sea link is estimated to cost Rs 58,754 crore for 55 km -- around Rs 1,068 crore per km, or roughly Rs 1.06 crore per metre,” he said.
"While NHAI projects are cost-effective and of superior quality, state-run agencies are delivering substandard work at exorbitant prices. This is not just a scam; it is daylight robbery. The disparity in these figures is enough to make one dizzy. This is open loot of public money,” Patil alleged.
He added that if the public receives high-quality roads after such expenditure, he would be willing to felicitate the government.
However, he claimed that projects built by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) cost less and deliver better quality, while roads constructed by state agencies are often of inferior quality.
Patil demanded that road construction projects in the state be handed over to the NHAI to save thousands of crores of public money.
He also said the energy department was facing a dual crisis involving power arrears and allegations of a potential multi-crore scam.
“Over 1,800 cooperative water supply societies are struggling with a combined electricity debt of Rs 70–80 crore. Despite the government providing free power to 1 HP–7.5 HP agricultural pumps, these cooperative societies are excluded from these benefits,” he said.
He added that following a tariff hike of Rs 5.16 per unit from April 1, 2025, there is a growing demand to include these societies under the “Krishi Sanjivani Yojana” to help clear their arrears.
Patil further said that the Chief Minister’s “dream project” to generate 16,000 MW of solar energy for agricultural feeders has also come under scrutiny.
“Former Leader of the Opposition in the state council Ambadas Danve had alleged a Rs 10,000 crore scam. It is alleged that the four companies awarded the contracts submitted fake bank guarantees. Mahavitaran should investigate the matter and the government should present a detailed report at the earliest,” he said.