Maha cabinet takes eight major decisions,

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Cabinet on Thursday took eight major decisions in its first meeting after formation of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena-BJP government in the state.
The decisions include cutting taxes on petrol by Rs five per litre and on diesel by Rs three per litre.
The decision to cut tax on fuel will be effective from midnight.
It is said that the state Cabinet, headed by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, had decided to reduce tax on fuel in the state on the directive of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Due to this tax reduction, people of the state will get relief from inflation, a press statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office said here.
Another decision taken by the Cabinet was to implement Swachh Maharashtra Abhiyan Nagri-2.0 on the lines of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan of the central government.
The state had earlier successfully implemented Swachh Maharashtra Abhiyan from 2014 to 2021, and it has been consistently hailed as one of the best performing state at the national level.
This campaign will be implemented by the Urban Development department at the cost of Rs 12,409.31 crore. For this campaign, Rs 6,531.46 crore was approved as the state’s share.
The state Cabinet also approved to provide funds for construction of underground sewerage network in cities with a population of less than one lakh and for collection and transportation of solid waste by the newly established Municipal Councils and Nagar Panchayats.
This decision will definitely raise the standard of living of the citizens in urban areas by creating waste-free cities and sustainable sanitation, the statement by CMO said.
The Cabinet also took a decision to implement the central government’s Amrut 2.0 (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation 2.0) campaign in the state.
The earlier BJP-led government had implemented Amrit 1.0 scheme in the state since 2015 but it was limited to 44 cities.
The Amrut 2.0 scheme will be implemented in all urban local bodies of the state from 2022 to 2025-26 to eliminate the lack of basic infrastructure there.
About 50 per cent of the population in the state lives in urban areas and there are a total of 413 urban local bodies in the state, said CMO.
The major objectives of the scheme are to achieve 100 per cent self-sufficiency in water supply by providing tap connections to all households in cities, rejuvenating water resources and developing parks and green spaces in the city’s open spaces, and providing 100 per cent sewage treatment and sewage connections in 44 Amrit 1.0 cities.
Under the Amrit 2.0 campaign, projects worth Rs 27,700 crore will be undertaken in the state, for which financial assistance of Rs 9,285 crore will be received from the central government while the contribution of the state government and the urban local bodies will be about Rs 18,415 crore.
Under this campaign, 52.81 per cent of the funds received by the urban local self-government bodies will be provided for water supply projects while 41.35 per cent for sewage disposal projects and 5.84 per cent for the revival of water rejuvenation
and development of green area projects, the statement said.
Under this campaign, cities with a population of one million or more will be awarded 10 per cent cost of projects on a public-private partnership basis.
A viability gap fund (VGF) will be made available for the same up to a maximum limit of 60 per cent.
A State High Power Steering Committee (SHPSC) has been constituted, under the chairmanship of the chief secretary, for implementation of this scheme.
This decision will definitely create a sustainable water supply system in urban areas of the state and will definitely raise the living standards of the citizens of the city as well as make the cities in the state cleaner and more beautiful, the CMO said. (UNI)