Maharashtra contractors warn of state-wide protest if Rs 80,000 crore dues not paid

An association of contractors working with Maharashtra government departments has warned of a state-wide protest if the authorities do not release dues of over Rs 80,000 crore by June 10, CNBC-TV18 reported on Thursday.

The Maharashtra Contractors Association, which claims to represent about three lakh members in 35 districts of the state, plans to launch a mass awareness campaign and a large-scale protest if the government does not meet the deadline for payments.

“The government has chosen to remain silent, but we will not,” the association’s president Milind Bhosale told CNBC-TV18. “If needed, we will take this agitation to every corner of Maharashtra.”

The association has claimed that payments to the tune of Rs 38,000 crore are pending from the state public works department, Rs 6,500 crore from the rural development department, Rs 12,000 crore from the water conservation and water resources department and Rs 4,217 crore from the urban development department.

Bhosale said the association has filed a petition in the Bombay High Court against the rural development department, CNBC-TV18 reported. He added that if its demands are not met by June 10, it will file another petition against the public works department.

“We wrote to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis again a couple of days ago,” he told the channel. “But...

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