Maharashtra witnessing one of highest factory shut downs of last 5 yrs: Manmohan

Oct 17, 2019

Mumbai:  Painting a grim picture ahead of the October 21 Maharashtra Assembly elections, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that the current slowdown in the country coupled with government apathy has badly hit the Indian economy.

Maharashtra witnessed one of the highest factory shutdowns in past five years due to the “economic slowdown” in the country.

“Mumbai accounts for nearly one-third of India’s direct tax collection. It is a true cosmopolitan hub and so to the Hindi and Marathi film industries. It is India’s city of dreams. Sadly, the present slowdown and the government’s apathy and incapability are affecting the future and aspirations of millions of our people,” Singh said while addressing a press conference here.

“The much advertised double engine model of governance on which BJP seeks votes has utterly failed. Mumbai and Maharashtra have had to face some of the worst effects of grave economic slowdown. Manufacturing growth rate of Maharashtra has been declining for four consecutive years. Maharashtra has witnessed one of the highest factory shutdowns in the past five years,” he added.

“There is gloom in the automobiles hub of Pune, slowdown has led to a large number of factories shutting down in Maharashtra. The state is hit by a grave economic crises, but the government seems obsessed with trying to fix blame,” said Singh.

He said that from being No. 1 in investments, Maharashtra has now become No. 1 in farmers’ suicides.

Manmohan urged for setting up labour-intensive industries, among other measures, to tackle the economic crises. IANS/ANI