Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Jul 28: The Maharashtra Cabinet, chaired by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, on Tuesday approved a major increase in the authorised and paid-up share capital of the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC) and cleared a series of judicial and governance reforms, including the establishment of specialised courts across the state.
The Cabinet approved raising MRVC's authorised share capital from Rs 25 crore to Rs 500 crore and increasing its paid-up share capital from Rs 25 crore to Rs 225 crore to strengthen the corporation's financial capacity for executing large-scale rail infrastructure projects in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.
MRVC, in which the Ministry of Railways holds a 51 per cent stake and the Maharashtra government owns 49 per cent, is implementing key projects under the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP), including line extensions, track expansion, station upgrades and advanced signalling systems. The corporation is currently handling projects worth nearly Rs 64,644 crore.
The enhanced capital base is expected to help MRVC secure better terms for multilateral funding from institutions such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the World Bank while improving its ability to meet project financing requirements.
The Cabinet also approved the creation of the post of Managing Director at the Centre for Artificial Intelligence and AgriTech Innovation under the MahaAgri-AI Policy.
In the judicial sector, the government sanctioned a dedicated Special Court in Pune for cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, besides approving the establishment of a District and Additional Sessions Court at Karjat in Ahilyanagar district.
It also approved the setting up of a Civil Court (Junior Division) and a Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) court at Kurduwadi in Solapur district.
Further, the Cabinet cleared the establishment of Exclusive Special Courts in Ahilyanagar, Parbhani, Solapur, Nanded and Yavatmal for the speedy trial of cases under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The Cabinet also approved an ordinance to amend the Maharashtra Gram Panchayat Act, 1959, and the Maharashtra Zilla Parishad and Panchayat Samiti Act, 1961, extending the deadline for elected representatives holding reserved seats to submit caste validity certificates issued by the Caste Scrutiny Committee.
Additionally, it approved an amendment to the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966, under which illegal excavation and transportation of minor minerals will attract a penalty amounting to 10 times the applicable royalty value.