Pune: Former state minister and Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray on Tuesday said there was a total collapse of infrastructure in the state’s industrial areas, but chief minister Devendra Fadnavis was behaving like ‘Alice in Wonderland’, assuming everything was fine in the state.Aaditya visited various parts of Hinjewadi IT Park and met IT professionals and residents to discuss their issues. Residents have called for a protest on Sept 6 against the poor infrastructure in and around Hinjewadi IT Park. Aaditya said his party would extend support to the agitation.“Hinjewadi is one of the biggest IT parks, but IT professionals and residents are struggling due to the collapse of infrastructure. While residents are facing daily hardships, the chief minister is behaving like ‘Alice in Wonderland’. He talks about signing MoUs in Davos but neglects the problems faced by existing companies operating in the state,” Aaditya said after visiting Hinjewadi IT Park.Officially known as Rajiv Gandhi Infotech Park, Hinjewadi IT Park is spread across 2,800 acres and houses offices of several multinational companies, with more than five lakh employees working there. IT professionals and local residents have repeatedly complained about poor infrastructure in and around the area.Accusing the chief minister of not paying enough attention to the problems faced by people in Hinjewadi, Aaditya said, “If the chief minister takes the initiative and pulls up the officials concerned, the entire system will get into action mode. The chief minister will have to show intent, visit Hinjewadi and meet locals personally to understand their problems.”Recently, 20 companies from Chakan MIDC threatened to move out of Pune due to poor infrastructure. Referring to the issue, Aaditya said, “The situation in Hinjewadi is similar to Chakan. If companies move out, there will be huge job losses and the entire state will suffer. So, we are raising our voice.”State industries minister Uday Samant visited Chakan on Sunday and reviewed the situation. He set a deadline of Aug 31 to repair all roads in the Chakan MIDC area.Reacting to Samant’s visit, Aaditya said, “The minister rushed to Chakan for damage control and ordered repairs to the roads. However, this is only first aid and not permanent repair work. I will be visiting Chakan after Aug 31 to expose the poor quality of the work.”
