A spate of repeated incidents in India, where roads, bridges, and buildings have collapsed, has sparked deep public concern.
In response, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has delivered a scathing critique of the Modi government, challenging the value of its “development” narrative amid mounting infrastructure failures that have cost lives.
Ajit Pawar argued that if India has truly emerged as the world’s third-largest economy, as the government claims, there must be accountability for these fatal accidents.
He stressed that ignoring such tragedies does not qualify as development, noting that genuine progress should protect the lives and property of ordinary citizens.
Frequent Infrastructure Failures Raise Questions Over Governance
A report by The Wire detailed several recent incidents that have cast a shadow over the government’s performance:
• On July 9, the collapse of a bridge over the Mahisagar River in Vadodara, Gujarat, killed 20 people.
• In Rajasthan, a road connecting to NH-52 was swept away by the Katli River.
• On July 4, potholes emerged on a newly constructed Mumbai flyover built at a cost of 2.5 billion rupees, raising concerns about construction standards.
• On June 15, a bridge over the Indrayani River in Pune collapsed, resulting in four deaths.
• In Odisha, a 600-million-rupee flyover gave way just two months after its inauguration.“Only Empty Claims, No Tangible Results”.
Ajit Pawar accused the Modi administration of prioritizing superficial development and empty rhetoric over real, sustainable progress. He remarked that celebrating infrastructure projects while people are dying is akin to “rubbing salt into the wounds of citizens.”
He further asserted that responsibility for these incidents does not rest solely with state governments but also lies with the central government, which has failed to secure public infrastructure despite massive spending.
“Incompetence Putting Citizens’ Lives at Risk”
Pawar blamed the central government’s poor planning and lack of oversight for the rising number of tragedies, adding that no one has been held accountable for the loss of life.
This lack of accountability, he said, highlights the administration’s failures.
Political analysts believe Ajit Pawar’s criticism is likely to reverberate beyond Maharashtra, resonating across India as public confidence in the government’s claims about development continues to erode.
