Uddhav, Aaditya to visit flood-hit western Maharashtra and Konkan

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray will tour the flood-hit areas in Konkan and western Maharashtra next week.

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray will tour the flood-hit areas in Konkan and western Maharashtra next week.

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Senior party functionaries said Aaditya will visit three Konkan districts between August 19 and August 21, while the Sena chief will visit only western Maharashtra on August 20 and August 21.

“Aaditya will visit Mahad in Raigad district on August 19, he will then go to Kolhapur and Sangli districts on August 20 and 21. Uddhavji will only visit Kolhapur and Sangli districts,” a party functionary said.

The Shiv Sena is already engaged in providing relief material including foodgrains, cooking supplies, utensils, clothing, medicines, blankets, etc for Raigad, Kolhapur and Sangli districts, which were hit by floods last week.

Aaditya said that with normalcy returning to the flood-hit regions, the immediate need is to provide medical care and other relief measures. “Now that the flood has receded, there is a threat of epidemic or other illnesses in the region. We are providing all such facilities from the Sena,” the Yuva Sena chief said, adding they would oversee the distribution of aid to the people in the area.

Last week, Thackeray had announced that he would visit the flood-ravaged areas where nearly five lakh people were displaced but the immediate tour was put off fearing outrage from locals. Several Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ministers had been gheraoed by locals in the flood-hit areas when they visited the regions following the floods last week.

During his visit, Thackeray is expected to visit Brahmanal village in Sangli where 17 people drowned during a rescue operation. Aaditya, meanwhile, will restart his Jan Ashirwad Yatra, which was put on hold due to floods in the state, from August 26.