Maharashtra holds three Chinese projects after Ladakh face-off
Mumbai : The Uddhav Thackeray government in Maharashtra has put on hold three projects signed with Chinese companies days after reports of violent Indo-China face-off in which as many as 20 Indian soldiers were martyred.
The projects, with proposed investments worth over Rs 5,000 crore, were finalised at the recent "Magnetic Maharashtra 2.0" investor meet held just before the border fight.
"Yes, the decision was taken after consulting the centre. We have put the projects on hold and are waiting for further directives from the centre," Maharashtra Industry Minister Subhash Desai told NDTV.
Last Monday, a video-conference was held with Chinese ambassador Sun Weidong. In an attempt to kickstart the Maharashtra economy, a dozen of MoUs were signed with nations like China, South Korea, Singapore and the US.
The same day the report of violent clash came in from Galwan valley at eastern Ladakh. 20 Indian soldiers were killed in the line of duty. The incident led to nationwide calls for boycotting Chinese goods and protests.
Of the 12 MoUs agreed upon in the Maharashtra investors' event, three were with China - a project with Hengli engineering worth Rs 250 crore, one with Great Wall Motors worth Rs 3,770 crore and a project with PMI electro mobility worth Rs 1,000 crore.
At the all-party meeting called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said, "India wants peace but that doesn't mean we are weak. China's nature is betrayal. India is Mazboot (strong) not Majboor (helpless)."
