NCP to hold 'Janseva Saptah' from July 22-26 to mark late Ajit Pawar’s birth anniversary

Mumbai, Jul 6 (PTI) The ruling NCP on Monday announced it will organise ‘Janseva Saptah’ (Public Service Week) across Maharashtra from July 22 to 26 to celebrate the birth anniversary of its former president late Ajit Pawar with a series of programmes on environment, healthcare, agriculture, women, and youth. Announcing the initiative here, state Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sunil Tatkare told reporters that the programmes would reflect Pawar’s vision of public service through activities such as tree plantation drives, blood donation camps, free health check-ups, cleanliness campaigns, farmers’ workshops and youth leadership camps across Maharashtra. Under the environmental category, the party will undertake a statewide tree plantation campaign themed “Harit Maharashtra” (Green Maharashtra), while veteran actor Sayaji Shinde, through the Sahyadri Devarai Foundation, will lead the “Devgiri to Devarai” afforestation project across all districts. Party legislators and former MPs and MLAs have been urged to establish one such project in their constituencies, he said. Tatkare said blood donation camps, free medical check-up and diagnostic camps, and screening programmes for diabetes, hypertension, eye ailments, breast, cervical and oral cancers, along with osteoporosis detection drives for women and senior citizens, would be organised during the week. The party, a constituent of the ruling BJP-led coalition, will conduct cleanliness drives at forts, memorials, public places and state transport bus stations, besides organising service activities for Warkaris (Lord Vitthal devotees) during the annual 'Ashadhi Wari pilgrimage to the temple town of Pandharpur in Solapur district, informed the Lok Sabha MP. Women’s conventions focusing on self-help groups, financial empowerment, education, entrepreneurship and leadership development will be held, while the party’s women’s wing will present the Ajitdada Women’s Empowerment Award and felicitate female farmers, Tatkare stated. Workshops on AI-based farming, agricultural exhibitions, farmers’ guidance camps and programmes on crop planning, market trends, horticulture and floriculture will also be organised, with progressive farmers to be honoured with the Ajitdada Agriculture Award, he added. Youth leadership camps will be held in Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Nashik to train party workers in leadership, election management and voter outreach, while sportspersons will be felicitated and sporting events organised as part of the birth anniversary celebrations of Pawar, a former deputy chief minister. Tatkare said special outreach camps for minority communities to facilitate their access to government welfare schemes would also be organised. Guardian ministers and contact ministers have been entrusted with coordinating the implementation of the programme across districts. Pawar died in a plane crash in his hometown Baramati in Pune district in January. PTI MR RSY