Murlidhar Mohol, 49, started off as a booth-level worker for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), went on to become Pune Mayor and is now the city’s first Lok Sabha member to be part of the Union Council of Ministers in 38 years. The Minister of State for the ministries of Civil Aviation and Cooperation — a former wrestler whose grandfather, father, uncle and elder brother have all been wrestlers — spoke to The Indian Express about his elevation to New Delhi’s political arena, cooperative institutions, RSS Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat recent remarks on electoral decorum, the forthcoming state polls in Maharashtra and the Porsche hit-and-run case. Edited excerpts:
You are a first-time MP and have been appointed as a Union minister. What are your priorities?
I have got a huge opportunity to serve the country and cooperatives are among my favourite areas of work as I belong to a family of farmers. I am keen to work for this sector under the leadership of our Prime Minister and Amit Shah, under whom I will work in the Cooperation Ministry. For the goal of a Viksit Bharat 2047, all sectors, especially the cooperative sector, will play a big role.
There is a lot of work to be done in the aviation sector too. For instance, in my own constituency, the issue of Purandar (Pune’s second airport) is pending. We must expedite work on the Navi Mumbai International Airport. The old Pune airport’s expansion is on the table, and there are demands for airports from other states as well. We will address all of that.
As for cooperatives, they are the soul of Maharashtra and the country’s rural economy. Cooperatives play a big role in enhancing the economic conditions of farmers, dairy farmers and those working in sugar mills. I am glad I will be able to contribute to these two sectors.
This story was originally published in indianexpress.com. Read the full story here.
