Shiv Sena caught in a predicament over refinery project

The Maharashtra government has suggested to the Centre to set up the Nanar Refinery project at Barsu village of Rajapur in Ratnagiri district.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had written to the PM early this year informing him that the state would like the project to be located at Barsu village and that the state was ready to facilitate the project.

However, the Shiv Sena is now caught in a predicament of its own making as on Wednesday hundreds of villagers from Barsu marched to the Rajapur Tehsil office asking the government not to go ahead with the project in Barsu as it would harm the environment.


The Shiv Sena, when in power with the BJP in 2014, had scuttled the project in Nanar after villagers opposed it.

Reacting to the protests, minister Aaditya Thackeray said, "The project will be implemented only after people are taken into confidence."