MUMBAI: Samajwadi Party MLA Rais Shaikh, on Monday urged DCM Sunetra Pawar, who is also minister for minority development, to establish a study group to facilitate the long-pending survey of the Muslim community, which has remained stalled for the past 15 years, and name it after the late Ajit Pawar.In his letter to Pawar, Shaikh said that the Dr Mehmood ur Rahman Study Group, constituted by the Maharashtra government in 2013, had recommended conducting a socio-economic and educational survey of Muslims.“In 2022, the state government assigned the survey to the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), and a Govt Resolution (GR) was issued on 21 September 2022. However, following a change in government, the survey was never carried out,” Shaikh said.Shaikh stated that a comprehensive assessment of the Muslim community’s living conditions, access to financial assistance, benefits received under government schemes, infrastructure, educational opportunities, and healthcare facilities would present a realistic picture of the community’s status.“It would also help the government formulate region-specific policies to bring Muslims into the mainstream of development. No comprehensive data on the socio-economic and educational status of Muslims has been compiled since the publication of the Sachar Committee Report in 2006,” remarked Shaikh.“The new study group must be named after the late Ajit Dada Pawar. He had consistently pursued issues concerning the Muslim community. Ajit Pawar’s decisive initiatives led to the establishment of the Minority Research and Training Institute (MRTI), the Minority Commissionerate, etc,” demanded Shaikh.Shaikh said that conducting the survey would provide a clearer understanding of the condition of the Muslim community.“Muslims constitute 11.54% of Maharashtra’s population, making them the second-largest religious community after Hindus. The state has 56 Muslim-majority towns. Such surveys can be conducted through outsourced agencies with limited funds and manpower, and that the government has previously conducted similar surveys for several other communities,” he added.
