New Delhi: A spate of protests seem to be taking place in Maharashtra on issues spanning examination irregularities, infrastructure, safety and welfare. Tribal students and activists across Maharashtra have announced a march to Mumbai under the banner of Sakal Adivasi Vidyarthi Andolan Kruti Samiti between September 15-20 to protest against tribal development minister Ashok Uike.Meanwhile, thousands of students and job aspirants took out a march in Pune on Monday (September 7), protesting against the alleged irregularities in the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) examinations conducted in March this year. The students have demanded the MPSC chairman’s resignation. Nearly 20 kms from the MPSC protest, about 5,000 IT professionals gathered in Pune’s Hinjawadi for a silent protest against the state of infrastructure in the area. Tribal activists’ marchTribal students and activists in Maharashtra held a meeting in Nashik on Sunday night to discuss issues concerning education, safety and welfare of students belonging to tribal communities. The decision to organise the march to Mumbai was taken at the meeting attended by representatives of tribal students, medical students, social activists and organisations from across the state.The march follows a 19-day hunger strike in Nashik over the lack of basic facilities in tribal hostels. The students ended the strike on September 4 after Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) co-founder Abhijeet Dipke advised them to take their protest to Mumbai.“We held a meeting on Sunday night where it was decided that a long march from Nashik to Mumbai would be organised with participation from across the state. The Samiti has started mobilising support at the village level, reaching out to parents whose children are enrolled in ashramshalas,” Prashant Gavande, student representative of the federation, told the Times of India.The Samiti is seeking the resignation of Wooike, along with the state tribal department’s secretary and commissioner. Their other demands include an impartial investigation into the alleged molestation of girl students at an ashram school in Gadchiroli, removal of the central kitchen system, an end to donation practices in education and resolution of roster-related issues.They have also sought concrete assurances regarding the safety and education of tribal students.Gavande said politicians including Rahul Gandhi, Aaditya Thackeray and Rohit Pawar, as well as Dipke, had assured support for the agitation.He said previous protests in Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur had been led by individual organisations, whereas the Nashik movement represented tribal students from north Maharashtra, Marathwada, Vidarbha and Pune.Hinjawadi protestMore than 5,000 IT professionals and residents of Hinjawadi held a silent protest on Sunday (September 6) over infrastructure problems in Pune’s IT hub. The protest came even as district collector Jitendra Dudi said Rs 426 crore had been approved for development works in the area.The protest, led by Forum for IT Employees (FITE) was organised to highlight potholes, traffic congestion, inadequate water supply, poor waste management and unreliable power supply, the Indian Express reported. Resident Welfare Association (Maan), Hinjawadi-Maan-Marunji Infra Forum, Hinjawadi Employees and Residents Trust, Pimpri-Chinchwad Co-op Housing Federation, the Mulshi Co-op Housing Federation also participated in the protest march, which began at Infosys Circle in Hinjawadi Phase 1, with participants carrying placards highlighting their demands.“A total of Rs 426 crore was approved for taking up infrastructure work in Hinjewadi IT Park area on Friday. All infrastructure works will be completed in one and half years time while priority works will be completed before next monsoon,” Dudi was quoted by the paper as saying.Dudi, who heads the task force appointed by the state government for Hinjawadi, said the funds were approved on Friday.He said that the money will be allocated for improving existing roads, constructing pathways, strengthening last-mile connectivity with the Metro and upgrading storm-water drainage, among other works.“The IT hub pays Rs 5000 crore annual revenue to the government. In return, the IT hub gets a raw deal from the government when it comes to ensuring basic amenities and proper infrastructure,” Pavanjit Mane of the Forum for IT Employees told the Indian Express.Responding to the collector’s 18-month deadline, Mane said that a joint meeting of the relevant government agencies should be held with the chief minister present to establish firm and binding timelines for the projects.Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray joined the protest and said he had earlier met residents, housing society representatives and IT employees to understand their concerns. “Hinjawadi IT hub is in a deplorable state today – plagued by severe traffic congestion, hazardous potholes, piles of garbage, inadequate water supply, and even a completed Metro line waiting for inauguration. Due to this administrative chaos, companies are preparing to relocate, putting the livelihoods of lakhs of young people at risk,” Thackeray said.““We fully support the rally organised by IT employees and local residents for basic infrastructure in Hinjawadi. Whether it is the MIDC areas or IT parks across Pune, infrastructure has completely collapsed, yet the government remains a silent spectator. If immediate corrective measures are not taken, the anger seen among citizens today will escalate into a far more intense protest, and the entire responsibility will lie with the state government,” Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) MLA Rohit Pawar said in a post on X. MPSC protestA day after the Hinjawadi protest, thousands of students and job aspirants from across Maharashtra marched in Pune on September 7, raising concerns over alleged irregularities in MPSC examinations, uncertainty over results and delays in the recruitment process.The protesters gathered near Omkareshwar Temple in old Pune for the ‘Aakrosh Morcha’ and marched to the Pune district collector’s office. NCP-SP MP Supriya Sule, MLA Rohit Pawar, LoP Gandhi and CJP’s Dipke have endorsed the protest.The controversy stems from the March 22 examination for the post of Drug Inspector. Protesters have alleged that the question paper for the exam was leaked. Students have also raised issues concerning examination transparency, delays and uncertainty over results, the Print reported.The protesters have demanded the resignation of MPSC Chairman Vivek Bhimanwar and the removal of the commission’s secretary. They have also sought the immediate appointment of replacements with clean records.Responding to the demands, Bhimanwar said in a statement on X on September 2 that the alleged irregularities occurred before he became chairman. He said the incident [paper leak] took place in January 2026, while he took oath as MPSC chairman on February 18 and assumed charge on March 3.Bhimanwar said the commission had filed a police complaint over the incident and formed an internal high-level committee to recommend preventive and security measures.Students have also demanded that the report submitted to the Mumbai Crime Branch after its inquiry into the MPSC’s Drug Inspector exam be made public, the Print reported. They have also asked for a forensic audit of all examinations conducted under Under Secretary Abhijit Lendwe. The Mumbai police last month arrested seven people, including Lendwe, in connection with the case.