1. After Builders, Mangroves Under Threat From BMC
It is not just the builder mafia that mangroves in Mumbai are facing a threat from. Mangroves in Juhu and Versova are under dire threat from the civic body itself, thanks to carelessness and oversight in creating the revised draft Development Plan (DP) 2034.
In the planning committee’s report submitted recently to the BMC, three plots of lands in Versova and Juhu have been opened up for development in the draft DP, despite the plots being part of mangrove land.
The presence of mangrove land can be clearly seen in Google Earth visuals and has been verified through site inspections by elected representatives. What’s even more alarming for residents is that there is intentional setting of fire on the said mangrove land every 10 days to destroy them. Fire has been reported six times in the last two months in this area.
The first two contentious plots are on Fisheries Road in Versova. The planning committee’s report has stated that there are no mangroves on one site and the ‘natural area zone’ shown on the plot is deleted and the areas have been reserved for affordable housing. But a site inspection shows vast swathes of mangrove land there.
“BMC says there are no mangroves and already IOD (building permit) and CC (commencement certificate) for construction have been issued. We are challenging the BMC to do a joint site inspection with us to see the huge tracts of mangrove lands,” said local BJP MLA Ameet Satam.
On the same Fisheries Road in Versova, there is another plot of land given by the collector to a Co-operative Housing Society (CHS), which has managed to get a proposed garden converted into a residential zone by raising objections in the DP.
Explaining the modus operandi, Satam said, “This plot is adjoining Versova Creek mangroves. The modus operandi is such that a fictitious society is created on paper and registered in the co-operative department. The society then demands the plot from the revenue department. By citing the fact that they have demanded the plot, they raise objection in the DP and change the reservation to a residential plot.” He added that dereserving a mangrove zone and converting it into developable land is “criminal”.
The third contentious plot of land is on Juhu-Versova Link Road where the reservation of garden was changed to a municipal school. The said plot is part of the mangroves adjoining the creek.
“Ideally it should have been marked as a natural area because there are mangroves and also within a distance of 1 km there is already a DN Nagar municipal school,” said Satam.
What’s become a major cause for concern is the fact that these mangroves are regularly set on fire. Charu Shah, a resident of Yashwant building in Versova, says that she has to alert the fire brigade every 10 days as unscrupulous elements intentionally set the mangroves on fire.
“The whole land gets burnt and they dump debris and stones on it so that there is no further growth of mangroves. I have witnesses and evidences of how this is being done,” said Shah.
Source: Mumbai Mirror
2. Who Took The Fight Out of Shiv Sena?
Shiv Sena isn’t known to brook defiance, but a latest breach by party MLAs of an order issued by their chief, Uddhav Thackeray, points up how that perception is eroding, giving way to comparisons with the ironfisted rule under Bal Thackeray.
Earlier this month, Uddhav asked 40 of his legislators to tour 48 assembly segments in eight districts of the desiccated Marathwada region and reach out to debt-ridden farmers in a bid to strengthen Sena’s grassroots links. Only 13 legislators complied. The other 27 who didn’t turn up were asked to explain their absence.
The campaign was supposed to stretch over two days, May 6 and 7. It’s been over a week and none of the 27 MLAs has bothered framing a response. It shows that party functionaries aren’t taking Uddhav’s diktats seriously, said sources from the Shiv Sena, which today “bears only a faint semblance to the Sena of yore, when Bal Thackeray was at the helm”.
Party cadres blame Uddhav’s goeasy approach. They see it as a developing pattern, which was also on display when the Sena went soft on Ravindra Gaikwad, its parliamentarian who shot to infamy after he assaulted an Air India staffer with his slipper and bragged about it. The party initially announced stern action against Gaikwad but later changed tack when he faced a ban from all carriers — the party said even rapists are allowed to fly. The MP was let off with a warning.
Sena leaders are, therefore, shaking their heads at the inconsistency that reigns in the party now.
Referring to the legislators’ no show, a senior Sena leader said such unresponsiveness was virtually unimaginable at one point. “We were supposed to seek an explanation from these MLAs but nothing of the sort happened. It’s shocking that none of them tendered an apology,” he said.
Some of these MLAs are Subhash Bhoir, Balaji Kinikar, Rajesh Kshirsagar, Ajay Chaudhary, Subhash Sabne, Prataprao Chikhlikar, Partap Sarnaik, Sanjay Raumulkar, Ashok Patil, Manohar Bhoir and Sujit Minchekar.
Source: Mumbai Mirror
3. Denied Boarding, Woman Misses Father’s Final Rites
Priyadarshini Nair was to fly to Kozhikode from Mumbai on a Jet Airways flight on May 14, to attend a ritual marking the 13th day of her father’s demise. Jet Airways denied her boarding because the flight was overbooked.
“At the boarding gate, a Jet official told me that I would not be able to board the flight as it was fully booked and there were no available seats. I explained to them how important it was for me to reach Kozhikode on time, but they kept saying that they could not help me,” said a shaken Nair.
Nair had booked two seats on Jet Airways flight 9W 421 from Mumbai to Kozhikode which was to depart at 8.55 a.m. on Sunday, May 14. “They also forced me to sign a compensation letter failing which I would not get a ticket for another flight. As I was lost and disturbed I took that option,” she said.
Nair then had to make her journey to Kozhikode via Bangalore.
“Due to an overbooking situation, the two guests could not be accommodated on the said flight. The guests were duly compensated and apologies were tendered,” the airline said in a statement to Mirror on Monday.
Nair now plans to approach the Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum.
Source: Mumbai Mirror
4. Bodyguard Of Ex-housing Min Held For Duping Flat Buyers
Worli police arrested a 41-year-old police constable, who was once bodyguard to former state Housing minister Sachin Ahir, for allegedly duping Rs 17 lakh from the personal assistant of an ex-minister in the same cabinet, after promising him a flat at cheap rate. The accused, Nitin Shrirang Gaikwad, who is attached with the Protection and Security wing of the Mumbai Police, was picked up on Sunday.
According to the police, Gaikwad claimed to “know people” in housing departments like Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) and sought money to facilitate the sale of flats at cheap rates to them.
“On this pretext, he took money from one Vijay Kale who was then posted as the personal assistant of minister of State for Finance and Planning, Rajendra Mulak,” said a police officer from Worli police station.
Gaikwad took as much as Rs 17 lakhs from the complainant from 2011 to 2014 and later, started avoiding him.
“When the BJP government came to power in the state, he promised to return the money once he was cleared of a disproportionate assets case registered by the anti-corruption bureau (ACB) in October 2016,” said the police officer.
However, after finding the wait too long, Kale lodged a complaint at the Worli police station on Sunday
Police sources revealed that Gaikwad was accused of using the same modus operandi to dupe other home buyers, and had cases registered against him at Worli, Matunga and Byculla police stations. ACB had earlier initiated investigations against him after finding the value of his assets 882 per cent more than his known sources of income. The ACB investigation had revealed that he owned a few flats and had jewellery worth around Rs 2.7 crore even as his monthly salary was just Rs 25,000.
“We have taken Gaikwad into custody,” said Akhilesh Singh, deputy commissioner of police, Zone III.
5. White, Or Red, Or Rose Petal Wine?
If Chenin blanc or Shiraz doesn’t cut it for you, or if you are looking for something beyond both Indian, French and wines from the New World, you could be in luck. A Punebased entrepreneur has recently submitted a proposal that could make the state government rethink its policy of allowing the making of wine only from fruits.
Jaysharee Yadav wants the government to consider flowers, leaves and stems of plants as raw material for wine. She is working on making wine from rose petals, and excise minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule has asked the excise department to explore the possibility. At the moment, the state allows wine to be made from fruits such as grapes, chickoo, banana and jamun, among others. “Our department has taken a positive view of this proposal, as it has immense potential to boost the state’s wine industry. We have sent the proposal for further examination to law and judiciary departments. Formal permission will be given to produce wine from other natural substance after their remarks,” said Bawankule. Maharashtra produces around 1.5 core liters of wine per annum, which is about 80% of India’s total production.
However, experts are not too enthused about wine made from flowers. “I have my doubts about whether wine can be produced from substances that lack sugar. Rose petals and flowers don’t have sugar. If you go by definition of word wine given by the European Union, only wine produced from grape can be called wine. Wine produced from other fruits such as mango or orange is categorised as mango wine or orange wine,” said Sonal Holland, the world’s first master of wine from India.
Neeraj Agarwal, vice president, Sula Vineyards, however, welcomed the move “Although wine made from grape will continue to dominate the market, this move will come as a value addition and help improve the rural economy.”
Source: Mumbai Mirror
6. Sept Deadline For Pali Market Project
Bandra’s Pali Market redevelopment project, which has been dragging on for the past 12 years because of alleged irregularities by the builder, has received a fresh deadline — September 30.
And if Manthan Developers, which was appointed to execute the project, is unable to finish construction, it will be shown the door and a new agency adopted, both BMC and Pali Hill residents agreed two days ago.
Fed up of the builder’s false promises, Pali Hill residents approached the BMC to cancel its contract and invite fresh tenders. The civic body called a meeting attended by residents’ representatives, BMC officials, local MLA Ashish Shelar and Abhijit Rane of Manthan Developers. The developer was pulled up and asked to complete the project by September, failing which it would face action. The last deadline was March 2017.
Madhu Poplai, secretary of Pali Hill Residents’ Association, said, “This is not the first time they missed the deadline. Every time we complain, he comes up with a new deadline. We don’t want to give him any more chance. We will wait for a few months and then put in a request for a new developer to take over the project.”
Rane said, “The work is going on as planned and we will hand over the market at the decided time.”
The Pali Market redevelopment, approved by BMC in 2004, first landed in controversy in 2007, after it was alleged that seven shopkeepers had formed a society to oversee the project without the knowledge of the remaining 49. The project hit another roadblock when the civic body instructed the builder to stop work after several residents claimed that it had encroached on the road adjoining the market, damaged a storm water drain nearby, and committed several other violations.
Residents had also accused the developer of trying to take over the plot as banners announcing a residential tower on the plot had come up in the area whereas the original plan doesn’t mention any such project. A BMC official said, “If the developer fails to hand over project by September, action will be taken.”
Source: Mumbai Mirror
7. Snake Bite, Building Gate Kill 4-year-olds In Kalyan And Dombivli
On Saturday night, two four-year-old children died in separate incidents in Kalyan and Dombivli. The first incident took place at Bhumi Complex in Kalyan East. Police said the incident took place at 6.30 pm.
"The society gate was kept near a wall as some repair work was going on. The boy Mayank Vaisha climbed up the gate, which ended up falling on him. He suffered head injuries and was taken to the Metro Hospital, where the doctor declared him dead at around 8.30pm," said a police official from Manpada police station.
The second death was of Shiva Jaiswal in Ahire Gaon in Dombivli East. Shiva was sleeping with his mother and brother Raj at their home, when a snake bit him. "At around 11 pm, I received a call from my wife who told me that Shiva has suffered a snakebite. I asked her to immediately shift him to hospital," said his father Arjun.
Shiva was then shifted to Shastri Nagar hospital, where the family claims the doctors delayed Shiva's treatment. "Had they injected him with anti-venom instead of asking us to complete filling the documents, the poison wouldn't have entered his body. Before they could start the treatment, he succumbed to his injuries," said his father Arjun.
Accidental death cases have been registered at Manpada and Dombivli police stations respectively.
Source: Mid-day
8. Mumbai Busiest Single-runway Airport With 1 Flight In 65 Seconds
The GVK group-run Mumbai airport has become the world's busiest amongst the single-runway facilities by handling 837 flights a day or one in 65 seconds on an average in fiscal 2017, overtaking London's Gatwick airport that had 757 flights a day.
In terms of the number of passengers also, the city airport tops with 45.2 million people flying in and out in fiscal 2017 as against 44 million at Gatwick airport. Notably, no other large city in the world is served by one airport, that too with a single-runway. Besides, illegal squatters occupy nearly one-third of the airport land. The second airport proposed in Navi Mumbai is yet to come up.
All the leading cities like New York, London, Dubai, and Singapore have more than one airports with multiple runways. The New Delhi airport has three parallel runways in use at any given time. As against this, Mumbai has to make do with a single runway (09/27) for all passenger and cargo aircraft and when it is shut for repairs, it uses the secondary runway (1432).
In terms of aircraft movement in a day, the city airport had one plane take-off or landing in 65 seconds, which means it handled on an average 48 flights, peaking at even 52 movements at times, making it the busiest in the world on both the counts, an airport spokesperson said.
Source: Mid-day
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