1. Note Ban Was Instant, Why Not Ram Mandir, Asks Uddhav Thackeray
Taking pot shots at coalition partner Bharatiya Janata Party, Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday questioned why the decision on building the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya was hanging fire when the move to demonetise was effected instantly.
Mr. Thackeray was speaking here after a meeting of the Sena’s western Maharashtra unit leaders and party workers to assess poll preparedness.
“While the demonetisation decision was taken so quickly, why has the work on Ram Mandir not commenced yet. They [the BJP] had promised it would begin before the elections. Going by the tardy pace, the question is which elections, the 2019 or 2050?” asked Mr. Thackeray.
He further accused the BJP of dragging its feet on other vital policy matters like the repudiation of Article 370 of the Constitution and the Uniform Civil Code.
(Source: The Hindu)
2. Selfie Craze Leaves Three Stranded At Uttan Beach
Three college students were rescued by the fire brigade and local fishermen after they were stranded amid an angry sea at Uttan’s Velankanni Beach on Sunday. The boys were reportedly so engrossed in clicking selfies against the tall waves that they failed to notice the alarming rise in water levels around them. Luckily, help arrived, and they were brought back to the shore safely.
Vishal Minde, 19, Sachin Waghmare,16, and Sumit Katpara, 18, residents of Bhayandar East, had gone to the popular beach located ahead of Gorai for a picnic on Sunday morning at around 11 am.
According to the locals, the trio ventured quite deep towards the sea and began taking selfies while perched on some rocks. They were so enthralled by the crashing waves that they forgot to notice that the water around them had risen to alarming levels due to the high tide and within half an hour the rock they were sitting on had almost gone under.
(Source: Mumbai Mirror)
3. RPF Cop Saves Man Being Dragged By Running Train At Panvel Station
An RPF constable’s prompt response saved a man from being crushed under a running train at Panvel stationon Saturday evening. The passenger was reportedly trying to board the train when he lost his balance and got dragged.
If not for the heroic efforts of Constable Vinod Shinde, 25-year-old Ravi Balu would have probably lost his grip and slipped in the gap between the train and the platform to a certain death.
According to the CCTV footage accessed by Mirror, Balu is seen trying to unsuccessfully board the train while holding onto the door of the Panvel-Nanded Express. He soon loses his footing.
A passenger on the platform notices him and tries to help but quickly steps back probably fearing for his own life. A constable with the Panvel RPF, Shinde, however, jumps to action and quickly hauls Balu away from the moving train.
(Source: Mumbai Mirror)
4. Maharashtra Minister Says Potholes Alone Cannot Be Blamed For Accidents
At a time when five people have died due to damaged roads in Mumbai in the last two weeks, Maharashtra PWD minister Chandrakant Patil has said that potholes could not be entirely blamed for accidents. Trivialising accidents due to potholes, Patil reasoned that about five lakh people travel on a road daily and its condition alone cannot be held liable for the deaths.
“When you talk about a death in such an accident, you forget that five lakh other people have travelled on the same road. You can not put the entire blame on the (condition of) roads alone,” Patil said on Saturday. Surprisingly, the minister acknowledged that he did not have information about the recent accidents in the Mumbai region but said action would be taken against erring officials.
Patil further said family members of the deceased would get due compensation. The minister’s remarks come at a time when a report, shared by states with the Centre, mentioned that Maharashtra came second in pothole-related deaths. The state recorded doubling of deaths at 726 in 2017 from 329 in the preceding year. Uttar Pradesh tops the list with 987 pothole-related deaths in 2017.
(Source: Indian Express)
5. Congress Fills Potholes In Bandra, Hits Out At BMC
Congress workers on Saturday counted and filled potholes in Bandra as part of its Aao Potholes Giney campaign. The Congress accused the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) of not being prepared for the monsoons.
Sanjay Nirupam, the Congress city unit chief, said that the Shiv Sena and the BJP should quit the BMC if it is unable to keep the city’s roads free of potholes. He also lashed out at the BMC for failing to meet its 48-hour deadline to repair potholes.
The 48-hour “promise” was made by Additional Municipal Commissioner Vijay Singhal in the BMC’s general body meeting after corporators pulled up the civic administration over potholes. Mr. Nirupam said, “The BMC had given themselves a deadline, which has ended. The BMC has failed to repair most of the roads and their apathy and incompetency is taking the lives of Mumbaikars.” He claimed that the BMC would require 2,500 tonnes of cold mix to repair all the potholes, but it only had 40 tonnes in its stock.
(Source: The Hindu)
6. Vasai Floods: Dead Man’s Family Gets Rs 4 Lakh Compensation
The family of Dashrath Jadhav, a Naigaon resident who lost his life in the floods in Vasai on July 10, received Rs 4 lakh as compensation from the state government on Sunday.
Jadhav, a resident of Someshwar Nagar, died after falling into a drain during the flood on July 10, said Tehsildar Kiran Survase. “The family was compensated as per government guidelines,” said Survase adding that another family, that of Banwari Gupta from Rajavali in Naigaon, will also be compensated. “The family is currently out of town. As soon as they are back, they will be given the compensation,” he said.
On Sunday, the tehsildar’s office began surveying damage to buildings and livelihoods caused by the flood. “So far, we have conducted 3,000 panchnamas. We are looking for houses where waterlogging continued for two days or more and also recording the structural damages to the buildings,” said Survase.
(Source: Indian Express)
7. Senior Citizen Found Dead In Powai
A senior citizen was found dead in the fire escape on the seventh floor of her building in Powai on Saturday morning. Police said prima facie, Laxmi Rout (70) is suspected to have committed suicide.
They said the deceased lived with her family on the 17th floor of Maple Leaf building in Raheja Vihar, Powai. According to them, Ms. Rout said she would be taking a bath around 9 a.m. A short while later, family members noticed she wasn't in the house, and began looking for her. In her statement to the police, her daughter-in-law Rupamita said she initially thought Ms. Rout was out collecting flowers for her daily prayers. Around 10 a.m. the building’s garbage collector informed them that she had been found dead in the seventh-floor fire escape.
Police said bloodstains were found on the 15th floor, leading them to suspect she might have hurt herself before her end in the fire escape. She was taken to Rajawadi Hospital in Ghatkopar, where she was declared ‘dead before admission’.
(Source: The Hindu)
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