Mumbai: In a disturbing trend of cyber fraud targeting senior citizens in Mumbai, two elderly individuals were collectively defrauded of Rs4.79 crore by scammers posing as officials from the Telecom Department, Delhi Police, Colaba Police, and the CBI. The victims, 82-year-old Bidhin Manharlal Bakshi from Vile Parle (West) and 68-year-old Dhanalakshmi Satyanarayan Rao Naidu from Andheri (West), lodged complaints with the West Region Cyber Police Station, leading to FIRs against unidentified perpetrators under sections of the BNS and the Information Technology Act for impersonation, forgery, cheating, and criminal intimidation.

On September 30, Bakshi received a WhatsApp video call from an individual claiming to be Pawan Kumar from the Telecom Department in Delhi, alleging that Bakshi’s Aadhaar card was misused to open a fake Canara Bank account linked to illegal international transactions. Subsequent calls from fraudsters posing as Delhi Police sub-inspector Khushi Sharma and CBI officer Hemraj Kohli escalated the deception, claiming a criminal case was registered against him at Connaught Place Police Station. They warned of an imminent arrest warrant for Bakshi and his family unless he complied. Convinced by their threats, Bakshi transferred Rs1.08 crore from his and his wife’s accounts to “safe accounts” for a so-called clearance certificate, under strict instructions not to inform anyone.

Similarly, on August 18, Naidu received a call from a man identifying himself as Vijay Paul, connecting her to “SK Jaiswal” from Colaba Police via a WhatsApp video call. The fraudsters accused her of involvement in a Rs6 crore money laundering case linked to a Canara Bank account opened with her Aadhaar details, citing a fake case (HQ No. 8817) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. They claimed she was under investigation alongside businessman Naresh Goyal. A sham “online hearing” with a fake judge named Chandrachud denied her bail, pressuring her to transfer Rs3.71 crore from her mutual funds via RTGS for “security verification.” The scammers later demanded more money and became evasive when Naidu sought a refund.

Both victims, realising they were deceived, approached the West Region Cyber Police. Naidu also reported the fraud via the 1930 cybercrime helpline, providing chats, transaction details, and screenshots. The police are investigating the use of forged police and CBI logos, fabricated FIRs, and fake letters.

Mumbai, Oct 19: The RBI is likely to go in for another policy rate cut before the end of the year, which, along with fiscal consolidation and domestic regulatory easing, would lead to a gradual recovery in credit demand, according to a Goldman Sachs report.

“We expect an additional policy rate cut before year-end, and the recent GST simplification signals that peak fiscal consolidation is behind us. We expect this, along with domestic regulatory easing, to foster a gradual recovery in credit demand,” the report said.

The report observes that the recent measures announced by the RBI should ease supply-side credit conditions; however, the extent of incremental lending will depend on the demand situation in the broader economy.

External headwinds continue to weigh on India’s outlook, including tighter US immigration costs for H-1B visas that affect Indian IT services, in addition to elevated US tariffs on Indian goods and “these factors could temper credit demand alongside broader macro uncertainty”, the report states.

India’s inflation rate based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) declined to an over 8-year low of 1.54 per cent in September this year. This gives the RBI more space to focus on reducing the policy rate and injecting more liquidity into the economy to promote growth.

The RBI has raised its projection of India’s GDP growth rate to 6.8 per cent for 2025-26 from 6.5 per cent earlier, as the implementation of several growth-inducing structural reforms, including streamlining of GST, is expected to offset some of the adverse effects of the external headwinds, Reserve Bank Governor Sanjay Malhotra said earlier this month.

He pointed out that India’s GDP recorded a robust growth of 7.8 per cent in Q1:2025-26, driven by strong private consumption and fixed investment. On the supply side, growth in gross value added (GVA) at 7.6 per cent was led by a revival in manufacturing and steady expansion in services. Available high-frequency indicators suggest that economic activity continues to remain resilient. Rural demand remains strong, riding on a good monsoon and robust agricultural activity, while urban demand is showing a gradual revival, the RBI Governor further stated.

Mumbai: A 15-year-old teenager tragically lost his life, and three others were injured in a fire that broke out early Monday morning in a chawl at Machhimar Nagar, Cuffe Parade. Officials from the Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB) managed to extinguish the blaze within an hour. The injured individuals were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment

According to information received from the BMC’s Disaster Management Cell, the incident occurred around 4:00 am in a chawl located on Captain Prakash Pethe Marg. Fire officials from the MFB, along with local police and BEST personnel, rushed to the site to carry out firefighting and rescue operations.

The blaze was confined to electric wiring, electrical installations, three electric vehicle batteries, and household articles. It affected an area of approximately 10×10 feet on the first floor of a one-plus-one chawl structure..

Four persons were rescued and admitted to St. George Hospital, where one of the victims, Yash Khot (15), was declared dead. Devendra Choudhary (30) is currently admitted to the ICU, while the condition of the other two injured—Viraj Khot (13) and Sangram Kurne (25)—is reported to be stable. Cooling operations are currently underway, and the exact cause of the fire is yet to be determined.