Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Tuesday claimed that Devendra Fadnavis has not shifted to `Varsha’, the official residence of the Maharashtra Chief Minister in south Mumbai, because of superstition.

The grapevine has it that buffaloes allegedly slaughtered in Guwahati during Eknath Shinde’s visit to the Kamakhya temple were buried on the premises of `Varsha’ so that the CM’s post should not stay with anybody else other than Shinde, he said.

Fadnavis succeeded Shinde as chief minister following the November 2024 assembly elections.

“Why isn’t Devendra Fadnavis not moving into `Varsha’? The CM has said even if he moves there, he will not sleep there. What is this? The `limbu samrat, limbu mirchi’ (a reference to those who practise black magic) of the Shiv Sena should respond to this,” said Raut, a member of the Rajya Sabha.

`Limbu’ (lemon) and `mirchi’ (chilli) are supposedly used by black magic practitioners.

“I have heard there were discussions within the BJP that the horns of the buffaloes sacrificed in Guwahati were buried in the lawns of Varsha….there is talk that the horns were brought here so that the CM’s post should not stay with anyone else, this is what the staff says,” Raut told reporters.

While there was no immediate reaction from the chief minister’s aides to Raut’s claims, Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde, now deputy CM, told reporters on a sarcastic note: “Raut is an expert in that field. He should know.”

In the past, Raut had alleged that buffaloes were slaughtered at Guwahati after Shinde revolted against Uddhav Thackeray and camped at a hotel in the Assam city with other rebel Shiv Sena MLAs before returning to Maharashtra and becoming chief minister by toppling the Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government.

Raut, meanwhile, demanded an explanation from Fadnavis about why he was not living at `Varsha’, a “pride of the state.”

Maharashtra is a progressive state with a tradition of social reformers like Mahatma Phule, Prabodhankar Thackeray and Gadge Maharaj who assailed superstitions, he said, adding that yet superstition has now taken over the corridors of power.

Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has proposed a financial grant of Rs 1,000 crore to the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) Undertaking in its Budget Estimates (B.E.) for the financial year 2025-26. This allocation comes despite BMC’s own pressing financial commitments toward ongoing infrastructure projects and other essential objectives.

Since 2012-13, BMC has extended financial assistance totaling Rs 11,304.59 crore to BEST until January 2025. The new Rs 1,000 crore provision aims to address various operational and capital expenditures, including infrastructural development, capital equipment procurement, loan repayment, acquisition of new buses through a wet lease model, employee pay revisions, day-to-day operational costs, the Intelligent Transport Management System (ITMS) project, Diwali bonuses, pensioners’ gratuities, and electricity dues.

Additionally, the grant includes Rs 128.65 crore as BMC’s 5% share for the procurement and deployment of 2,000 electric buses for Mumbai, in accordance with the directives of the Maharashtra State Government.

Boost for Electric Mobility

In a significant push toward sustainable urban transport, the 15th Finance Commission has sanctioned Rs 992 crore for the purchase of electric buses. Of this, Rs 493.38 crore has already been disbursed to BEST, while the remaining Rs 498.62 crore will be transferred upon receipt from the Finance Commission. This initiative aligns with Mumbai’s long-term goal of transitioning to an eco-friendly public transport system.

Mumbai’s public transportation backbone, BEST, has been grappling with financial challenges in recent years. Despite serving nearly 35 lakh passengers daily, the BEST fleet is dwindling, with the number of buses reduced to below 3,000. Notably, nearly two-thirds of these buses are operated on wet lease agreements.

Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has allocated Rs 7,380.43 crore for healthcare in its 2025-26 budget of Rs 74,427 crore, focusing on hospital redevelopment, disease prevention and expanded medical services.

To increase capacity, 3,515 new beds will be added through municipal hospital redevelopment. Intensive care and neonatal ICU services in suburban hospitals will also be expanded. The Hinduhridaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray – Aapla Dawakhana initiative, which has 250 centres and 33 polyclinics, has benefited 90 lakh patients so far.

New Aapla Dawakhana Centres To Come Up In City

In the coming year, 25 new Aapla Dawakhana centres and three physiotherapy centres will be set up. Free diagnostic tests, including X-rays, ECGs, CT scans, MRI and mammography, will be provided at municipal rates through private labs.

Under a public-private partnership model, private institutions will operate and maintain hospitals for 30 years. These include the 490-bed Bhagwati Hospital in R/North Ward, a 300-bed hospital transferred from MMRDA in M/East Ward, as well as the Punjabi Galli Diagnostic Center, Jakhadevi Multi-Specialty Clinic and Vikhroli Parksite Hospital.

Several specialty medical services and hospital upgrades are planned. Nair Hospital will get a new oncology and emergency department, while Cooper Hospital will have a 150-bed cancer unit equipped with Linear Accelerator radiation therapy. IVF and dialysis services will be expanded at KEM, Nair, and LTMG Hospitals. The redevelopment of LTMG Hospital will include a new nursing college and an oncology building.

A ‘Zero Prescription Policy’ will ensure that all required medicines are available in municipal hospitals. The ‘Aarogya Seva Aaplya Dari’ initiative will introduce door-to-door health check-ups. DNB medical courses will be expanded, with new specialisations in ENT and Anesthesia.

Cancer Screening Initiative

In terms of disease prevention and cancer screening, 30 lakh citizens will be screened for hypertension, while an HPV vaccination program will be launched for girls aged 9 to 14 to prevent cervical cancer. A ward-wise cancer care model will be implemented to screen for oral, breast and cervical cancer.

Efforts to eliminate tuberculosis include distributing kits with masks, sanitizers, and spittoons to all TB patients. A Next-Generation Sequencing pilot project at Kasturba Hospital will improve TB diagnosis. A new BPaL regimen for MDR-TB treatment will be introduced.

Initiatives Benefitting Pregnant Women & Children

Maternal and child healthcare initiatives include 38 ‘Maa Mitra’ helpdesks to track high-risk pregnancies, automated voice calls and SMS alerts for pregnant women and infant immunization, cochlear implant surgeries for children with hearing disabilities at AJB ENT Hospital, and the establishment of two new Nutrition Rehabilitation Centres for malnourished children.

The immunization and disease surveillance program will conduct 52,000 vaccination sessions annually across Mumbai. A Typhoid Sentinel Surveillance program will be introduced in nine health centres.