Mumbai: Maharashtra Government is considering a proposal to increase the maximum daily working hours for private sector employees from the present nine to 10 hours a day, Labour Minister Akash Fundkar said on Wednesday.

The proposed changes are being studied to bring flexibility at workplaces and align state labour laws with international practices, he said.

The state labour department presented the proposal to the state cabinet during its meeting in Mumbai on Tuesday.

The proposal involves making revisions to the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2017, which governs working hours in shops, hotels, entertainment venues, and other businesses in the state.

The state cabinet sought additional information from the labour department before any decision is taken, the minister said.

Shops with 20 Staff to Come Under Act

“Once the labour codes are finalised, women will also get to work at late hours. In the existing rules, shops and establishments with 10 or less workers were not covered under our ministry. The new proposal raises the number to 20,” he said.

Fundkar, however, underlined that the government is still in the process of deliberation.

“No final decision has been taken on any of the issues yet. All the proposals are under consideration,” he stressed.

“In many private establishments, we found that people are working for longer hours than the prescribed ones but do not get paid for the extra work. This is one of the reasons we are considering increasing the working hours,” he said.

Officials said the labour department has suggested around five major amendments, including an increase in permissible overtime from 125 to 144 hours in three months and revising provisions related to continuous working hours with mandatory breaks.

The department has argued that the proposed changes would provide a more comfortable working environment, particularly for women, and address the long-standing concerns of employees and employers alike.

Palghar: The death toll has risen to 14 after a portion of a building collapsed in the Virar area of Palghar district, officials confirmed on Thursday. During the rescue operations conducted by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), two people were rescued, and one person sustained injuries.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has deployed two teams from its 5th battalion to the site.

Four-Storey Building Collapses in Virar

A section of the Ramabai Apartment, a four-storey building in Virar East, Palghar district, collapsed late Tuesday night, claiming two lives and injuring several others, officials said on Wednesday.

“14 people died when the rear portion of a four-storey Ramabai Apartments building located between Chamunda Nagar and Vijay Nagar on Narangi Road in Vasai collapsed yesterday. Rescue operations are underway,” NDRF said in a statement.

Further details are awaited.

In the initial manual and canine search, four people were pulled out; one was declared dead on site, and three were rescued alive. Tragically, a one-year-old child succumbed while being transported to the hospital.

Mumbai, Palghar NDRF Units Deployed

According to NDRF Deputy Commander Pramod Singh, “Two teams of the NDRF responded to the accident site–one from Mumbai and one from Palghar. As soon as the information was received at 12 am, the nearest team responded immediately.”

Emergency services, including the fire brigade and local police, are actively involved alongside NDRF teams. Authorities have set up barricades to maintain crowd control and are assessing the structural integrity of adjacent buildings. Several residents in adjoining buildings have been temporarily evacuated as a precautionary measure.

The incident occurred around 12:00 a.m., when the rear portion of the building collapsed onto an adjacent chawl, trapping multiple residents beneath the debris.

The rescued are receiving treatment at hospitals in Virar and Nalasopara, with some in serious condition.

Authorities are continuing their search to ensure no one remains trapped and are investigating the cause of the collapse further.

New Delhi/Bengaluru, Aug 27: Union Minister of State for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Labour and Employment Shobha Karandlaje has demanded an apology from Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar over his ‘Chamundi Hills is not exclusive to Hindus’ remark.

Speaking to reporters in Delhi, Shobha Karandlaje said on Wednesday: “Shivakumar has hurt Hindu sentiments. He chose to do so in order to please the Congress high command and his bosses in Delhi. He created a controversy in the Karnataka Assembly session by singing the RSS anthem. That may have upset his bosses, and they are angry with him.

“To divert attention, he created another controversy by claiming that Chamundi Hills does not belong to Hindus. What does he mean by this? Across the country and in Karnataka, the Waqf Board has claimed lakhs of acres of land, and in land records these have been declared Waqf properties. Farmers are not getting loans, people cannot build houses. Amid this, why has Shivakumar made such a statement about Chamundi Hills?” Shobha Karandlaje questioned.

Lashing out at Shivakumar, who is also the Congress’ Karnataka unit chief, she questioned: “Why is it not a Hindu property? Whom are you trying to please, Mr. Shivakumar? After you sang the RSS anthem, your high command grew angry. Now, to divert the issue, you are making statements that Chamundi Hills does not belong to Hindus. What exactly are you trying to say?

“Chamundi Hills belongs to Hindus, and Goddess Chamundeshwari is the deity of Hindus. We worship her and pray to her. Navaratri is the festival of Chamundeshwari,” Shobha Karandlaje said.

Further criticising the Siddarmaiah-led Karnataka government for inviting Booker Prize winner Banu Mushtaq to inaugurate Dussehra, she said: “How can the state government invite Booker awardee Banu Mushtaq to inaugurate Dussehra? Banu Mushtaq does not believe in Goddess Kannada Bhuvaneshwari. For ages, the Kannada language has been equated with Goddess Bhuvaneshwari, and we respect the language by giving it the status of a goddess. Banu Mushtaq does not respect this and has even spoken against it.

“After insulting Goddess Bhuvaneshwari, now Goddess Chamundeshwari has been insulted. In this background, Shivakumar should immediately apologise to the people of Karnataka. We will not tolerate this conspiracy. The conspiracy of Shivakumar, CM Siddaramaiah, and Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi will not be tolerated by Hindus.”

Attacking the Congress-led government in Karnataka, Shobha Karandlaje said: “Earlier, the police had taken the idol of Ganesha and placed in a police vehicle. This year too, the government has introduced peculiar rules and regulations. Authorities have conveyed that it will not be easy to hold Ganesha festivities and cultural programmes in the state.

“I question the government—why have so many restrictions been imposed on the Ganesha festival? Once a year, people install Ganesha idols, worship them, celebrate, and take out processions. But the government is imposing regulations and curbing their celebrations. The restrictions must be rolled back immediately. Ganesha festival was an inspiration during the freedom struggle.