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Central Railway’s Plan To End Harbour Line Services At Sandhurst Road & Cut Fast Train Halts At Byculla Faces Backlash

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Central Railway’s Plan To End Harbour Line Services At Sandhurst Road & Cut Fast Train Halts At Byculla Faces Backlash

Central Railway’s (CR) recent proposal to terminate Harbour Line suburban services at Sandhurst Road and eliminate fast train halts at Byculla has sparked significant opposition from passengers’ associations and experts .

“The changes are being considered to facilitate the extension of the fifth and sixth lines up to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT)” said an official adding that this idea is still in its initial stage.

Former General Manager Of Central Railway On The New Plan

Criticizing the new idea of CR, Subodh Jain, former general manager of Central Railway and retired members of railway board said, ” I am unable to appreciate the proposal of terminating harbour line at Sandhurst Road. The traffic on the harbour line is growing at much faster rate because of growth in Navi Mumbai and connectivity to Western suburbs. Assuming that 40,000 commuters will reach Sandhurst Road and board during peak hour is foolish”

According to sources, the proposed alterations are intended to make space for the extension of the fifth and sixth lines up to CSMT. Currently, the fifth and the sixth lines exist between Kalyan and LTT and the work of extension of the 5th 6th line up to Patel is on.

“To accommodate this, CR is considering halting Harbour Line services at Sandhurst Road and repurposing platforms 1 and 2 at CSMT and Masjid for mainline slow services. This would also involve demolishing fast corridor platforms at Byculla to create room for new tracks, which would result in the removal of fast train stoppages between CSMT and Dadar” said a senior railway.

Strong Objections Raised

Passengers’ associations have also voiced strong objections to these proposals.

Subhash Gupta, Chairman of the Rail Yatri Parishad, also disapproved of the proposal, labelling it as “foolish” and calling for a reconsideration of alternative options.

Lata Agarde, Secretary of the Suburban Passengers Association, expressed strong concerns about the proposed termination of Harbour Line suburban services at Sandhurst Road. She highlighted that this move would significantly inconvenience commuters, particularly those travelling from Navi Mumbai. Agarde suggested that Central Railways reconsider relocating the Harbour Line services to the P D Mello Road side. Additionally, she criticized the plan to eliminate fast train stoppages at Byculla, arguing that it would worsen congestion at other stations. Agarde urged railway officials to re-visit Byculla station during peak hours to better understand the implications of their plan.

Siddhesh Desai a passenger activist, criticized the plan, suggesting that the termination of Harbour Line services at Sandhurst Road and the elimination of stoppage of fast train services at Byculla would disrupt commuter convenience. He urged the Railway authorities to explore alternative solutions.

The fifth and sixth lines currently exist between Kalyan to LTT. The extension of the 5th and 6th lineup to Parel is on. The debate over their alignment between Parel and CSMT has been complicated by land acquisition issues, particularly the need for private land.

Previously, CR proposed an alternative alignment for the Harbour Line, which involved rerouting over the Eastern Freeway and terminating Harbour Line services at a deck on existing platforms 17 and 18 at CSMT. However, this plan was eventually scrapped.

Maharashtra

Mumbai : There is no solution to the problem of landslides in the last 15 years, 22,483 families live in dangerous areas in the city and suburbs

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Mumbai: Hill collapses are not new to Mumbai, but the state government has failed to take serious steps to address the problem in the last 15 years. In the last 34 years, 340 people have lost their lives and over 300 have been injured in landslides.

In 25 of Mumbai’s 36 assembly constituencies, 257 places in hilly areas have been classified as dangerous. RTI activist Anil Gilgali said that the Mumbai Slum Improvement Board had recommended the relocation of 9,657 out of 22,483 identified slums on priority basis. It had also proposed to make the remaining slums safe by building protective walls around the hills. Gilgali had earlier warned the Maharashtra government about the risk of landslides at 327 places during the monsoon season.

Between 1992 and 2026, 340 people died and over 300 were injured in landslides. The Mumbai Slum Improvement Board had recommended relocation. A comprehensive survey was conducted in 2010. If action had been taken then, the deaths of the residents of these hilly areas could have been prevented. Following the board’s report and Anil Gilgali’s correspondence, the then Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan ordered the Urban Development Department to prepare an action plan on September 1, 2011. However, 15 years have passed since then, and the Urban Development Department is yet to start working on it. In other words, no one has prepared an ‘Action Taken Plan’ (ATP) as directed by the Chief Minister,

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Maharashtra

Robbery in Mumbai Saki Naka, 4 arrested, stolen goods recovered

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Mumbai: The Sakinaka police have claimed to have solved the mystery of the robbery at the junk shop of the complainant, Mohammed Hussain Abdul Karim, and arrested the accused. 22 kg of silver and cash worth a total of Rs 44 lakh were stolen from the junk shop. The shop was located in Anise Compound. The police had registered a complaint regarding this. On this basis, the Mumbai Police’s detection team tracked down the thieves and arrested four accused and claimed to have seized silver worth Rs 44 lakh and a mobile phone. The accused have been identified as Maqsood Shah, 20, a resident of Sakinaka in Mumbai, Uttar Pradesh, Zeeshan Abdul Subhan, 20, a resident of Mumbra, Daighar, Akhbar Hussain Ghulam Murtaza, 27, Mumbra, and Irfan Noorullah Khan, 26, Siddharth Nagar, UP. The four accused have been arrested and the stolen goods have been recovered. This operation was carried out by DCP Dutta Nalawade on the instructions of Mumbai Police Commissioner Deven Bharti.

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Maharashtra

37 unauthorized shops removed from footpaths in Vakola area, action taken by BMC ‘H East’ ward under ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign

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Mumbai: The Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is implementing the ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign to ensure that pedestrians can walk on the footpaths with ease. As part of this initiative, action was taken to remove 37 unauthorised shops obstructing the footpaths along Rajendra Kamble Marg in Vakola area yesterday (August 11, 2026). The operation was carried out by the ‘H East’ ward of BMC. As per the directions of the High Court and under the guidance of Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide. BMC is effectively implementing the ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign to clear the footpaths of unauthorised hawkers and encroachments, thus making them free from obstructions. In this backdrop, the footpaths along Rajendra Kamble Marg in Vakola were cleared during an operation led by Assistant Commissioner (H East Ward) Smt. Mr. Mridula Ande, Deputy Commissioner (Zone-3) under the guidance of Shri Vishwas Mote. During this drive, 37 unauthorized shops erected on footpaths were removed, and materials obstructing the walkways were seized.

The operation was carried out with the support of about 31 officers and staff members using 4 vehicles, 2 dumpers, 1 JCB and other machinery. Adequate police security was deployed during the drive.
Meanwhile, the Municipal Corporation continues to implement measures to ensure the availability of accessible footpaths for pedestrians. Therefore, unauthorized constructions or placement of materials obstructing footpaths are prohibited. The Municipal Corporation administration has said that strict action will be taken if such incidents are found.

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