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Connectivity speed will determine growth of country: PM Modi

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that the connectivity speed will now determine the growth and development of the country.

At an event organised by the Ministry of Communication to mark the silver jubilee of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), he launched the 5G test bed. TRAI is celebrating its foundation day when the country is also planning the growth for the next 25 years under the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’, he said.

Expressing his happiness over the launch of 5Gi, he said that it will set its own standard of 5G in India.

Noting that the 5G technology will facilitate governance and make a positive change in ease of doing business in many fields, Prime Minister Modi said that it will create more jobs in many sectors.

The 6G service, he said, will be launched by the end of this decade, adding that a taskforce has already started working on the project.

Referring to the 2G period, he said: “It was full of frustration, corruption and policy paralysis but after that we came to 3G, 4G and now we are testing the 5G technology, developed by the Communication Ministry, Indian Institute of Technology at Chennai and Delhi”.

Noting that the Telecom sector is one of the finest examples of self-reliance, PM Modi also said that one-and-a-half times more foreign investments has come in the last eight years in comparison to total investment till 2014.

“Today, we are the fastest growing country using mobile and internet and mobile phone manufacturing. We had only two companies producing mobile phones but now there are over 200 mobile companies who are manufacturing mobile sets for our domestic needs but we are also exporting to other countries,” Modi said.

He also said that in 2014, the government initiated ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’ and wanted to get the people connected with the government sponsored programme at the minimum cost and “we initiate the connecting the Jan Dhan account, Aadhar card” with mobile to get the direct benefit schemes.

“To keep the call and internet data rate cheaper, we initiated policies in the telecom sector and made it competitive and healthy and this is why the calls and internet data both are quite cheap in India,” PM Modi said.

He also informed that over 1,75 lakh Gram Panchayats are connected with the broadband facility and gave approval of the 4G network by BSNL in Naxal-affected areas.

PM Modi also urged all the regulators of this sector to make a common platform to find out best solutions for the telecom industry in days to come.

Crime

Thane Crime Branch Arrests 25-Year-Old Serial Housebreaker, Cracks 9 Theft Cases In Bhiwandi; Seizes Gold Worth ₹5.98 Lakh

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Thane: The Thane Crime Branch Unit 2 has arrested a 25-year-old habitual thief and cracked nine house break-in cases reported across Bhiwandi.

Gold Worth ₹5.98 Lakh Recovered from Accused Akash Jadhav

According to police sources, 58 grams of gold ornaments worth ₹5.98 lakh were recovered from the accused’s possession. The suspect has been identified as Akash alias Chinya Jadhav, a resident of the Manpada area in Thane.

The investigation began after an FIR was filed at Narpoli police station for a housebreaking incident involving an unidentified suspect. Crime Branch officials, along with local police, launched a joint investigation. CCTV footage and technical intelligence led to the identification of Jadhav.

A trap was laid, and the accused was apprehended. He was produced in court and remanded to police custody for further investigation.

History of Theft: 9 Cases Registered Across Four Police Stations

During questioning, police discovered that Jadhav has a history of theft, with nine cases registered against him. These include five at Narpoli, two at Bhiwandi City, one at Nizampura, and one at Shantinagar police station.

Police confirmed the recovery of stolen gold ornaments during the arrest. Further investigation is underway.

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Maharashtra

Shiv Sena Protests Outside Congress Office Over Ex-Maha CM Prithviraj Chavan’s Controversial Remarks On Malegaon Blast Verdict

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Mumbai: Shiv Sena workers staged a protest outside the Congress office on Saturday, slamming senior party leader and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan over his recent remarks concerning the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case.

The protest came in response to Chavan’s comments following the acquittal of all seven accused in the Malegaon blast case by a special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court. The court ruled that there was “no reliable and cogent evidence” to support the charges against the accused, which included BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt Colonel Prasad Purohit. The blast, which occurred on September 29, 2008, near a mosque in Malegaon, killed six people and injured 101 others. It took nearly 17 years for the final verdict.

While speaking to media after the court’s decision, Chavan distanced himself from the controversial term “saffron terror.” He stated, “Don’t use the term ‘Saffron terrorism’. If you want to describe such acts, use ‘Hindu fundamentalist’ or ‘Hindu terrorism’ instead.” He also highlighted that saffron is a colour of cultural and religious significance, representing the flag of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the Warkari sect, and revered saints like Sant Tukaram and Sant Dnyaneshwar.

However, his choice of alternative phrases sparked outrage among right-wing groups and BJP allies. Shiv Sena, a coalition partner in the Maharashtra government, led the protest, condemning Chavan’s statements. Protesters demanded an apology, accusing the Congress of repeatedly targeting Hindu beliefs under the guise of secularism.

Chavan also responded to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement that “no Hindu can ever be a terrorist. “I want to remind Amit Shah that the first terrorist act in independent India was carried out by Nathuram Godse. What was his religion? Terrorism has no religion. This is BJP’s mindset, linking or delinking terrorism based on religious identity.”

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Maharashtra

Mithi River Desilting Scam: ED Raids BMC Engineer, Contractors; Freezes ₹47 Crore, Uncovers Civic Nexus

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Mumbai: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has frozen assets worth over Rs 47 crore after conducting search operations at eight locations across Mumbai in connection with the ongoing probe into the Rs 65-crore Mithi River desilting scam ,the central agency said on Saturday.

BMC Contractors and Senior Engineer Under Lens

The searches, carried out on July 31 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), were conducted at premises linked to BMC contractors M/s Acute Designs, M/s Kailash Construction Company, M/s Nikhil Construction Co, M/s N A Construction Pvt Ltd, and M/s J.R.S Infrastructure and and BMC’s Deputy Chief Engineer Prashant Krishna Tayshete.

With the latest action, the total value of proceeds of crime seized and frozen in the case now stands at approximately Rs 49.8 crore.

According to officials, the federal agency’s action led to the seizure of several incriminating documents, digital devices, and records of suspicious immovable property transactions, which are now under scrutiny.

The ED initiated its investigation following a case registered at Azad Maidan Police Station, Mumbai, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against 13 individuals and entities, including those mentioned above, for allegedly causing a wrongful loss of over Rs 65 crore to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

Scam Involved Forged MoUs and Fake NOCs

Evidence gathered during the course of the investigation and search operations has revealed irregularities in the Mithi River desilting contracts. According to the Enforcement Directorate, contractors allegedly colluded with officials of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) Storm Water Drainage (SWD) department to submit forged documents, including fake Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) from landowners and No Objection Certificates (NoCs) from gram panchayats, for lands purportedly used for silt dumping.

Machinery Procurement Manipulated for Kickbacks

The probe has further revealed that certain BMC officials misused their official positions for personal financial gain by manipulating the procurement process. Specifically, expensive machinery such as silt pushers and multipurpose amphibious pontoon machines were allegedly included in the 2021–2022 tenders to benefit select contractors.

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