To improve the quality of water discharged into the Mumbai sea, the Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is constructing Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) at Worli, Dharavi, Bandra, Ghatkopar, Bhandup, Versova and Malad. The total processing capacity of these 7 projects under construction is 2,464 million litres per day (MLD). An STP with a capacity of 37 MLD was constructed in Colaba and became operational in April 2020. Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide directed that the work on all the under-construction STPs be completed within the stipulated time frame and it should be ensured that they are operational immediately. He added that the construction work at Malad STP is progressing at a brisk pace and the progress there is satisfactory.

Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide personally inspected the ongoing construction work of Malad STP this morning (July 18, 2026). During the visit, he reviewed the progress of the project and issued necessary instructions and directions to the concerned authorities. Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects) Abhijit Bangar, Local Corporator Qamar Jahan Siddiqui, Deputy Commissioner (Zone-4) Dr. Bhagya Shri Kapse, Deputy Commissioner (Commissioner’s Office) Prashant Gaikwad, Deputy Commissioner (Engineering) Shashank Bhore, Chief Engineer (Mumbai Sewerage Disposal Project) (In-charge) Shri Ashok Mengde, and other concerned officers were present.

Initially, Bhore reviewed the civil, mechanical and electrical engineering works of the Malad Sewerage Treatment Plant. He collected information from the concerned authorities about the current status of various components of the project, progress of work, quality standards and planning of remaining works. He inspected the installation of machinery and electrical system, performance of processing units and safety measures. Furthermore, he directed the officials to ensure strict adherence to quality standards at every stage and to ensure necessary planning to complete the project within the stipulated time frame. Bhide also reviewed the current operational status of the sewage treatment plants with a combined capacity of 2,501 million litres per day (MLD)—including Malad (454 MLD), Worli (500 MLD), Bhandup (215 MLD), Bandra (360 MLD), Dharavi (418 MLD), Ghatkopar (418 MLD), MLD (MLD), MLD (MLD), and Colaba (37 MLD)—through a computer presentation. He directed all the contractors to execute the work with high quality and within the stipulated time frame.

Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide said that the Mumbai Sewerage Disposal Project Department has started the design, construction, and operation and maintenance of the 454 MLD capacity Malad Sewage Treatment Plant (including land improvement works) from July 2022. The design and construction phase is spread over six years, followed by an operation and maintenance period of fifteen years. Sequential Batch Reactor (SBR) technology has been proposed for the project. The sewage treatment plant will treat 454 million litres of sewage per day through secondary treatment. Out of this, 227 million litres will later undergo tertiary treatment. Currently, the existing sewage treatment facility in Malad subjects sewage to only preliminary processes—screening and de-greasing—before discharging it into the creek. The proposed scope of work includes land reclamation, design and construction of a new sewage treatment plant, processing of sludge to ‘Class A’ standards, and generation of electricity from biogas generated during the treatment process. Bhide said that necessary permissions have been obtained for the removal of mangroves. Once the new sewage treatment plant is operational, the quality of sea water and marine life will improve. Moreover, the population living in Dahisar, Borivali, Kandivali, Malad, and Goregaon areas will benefit from the project.

Mumbai, July 18: The ED filed a charge sheet against self-proclaimed ‘godman’ Ashokkumar Eknath Kharat @Captain @ Bondhu Baba, his wife and four others for money-laundering linked to an extortion racket run under the guise of spiritual practices, an official statement said on Saturday.

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Mumbai Zonal Office, filed the charge sheet against Kharat, his wife Kalpana Kharat and other accused before the Special Court (PMLA), Mumbai.

Assets worth Rs 36.90 crore have been attached, seized or frozen in the case till date in the case, the statement said.

Earlier, the ED had also arrested Kharat on May 19 under Section 19 of the PMLA for the offence of money-laundering, and he continues to be in judicial custody.

On July 15, the ED provisionally attached immovable properties worth Rs 19.20 crore under Section 5 of the PMLA, 2002, held in the names of the accused and his family members, it said.

This was in addition to assets worth Rs 17.70 crore seized/frozen during searches conducted under Section 17 of the PMLA at multiple premises, bank lockers and vehicles linked to the accused and his associates during April and May 2026, said the ED.

The ED had initiated an investigation against Kharat based on multiple FIRs registered by Sarkar Wada, Shirdi, Sinnar and Rahata Police Stations.

Investigation revealed that Kharat exploited the religious faith of devotees and dishonestly induced them to part with money and properties under the pretext of performing “Avatar Poojas”, curing illnesses, averting misfortune and ensuring business prosperity, thereby generating Proceeds of Crime through extortion, cheating and criminal intimidation, the ED said.

Investigation also revealed that Kharat falsely projected himself as possessing divine powers and as an incarnation of Lord Shiva to deceive devotees, the ED said.

He laundered the Proceeds of Crime through two cooperative credit societies by fraudulently operating over multiple accounts in connivance with an employee and through multiple benami accounts for large cash deposits and subsequent withdrawals, including maturity proceeds, the ED said.

The laundered funds were retained with trusted associates or invested in immovable properties across Nashik, Ahmednagar, Solapur, Pune and Mumbai in the names of his family members, the ED said.

Nashik, July 18: A 20-year-old woman was stabbed to death by a 26-year-old man, who was later found hanging from a tree in the same locality, in what police suspect to be a case of murder-suicide in Maharashtra’s Nashik, officials said on Saturday.

According to the police, the accused, identified as Sahil Ashok Lavare, attacked and killed the victim, Vaishnavi Avare, near a temple in the Indiranagar area late on Friday night before allegedly dying by suicide at a jogging track in the locality during the early hours of Saturday.

Officials said the accused allegedly stabbed the woman multiple times and also slit her throat with a knife. Residents rushed to the spot after hearing the victim’s screams, but by the time they reached the scene, the accused had managed to flee.

Police said the woman succumbed to her injuries at the spot before she could receive medical assistance.

A few hours later, at around 3 A.M., the accused was found hanging from a tree at the jogging track in the Indiranagar area. Police suspect that he died by suicide after allegedly committing the murder.

According to officials, the victim was a student and had been living as a paying guest in the locality.

Preliminary investigation indicates that the victim and the accused had met on Friday evening before the incident took place. Investigators initially suspected that the attack may have been triggered by a one-sided love affair.

However, further investigation has revealed that Sahil Lavare and Vaishnavi Avare had allegedly been in a live-in relationship for nearly two years. According to the preliminary findings, the accused allegedly attacked the woman after she refused to marry him.

Police suspect that after allegedly murdering Vaishnavi, Sahil went to the Indiranagar jogging track complex, where he allegedly died by suicide by hanging himself from a tree.

Officials have registered a case of murder and launched a detailed investigation to ascertain the exact sequence of events and establish the precise motive behind the crime.

Police said further investigation into the incident is underway.