Mumbai: Indian Railways discontinued the local train monthly pass booking facility on the UTS (Unreserved Ticketing System) app. Passengers travelling through the Mumbai local have now been advised to use the new RailOne app for booking railway passes.

Passengers whose passes are still valid can continue to show their existing pass on the UTS app to ticket-checking staff. However, the option to book new passes on UTS has been permanently withdrawn. A message on the UTS app now directs users to switch to RailOne for all pass-related bookings. While the pass facility has been removed, booking of unreserved tickets will continue to remain available on the UTS app.

In a move to promote digital payments, the Ministry of Railways has announced a 3 per cent discount on the purchase of unreserved tickets through the RailOne app when payments are made using any digital payment mode. This offer will be valid for six months, from January 14, 2026 to July 14, 2026.

Earlier, users received a 3 per cent cashback only when payments were made through the R-wallet on the RailOne app. With the new decision, passengers will now get a direct discount on payments made via UPI, debit cards, credit cards and other digital payment methods. The Railway Ministry communicated this decision to the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) through a letter dated December 30, directing immediate implementation of the necessary software changes.

The RailOne app is available on both the Play Store and App Store. It offers multiple railway services on a single platform, including monthly pass booking, reserved and unreserved ticket booking, refunds, food ordering, train search and PNR status checks.

Passengers opening the UTS app will see a message prompting them to download the RailOne app.

Click on the provided link to download RailOne.

Enter the required details, including identity information.

Log in to the app and proceed to book the pass.

Alternatively, passengers can also book monthly passes at the Passenger Reservation System (PRS) counters located at railway stations.

Mumbai: Traffic movement was briefly disrupted on Mumbai’s Aarey Colony Road in the early hours of Thursday after a BEST bus collided with a truck near Aarey Unit No. 16 (Dindoshi), on the first day of 2026. The incident occurred during the morning hours, leading to slow-moving traffic in the area for nearly an hour. No casualties or injuries were reported.

Videos of the accident surfaced on social media by local news portal, showing the bus and truck blocking a portion of the road as commuters navigated through the congestion. Traffic personnel were deployed to regulate movement and ensure normal flow was restored at the earliest.

The Mumbai Traffic Police confirmed the incident through a public update. “Traffic to Aarey Unit No. 16 (Dindoshi) is moving slowly due to a truck and bus accident,” the police said in a message posted around 9 am. An hour later, authorities announced that the situation had been brought under control, stating, “Now traffic is clear.”

The incident has drawn attention as it comes just days after a fatal BEST bus accident near Bhandup railway station on the night of December 29, 2025. In that incident, a BEST bus rammed into a group of passengers standing in a queue on Bhandup Station Road, killing four people and injuring nine others. CCTV footage of the crash had captured the moments when the bus ploughed into the unsuspecting commuters around 10 pm, a peak hour for office-goers returning home.

The bus involved in the Bhandup tragedy was a 9-metre air-conditioned Olectra electric bus operating on a wet lease for BEST and was plying on Route 606, which connects Nagardas Nagar and Bhandup station. Following the crash, Bhandup police and senior officials rushed to the spot, shifted the injured to nearby hospitals and cordoned off the road to prevent further mishaps.

Confirming the casualties in the earlier incident, Deputy Police Commissioner Hemra Singh Rajput had said, “Four people have died and nine others have been injured in the incident. The bus driver has been taken into custody.”

Mumbai: ushered in the New Year 2026 with an unexpected spell of rain, as heavy showers lashed several parts of South Mumbai early on Thursday morning. Many areas in SoBo witnessed intense rainfall at dawn, while the suburbs experienced light to moderate showers. As the morning progressed, the rain gave way to clearer skies, gentle winds and reduced humidity, creating a pleasant, almost winter-like atmosphere that offered residents a welcome respite from the usual heat and pollution.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast a partly cloudy sky with haze for the day, predicting temperatures to range between 16°C and 29°C. The sudden rainfall played a crucial role in improving Mumbai’s air quality, which had deteriorated sharply in the preceding days.

According to air quality monitoring platform AQI.in, Mumbai’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) was recorded at 115 during the early hours of Thursday, placing it in the ‘poor’ category. However, this marked a noticeable improvement compared to the previous day, when air quality levels across several parts of the city had plunged into the ‘severe’ to ‘hazardous’ range. Such high pollution levels are known to pose serious health risks, particularly for children, senior citizens and individuals with respiratory or heart-related conditions.

The spike in pollution is largely due to construction dust and fine particulate matter. Mumbai is currently witnessing extensive government-led infrastructure development, including metro rail corridors, flyovers, coastal road extensions and large-scale road widening projects. Alongside these, aggressive private real estate construction has significantly increased dust emissions. Vehicular exhaust, especially during peak traffic hours at major junctions, has further worsened air quality.

Several localities emerged as pollution hotspots despite the improvement. Chembur recorded an alarming AQI of 293, categorised as ‘unhealthy’, indicating conditions that could adversely affect even healthy individuals. Deonar and Worli followed with AQI levels of 157 and 153, respectively, both falling in the ‘poor’ category. Colaba registered an AQI of 143, while Malad, a key residential and commercial area, recorded 140.

In contrast, many suburban areas saw substantial improvement, with air quality moving into the ‘moderate’ range. Borivali West recorded an AQI of 65 and Charkop stood at 72. Kandivali East (75), Santacruz (77) and Govandi (78) also reported moderate air quality, offering some relief to residents.

As per standard classifications, AQI levels between 0–50 are considered ‘good’, 51–100 ‘moderate’, 101–200 ‘poor’, 201–300 ‘unhealthy’, and above 300 ‘severe’ or ‘hazardous’.