Mumbai: Once again, the Hindu Sangha protested in Kurla area demanding strict action against illegal hawkers, after which the BMC will now register a case against such hawkers who have been repeatedly found occupying the road and footpath or have interfered in the action. To make the action against hawkers more effective, the police and BMCL L ward should take joint action. The residents of Kurla are facing a lot of problems due to hawkers, after which an important meeting was held in L ward in which DMC Sarshagar made it clear that action will be taken against illegal encroachments along with clearing Kurla of hawkers.

Assistant Municipal Commissioner Dhanaji Herlekar said that in order to make further progress in the operation that was going on in the limits of L Ward Kurla in January, an FIR will now be registered for effective action. On the complaint of BMC, the police will now register a case in this matter. In this meeting, Kurla Senior Police Inspector Rukas Mehmkar has assured all possible cooperation in the operation. Earlier, the Sakal Hindu Samaj also tried to give a communal and religious color to the hawkers and hawkers. Along with this, action has also been demanded against the illegal Iftar party in the market and the unauthorized Iftar party on the road. Not only this, there is also a demand to remove the temporary prayer shed in the market, on which BMC officers have assured necessary action.

The BMC has now taken action against the illegal encroachment on footpaths in Kurla, and Assistant Municipal Commissioner Dhanaji Herlekar has made it clear that action will also be taken against the hotels that have encroached on roads and footpaths. This action will be taken in collaboration with the traffic police and police personnel. After the assurance of the BMC, the Circle Hindu Samaj ended its protest. BJP leader Rupesh Pawar has said that hotels have occupied the footpath from Kurla Sahara Hotel to LBS Marg. There is a traffic problem here. There are five hospitals at the same location. If a patient is in a critical condition, it is difficult to reach the hospital. Many patients have also died in this. Therefore, action is also necessary against those hotels that do business on the footpath. This is why the citizens of Kurla are worried about the footpath and if the BMC relaxes the action on this, the protest will intensify further. Hindskal has warned the BMC that if action is not taken against illegal businesses and hawkers, the protest will intensify further.

Mumbai: St Xavier’s College in Mahim, Mumbai, received a bomb threat on Tuesday, said the official.

According to the Mumbai police, St Xavier’s College in Mahim, Mumbai, received a bomb threat. Nothing suspicious was found by the police, and they believe this is primarily a hoax threat.

The police are taking appropriate action and investigating.

More details awaited.

This comes after a series of bomb threats earlier this week caused panic across the city.

On Wednesday, threat emails were received at multiple locations, including the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), Vidhan Bhawan, and the High Court.

Police, including the Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS) team, are present on the scene, officials said on Wednesday.

According to the Mumbai police, threat mail has been received at BSE, Vidhan Bhawan and the High Court this morning.

“Adequate security measures have been taken and are in place. Necessary legal action is being taken at the respective police stations,” Mumbai Police said.

On March 8, a hospital in Mumbai received a bomb threat via email, claiming that an “LED blast” would be carried out on the premises.

The email sparked significant panic among patients and staff.

In response, the Mumbai Police’s Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS) conducted a thorough inspection of the hospital.

Mumbai: Local and civic bodies across the state have heaved a much-needed sigh of relief as the central government has started releasing development funds that had been held back for the last four years because the bodies were under administrators’ rule. The funds were approved by the Fifteenth Finance Commission from 2022–23 onwards, but had not been released.

In the last few days, the state government has released Rs 606 crore to Municipal Councils, Municipal Panchayats, Zilla Parishads and Panchayat Samitis whose elections were held in the last few months.

The Fifteenth Finance Commission, constituted in 2021–22 for a five-year term, will complete its tenure this year. The Finance Commission is mandated to determine the share of funds from the central pool to be allocated to various states and local bodies. These funds come from taxes and levies collected by the central government.

The funds approved by the Commission had remained stuck in the central treasury as they could not be allocated in the absence of elected bodies. The state, despite the tenure of almost all local and civic bodies having ended, could not hold elections due to controversies over OBC reservation and the powers related to the formation of electoral wards. It was only after a decision by the Supreme Court that the election process was set in motion.

Of the Rs 606.63 crore released in the last few days, Rs 182 crore is under the Million Plus Cities programme approved by the Finance Commission for 2024–25. The programme aims to improve infrastructure and environmental quality in urban agglomerations.

Another Rs 273 crore has been earmarked for cities to undertake drinking water schemes, including rainwater harvesting, recycling, and solid waste management projects. As many as 398 civic bodies, including Municipal Corporations and Municipal Councils, are beneficiaries of this central assistance.

An allocation of Rs 182 crore has been made for Zilla Parishads, Panchayat Samitis and Village Panchayats across the state. The funds are being released to 12 Zilla Parishads, 325 Panchayat Samitis and more than 350 Village Panchayats whose elections were held last month. These funds were sanctioned by the Finance Commission in 2022–23 but were released only now.