Navi Mumbai, May 11: A ‘hydro ganja’ racket was busted in Navi Mumbai with the arrest of two alleged drug peddlers from Nerul and seizure of contraband worth Rs 6.6 lakh, police said, adding that the case has been registered under organised crime provisions along with the NDPS Act.

The Anti-Narcotics Cell of the Navi Mumbai Police Commissionerate carried out coordinated raids in Nerul and Seawoods on May 9, leading to the arrest of Sahil Shabbir Lambe (27) and Nashwan Mubaj Bagdadi (26), while three other accused are currently absconding.

According to police, Lambe was intercepted during patrolling in the Nerul area after he was found in a suspicious condition.

Upon search, officers recovered 66.7 grams of high-grade hydro ganja from his possession. During sustained interrogation, Lambe disclosed details of a larger drug distribution network linked to Seawoods.

Based on his inputs, police raided Flat No. 1301 at A.N. Hill View building in Seawoods, where Bagdadi was apprehended. Additional hydro ganja was also seized from him during the operation.

Investigations further revealed that Nilesh Singh, identified as Bagdadi’s partner, is among the absconding accused.

Another accused, Anwar alias Ali, allegedly supplied the drugs, while Akash Moraya was identified as a buyer. Police said the group was operating in a coordinated manner as part of an organised drug trafficking racket.

“Considering their criminal background and the organised manner in which the accused were operating, provisions of organised crime have been invoked,” said Senior Police Inspector Sandeep Nigade.

A case has been registered at Nerul Police Station under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and Section 111 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Police said efforts are underway to trace the three absconding accused.

The operation was executed by a team led by Assistant Police Inspector Tushar Mane, along with personnel Padukamal Dore, Dnyaneshwar Chavan, Sudam Palve, Sachin Rathod, Prashant Khillare and Woman Police Naik Hemangi Patil.

Due to the shortage of water storage in the reservoirs supplying water to the city of Mumbai, to ensure that this water storage is used for a long time, as a precautionary measure and in view of the India Meteorological Department’s prediction of a reduced monsoon next year due to El Nino and IOD, the Mumbai Municipal Corporation administration has decided to implement water storage in Mumbai at less than 1%. As per the instructions of the Department of Water Resources, Government of Maharashtra, dated 15 May 2026, there is no need for the residents to panic. However, the Mumbai Municipal Corporation administration has also made a humble appeal to all the citizens to use water sparingly.

Considering the statistics as on 11 May 2026, there is a total of 3,40,399 million litres of water in the reservoirs supplying water to Mumbai. As against the annual requirement of 1,447,363 million litres, only 23.52% of the usable water is available at present. The Municipal Corporation administration is keeping a close watch on the water supply and a plan for daily water supply is being made. Not only this, Mumbai will get 1,47,092 million litres from the storage in Bhatsa Dam and 90,000 million litres from the storage in Upper Vetarna Dam. This means that water supply is available for Mumbai and the citizens of Mumbai need not panic. However, in view of the recent rise in temperature, increase in evaporation and the need to continue the planned water supply even after the water storage has fallen below 10 per cent, the Mumbai Municipal Corporation administration has decided to implement a 10 per cent water reduction as a precautionary measure. The 10 per cent water reduction will also be applicable in the water supply provided by the Mumbai Municipal Corporation to Thane, Bhiwandi-Nizampur Municipal Corporation and other villages from Friday, May 15, 2026. This water shortage will continue until there is satisfactory rainfall and the useful storage in the water bodies improves.

Avoid wastage of water
It is possible to use water efficiently and avoid wastage in daily life. For this, water saving habits should be adopted.

Drink the required amount of water in a glass. Bathing with water in a bucket instead of using a shower saves a lot of water. Avoid brushing your teeth and shaving with the tap running. Do not leave the tap running while doing housework. Instead, take water in a vessel and complete the work.

It is easy to clean cars with a wet cloth by taking water in a vessel without using a tap. Instead of washing the floors, galleries, verandahs, stairs, etc. of the house, clean them with a wet cloth. Do not throw away the water of the previous day, thinking it is stale.

If you wash more clothes at once in the washing machine, the water consumption of the machine can be reduced. Nozzles that restrict the flow of the taps and wash the basin taps or make the water flow in the form of mist are easily available in the market. By installing such nozzles on the taps, it is possible to save up to two-thirds of water. Therefore, citizens should use it along with all hotels and restaurants.

Restaurants and hotels should provide water in glasses only when the customers need it. Or provide water bottles. So that the water from the glasses filled with water is not wasted unnecessarily. The water system and channels should be checked in all homes and housing societies. If any leakage is found, it should be fixed immediately, this also saves water and does not pollute the water.

It is important to ensure that there is no overflow while filling the water tanks on the roof.

All commercial and industrial establishments where water is used in large quantities should also adopt practices that can prevent water wastage and save water. Overall, water saving measures are easy to adopt. By adopting them, the Municipal Corporation administration is appealing to Mumbaikars to save as much water as possible, use water very sparingly, and cooperate with the efforts of the Municipal Corporation administration.

Mumbai: A major cybercrime fraud was averted after residents of an entire building in Mumbai’s Santacruz received scam calls from Mahanagar Gas Ltd (MGL) officials. The callers allegedly asked residents to download an APK file on the pretext of completing new piped gas connection registration.

the calls suspicion as the residents of the building had applied for new gas meters around a month ago and had completed all formalities, including payment of fees to MGL. However, the calls raised concerns among residents as scamsters had access to all their personal details and application information. Moreover, residents raised concerns about an alleged breach of consumers’ data.

According to the report, the fraudsters not only called the residents but also a few received video and WhatsApp calls asking residents to download the APK files.

On this, a resident also informed that he contacted the MGL helpline and was informed that the company communicates only through SMS and never asks customers to download APK files. The resident called it a clear case of fraud, the report stated.

A senior MGL also informed the daily that the company follows strict data privacy guidelines while maintaining customer information, however, they added that a data breach would be investigated.

Meanwhile, in April, a man posing as an MGL employee was caught by residents in Mumbai’s Bhandup while allegedly trying to scam a household. The accused, who failed to produce a valid ID, was handed over to the police.

In another case, a 64-year-old Kurla resident was targeted when fraudsters sent him a fake APK file after warning that his gas connection would be blocked. After he downloaded the file, Rs 2.35 lakh was withdrawn from his bank account.

MGL on its official social media handle keeps posting messages for residents, warning them that scammers often pose as trusted service providers through fake links, APK downloads, and WhatsApp or SMS messages. They also provided the official route of communication:

WhatsApp: +91-98992 03843

Customer Care: 022 6867 4500 / 6156 4500

Email: support@mahanagargas.com

It said, “MGL DOES NOT send threats of disconnection through suspicious messages, asking to download APKs, or asking customers to contact unknown numbers for bill updates.”