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Maharashtra Elections 2024: Ravi Raja Appointed Mumbai BJP Vice President, Joins Party In Presence Of Devendra Fadnavis, Ashish Shelar

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Maharashtra Elections 2024: Ravi Raja Appointed Mumbai BJP Vice President, Joins Party In Presence Of Devendra Fadnavis, Ashish Shelar

Mumbai: In a big blow to Congress ahead of the Maharashtra assembly elections, Mumbai Congress leader, longtime corporator and leader of opposition in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), Ravi Raja exited the Congress party and joined the BJP on Thursday. Upset over party leadership for denying ticket from Sion Koliwada constituency despite working hard for years, Raja announced on Wednesday that he is leaving the party.

On Thursday he officially joined the BJP in presence of Dy CM Devendra Fadnavis and Mumbai BJP President, MLA Ashish Shelar. As soon as he joined the party, Raja was appointed as the Mumbai BJP Vice President. “Raja is a learned, hardworking leader. He has record of serving on Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) committee for 23 long years, he has served as the opposition leader in BMC. We are glad such a senior leader is joining us,” Fadnavis said.

Raja, a five-time corporator, aspired to the Congress ticket to contest the assembly elections from the Sion Koliwada constituency. However, the party high command ignored his claim, despite several senior Congress leaders of the state backing him. The Congress renominated Ganesh Yadav even though he lost to Capt Tamil Selvan of the BJP by a margin of over 14,000 votes in the 2019 assembly polls.

Capt Tamil Sevlan, the sitting MLA from Sion Koliwada who has been renominated by the BJP, was also present when Raja joined the party. Along with Ravi Raja, his several supporters also joined BJP.

Raja is well known in Sion Koliwada and his quitting the Congress will weaken the party’s support base specially among Tamil and Marathi voters. Raja’s joining the BJP is certain to boost the prospects of Capt Selvan, who was facing anti-incumbency issues.

Maharashtra

Mumbai : There is no solution to the problem of landslides in the last 15 years, 22,483 families live in dangerous areas in the city and suburbs

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Mumbai: Hill collapses are not new to Mumbai, but the state government has failed to take serious steps to address the problem in the last 15 years. In the last 34 years, 340 people have lost their lives and over 300 have been injured in landslides.

In 25 of Mumbai’s 36 assembly constituencies, 257 places in hilly areas have been classified as dangerous. RTI activist Anil Gilgali said that the Mumbai Slum Improvement Board had recommended the relocation of 9,657 out of 22,483 identified slums on priority basis. It had also proposed to make the remaining slums safe by building protective walls around the hills. Gilgali had earlier warned the Maharashtra government about the risk of landslides at 327 places during the monsoon season.

Between 1992 and 2026, 340 people died and over 300 were injured in landslides. The Mumbai Slum Improvement Board had recommended relocation. A comprehensive survey was conducted in 2010. If action had been taken then, the deaths of the residents of these hilly areas could have been prevented. Following the board’s report and Anil Gilgali’s correspondence, the then Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan ordered the Urban Development Department to prepare an action plan on September 1, 2011. However, 15 years have passed since then, and the Urban Development Department is yet to start working on it. In other words, no one has prepared an ‘Action Taken Plan’ (ATP) as directed by the Chief Minister,

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Maharashtra

Robbery in Mumbai Saki Naka, 4 arrested, stolen goods recovered

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Mumbai: The Sakinaka police have claimed to have solved the mystery of the robbery at the junk shop of the complainant, Mohammed Hussain Abdul Karim, and arrested the accused. 22 kg of silver and cash worth a total of Rs 44 lakh were stolen from the junk shop. The shop was located in Anise Compound. The police had registered a complaint regarding this. On this basis, the Mumbai Police’s detection team tracked down the thieves and arrested four accused and claimed to have seized silver worth Rs 44 lakh and a mobile phone. The accused have been identified as Maqsood Shah, 20, a resident of Sakinaka in Mumbai, Uttar Pradesh, Zeeshan Abdul Subhan, 20, a resident of Mumbra, Daighar, Akhbar Hussain Ghulam Murtaza, 27, Mumbra, and Irfan Noorullah Khan, 26, Siddharth Nagar, UP. The four accused have been arrested and the stolen goods have been recovered. This operation was carried out by DCP Dutta Nalawade on the instructions of Mumbai Police Commissioner Deven Bharti.

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Maharashtra

37 unauthorized shops removed from footpaths in Vakola area, action taken by BMC ‘H East’ ward under ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign

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Mumbai: The Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is implementing the ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign to ensure that pedestrians can walk on the footpaths with ease. As part of this initiative, action was taken to remove 37 unauthorised shops obstructing the footpaths along Rajendra Kamble Marg in Vakola area yesterday (August 11, 2026). The operation was carried out by the ‘H East’ ward of BMC. As per the directions of the High Court and under the guidance of Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide. BMC is effectively implementing the ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign to clear the footpaths of unauthorised hawkers and encroachments, thus making them free from obstructions. In this backdrop, the footpaths along Rajendra Kamble Marg in Vakola were cleared during an operation led by Assistant Commissioner (H East Ward) Smt. Mr. Mridula Ande, Deputy Commissioner (Zone-3) under the guidance of Shri Vishwas Mote. During this drive, 37 unauthorized shops erected on footpaths were removed, and materials obstructing the walkways were seized.

The operation was carried out with the support of about 31 officers and staff members using 4 vehicles, 2 dumpers, 1 JCB and other machinery. Adequate police security was deployed during the drive.
Meanwhile, the Municipal Corporation continues to implement measures to ensure the availability of accessible footpaths for pedestrians. Therefore, unauthorized constructions or placement of materials obstructing footpaths are prohibited. The Municipal Corporation administration has said that strict action will be taken if such incidents are found.

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