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Maharashtra

Maharashtra: Oppn urges Guv to declare ‘wet-drought’ in flood-hit areas

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 A delegation of Opposition leaders led by Leader of Opposition Ajit Pawar on Tuesday called on Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari and urged him to declare a ‘wet-drought’ in many of the flood-ravaged Vidarbha and Marathwada regions.

The delegation submitted a memorandum to the Governor with a list of demands to expedite relief to the farmers and villagers hit by the fury of floods.

“The government must announce an assistance of Rs 75,000/hectrare to all farmers affected by heavy rains or floods and immediate aid of Rs 1.50 lakh/hectare to all farmers who have suffered damages to their fruit orchards,” said Pawar.

The Opposition demanded waiver of education fees for all students in traditional and professional colleges in these areas for the academic year 2022-2023.

Since a large number of farm labourers in Vidarbha-Marathwada region are on the verge of starvation due to lack of work and wages since the past two-three weeks, the government should consider their plight and provide a one-time help to them.

Pawar said that paddy is the main cultivation of the people in the tribal areas and the erstwhile Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) had extended subsidies to the tribals last year, and urged the present government to provide similar subsidies on priority even this year.

The Leader of Opposition recounted his experiences during the 4-day tour of the flood-hit regions when he witnessed farmlands eroded or washed out and covered with silt, making the lands infertile and unfit for agriculture for several years and concrete measures must be taken restore these lands at the earlier with adequate financial assistance.

The flood waters accumulated in fields and orchards has led to massive damage to cash crops like soyabean, sugarcane, bananas and other fruits resulting in a crisis of sowing this year and the farmers must be given options for re-sowing in a short span during the current crop season, said Pawar.

Many drinking water and agriculture wells have collapsed, washed out or got exhausted due to clogging and they must be allowed repairs under the government scheme of MNREGA.

Ditto is the situation with drip irrigation with the irrigation sets washed out in the floods, many have been damaged and the farmers should be given subsidies to reinstall them on an urgent basis.

Besides a large number of domestic and farm animals have been washed away or perished, and help must be given to their owners on priority.

There has been a huge damage to the roads and bridges infrastructure in the Vidarbha-Marathwada regions with most rural, district and other major roads in a terrible condition that has left many villages cut off from the local administration and urged these roads to be repaired by the government.

The Opposition delegation also demanded urgent repairs to the collapsed power distribution system, the crisis arising out of loans availed by the farmers for the Kharif season and demanded a complete waives of these debts, rebuilding the damaged or destroyed homes and barns of the villagers, plus the schools, colleges or government buildings that have been hit in many areas.

Pawar has also slammed the government of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for the huge delay in expanding the cabinet that has left the state administration paralysed and neglecting the immediate needs of the flood-hit farmers and villagers.

Maharashtra

Kasturba Marg Police recover 100 stolen mobile phones, return them to their original owners

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Acting on complaints regarding stolen and lost mobile phones within the jurisdiction of the Kasturba Marg Police Station in Mumbai, police analyzed data from the CEIR portal and conducted technical investigations. By verifying device details, IMEI numbers, and user information, officers from the Kasturba Marg Police Station tracked down and recovered a total of 100 mobile phones from locations across Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra.

The total estimated value of the 100 recovered mobile phones is ₹2,270,658. Of these, 18 phones have already been returned to their respective owners/complainants, including: 1) Rajendra Puri, 2) Khush Saw, 3) Kripa Lodhiya, 4) Shreya Satam, 5) Atul Sathe, 6) Priyanka Mistri, 7) Banu Tarang, 8) Prem Gupta, 9) Adya Shaikh, 10) Shweta Shah, 11) Sandhya Pandit, 12) Deepak Sawdekar, 13) Saurabh Jhangar, 14) Ketan Shete, 15) Onkar Raut, 16) Jayalal Yadav, 17) Lakshmi Appa Kripagiri, and 18) Praveen Dubey. The process of returning the remaining phones to their owners is currently underway.

This operation was carried out under the supervision of the DCP (North, Zone 3), Mumbai, by the team at Kasturba Marg Police Station, led by Balasaheb Bunkar.

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Crime

CBI books Mumbai firm, officials in Rs 93.44 crore loan fraud case

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Mumbai, Oct 3: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted searches at multiple premises in Mumbai and registered a Rs 93.44 crore bank fraud case against officials of Hanjer Biotech Energies on the complaint of Punjab National Bank, an official said on Saturday.

The CBI conducted searches on Friday at multiple premises linked to the directors of Hanjer Biotech Energies in Mumbai, the CBI said in a statement.

The CBI registered the instant case on September 30, 2026, on the complaint of Punjab National Bank, SAM Branch, Mumbai, against Hanjer Biotech Energies, its directors and guarantors, unknown public servants and unknown private persons.

The accused were booked for offences of criminal conspiracy for cheating and offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act, resulting in alleged wrongful loss of approximately Rs 93.44 Crore to the bank.

It was alleged that the accused entered into a criminal conspiracy, obtained term loan of Rs 135 crore on the invoices of its related party and diverted/siphoned off the funds for other purposes for which it was not sanctioned, causing loss to the bank, the CBI said.

During the searches on Friday, incriminating bank documents and property documents relevant to the investigation were recovered and seized.

Investigation is continuing to ascertain the full extent of the conspiracy, identify the role of all involved persons, including public servants and private individuals, and trace the end-use of the loan funds, the CBI said.

In a separate case on Friday, the CBI arrested an Executive Engineer of the Central Public Works Department (CPWD), Mumbai, his relative and three officials of a Mumbai-based real estate group, in a Rs 50 lakh bribery case related to the issuance of a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) for a land parcel.

Vikrant Verma, Executive Engineer, CPWD Mumbai; Saurav Gupta, Verma’s relative based in Pune; and Arvind Semwal, Vice President, Baya Company, were among those named in the FIR by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday, an official said.

The arrested accused were produced before the Special CBI Judge in Mumbai on Friday, the official said in a statement.

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Maharashtra

Monsoon Withdraws Further from Maharashtra; Hot and Humid Weather Alert Issued for Konkan Region

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MUMBAI PRESS — The India Meteorological Department (IMD) announced on Saturday, October 3, 2026, that the Southwest Monsoon has withdrawn from parts of Maharashtra, as well as the remaining regions of North India, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh.

The current withdrawal line of the Southwest Monsoon passes through Harnai, Baramati, Parbhani, and Brahmapuri in Maharashtra, extending northeastward through Raipur, Ranchi, and Supaul. Weather officials stated that conditions are favorable for further retreat from most parts of Marathwada, Vidarbha, and additional areas of Madhya Maharashtra over the next 2 to 3 days.

Hot and Humid Stretch for Coastal Maharashtra
Residents in the coastal belt should prepare for elevated discomfort over the weekend. The IMD has issued a hot and humid weather warning for Konkan & Goa prevailing from October 3 through October 5.
Following this dry and muggy stretch, mild weather activity is expected to return to the region. Isolated to scattered rainfall is forecast across Konkan & Goa and Madhya Maharashtra between October 6 and October 9.

Southern and Northeastern Forecast
While monsoon forces retreat from central and northern parts of India, southern states are bracing for heavy downpours. Isolated heavy rainfall is predicted over Kerala, Mahe, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Karaikal from October 4 to October 6, with South Interior Karnataka expected to receive heavy spells on October 5 and 6.

In the northeast, isolated heavy rainfall is expected to continue over Assam, Meghalaya, and Arunachal Pradesh through October 3.

Advisory for Fishermen
Due to lower-tropospheric cyclonic circulations over the Arabian Sea, the IMD has urged fishermen not to venture into the sea along and off the Kerala coast, Lakshadweep, Maldives, and the Comorin area on October 3. Farmers in heavy rainfall zones have also been advised to ensure proper field drainage and move harvested crops to covered storage to prevent crop damage.

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