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Mamta government wants CM, not Governor, as Chancellor of state varsities

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 A fresh confrontation between West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and the Mamta Banerejee government loomed after the state cabinet on Thursday decided to have Chief Minister as the Chancellor of all state universities instead of the Governor.

This is for the first time that the state government has taken such an initiative to break the protocol, persisting since Independence, of having the Governor as Chancellor of the state universities.

Following the state cabinet meeting at the state Secretariat, Nabanna, Education Minister Bratya Basu said that the state government will bring a bill in the Assembly proposing that the Chief Minister, not the Governor, will be the Chancellor of the state universities.

“Once the bill is passed in the Assembly, it will be sent to the Governor for his assent. In case the Governor refuses to clear the bill, the state government will bring an ordinance to implement this change of practice,” he said.

The development comes at a time when the state government and the ruling Trinamool Congress is already in a fix over the ongoing Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe on the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recruitment irregularities where two ministers of the state government have already been grilled by the central agency sleuths.

Till this report was filed there was no reaction from the Governor on this matter. However, the opposition parties have criticized the initiative.

BJP’s state spokesman, Shamik Bhattacharya said that this is a direct attempt to have a control over the autonomy of the state universities. “Since the beginning the Chief Minister had been trying to run the state as an independent entity and hence, she has taken such a decision which no state government has done before. This is against tradition and convention,” he said.

CPI-M Central Committee member and former leader of Left in the Assembly, Dr Sujan Chakraborty, contended that this initiative is aimed at having direct administrative and political control over the state universities.

“The decision has been taken at a time when roles of several state ministers and officers are in question because of rampant corruption in the education sector. This is complete politicisation of the functioning of the state agencies. On one hand, the Chief Minister is demanding complete autonomy for the central agencies, and on the other, she is trying to destroy the autonomous nature of the state universities,” he said.

Educationists seemed to be divided over this development.

Educationist, political analyst and former Principal of the then Presidency College, Dr Amal Kumar Mukhopadhyay said that the Chief Minister is the administrative head of the state and a political personality.

“So, the event of the Chief Minister being the Chancellor of the university means political interference in the independent functioning of the institutions. Traditionally and conventionally the Governors, by virtue of their chairs, had been the Chancellors of the state university. I do not find any reason to break away from that convention,” he said.

Renowned historian and Sanskrit scholar, Nrisingha Prasad Bhaduri, however, welcomed the decision.

“Current West Bengal Governor, Jagdeep Dhankhar had been creating many obstacles for the state government to function properly. The Governor is holding back many files including those relating to appointment Vice Chancellors of universities. So, the state government had no other option but to take this decision. I welcome this move,” he said.

National News

Aurangabad railway station renamed to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar station

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Mumbai, Oct 18: The Maharashtra government has issued a gazette notification to rename the Aurangabad railway station to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar station.

The government’s move comes two years after the name of Aurangabad city was renamed to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. The government’s move coincided with the ongoing preparations by ruling MahaYuti and opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi for the local and divic body elections.

The BJP-led MahaYuti government issued a gazette notification on October 15 to rename the Aurangabad railway station to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar station. The renaming process, though, was originally initiated by the Shiv Sena-led Mh Vikas Aghadi government.

Aurangabad was originally named after Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, and the renaming was done to honour Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s son Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj.

Aurangabad railway station was opened in 1900. It was made by the 7th Nizam of Hyderabad, Mir Osman Ali Khan. The railway station is located on the Kacheguda–Manmad section. This section mainly serves Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar city (formerly Aurangabad). The station falls under the Nanded division of the South Central Railway zone. It has rail connectivity with major cities in the country.

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar city is a tourist hub, surrounded by many historical monuments, including the Ajanta Caves and Ellora Caves, which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It is also known as the City of Gates, each of which has a local history, built during the Mughal Era, and 2 ASI-protected monuments (Bibi ka Maqbara and Aurangabad caves), as well as many more within city limits.

The demand for the renaming of Aurangabad sprang up in the late 1980s. Over 25 people were killed in a communal riot in 1988, and in the subsequent elections, the Shiv Sena won the Aurangabad municipal corporation elections.

On May 8, 1988, Bal Thackeray announced the renaming of the city to ‘Sambhaji Nagar’ and a resolution was passed by the municipal corporation in 1995. Following this, the then Shiv-Sena-led government issued a notification seeking objections and suggestions from the people.

However, on September 16, 2023, the Eknath Shinde-led government issued a government notification to rename the Aurangabad district to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, following approval from the special state cabinet meeting.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis last month announced that Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar will become the country’s Electric Vehicle (EV) capital, as it is a favoured investment destination.

He further stated that Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar can be called a favourite investment destination. The investment by Hyundai shows that companies are preferring cities like Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.

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National News

Mumbai Railway Update: Central Railway To Operate Mega Block Between Vidyavihar And Thane On Oct 19 For Maintenance Work

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The Central Railway, Mumbai Division, will operate a Mega Block on its Main Line suburban sections specifically on the 5th and 6th lines between Vidyavihar and Thane stations to carry out various engineering and maintenance works on Sunday.

A block will be in force on the 5th and 6th lines between Vidyavihar and Thane stations from 8:00 am to 1:30 pm.

The following UP Mail/Express trains will be diverted on the UP Fast Line at Thane and re-diverted at Vidyavihar station. These trains are expected to arrive at their destinations 10 to 15 minutes late.

11010 Pune–CSMT Sinhagad Express

12124 Pune–CSMT Deccan Queen

13201 Patna–LTT Express

17221 Kakinada–LTT Express

12126 Pune–CSMT Pragati Express

12140 Nagpur–CSMT Sevagram Express

22226 Solapur–CSMT Vande Bharat Express

12168 Banaras–LTT Express

12321 Howrah–CSMT Express

12812 Hatia–LTT Express

11012 Dhule–CSMT Express

The following Down Mail/Express trains will be diverted on the UP Fast Line at Vidyavihar and re-diverted at Thane station. These trains will also arrive 10 to 15 minutes late.

11055 LTT–Gorakhpur Godan Express

11061 LTT–Jaynagar Express

16345 LTT–Thiruvananthapuram Netravati Express

17222 LTT–Kakinada Port Express

There will also be a block on the CSMT–Chunabhatti/Bandra Down Harbour Line from 11:40 am to 4:40 pm and on the Chunabhatti/Bandra–CSMT Up Harbour Line from 11:10 am to 4:10 pm.

Down Harbour Line services to Vashi/Belapur/Panvel, leaving CSMT from 11:16 am to 4:47 pm, and services to Bandra/Goregaon, leaving CSMT from 10:48 am to 4:43 pm, will remain suspended.

Up Harbour Line services for CSMT, leaving Panvel/Belapur/Vashi from 9:53 am to 3:20 pm, and from Goregaon/Bandra from 10:45 am to 5:13 pm, will also remain suspended.

Special services will operate between Panvel and Kurla (Platform No. 8) at a 20-minute frequency during the block period.

Additionally, Harbour Line passengers are permitted to travel via the Main Line and Western Railway between 10:00 am and 6:00 pm during the block.

These maintenance Mega Blocks are crucial for the upkeep and safety of railway infrastructure. The Railway Administration has requested passengers to bear with the inconvenience caused and to plan their journeys accordingly.

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Maharashtra

“Mumbai Deepfake Fake Video Share Trading Fraud Interstate Gang Uncovered ; 4 arrested”

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Mumbai: The Cyber ​​Cell of Mumbai Crime Branch has claimed to have busted an inter-state gang that was trying to lure investors into investing in the share market by creating fake and deepfake videos of experts on a renowned business news channel. The complainant is a registered analyst with SEBI. On September 29, 2025, an attempt was made to lure investors into investing in the share market by using his fake deepfake video on social media. The complainant is a share trading expert and also works for various companies. An attempt was made to deceive him by creating a deepfake video on his Instagram. When the complainant got the information, he filed a complaint against him at the Cyber ​​Police Station. When the investigation was started, his trace was found in another state. The accused were working as an inter-state gang. The accused were arrested from Bengaluru, Karnataka. The accused have been identified as Jijel Sebastian, 44, of Bengaluru, Dipane Tapan Banerjee, 40, of Karnataka, Daniel Arudha is 25 years old from Bengaluru, and Chandrashekhar is 42 years old. This interstate gang has created deepfake accounts on social media including Facebook to lure big companies into share trading and has cheated ordinary citizens and companies on deepfake social media accounts to prepare companies for fraud and has violated the terms and conditions of the share market company. This gang has created fake accounts several times. The accused have created a Facebook ID in the name of Wellelip India Services Private Limited and received 30 million Indian currency in Dubai currency from a Chinese citizen in the name of investment. In India and Mumbai, fraud is being committed in the name of share trading under the guise of deepfake and fake videos. Therefore, creating such fake videos on social media and committing fraud is a serious crime and action will be taken against it. This action has been taken by the Cyber ​​Cell of Mumbai Crime Branch here on the instructions of Mumbai Police Commissioner Deven Bharti. DCP of Mumbai Cyber ​​Crime Parshottam Karad said that this action has been taken in the case of cyber fraud and this interstate gang has created fake accounts on social media. Fraud was committed by creating an account, so there is a need to be alert during share trading. Cases of creating deep fake accounts of famous companies have come to light. Attempts to commit fraud are being made by creating fake accounts of famous companies on Instagram and Facebook. Therefore, verification is mandatory before share trading. Before share trading, one should invest in the share market only after consulting an authentic and experienced SEBI officer and expert. Do not trust social media and avoid investing on the basis of calls and SSMs on social media. This poses a risk of fraud. So far, the police have registered more than 600 cases of share trading, in which fraud of Rs 400 crore has been committed and in many cases, money has been recovered and frozen from the bank account. These accused also used to create deep fake videos with the help of AI.

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