Maharashtra
Mumbai Coastal Road North Project: Supreme Court To Hear Plea Against BMC Over Mangrove Cutting For Versova-Bhayander Coastal Road
Mumbai, March 18: The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday will hear the petition filed by environment NGO Vanashakti against Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) commencement of cutting mangrove forests for the Versova-Bhayander Link Road (Coastal Road North) project, the petitioner and director of the NGO Stalin D said.
The BMC claims that it has started the surface-level mangrove cutting under the ‘working permission’ from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MOEFCC), and in coordination with the state forest department.
Extent of mangrove impact and compensation plan
A total of 45,675 mangroves spread across 103.65 hectares of land will be impacted for the project, of which around 9,000 mangroves will be permanently axed. The remaining 36,675 mangroves will be replanted in the shadow area after the project is completed.
The BMC has also submitted in the high court that it will plant three times the green cover impacted as compensatory plantations on the land identified in Chandrapur and Dahanu. However, questions are raised on the survival rate.
NGO alleges violation of legal provisions
Stalin D said, “The commencement of cutting of mangrove forests for the Versova-Bhayander Coastal Road Project is in contravention to Section 2 of the Van Suraksha evam Samwardhan Adhiniyam, 1980 and the order of the Bombay High Court dated 12.12.2025 in Writ Petition No 3790 of 2025. I have approached the apex court and the case will be heard by the bench of Chief Justice of India.”
The respondents in the case are BMC, Union of India, Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority, State of Maharashtra, Additional Chief Conservator of Forest (Mangrove Cell) and Bombay Environmental Action Group.
Questions raised over compliance and reports
“The BMC is misguiding the Bombay High Court. In December 2025, while granting permission to cut 45,000 mangroves for the project, the court had asked the BMC to submit an action report of their 1,37,764 compensatory mangroves’ sapling plantation. However, it has yet not submitted that report while claiming that the court verbally told it to submit in January 2027. The civic body is not submitting the report because the survival rate is very poor, against its claim of 90%,” Stalin added.
Reminder notice issued to halt cutting
NGO Vanashakti on March 11 has also sent a reminder notice to the BMC and the state forest department asking them to stop the cutting of mangroves for the Coastal Road North project unless final (Stage II) clearance is obtained.
The first notice was served on February 3, and is still awaiting a response. It alleged that mangrove destruction is being allowed to proceed without Stage II forest clearance under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.
Maharashtra
Kasturba Marg Police recover 100 stolen mobile phones, return them to their original owners

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

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

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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