Mumbai commuters travelling late on Friday night and early Saturday morning are likely to face disruptions as Western Railway will undertake a major maintenance block at Dadar station.

The block will be carried out on the slow up and down suburban lines from 12 midnight to 5 am on May 15 and 16, 2026. Railway officials said the engineering work is necessary for infrastructure maintenance and passenger safety.

During the block period, slow local trains will be diverted to fast lines between Mumbai Central and Mahim stations. These trains will not halt at Mahalaxmi, Lower Parel, Prabhadevi and Matunga Road stations.

Western Railway has also announced cancellation of multiple suburban services during the maintenance work.

Among the cancelled late night services on May 15 are train numbers 91023 from Churchgate to Bhayandar, 91029 from Churchgate to Goregaon, 91039 from Churchgate to Andheri and 91049 from Churchgate to Borivali.

Several early morning services on May 16 will also remain cancelled, including train number 90007A from Borivali to Bhayandar, 90015 from Churchgate to Borivali and 92009 from Dahanu Road to Virar.

In the up direction, services such as 90946 from Goregaon to Churchgate, 90998 from Borivali to Churchgate and 90002 from Andheri to Churchgate will remain cancelled.

Apart from cancellations, some suburban services will be short terminated or short originated during the maintenance period.

Railway authorities have requested passengers to check train schedules before travelling and cooperate during the block hours. Detailed information regarding affected services has been made available at station managers’ and station masters’ offices across the suburban network.

Western Railway also expressed regret over the inconvenience caused to commuters due to the essential engineering works.

Mumbai: Following the Maharashtra Government’s decision to crack down on unauthorised bike taxi and app-based transport services operating across the state, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi launched a sharp attack on the Mahayuti government, accusing it of hypocrisy over public transport policies and the handling of aggregator platforms such as Ola, Uber and Rapido.

Taking to X, Chaturvedi criticised the state government’s move to initiate strict action against bike taxi operators while Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been urging citizens to rely more on public transport and reduce fuel consumption amid ongoing global economic uncertainties.

In her post, Chaturvedi said that on one hand, the Prime Minister is appealing to people to use public transport, while on the other, the Maharashtra Government is allegedly trying to shut down available commuting options for citizens. She further claimed that commuters in the state are already dealing with reducing BEST bus services, deteriorating interstate transport buses and overcrowded transit infrastructure, and are now witnessing app-based services being labelled as illegal.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader also took a swipe at Maharashtra Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik, alleging inconsistency in the government’s stand on Rapido operations in the state. Referring to an earlier controversy surrounding bike taxi services, Chaturvedi claimed that Rapido had previously been banned by the same minister, but the decision was allegedly withdrawn after the company sponsored his Dahi Handi event.

The remarks come after the Maharashtra Transport Department intensified its stand against unauthorised bike taxi operations functioning without formal approval in the state. Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik has reportedly written to the cyber crime department seeking immediate action against app-based bike taxi platforms including Ola, Uber and Rapido.

The tweet comes in after the transport department demanded the shutdown of unauthorised bike taxi app services and the registration of FIRs against the owners and operators of the respective companies. The Transport Commissioner has also separately written to the cyber crime department regarding the matter.

The state government has maintained that several passenger transport services are operating without valid permissions, licences or compliance with transport department regulations. Authorities have raised concerns that the increasing presence of unauthorised bike taxi operators poses a serious risk from the perspective of commuter safety and regulatory oversight.

The issue has once again triggered a wider political debate over urban mobility, public transport infrastructure and the role of app-based transport aggregators in cities like Mumbai, where lakhs of commuters rely daily on affordable last-mile connectivity options.

Mumbai: The officers of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) arrested two persons for allegedly attempting to smuggle diamonds worth Rs 5.70 crore to Bangkok.

Those arrested have been identified as Tamil Nadu residents Imthiyas Mohamed Marsuk (28) and Saibu Alikhan Sheik (31).

According to DRI sources, specific intelligence was received that two passengers, Imthiyas Mohamed Marsuk and Saibu Alikhan Sheik, flying from Mumbai to Bangkok on Monday, would attempt to smuggle a huge quantity of diamonds out of India. They were intercepted near the departure gate.

They informed the officials that they had concealed some packages in their body. During the X-ray of the passengers, some images were seen which confirmed the concealment of some egg-shaped items in their body. After that, the passengers were asked to remove the packages from their body, which they obliged and removed one by one from their rectum.

Total four egg-shaped capsules were recovered from the passengers and, on further questioning by the officers, both passengers stated that the packages contained precious stones and diamonds.

They further informed that no declaration had been made to Customs regarding the said stones purported to be diamonds and that they were not carrying any valid documents relating to their purchase, possession, and export permission.

The said capsules were carefully cut, and 20 transparent pouches with different markings containing transparent glass-like stones purported to be diamonds were found in the said 20 pouches.

“Both the passengers claimed that the said diamonds were handed over by one unknown person in Mumbai (at the behest of the mastermind) for transportation to Bangkok in lieu of Rs 15,000 each. They admitted to being part of the same smuggling syndicate as carriers,” said a DRI source.

“In the ongoing investigation, more pieces of evidence are being gathered, and the same need to be investigated. Other key members of the syndicate are yet to be apprehended, and all-out efforts are being made in this regard. Further, sources for the purchase of the diamonds are yet to be investigated. The ongoing investigation is crucial to dismantling this international smuggling network and we are gathering additional evidence to identify and apprehend other key members of the syndicate, which could have far-reaching implications for international security and economic stability,” the officer added.