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Navi Mumbai: Alert Bank Manager Saves 80-Year-Old Man From Losing ₹12 Lakh In ‘Digital Arrest’ Scam

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Navi Mumbai: An alert manager of a bank in Koparkhairane saved an 80 year old man from losing Rs 12 lakh Fixed Deposit amount to scamsters. Surendrakumar Rastogi, a retired officer from Nuclear Power Corporation of India was one of the latest victims of ‘digital arrest’ that has been happening rampantly in the country.

Even as he lost Rs 21.94 lakh, another Rs 12 lakh were saved because of the presence of mind of Lakshman Dhamale (55), Manager of Unity Small Finances Bank Ltd at sector 6 in Koparkhairane.

On November 13, Rastogi has received a call claiming to be from RBI which informed him that his pension was being blocked and he an arrest warrant has been issued against him. But since he is a senior citizen, he would get a chance to not get arrested and soon CBI will call him. He then got a whatsapp video call from one inspector S Lakshman from Hyderabad who claimed that they had proof that Rastogi was involved in Naresh Goyal scam.

He further claimed that Goyal was linked with Hizbul Mujahiddin terrorist organization and Rs 2 crore transaction was done in the name of Rastogi at Hyderabad for which a commission of Rs 20 lakh was provided to Rastogi. The caller further claimed that a case has been filed in Hyderabad against him.

“The caller then asked Rastogi the details of his investments and fixed deposits. The caller then told him that he will have to make few transactions in various accounts as they say and once he is proved innocent, all the money would be refunded,” senior police inspector Audumber Patil from Koparkhairane police station said.

The caller had also told him that he cannot disconnect the video call till all the procedures are over. Believing that he was under ‘house arrest’, Rastogi approached the banks to break his fixed deposits and transfer the amount to various bank accounts.

He started approaching various banks from November 14 and transferred a total of Rs 21.94 lakh to the scamsters. But when he reached Unity Small Finances Bank, the manager felt something amiss.

“We had informed banks that they should be cautious when a senior citizen approaches them with a request to break their FD and transfer a huge amount to someone,” Patil said.

Dhamale asked Rastogi the reason for breaking the FD and transferring Rs 12 lakh. “Rastogi was getting irritated with my questions. He claimed that it was for medical purpose and he was transferring to one Royal enterprises. The claims were mismatched. I told him that the server is down and he will transfer the amount in half an hour. The account to which the amount was to be transferred was at Yes bank and hence I wet to Yes bank to confirm the account details and I found that the account had a transaction of around Rs 3 crore in two days which was withdrawn as well. The account was reported to cyber cell and it was frozen by then,” Dhamale said.

Dhamale immediately called Rastogi to alert him and asked him to meet him but he didn’t turn up to ban and instead went to other banks and transferred around Rs 6 lakh to other accounts. Even after a day since Rastogi did not go to meet Dhamae, Dhamale approached Koparkhairane police.

“I informed the police and the police aling with me and a bank staff went to the residence of RAstogi. He was hesitant to talk as the video call was still active and he believed that he and his family was under surveillance. With a lot of coaxing, he heard us and we managed to make him believe that it is a scam,” Dhamale added.

“Being a senior citizen who was under the stress that he was under ‘house arrest’, we went to his residence in plain clothes. We showed him our police jeep outside and it took a lot to talking with hi to finally make him understand what actually happened was a scam,” police sub inspector Gajanan Takle from Koparhairane police station said. The police are now working of the leads of the case and are travelling to Uttarakhand to trace the accused.

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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