On November 2, at 20:00 hours, officers and personnel from the Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) team of the Bangur Nagar Police Station were patrolling Link Road in Goregaon West, Mumbai. Near Shivam Society on the southbound side of Link Road, they stopped an individual—Phul Chandra Ishwar Dayal Kashyap, aged 38, a resident of Madh Village, Malad West, Mumbai (originally from Uttar Pradesh)—on the basis of suspicion and conducted a search. During the search, 5.97 grams of cocaine, with an estimated value of ₹2,98,500, was recovered from his possession and seized in the presence of witnesses (as documented in a panchnama).

Suspecting that the accused might be in possession of a larger quantity of narcotics, a search of his residence was conducted. In the early hours of November 3, at 03:02 AM, a total of 4,221 grams of cocaine—with an estimated value of ₹21,10,50,000 (twenty-one crore, ten lakh, fifty thousand rupees)—was discovered at his home in Madh Village, Malad West. This was seized, and a detailed panchnama of the house search was prepared. Consequently, a case (Crime No. 1039/2026) was registered against the individual at the Bangur Nagar Police Station under Sections 8(c) and 21(c) of the NDPS Act, 1985. During the interrogation regarding the seized narcotics, the suspect identified an accomplice—Mujahid Ali, a resident of Madhya Pradesh—as having been involved in the commission of the crime. Consequently, the police team has arrested Mujahid Ali as part of the ongoing investigation. To date, a total of 4,226.97 grams of cocaine, valued at Rs 21,13,48,500 (twenty-one crore, thirteen lakh, forty-eight thousand, five hundred rupees), has been seized in connection with this case.

Further investigation is underway to determine the source of the seized cocaine, the intended recipients, and the identities of any other individuals who may have assisted the two suspects in this illicit activity.
This operation was carried out by DCP Purushottam Karad, under the directives of Police Commissioner Deven Bharti.

The navy of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Thursday that two “violating” oil tankers were disabled by explosions while crossing the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday night.

In a statement on the IRGC’s official news outlet, Sepah News, the navy said the two supertankers transited the strait despite frequent warnings from its centre for controlling traffic in the waterway about the “unauthorised and unsafe” nature of the southern route.

It added that the tankers were carrying more than 4 million barrels of oil in total, Xinhua News Agency reported.

The navy warned that the same fate will await any vessel that turns off its navigation systems in the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf and cooperates with the U.S. military in crossing the waterway’s “unauthorised” southern route.

The Navy on Wednesday said a “violating” oil tanker caught fire earlier in the day after hitting naval mines east of the Strait of Hormuz.

The incident occurred in the early hours of Wednesday as the oil tanker was transiting the “unsafe and forbidden” region east of the waterway, the navy announced in a statement, Xinhua news agency reported. It said that its naval forces are monitoring the strait’s eastern waters, stressing that safe passage through the waterway requires coordination with the Iranian armed forces and compliance with maritime regulations.

Separately, Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Ali Abdollahi on Wednesday warned the United States and Israel against making any new miscalculation, saying that “any point that serves as a focal point for threats against the existence of the sacred establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran will become a direct target of asymmetric operations.”

He said in a message carried by Iranian media that the armed forces would carry out orders issued by the country’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, without hesitation.

Ahead of Mumbai hosting the prestigious Earthshot Prize Summit and Awards, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and former Maharashtra Environment Minister Aaditya Thackeray on Thursday launched a sharp attack on the Union government, accusing it of “data fudging,” greenwashing, and failing to provide citizens with the necessities of clean air, water, and food.

Highlighting that almost all of the world’s most polluted cities are currently in India, Thackeray questioned the central regime’s commitment to both international climate treaties and domestic governance.

His remarks come at a critical juncture on the global environmental calendar, with the COP31 climate summit underway in Türkiye and Mumbai preparing to host the Earthshot Prize followed by Mumbai Climate Week.

Thackeray pointed out that a lack of data integrity has masked India’s true standing on global climate indices, masking a reality that is far worse than official rankings suggest.

He noted that political apathy toward the environmental crisis is forcing citizens to protest, and in some cases, migrate in search of basic living standards.

“Most of those who pay direct taxes, and all of those who pay indirect taxes, hoping for these basics, have to spend again on air and water purifiers and sources of food,” Thackeray stated, warning that the deteriorating environment is no longer just a public health hazard, but an economic threat.

He added that businesses and organisations are also relocating out of polluted regions, directly resulting in job losses.

Reiterating a demand he has previously made to the Centre, Thackeray proposed the immediate establishment of a Council of Climate Change, modelled on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council, to institutionalise federal cooperation on environmental issues.

The Council should be headed by the Prime Minister and include all State Ministers for Forest and Environment, alongside relevant Union Ministries such as Urban and Rural Development, Energy, Agriculture, Industry, and Roads. The body would meet quarterly to review verified data, targets, and real-time progress, he said.

He further stated that parallel State Councils of Climate Change should be headed by respective Chief Ministers, bringing together all interlinked government departments to track regional climate action plans.

Drawing from his tenure when Maharashtra drafted Climate Action Plans for Mumbai and several other cities, Thackeray insisted that such plans must be formulated and neutrally audited by independent, internationally reputed organisations in a transparent manner.

Reflecting on his experience leading Maharashtra’s Environment and Climate Change portfolio, Thackeray emphasised that environmental governance intersects with nearly every government department and dictates the overall quality of life.

Warning that India stands at a defining threshold regarding its population and demographic dividend, he urged the government to treat climate action as an urgent economic and strategic necessity.

“Timely climate action can be a huge opportunity that, if missed, can be a huge risk socially, politically, economically and in terms of national security,” he concluded.