General
Pune trio goes on a ‘long drive’ – a record 21,000 km through borders of India

Creating a new record, a Pune couple and their friend – all software engineers-cum-adventure lovers – went on a ‘long drive’ in an SUV, covering a whopping 21,000 km in 70 days across the entire boundary of India, from east to west, north to south.
They are — Jaykumar Anadkat, his wife Pooja Padiya-Anadkat, both from Gujarat, and their friend Sonesh Mehra from Rajasthan, who are the co-founders of the adventure club, ‘PlacesAroundPune’.
“We have done many activities like hiking, trekking, cycling, mountaineering, scuba-diving etc., but this time we wanted to do something unique and fulfilling. So we charted out this trip — “#MapMyCountry” — in our Tata Safari SUV, and we hope to make it to the record books,” said Jaykumar, after the trio returned home late on Monday.
The trio, all aged 35, embarked on their journey on February 27 from Magarpatta and returned to the same location on May 8, zooming through 26 states, several Union Territories, 52 major cities and over 250 important travel destinations along the boundary and borders of India.
“We went around the country’s periphery, all the border states and drew the India map through the car route, starting in a clockwise direction from Maharashtra,” said Mehra.
From Maharashtra, they went to Gujarat (Dwarka and Koteshwar temples in the extreme western parts of India), Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, the Northeastern states like Kaho in Arunachal Pradesh, the first village of India in the east, and Danushkodi Rameshwar and Kanyakumari as the southernmost tip.
“We touched six international borders — Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. We learnt a lot about the different people of India, their cultures and lifestyles, the weather systems, the abundant beauty of different parts of the country. It was a very enriching drive indeed,” said Pooja.
The ultra-long drive took them from 45-degree Celsius in Rajasthan deserts to the -5-degree Celsius in snowy Kashmir, braving hailstorms in Himachal Pradesh and Nagaland, torrential rains in Assam, and the humid weather in the southern states. Though they carried suitable clothes, many a times they had to hunt for more locally in order to survive.
The trio recalls speeding through some of the wildest and densest forests akin to a jungle safari, off-roading, dusty dry desert sands, boat-rides in mangrove forests, traversing snowy mountains roads, or gingerly driving through bamboo bridges, over deep valleys and turbulent rivers in different parts of India, soaking in the first sunrise in the east and the colourful sunsets in the west and southern beaches.
They also joined some tribal and traditional cultural festivals, wearing local costumes, singing, dancing or prancing to their tunes, and gulping cuisines ranging from the weirdest to delicacies, cooking for themselves on roadside fires, or just gobbling some fruits when nothing was available or dhabas were shut.
There are literally miles of many memories, including some a bit spooky, that the trio returned with — like one excited gentleman from Punjab, Ripu Daman, who contacted them through Facebook and happily hosted them with his family for a night.
In Nagaland, they met a 95-year-old member of a tribe of erstwhile ‘headhunters’, who still proudly wears a garland with a few heads on it that he claimed to have acquired many decades ago!
Today, Jaykumar, Pooja and Sonesh are extremely thrilled on completing their ‘long drive’ without any untoward incident, something they will cherish for long.
Maharashtra
Mumbai Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar bridge should be opened for weighing vehicles: Abu Asim Azmi

abu aasim aazmi
Mumbai: Maharashtra Samajwadi Party leader and MLA has demanded in the assembly that a flyover bridge should be started for heavy vehicles to curb fatal accidents in Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar. Fatal accidents are happening every month in Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar. Earlier there were high tension wires on the bridge built on GM Link Road, then the bridge was closed due to heavy vehicles. Later the wires were also removed and the flyover department has also allowed heavy vehicles to pass, however, heavy vehicles are still not being allowed to move. Today in the House, a demand was made to start the movement of heavy vehicles on this bridge. Abu Asim Azmi said that recently a tragic accident took place here in which three people died.
Maharashtra
Wanted accused in Mumbai 1993 riots arrested after 32 years

CRIME
Mumbai: Police have claimed to have arrested one of the most wanted accused involved in the 1993 Mumbai riots. Mumbai’s Wadala police arrested a fugitive accused who was on the run for 32 years during an operation to search for wanted accused. 54-year-old Arif Ali Hashimullah Khan has been arrested from Antop Hill. The accused did not appear in court during the hearing. A warrant was also issued against him, after which the police arrested the accused and presented him in the court and the court ordered his remand. This operation was carried out by Mumbai Police Commissioner Deven Bharti and Port Zone DCP Vijay Sagar.
Maharashtra
Sashil Kodiyeri apologizes after tension over Marathi-Hindi controversy

Maharashtra: In the context of the Mumbai Marathi-Hindi controversy, Shishil Kodia has apologized for his controversial statement. He said that his tweet was misrepresented. I am not against Marathi. I have been living in Mumbai and Maharashtra for the last 30 years. I am a fan of Raj Thackeray. I constantly comment positively on Raj Thackeray’s tweets. I tweeted in my emotions and I made a mistake. This tense and tense atmosphere should end. We need a favorable environment to accept Marathi. So I request you to forgive me for this mistake for Marathi. Earlier, Shishil Kodia had made a controversial statement about Marathi and refused to speak Marathi, due to which MNS workers attacked and pelted stones at Shishil’s company WeWork. After which Shishil has now apologized to X
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