News Analysis India

Tag: Navi Mumbai

  • “Congress’ long-term plan to create rift with help of lies”: Maharashtra Dy CM on claims of Atal Setu cracks

    Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday asserted that there is “no danger” to Atal Setu and termed the allegations as part of Congress’ “long-term plan to create a rift with the help of lies.”

    This comes after Maharashtra Congress President Nana Patole on Friday inspected the cracks spotted on the Mumbai-Trans Harbour Link (MTHL) and alleged that these cracks are the result of corruption.

    “There is no crack on Atal Setu. Nor is there any danger to Atal Setu. This picture is of the approach road. But one thing is clear the Congress party has made a long-term plan to create a rift with the help of lies. Talks of constitutional amendments during elections, unlocking of EVMs through phone after elections and now such lies. Only the people of the country will defeat this ‘Darar’ plan and the corrupt behaviour of Congress,” Devendra Fadnavis posted on X.The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) clarified that minor cracks were found on the approach road connecting Atal Setu in Ulwe, which is not a part of the bridge but is a service road connecting the bridge.

    MMRDA stated that the cracks are not due to structural defects in the project and do not pose any threat to the structure of the bridge.

    MMRDA also labelled the news as ‘rumours’ and urged the citizens not to believe them.According to MMRDA, these minor cracks were already noticed at three places on Ramp No 5, from Ulwe towards Mumbai, on Thursday during an inspection by the Operation and Maintenance Team of the Project and require immediate repair. Strabag, the contractor of Package 4 of the Atal Setu project, has started the repair work in the said area and the work will be completed within 24 hours without any disruption to the traffic on the bridge.The official statement reads, “It has been noticed that there is no crack in the main part of Atal Setu Bridge but rumours are being spread in various media about it. Please don’t believe the rumours. Minor cracks have been found on the approach road connecting Atal Setu. The said footpath is not a part of the main bridge but is a service road connecting the bridge. It is also very important to note that the cracks are not due to structural defects in the project and do not pose any threat to the structure of the bridge.”

    “During the inspection on 20th June 2024 by the Operation and Maintenance Team of the project, minor cracks were noticed at three places on Ramp No. 5 asphalt from Ulwe towards Mumbai which require immediate repair. M/s Strabag, the contractor of Package 4 of the Atal Setu project, has started the repair work in the said area and the work will be completed within 24 hours without any disruption to the traffic on the bridge.”

    In a social media post to X, MMRDA wrote, “There have been rumours circulating about cracks on the MTHL bridge. We want to clarify that these cracks are not on the bridge itself but on the approach road connecting MTHL from Ulwe towards Mumbai.”

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Sewari-Nhava Sheva Atal Setu, India’s longest bridge, in Maharashtra on January 12, 2024.

    Maharashtra Governor Ramesh Bais, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis were also present on the occasion.

    Atal Setu is also the longest sea bridge in the country.

    Atal Setu provides faster connectivity to Mumbai International Airport and Navi Mumbai International Airport and reduces travel time from Mumbai to Pune, Goa and South India.

    The foundation stone of the bridge was also laid by the Prime Minister in December 2016.

    Atal Setu has been constructed at a total cost of more than Rs 17,840 crore.

    It is a 21.8-kilometer-long, 6-lane bridge with about 16.5 km of length over sea and about 5.5 km of length on land.

  • Maharashtra: AC mechanic rapes five-year-old girl in building lift; arrested

    By PTI

    THANE: An air-conditioner (AC) mechanic allegedly raped a five-year-old girl inside the lift of a residential building at Navi Mumbai in Maharashtra, after which he was arrested, police said on Saturday.

    The incident occurred on Tuesday evening at Taloja, they said.

    “The accused, 19, spotted the five-year-old girl playing in the parking area of the building when he was climbing down the stairs after some AC repair work there. He took the girl inside the lift and sexually assaulted her there before leaving the place,” senior inspector Jitendra Sonawane of Taloja police station said.

    The victim immediately went home on the third floor and started vomiting. When her mother asked her if everything was ok, the child told her about the incident. After that, her mother rushed downstairs, where she found the accused. He was held by the security guard of the building and other residents, the police official said.

    The residents then handed him over to the police, who arrested him and registered a case against him under Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 376 (rape) and sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, he added.

    On Friday, a local court remanded him into judicial custody, Sonawane said, adding that investigation into the case was on.

    THANE: An air-conditioner (AC) mechanic allegedly raped a five-year-old girl inside the lift of a residential building at Navi Mumbai in Maharashtra, after which he was arrested, police said on Saturday.

    The incident occurred on Tuesday evening at Taloja, they said.

    “The accused, 19, spotted the five-year-old girl playing in the parking area of the building when he was climbing down the stairs after some AC repair work there. He took the girl inside the lift and sexually assaulted her there before leaving the place,” senior inspector Jitendra Sonawane of Taloja police station said.

    The victim immediately went home on the third floor and started vomiting. When her mother asked her if everything was ok, the child told her about the incident. After that, her mother rushed downstairs, where she found the accused. He was held by the security guard of the building and other residents, the police official said.

    The residents then handed him over to the police, who arrested him and registered a case against him under Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 376 (rape) and sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, he added.

    On Friday, a local court remanded him into judicial custody, Sonawane said, adding that investigation into the case was on.

  • CGST finds Input Tax Credit fraud of Rs 81 crore; Navi Mumbai firm director held

    By PTI

    THANE: The CGST Mumbai Zone has arrested the director of a Navi Mumbai-based firm that allegedly availed and passed on Input Tax Credit of Rs 81 crore using bogus invoices to the tune of Rs 479 crore, an official said on Monday.

    A CGST release said searches were conducted at various locations acting upon intelligence garnered by deploying data analytics tools, which found that Fantasia Trade Pvt Limited was allegedly indulging in irregularities under section 132 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.

    The director of the firm was arrested on February 18 and remanded in judicial custody for 14 days, the release stated.

    The release said CGST Mumbai Zone had, under a special drive, booked more than 730 cases of tax evasion, detected tax evasion of Rs 6,380 crore, recovered around Rs 700 crore and arrested 56 persons in the last six months.

  • Maharshtra: Man held for duping shopkeepers by calling in woman’s voice

    By PTI

    THANE: Police have arrested a 44-year-old man from Nalasopara in neighbouring Palghar district for allegedly cheating several shopkeepers by making phone calls in a woman’s voice, an official said on Friday.

    The officials of the crime branch of Navi Mumbai police arrested the accused, identified as Manish Shashikant Ambekar, and his accomplice Anthony Thayappa Jangli (37), he said.

    Addressing a press conference at the N M police commissionerate headquarters, DCP (crime) Suresh Mengde said that Ambekar used to pose as a woman doctor and order medicines from medical shops and golden bangles from jewellers.

    The accused used to tell the victims to send someone from their shops saying she wanted to buy medicines or bangles.

    But when somebody from the shop arrived at the designated spot, the accused would approach that person saying the woman doctor has sent him.

    He would then hand over fake Rs 2,000 note to that person, the police official said. After getting the remaining amount, he would flee from the spot, he added.

    Police had received several such complaints from Navi Mumbai area, following which they launched a probe and nabbed the accused.

    The accused had committed similar offences in Alibaug, Pen (in Raigad district), Vashi (Navi Mumbai) and Gujarat also, the police official said, adding that a total of 20 such offences had been registered against them at different police stations.

    The police have seized a car and other material, collectively worth Rs 5 lakh, from the accused duo, he said.

  • Navi Mumbai cops warn groups threatening to stop airport work

    By PTI

    THANE: Police on Tuesday warned that any attempt by groups to stall the work of the Navi Mumbai Airport in connection with a stir over its naming will be dealt sternly.

    The township has been seeing protests over the past few several weeks seeking that the airport coming up in Panvel be named after former MLA DB Patil, with some agitators saying they will stop contractors from working at the site if their demands are met.

    “Every one has the right to protest in a democracy but it should be within regulations and demands must be kept at an appropriate platform. Tough action would be taken if anyone tries to stop work at the airport site,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone II) Shivaji Patel told a news channel.

  • Gas agency staffer in Navi Mumbai held with 103 filled cylinders

    By PTI
    THANE: A gas agency staffer was arrested allegedly with 103 filled cooking gas cylinders in Navi Mumbai, police said on Saturday.

    Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone I) Suresh Mengde said reports of gas cylinders being stolen in Navi Mumbai area had come in and a Nerul police team set up to probe them zeroed in on Sriram Vishnoi in Panvel area.

    “He works in a gas agency and was selling these stolen cylinders at Rs 3,000 each. He has confessed to four incidents that took place in Nerul and one in APMC police station limits. The seizure, of 103 filled cylinders and three tempos, is worth over Rs 10 lakh,” the DCP said.