YEH MERA INDIA
Water thieves identified but authorities on slow mode
Bhayandar: Ten days after Kashimira police registered a case of water theft against three tanker operators for illegally drawing water from a lake in Jari-Mari municipal garden situated in Janta Nagar, cops are yet to identify the culprits involved in the massive water theft racket.
Following complaints of water theft from the lake, civic chief Suresh Kakani had directed officials from the Tree Authority (TA) to take immediate action against the offenders.
A team led by deputy civic chief Deepak Kurulekar and TA officer Hansraj Meshram claims to have carried out a surprise raid at the garden last week. It found three water tankers drawing water from the lake with the help of diesel-fuelled pumps. After spotting the municipal team, drivers fled the scene along with tankers. The team informed cops who reached the spot and seized the pump sets.
“We noted down registration numbers of tankers and handed it over to the police. Our job is over and it now for the police to investigate the matter,” says Meshram.
However, it has been alleged that theft from lake is nothing new for a section of influential civic personnel who are allegedly hand in glove with tanker mafia and in the present case culprits were deliberately given a chance to evade the police dragnet.
While a case under sections 379 and 34 of the IPC has been registered against tanker operators, no arrests have been made so far.
Moreover, the police are yet to ascertain identity of the driver and operating company and the TA is least cared to follow up on such a serious issue.
“We are on the trail of tanker operators and will nab them soon,” assured Senior PI Anil Kadam.
It should be noted that tanker mafia, in an apparent move aimed at cashing in on the summer demand, have adopted illegal ways to create their source of water. In a novel way to dodge the arms of law, mafia have dug bore-wells near natural lakes, ponds and also on the footsteps of hills near Dachkul Pada area along the Western Express Highway.
However, the forest and municipal authorities have chosen to turn a blind eye towards the illegal activity which is depleting the ground level of water. It should be noted that most of the water supply companies operating in the twin-city are either owned by influential politicians or have been bestowed by their blessings.
‘Child labourer as conservancy worker’
Mumbai: Congress corporator from F/North ward Lalita Yadav alleged that the contractor Janhit Pratishthan, who is supposed to conduct the cleaning work of ward # 166, was employing child labourers. Due to inefficiency of work this contractor has already been black listed from May 28. She said that all complaints regarding employment of the child labourer and inefficiency of the contractor have fell on deaf ear.
Yadav also complained that there are lots of other issues that her ward has to face. The two major drains, Wadala T.T and Raoli low level nullah, have not been completely desilted. Floating debris could be seen and only 40 per cent work has been completed.
It’s been 15 days since the existing contractor was black listed but a new contractor has not been appointed yet for Transit Camp in Kokri Aagaar in Sion-Koliwada. This ward has a majority of transit camp population and the situation was really bad that no cleanliness work has been done. If cleaning work is not done promptly then the first shower will see rapid increase in people falling ill.
Major embarrassment is when the monorail passes through this area one can only see garbage littered on road. Yadav also mentioned that additional municipal commissioner had instructed the concerned DMC A.L. Waghralkar to appoint a contractor in waiting at the earliest but even that did not happen. “When we called the in-charge on his mobile phone he said he was in a meeting and latter didn’t respond to our calls,” said Yadav.
Ward officer Alka Sasane said that she knows about all the issues but refrained from commenting on it.
Corruption inquiry – Maharashtra style
Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has criticized the Maharashtra government for not providing facilities to a retired judge appointed recently to inquire into alleged financial irregularities amounting to Rs. 6,000 cr in tribal welfare schemes in the state.
“Why has the inquiry not begun? We want the government to provide all help to the concerned judge to hold the inquiry immediately,” said a bench of justices V M Kanade and P D Kode while hearing a PIL filed by a tribal Bahiram Motiram from Nashik district.
On March 27, the court had ordered the inquiry by retired high court judge M G Gaikwad into the alleged financial irregularities in tribal welfare schemes during 2004-05 to 2008-09.
Counsel for the petitioner, Rajendra Raghuvanshi alleged that the state officials were not cooperating in the probe ordered by the court. As a result, the inquiry had not yet begun. Even facilities have not been provided to the judge to hold the inquiry.
The bench expressed its anguish over the government’s “lethargic attitude” and said “It is a big scam. We are very much concerned about the welfare of tribals. People should get benefits of various schemes introduced by the government.”
“Tell your (government) officers not to influence us either directly or indirectly… or else we will take strict action,” the bench told government pleader Abhinandan Vagyani. Adjourning the hearing by four weeks, the court asked the government to inform on the next date how it would utilize the money allocated in the budget for tribal welfare schemes in this financial year.
The court had earlier appointed Retired Judge Gaikwad as Chairman of a five-member committee to probe the allegations. It had ordered that the inquiry shall commence immediately after the government regulation is notified on April 1.
The bench had asked the judge to make recommendations for action to be taken against persons responsible for the scam. In legal and political circles, the court order was considered as a heavy blow to Vijay Kumar Gavit, the then minister for Tribal Welfare.
The court observed that though the GR was issued on April1, the inquiry had not yet begun. The other members of the inquiry committee are Bipin Shrimali, Managing Director of Maharashtra State Electricity Commission Co Ltd; Dhananjay Kamlakar, Special Inspector General of Police, Nashik; Sunil Bhosale, Joint Director (Finance), Maharashtra State Aids Control Society; and Sanjeev Kumar, Tribal Development Commission.
Finger fiddling cop lets youth bleed to death
Airoli: The parents of engineering student Tushar Jadhav, who was found stabbed in a Thane local train early on Thursday morning, say his life could have been saved if the police constable who found him had promptly taken him to hospital instead of waiting for the train to reach Thane.
Jadhav (22), a student of Rajendra Mane Engineering College in Ratnagiri, was coming home for holidays after having appeared for his last exam of the third year on Wednesday. He boarded the Konkan Kanya Express at 11.30 pm to arrive at Panvel at 4.30 am.
From Panvel, he boarded a trans-Harbour local to Thane. He was in the luggage compartment. At 5.15 am, the constable in the adjacent ladies’ compartment heard someone screaming for help. When he went to check at the next station, Ghansoli, he saw Jadhav soaked in blood from two gashes, one in the stomach and one in the neck. There was a deep gash in his hand too. There was no one else in the compartment, the police said. The constable from the government railway police also did not see anyone.
Instead of taking Jadhav to a hospital at Ghansoli or the next station at Rabale, the constable waited till the train reached Thane, a full 14 minutes later. By this time, life had ebbed out of Jadhav. The Thane civil hospital declared him dead.
“My son was bleeding profusely. There’s a hospital near the next station, Rabale. Couldn’t he have alerted other policemen on duty and taken him to the hospital? I do not understand the workings of the police,” said Vandana Jadhav, Tushar’s mother, who lives at Airoli.
“After having lived in Ratnagiri for five years, he had become used to these trips home in the wee hours of the night. I don’t think that he could have been reckless and got in the company of crooks. He never got into fights with anyone, didn’t even have any rivalry, then why would someone do this to him?” wondered Vandana.
The Vashi railway police has yet to come across any clue in the case. “We have yet to come up with a motive or suspect,” said senior inspector Nitin Bobde.
Asked about the delay in taking Jadhav to hospital, Bobde said, “The constable did what he thought fit. Had he got off midway, he would not have found anyone to help him take Jadhav to a hospital.”
Bhayandar: Ten days after Kashimira police registered a case of water theft against three tanker operators for illegally drawing water from a lake in Jari-Mari municipal garden situated in Janta Nagar, cops are yet to identify the culprits involved in the massive water theft racket.
Following complaints of water theft from the lake, civic chief Suresh Kakani had directed officials from the Tree Authority (TA) to take immediate action against the offenders.
A team led by deputy civic chief Deepak Kurulekar and TA officer Hansraj Meshram claims to have carried out a surprise raid at the garden last week. It found three water tankers drawing water from the lake with the help of diesel-fuelled pumps. After spotting the municipal team, drivers fled the scene along with tankers. The team informed cops who reached the spot and seized the pump sets.
“We noted down registration numbers of tankers and handed it over to the police. Our job is over and it now for the police to investigate the matter,” says Meshram.
However, it has been alleged that theft from lake is nothing new for a section of influential civic personnel who are allegedly hand in glove with tanker mafia and in the present case culprits were deliberately given a chance to evade the police dragnet.
While a case under sections 379 and 34 of the IPC has been registered against tanker operators, no arrests have been made so far.
Moreover, the police are yet to ascertain identity of the driver and operating company and the TA is least cared to follow up on such a serious issue.
“We are on the trail of tanker operators and will nab them soon,” assured Senior PI Anil Kadam.
It should be noted that tanker mafia, in an apparent move aimed at cashing in on the summer demand, have adopted illegal ways to create their source of water. In a novel way to dodge the arms of law, mafia have dug bore-wells near natural lakes, ponds and also on the footsteps of hills near Dachkul Pada area along the Western Express Highway.
However, the forest and municipal authorities have chosen to turn a blind eye towards the illegal activity which is depleting the ground level of water. It should be noted that most of the water supply companies operating in the twin-city are either owned by influential politicians or have been bestowed by their blessings.
‘Child labourer as conservancy worker’
Mumbai: Congress corporator from F/North ward Lalita Yadav alleged that the contractor Janhit Pratishthan, who is supposed to conduct the cleaning work of ward # 166, was employing child labourers. Due to inefficiency of work this contractor has already been black listed from May 28. She said that all complaints regarding employment of the child labourer and inefficiency of the contractor have fell on deaf ear.
Yadav also complained that there are lots of other issues that her ward has to face. The two major drains, Wadala T.T and Raoli low level nullah, have not been completely desilted. Floating debris could be seen and only 40 per cent work has been completed.
It’s been 15 days since the existing contractor was black listed but a new contractor has not been appointed yet for Transit Camp in Kokri Aagaar in Sion-Koliwada. This ward has a majority of transit camp population and the situation was really bad that no cleanliness work has been done. If cleaning work is not done promptly then the first shower will see rapid increase in people falling ill.
Major embarrassment is when the monorail passes through this area one can only see garbage littered on road. Yadav also mentioned that additional municipal commissioner had instructed the concerned DMC A.L. Waghralkar to appoint a contractor in waiting at the earliest but even that did not happen. “When we called the in-charge on his mobile phone he said he was in a meeting and latter didn’t respond to our calls,” said Yadav.
Ward officer Alka Sasane said that she knows about all the issues but refrained from commenting on it.
Corruption inquiry – Maharashtra style
Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has criticized the Maharashtra government for not providing facilities to a retired judge appointed recently to inquire into alleged financial irregularities amounting to Rs. 6,000 cr in tribal welfare schemes in the state.
“Why has the inquiry not begun? We want the government to provide all help to the concerned judge to hold the inquiry immediately,” said a bench of justices V M Kanade and P D Kode while hearing a PIL filed by a tribal Bahiram Motiram from Nashik district.
On March 27, the court had ordered the inquiry by retired high court judge M G Gaikwad into the alleged financial irregularities in tribal welfare schemes during 2004-05 to 2008-09.
Counsel for the petitioner, Rajendra Raghuvanshi alleged that the state officials were not cooperating in the probe ordered by the court. As a result, the inquiry had not yet begun. Even facilities have not been provided to the judge to hold the inquiry.
The bench expressed its anguish over the government’s “lethargic attitude” and said “It is a big scam. We are very much concerned about the welfare of tribals. People should get benefits of various schemes introduced by the government.”
“Tell your (government) officers not to influence us either directly or indirectly… or else we will take strict action,” the bench told government pleader Abhinandan Vagyani. Adjourning the hearing by four weeks, the court asked the government to inform on the next date how it would utilize the money allocated in the budget for tribal welfare schemes in this financial year.
The court had earlier appointed Retired Judge Gaikwad as Chairman of a five-member committee to probe the allegations. It had ordered that the inquiry shall commence immediately after the government regulation is notified on April 1.
The bench had asked the judge to make recommendations for action to be taken against persons responsible for the scam. In legal and political circles, the court order was considered as a heavy blow to Vijay Kumar Gavit, the then minister for Tribal Welfare.
The court observed that though the GR was issued on April1, the inquiry had not yet begun. The other members of the inquiry committee are Bipin Shrimali, Managing Director of Maharashtra State Electricity Commission Co Ltd; Dhananjay Kamlakar, Special Inspector General of Police, Nashik; Sunil Bhosale, Joint Director (Finance), Maharashtra State Aids Control Society; and Sanjeev Kumar, Tribal Development Commission.
Finger fiddling cop lets youth bleed to death
Airoli: The parents of engineering student Tushar Jadhav, who was found stabbed in a Thane local train early on Thursday morning, say his life could have been saved if the police constable who found him had promptly taken him to hospital instead of waiting for the train to reach Thane.
Jadhav (22), a student of Rajendra Mane Engineering College in Ratnagiri, was coming home for holidays after having appeared for his last exam of the third year on Wednesday. He boarded the Konkan Kanya Express at 11.30 pm to arrive at Panvel at 4.30 am.
From Panvel, he boarded a trans-Harbour local to Thane. He was in the luggage compartment. At 5.15 am, the constable in the adjacent ladies’ compartment heard someone screaming for help. When he went to check at the next station, Ghansoli, he saw Jadhav soaked in blood from two gashes, one in the stomach and one in the neck. There was a deep gash in his hand too. There was no one else in the compartment, the police said. The constable from the government railway police also did not see anyone.
Instead of taking Jadhav to a hospital at Ghansoli or the next station at Rabale, the constable waited till the train reached Thane, a full 14 minutes later. By this time, life had ebbed out of Jadhav. The Thane civil hospital declared him dead.
“My son was bleeding profusely. There’s a hospital near the next station, Rabale. Couldn’t he have alerted other policemen on duty and taken him to the hospital? I do not understand the workings of the police,” said Vandana Jadhav, Tushar’s mother, who lives at Airoli.
“After having lived in Ratnagiri for five years, he had become used to these trips home in the wee hours of the night. I don’t think that he could have been reckless and got in the company of crooks. He never got into fights with anyone, didn’t even have any rivalry, then why would someone do this to him?” wondered Vandana.
The Vashi railway police has yet to come across any clue in the case. “We have yet to come up with a motive or suspect,” said senior inspector Nitin Bobde.
Asked about the delay in taking Jadhav to hospital, Bobde said, “The constable did what he thought fit. Had he got off midway, he would not have found anyone to help him take Jadhav to a hospital.”
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