State power utility Mahavitaran said its vigilance department detected 4,461 cases of unauthorised use of electricity and power theft aggregating to Rs. 482 crore in 2014.

“Mahavitaran’s vigilance and security department detected 4,461 cases of unauthorised use of electricity and power theft, amounting to Rs 482 crore, during the last one year,” a statement said.

Of the Rs. 482 crore, power theft amounted to Rs. 3.18 crore, while Rs. 478 crore was on unauthorised use of electricity.

“These consumers have been charged with Rs. 482.03 crore payments as penalty, interest and the amount against use of electricity and Mahavitaran have already recovered Rs. 183.04 crore from these consumers,” the statement added.

To curb the power theft and unauthorised use of power to reduce the T&D losses in the Mumbai region like Ahmednagar, Dhule, Thane, Nashik, Palghar, Raigad, Jalgaon and Nandurbar, 12 flying squads operates under the Vigilance and Security department.

In the last one year, these flying squads inspected 10,530 electricity connections and 4,461 cases were detected, it said.

Aiming to make easier the identification of ‘missing’ children across the state, the Maharashtra government is mulling to create a website where details of such inmates along with their photographs will be uploaded so that they can be reunited with their families.

The website, which is yet to get a URL, will be linked with the Central government’s Ministry of Women and Child Development official website.

“There are currently about 92,000 children residing in 1,108 reform homes across the state. These children have either been caught doing prohibited labour work or have been seen begging on streets. Even children who stay on footpaths are usually sent to reform homes,” an official from the state Women and Child Welfare department said.

“If these children are brought to Maharashtra from far flung places of the country, it becomes very difficult for the child’s parents to track their kids and it is difficult for us too if these children do not have the necessary details.

“When we start a website exclusively for such missing children, a parent from any state of the country will be able to check if his child is found to be in Maharashtra,” the official added.

He said that there are, currently, 28 government borstals, 991 private borstals aided by the government and 89 private borstals spread across the state.

“Even a common man can get photos of their missing children uploaded on the website via local police stations or WCD department offices. These photos will then be matched with the database that we already have of children. Even if we succeed in helping 25% of the total children that we currently have in reform homes, our initiative will prove to be a success,” he said.

According to rules, a child found doing labour intensive work is first brought the local police or WCD officials to borstals, following which they are presented in front of a Child Welfare Committee (CWC).

The CWC then decides the merits of the case, based on which a probationary officer is entitled with the task of gathering details about the child.

These details are then presented before the CWC, which then hands over the child to its parents.

“Through this website, we only want to ensure that children who for some reason have parted with their families are reunited with them. Here, we will not entertain any women complaints,” the officer said.

A 32-year-old farmer from Aurangabad district in Maharashtra who has been helping the forest department in catching crop-destroying monkeys and langurs for over a decade now, has sought for a state government job to save these animals.

Samadhan Giri, a veteran in the work he loves, has been seen visiting the Mantralaya frequently over the last five to six years, to make a pitch for his case.

Armed with newspaper clippings about his work of catching monkeys and releasing them in jungles, the farmer is yet to land a job of his liking in the forest department.

“I have been assisting the forest department to catch monkeys and langurs who cause damage to crops and human lives since I was 15 years old. The forest department does not have any infrastructure to nab the animals without harming them. Most of the time, the monkeys are shot dead,” said Giri.

After the new government took over, Giri visited Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar to press for his demand for a government job.

However, since the minister was busy with meetings, Giri said he gave his representation to the minister’s office. “I want a government job to save the monkeys and I can travel across the state. The demand for job is not for money. I would be happy with a stipend of Rs. 1,000 per month,” Giri says.

He said he had met Patangrao Kadam, Abdul Sattar, ministers in the previous government with recommendation from Chief Conservator of Forest (CCF) that instead of taking his services for each case, he be regularised in government service.

“The CCF told the government that vehicle, cage, travel expenses amount to Rs. 35-40,000 per case. Instead, he be given monthly payment of Rs. 12,000 as he is well versed with the art of luring the monkeys in a cage without harming them,” Giri said.

Giri is a resident of Ambai village in Sillod Taluka of Aurangabad and has caught 25,000 monkeys so far. He said due to drought conditions, there is shortage of water in jungles which makes these animals come out of their habitats.

“There have been instances in places like Kannad and Jintur in Marathwada region where the monkeys have hurt local residents,” he said.

Giri, who has studied upto XII, says he has not been able to look after his farming because he has to travel across the state all the time after receiving calls from forest department to help them catch monkeys who run riot in fields and homes in different villages.

A PIL filed in the Bombay High Court has sought legal action against MIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and VHP leader Praveen Togadia for allegedly making comments on religious conversions (ghar wapsi).

Stating that the comments made by these leaders had a tendency to divide the people, the Public Interest Litigation(PIL) said that these remarks were in violation of the Representation of the People Act and the Constitution of India.

The petition, filed by Hemant Patil, heading a Pune-based local political outfit, also sought a direction to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Election Commission of India to take cognisance of a complaint filed with them by the petitioner against the three leaders on this issue.

The PIL alleged that in their speeches, Togadia and Bhagwat have claimed that ancestors of all Indians were Hindus and urged Muslims to embrace Hinduism.

“In order to counter the duo, Hyderabad-based President of MIM, Asaduddin Owaisi, had allegedly commented that every child is born a Muslim and parents society then convert them to other religions,” it said.

The petition, which sought that politicians should be restrained from making comments allegedly to divide people, is likely to come up for hearing next week, petitioner’s lawyer R N Kachave, said.

As Shiv Sena and BJP exchanged sharp words over the Delhi poll results, Sharad Pawar-led NCP said it will not extend support to the Devendra Fadnavis government if the former pulls out of the ruling alliance in Maharashtra.

If Sena withdraws from the government, the BJP government would be reduced to a minority. However, NCP will not extend support to it in such a scenario, party spokesman Nawab Malik said.

He described the Delhi Assembly poll result as a defeat of “arrogance of power”.

“The BJP-led Maharashtra government has failed to fulfill aspirations of farmers and the poor. People of the state want to get rid of this government. If Shiv Sena withdraws, NCP will help it to oust the government and it is ready to face fresh elections,” Malik said.

BJP and Sena have 121 and 63 MLAs respectively and their alliance enjoys comfortable majority in the 288-member Assembly.