Republican Sena chief Anandraj Ambedkar was on Thursday arrested in connection with a rioting case wherein he and his activists had stormed into a local mill premises, demanding its allotment for construction of a memorial for his late grandfather and Dalit leader B R Ambedkar.

Anandraj and his seven associates were arrested in the 2011 rioting case, Deputy Police Commissioner Dhananjay Kulkarni said. They were later granted bail.

Police also filed a 103-page charge sheet against the eight arrested accused and 14 wanted accused in the Bhoiwada court today.

On December 6, 2011, activists of the Republican Sena, led by its leader Anandraj, barged into the Indu mill premises in the city and installed busts of Ambekar and Gautam Buddha, demanding its allotment for construction of a memorial for Ambedkar, the architect of the Indian Constitution.

Apparently resorting to a pacifier after the MNS agitation on toll collection, the Maharashtra government on Thursday assured party chief Raj Thackeray that it would draft a new policy on the issue before the model code of conduct for the Lok Sabha elections comes into force.

The decision was taken during a meeting which was chaired by Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, PWD minister Chhagan Bhujbal, Minister for Public roads Jaidutt Kshirsagar and attended by Raj along with his party MLAs, senior state government officials and a group of select journalists.

“Chavan at the start of the meeting informed Raj Thackeray that the government is trying to bring in a new policy before the model code of conduct comes into force for the Lok Sabha elections. The new policy would be brought by making corrections in the earlier ones if there are any follies,” a journalist who attended the meet, said.

Besides, Chavan also said that the state transport buses would be exempted from toll, so that the common man does not bear the brunt of the cost.

“Ambulances will also be pressed into service on highways with the help from Centre,” he said adding that the government was contemplating a modern technology based on Radio-frequency identification (RFID) basis so that there will be a direct and transparent transaction in collection of toll, exempting vehicles from mandatory stoppage at toll plazas. Chavan during the meeting, which went on for two and a half hours, also noted that Maharashtra has maximum number of roads.

“According to the new policy we are trying to eliminate toll on smaller roads. We are contemplating buy back of smaller roads constructed on toll basis. We will make budgetary provisions for that,” the journalist said quoting Chavan.

The CM also said that the state government has started electronic monitoring at some places and the government will soon start this at every toll booth.

Besides, the issue of toilets on highways was also raised to which the Chief Minister said that it was a serious matter and the government would think on it.

“We will build toilets as per the Centre’s norms. Wherever there is a land acquisition problem, we will even buy land,” the journalist said quoting Chavan.

Later talking to reporters on the sidelines of a programme here, Chavan said that the government had a healthy discussion with the MNS chief on the toll issue.

“We have incorporated some of the points which were raised by Raj Thackeray. In September last year we started working out the (toll) policy and it is before the cabinet and the first round of meeting has been conducted,” Chavan said.

Commenting on the protest rally which would be carried out by the MNS on February 21 from Girgaum Chowpatty to the Mantralaya (state secretariat), Chavan said that he has requested Raj not to indulge in such kind of agitations.

“I have requested them not to indulge in such kind of agitations. There is a need to have healthy discussion. We will try to bring in more transparency in the policy,” he added.

Chavan informed that two years back the government had a discussion with veteran social activist Anna Hazare and we had taken few decisions which have been implemented.

Raj Thackeray during the meet opined that toll plazas which costs below Rs 10 crores should not be built on Build Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis.

“Raj said tolls built with lesser amounts need not be charging toll levy. There is no account of the money as the entire transaction is in cash,” the journalist said, quoting the MNS chief.

Comparing toll collection and quality of highways in Maharashtra to that of neighbouring Karnataka, Raj said, “Growth in number of vehicles was not considered (in Maha). The system of collecting toll levy and the quality of roads are better in Karnataka.”

The MNS chief also threw a light on increasing number of accidents which are recorded on the Mumbai-Pune Express way, while pressing for stopping illegal collection of toll.

Besides, the government should conduct audits of toll booths functional in the state, Raj demanded.

The Bombay High Court on Thursday asked an expert committee to examine the height of gaps between footboards of local trains and railway platforms and recommend suitable measures to prevent mishaps.

The Committee was asked to file its report by March 13 and the railway officers were directed to examine the report and come out with an action plan by March 20.

A bench of Chief Justice Mohit Shah and Justice M S Sanklecha also directed the expert committee to inspect each and every platform on the Central and Western Railway routes and decide how much space should be left between the platforms and the footboards of trains so that mishaps could be avoided.

The committee, which has been given this task, is the same one appointed earlier by the High Court to look into the problems of handicapped persons who commute by local trains.

The bench had taken up the issue after a 16-year-old college girl, Monica More, lost her arms after falling into a gap between the platform at suburban Ghatkopar railway station while trying to board a local train last month.

The tragic incident brought to the fore the risk lakhs of commuters take daily to board crowded suburban local trains, transport “lifelines” of Mumbai.

Western Railway today informed the court that it had increased the height of suburban platforms at nine railway stations including Grant Road and Dadar.

The Court has directed the expert committee to inspect these nine platforms also along with others.

The court reprimanded the railways for keeping wide gaps between the platforms and footboards of trains thereby putting the lives of commuters at great risk.

The court observed “you (railways) are not ready to listen to others. Your stand has been that whatever you say is right and others are wrong.”

Counsel for railways Suresh Kumar gave technical reasons for not increasing the height of platforms.

The railways said in an affidavit that the gap between the footboards of local trains and platforms is not the sole cause behind commuters losing their life or limbs in mishaps but there were several other factors involved like crossing of tracks, trespassing and over-crowding.

In Mumbai, there is no separate rail corridor for local suburban trains and long-distance trains. Since the width of the long-distance trains is greater than local trains, the platforms have to be constructed keeping this in mind.

A day after his party’s uncharacteristically peaceful agitation against toll plazas in Maharashtra, MNS chief Raj Thackeray was on Thursday back in his element, warning of “wreaking havoc” at houses of toll contractors who use force to collect the levy.

“I appeal to people of Maharashtra not to pay toll till the state government implements changes in the toll policy,” Raj told reporters after meeting Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on the issue.

“If you don’t want to pay toll and if anyone at the toll plaza forcibly makes you to do so, we will wreak havoc at the house of the concerned toll contractor,” the MNS president said.

“Then the government should not blame us,” he said.

“I met Chavan today as per his phone call to me yesterday. He has assured me that the new toll policy will be brought in before the code of conduct for the ensuing elections is implemented,” Raj said.

“The chief minister conceded mistakes in the state’s build, operate, transfer (BOT) policy and said the government will reconsider it,” Raj said. “Chavan agreed that the condition of roads in the state was bad. He also assured us that the government will wind up all illegal toll booths,” the MNS leader said.

To a query on the success of his party’s anti-toll stir, Raj said, “Anna Hazare had also written to the government against toll. But since our party’s first agitation on the issue, 65 toll booths have been shut. This means that the government understands our language and not that of Hazare.”

Raj, who said the chief minister’s response at the meeting earlier in the day, was “very positive”, had assured that toll collection will be stopped at 22 toll plazas where the project cost was less than Rs 10 crore.

felicitation ceremony, which the Maharashtra government has been planning to honour retired batting legend Sachin Tendulkar, may take another three months, according to a senior state minister.
The state government has set up a seven-member committee to work out the modalities for honouring the cricketer, who retired from all forms of the game after his 200th Test match in November last year. It would take another 2-3 months for the government to felicitate Sachin, the minister said. “It’s not possible to hold the felicitation programme now as the Lok Sabha elections are approaching.

Also, the schedule of the government is busy because of regular Cabinet meetings,” the minister told. “The date (for felicitation) has still not been decided. We will seek the date and time after contacting him,” he added.

The panel set up by the government will finalise all aspects of felicitation function, including a memento to be given to the ace cricketer, who was recently conferred with the Bharat Ratna – the country’s highest civilian honour. Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar are the patrons of the committee, which will be chaired by the minister for sports and youth welfare.

Terming Sachin the “great son of Maharashtra,” a government resolution had earlier said that the state government has been considering honouring the cricketer. “The prestige of Maharashtra and India has increased due to Sachin’s contribution to the game,” the government had said.

The state government is taking cue from the cricketing world’s tradition of presenting autographed bats to winners or retiring players, and is planning to present the Mumbai-based cricketer a special silver trophy bearing the signatures of all 40 ministers.