Karjat Robbery – I Need To Know The Motive Behind House Breaking

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December 10, 2020

My Karjat house is my weekend getaway and peaceful writer’s corner. On 26th November at 12.18 pm in the afternoon, I received a message with some pictures by Uttam Thakur, a contractor at Star India Project, in which I have my flat, stating that someone has damaged the outer gates by siding the netting of my residence. When I received his message, I was very upset and sent two audio messages to him expressing my anger and disappointment towards the ungrateful conduct that the villagers have shown towards me in spite of my support on various fronts and social contributions. I have created this house with immense effort and hard work and am a resident of Karjat. When we reached our premises on 6th December, we discovered that the house had been vandalised inside and many things were stolen. The interior was a complete mess with all emptied drawers, various items were strewn on the ground, gutkha tainting every room’s floor, and empty water bottles were thrown all around the house. Uttam happened to drop in exactly in no time and I vented out my anger at him as believed him to be the perpetrator. When we arrived there the scenario was different from the actual pictures he sent us and the house more damaged than before. That itself is a big reason to suspect his motives. A once neat and tidy house nest was in a disgusting mess and absolute disarray where the intention to cause damage was quite obvious. Within an hour of our arrival, Uttam Thakur arrived to check in with a timely visit.

The background story:

I took the initiative to build a small Ganesha temple for our society premises more than a year ago. There is a neighbouring Shiva temple on the banks of the river Ulhas which needed an overhead shed for various prayers and pujas done by the community. I gladly supported both these constructions to enrich the community’s spiritual well being and holy practices. During their built up various employment opportunities arose and I was glad to see that it contributed to the livelihood of all the people involved. But sadly, the Ganesha temple was vandalised badly overnight due to which I had to move the idol to a safer space where it can be worshipped with due reverence and respect. The Ganesha Puja was a great point for us to carry out some event or the other and it generated various means for the villagers to earn money. But since we moved it due to the temple’s vandalisation, the earnings of various people have been stopped and come to a standstill.

What has each one to gain?

Due to this robbery, it is important to understand the various perspectives and how it pushes everyone’s advantage. Here each one is trying to reap their benefits and seeking to capitalise their future earnings in this agenda. The builder does not get along with the local villagers, so the moment villagers and I clash and me being a localite, I will have to deal with them and thus there is one more candidate along with the builder to oppose the villagers.

Villagers are trying to plan & push the blame on the builder’s news appointed contractor Vipul Shah and his staff so that once they can be held responsible for the act, they will be unable to continue working here in the future. Meanwhile, we cannot ignore the fact that the staff of Vipul Shah are not known to us and they might be eyeing the property and observed that no one visits here frequently. It is the responsibility of Shah to make sure his staff is trustworthy, in this the entire game builder never introduced Vipul Shah to residents officially granting him permission to complete the project. Above all, Vipul Shah is not the first such entry in these premises who has taken responsibility on behalf of builders towards the said property. So many flat owners’ hard-earned money has been stuck in this project and they all will eventually force the builder to fix their homes. Thus the builder is compelled to hire them for completion and maintenance. These contracts open up new avenues of earning for them in the current already recessive time. But the fact of the matter is that nothing in those premises can happen without the permission and knowledge of both parties; one being Uttam Thakur the villager, landowner, and contractor, second being the builder Pradeep Sajjan, Sandeep Sajjan & their staff. In the daytime a residence’s double door locks were broken with a noisy grinder, household items stolen and the premises vandalised. A grinder’s high octave screech can reach great distances alerting people during night hours; therefore this robbery has surely been done in the daytime to disguise the sounds as routine construction work. It is very difficult to believe that a group of people could breaking inside a premise, take their own sweet time to select what they wanted to steal, vandalise and then enjoy their alcoholic drinks in the house and neither the builder’s people in the premises or the villagers have no clue or just have not heard anything about it.

Police in action:

Police soon came to investigate the matter and support us. PSI Arun Bhor had come with his team AP Alhat and other officers and assured us that they will look into this theft case seriously and ensure justice. There were glass fingerprints, gutkha marks, and footprints all over the house. This can be crucial evidence to nail the culprit and should have been retained to further help in the verification. I’m sure they will do it in the future but hopefully, it should not be too late. As Police were carrying out their investigation, they received a call from Sureshbhau Lad who is the former MCP MLA and Karjat Assembly Constituency representative. Sureshbhau happens to know Uttam’s father and the villagers as they are his vote bank, therefore he called the police officer and told them to be easy on the investigation as the villagers matter to him and how Uttam has suffered a throat paralysis attack. Kindly note, I have all the compassion towards any ailing human and would surely wish them recovery and good health. But one thing I would like to highlight here that a culprit must be brought to justice. This is the perfect case of how someone can take advantage of his health status to hamper justice. Meanwhile, people are forgetting that when the crime was done, perhaps he was perfectly fine and that guise cannot be the excuse for avoiding seeking the investigation facts. Uttam’s throat paralysis attack impacted the voice box and throat muscles and not his whole body. Presently he is already in recovery mode and is very much able to drive alone, walk and move around in the city. He is physically fine and no movements of his are restricted in any way.

Reason for Suspicion:

Uttam Thakur, Ganesh Bhase or Manohar Bhase, Ankush Thackeray, and Rupesh Thakackeray are the people who work in various capacities as painter, plumber, welder, etc, where Uttam being contractor assigns various building maintenance jobs inside that residential building. Even my house interior was done by the same group and they very well know the entry-exit and every aspect of that flat. Sandip Sajjan, the Builder of Star India Project had initially assigned Uttam as their contractor for buildings development and maintenance work for many years. Even when the contract was given to a third party called Vipul Shah to renovate the premises, Uttam was sidelined by the builder. The reason I doubt him is that in those premises there are various illegal activities ranging from unauthorised parking to illicit activities and the truth is that he is taking complete advantage of that space and using it to his benefit. The fact is that he has complete control on the premises and even today, no one can enter those premises without his knowledge. Therefore to execute such a theft which involves the use of high-decibel grinding machinery, planned time, strong control on the environment, and people around during the theft is only possible for those who have complete control on the premises. Presently the throat paralysis stroke he suffered last month is taken to his advantage to dilute the reality under this pretext.

Diversion tactics:

Builder alleges that Uttam Thakur has stolen the building’s raw material and tiles from the site and fixed them in his own house. Similarly, the new Contractor Vipul Shah also claims that the worth lakhs of rupees raw material and tiles that he ordered were stolen from the premises. The matter reached such a point that Uttam completely stalled the site work and the builder had to practically beg and request Uttam’s father to resume work on his site. Many contractors came and left, the project is still in shabby condition. Now Vipul Shah is a new contractor and claims that his goods too have been stolen and is suffering a loss of 5 to 6 lakhs. When police were enquiring around with the onsite people, Uttam, and his team was keener on crying about the builder’s non-payment of their bills and nobody was sensitive to the robbery and helped out on that front. They were trying to settle their score with the builder and tried these diversion tactics to take the matter away from the actual investigation of the robbery point and blame it all on the builder.

Score settling:

Initially, when we took possession of our residence, the builder was very active in the development of the building project. Flat owners were clamouring to get their possession on the earliest and chasing the builder to hand over their flats. I invested my hard-earned money for my house and have my Rahivasi Dakhla there (resident claim). I dared to claim what was lawfully mine against all odds by the builder and his people. The villagers faced so many challenges from the builder, but at every step, I stood by with the villagers and was voicing opinions for them and fighting for their justice all the way. I always supported them with various household tasks where they constantly earned some money regularly. Then all of a sudden the equation changes and they rob my house to deter me and convey I cannot survive there without giving them that extortion money to be safe. Paying them regularly to keep my space safe seems to be a compulsion now?

Hope:

Today the presence of such local groups has blocked so many families from receiving their rightful home and shelter. Some residents have invested their life savings to buy a house here to retire peacefully while many are still paying their loans hoping to get possession of their homes someday. Such a vicious nexus completely compromises the well-being, happiness, and future of so many families and it surely needs to be addressed strongly. Local politicians and authority members must ensure the safety of all residents and not encourage unlawful and illegal practices that thwart development and compromise property for their own selfish gains.

We are a nation that is still building its foundation for the well being, progress, and safety of their daughters. What I have lost, I am not expecting it to come back to me. I will bless the person who is using our stolen goods. Today I am a self-made person and therefore it is extremely important that I know the motive of this act as it is a breach of my safety and trust. In this independent India where a girl is daring to fight for her house and stay in these desolate premises with the hope that people will soon move in and come to stay there, safety and peace will be ensured for her. This is all I hope.

Mumbai-Maharashtra Did Not Support Bharat Bandh

By

Afternoon Voice

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December 8, 2020

Constable on patrolling said “people are fed up of sitting home; this long lock down was the biggest Bandh of their life forever. Somehow people chose to resume their work, we did not see any activities related to Bandh”. Extra police force of up to 600 constables and nine platoons of SRPF have been deployed in the city. “Forcible closure of establishments will not be allowed. Action will be taken,” police said. Key farmers and trade unions in the state held demonstrations at district and tehsil headquarters for a very short time. People’s movements, women’s groups and student associations took part too but not for a long time.

Buses and trains were running as usual, shops and restaurants were open and nothing was closed or stalled in support of Bharat Bandh. There are few places like APMC market that was closed to support the Bharat Bandh for farmers but still fruit and vegetable supply to the city was not much impacted. Buses, autos and taxis were working. Smaller taxi and rickshaw unions, though, joined the strike but transport was not affected in the city. Retail shops and banks remained open. Members of the key union, the Maharashtra State Bank Employees Federation, supported the bandh by wearing badges and holding morchas and demonstrations but they were working. Transporters’ unions were on strike, but supplies of essentials were not squeezed.

Sangita Rasal, working women and mother said, “Schools are closed, local trains are closed, many things are already closed what more one need to witness the Bandh, government has made s follow Bandh for six long months during lockdown, now people have no interested in following these bandh, but that does not mean they don’t support farmers.”

Banks were functional, most retail shops were open. “If any individual wants to keep a bandh, it’s their call,” but the biggest crisis for common man is survival, they can’t afford to waste a day” said Dilip Redij, a Mumbai based fabrication work contractor.

Mumbai Vs Slumbai

By

Vaidehi Taman

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December 7, 2020

dharavi, slum, mumbai, mumbai slums, slumdog millionaire, slums in mumbai, slum dwellers — Image Courtesy: Johnny Miller

I have been born in Mumbai; I have seen this city changing its structure and also seen slums growing and getting reformed. Half of Mumbai is surrounded by Slumbai. This city is divided into two parts with 65 Lakh slum dwellers in the economic capital. There are many movies and documentaries illustrating the truth of the city called Mumbai. Slumdog Millionaire, the movie gave new charm to the slums of Mumbai. Overnight foreign tourists started flooding the city to visit slums. Dharavi is a slum and administrative ward, over parts of Sion, Bandra, Kurla, and Kalina suburbs of Mumbai, India. It is sandwiched between Mahim in the west and Sion in the east and spreads over an area of 175 hectares, or 0.67 square miles (1.7 km). In 1986, the population was estimated at 530,225, but modern Dharavi has a population of between 600,000 and over 1 million people. Dharavi is one of the largest slums in the world. It used to be the largest slum in Mumbai at one time, but as of 2011, there are four slums in Mumbai larger than Dharavi.

There have been many plans since 1997 to redevelop Dharavi like the former slums of Hong Kong such as Tai Hang. In 2004, the cost of redevelopment was estimated to be 5,000 crores. Companies from around the world have bid to redevelop Dharavi, including Lehman Brothers, Dubai’s Limitless, and Singapore’s Capitaland Ltd. In 2010, it is estimated to cost 15,000 crores to redevelop. The latest urban redevelopment plan proposed for the Dharavi area, the plan involves the construction of 30,000,000 square feet (2,800,000 m) of housing, schools, parks, and roads to serve the 57,000 families residing in the area, along with 40,000,000 square feet (3,700,000 m) of residential and commercial space for sale. There has been significant local opposition to the plans, largely because existing residents are due to receive only 225 square feet (20.9 m) of land each. Furthermore, only those families who lived in the area before 2000 are slated for resettlement. But this slum Dharavi has severe problems with public health, due to the scarcity of toilet facilities, due in turn to the fact that most housing and 90% of the commercial units in Dharavi are illegal. As of November 2006, there was only one toilet per 1,440 residents in Dharavi. Mahim Creek, a local river, is widely used by local residents for urination and defecation, leading to the spread of contagious diseases. The area also suffers from problems with inadequate drinking water supply.

In most large cities, the floor space index (FSI) varies from 5 to 15 in the Central Business District (CBD) to about 0.5, or below, in the suburbs. In Mumbai the permitted FSI is uniform and in 1991 was fixed at 1.33. The regulations that restrict the FSI greatly reduce the floor space available for residence and businesses. Inexpensive Mumbai, Dharavi provides a cheap alternative where rents were as low as US$4 per month in 2006. Dharavi exports goods around the world. The total turnover is estimated to be between US$500 million and over USD 650 million per year. Dharavi is situated between Mumbai’s two main suburban railway lines, the Western and Central Railways. To its west are Mahim and Bandra, and to the north lies the Mithi River, which empties into the Arabian Sea through the Mahim Creek. To its south and east are Sion and Matunga. Both its location and poor drainage systems make Dharavi particularly vulnerable to floods during the wet season. The failure of the system in providing due care is not surprising. Is not it the way our system functions? The upper authorities consume their share, the middlemen consume theirs, and if the resource reaches the hands of the poor the bigger fishes there eat away the share of the smaller ones. So first the authorities will have to acknowledge that slum dwellers are there and their population increases at a rate better than the common people population so swift action is required to solve their problems. They must return something to the city that makes them what they are today. The root causes of this issue are three-fold. First is the unmitigated flow of population to this premier city, second is the lack of affordable housing for the poor and the third and the most important reason why the SRA could not succeed is that the Maharashtra politics is dominated by builders lobby. In all the major cities of Maharashtra, builders have become politicians and vice versa and this is true across all political parties. However, one may not misconstrue that all slum-dwellers are below-poverty line people. In fact, many of them are quite industrious and economically well off. It is just that land is simply not available in Mumbai and the politician-builder community has grabbed whatever was available. The SRA never was or is the solution. What is needed is the greater spread of the city with a faster and efficient transport system, so that the population can shift and commute faster.

Slum development is an important issue. But what is being sought to be done is on the platter of slum development, we give a lot of undue benefit to builders and developers and instead of rehabilitating the slum dwellers, there is a lot of population migration in the area concerned. A sensitive subject which is sought to be exploited and fought on the shoulders of the poor slum dwellers. Free houses for the poor are okay on paper but what is the reality? If slum dwellers are accommodated in the vicinity of high rise buildings, most of them are likely to sell their dwellings and move to another slum. This is because basically most of them are so poor that they cannot afford to pay the high monthly maintenance expenses of their new dwellings. Secondly, it is unwise to think of any housing plan for the poor without planning for its funding. A faulty funding plan would invariably jeopardize any housing scheme for the poor that appears on the face of it to be viable: Dharavi is a classic example of faulty funding.

We are too much fascinated with this image of ours after ‘Slumdog millionaire’ got Oscar. Soon we will be one step ahead with an image ‘India is a land of plunderers’ with corruption malady rampant in every other field. It’s really sad to see the whole country focusing on the national drama of ‘Jan Lokpal’ but being apathetic to the real situations. ‘Jan Lokpal is not a magical wand which will make corruption disappear in a blink of eyes. Corruption is a plague and we need to handle each patient with similar attention and care. It set up the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) in 1995 with an emphasis on using the slum lands as a resource. The idea was to rope in private developers and encourage them to redevelop areas by permitting more dwelling units than what the building rules allowed. The excess units were to be sold and the money so mobilised was meant to subsidise reconstruction of slum tenements. On the face of it, this approach appeared well-meaning. However, on the ground, it was blatantly misused, denying the needy the benefit of owning a house even as small as 270 sq. ft.

Despite many complaints, the SRA did not carry out comprehensive surveys of slums nor prepare a well-verified list of eligible beneficiaries. Proper photo identification was not fully issued to the allottees, allowing many illegible users to benefit. The SRA, as a recent CAG report reveals, adopted improper practices that affected the performance of projects: proper evaluation of builders was not undertaken; dues were not recovered; projects were not properly monitored, resulting in poor construction and delay. The state of the flagship project — the Dharavi Redevelopment Project — is no better. Even eight years after sanctioning and spending about Rs.50 crore in planning, not even one of the five sectors earmarked for redevelopment has taken off. As a result, Mumbai has so far rehabilitated only about 15 percent of the targeted four million slum dwellers, even as the number of people living in slums has crossed 6.5 million. The limitations of the State machinery to deliver slum tenements may justify joint ventures with private builders. But what is required is total transparency in decision-making, the complete disclosure of project details, clear enunciation of specifications and deliverables, undiluted monitoring, and periodic public consultation. Above all, slum rehabilitation has to take a people-first approach and must benefit only the deserving. The problem directly relates to public infrastructure and the ability to work and earn money. The slum dwellers even if rehabilitated into a high-rise are going to shift to another slum area by selling off the allotted house. This is because of their inability to sustain an income. Help deal with their social grievances, increase public and private spending on infrastructure, and get them permanent sustainable jobs they will find a house for themselves.

British-Era Pipelines Under Repair; BMC Has Urged Citizens To Store Enough Water And Use It Carefully

By

Afternoon Voice

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December 7, 2020

The BMC in its statement has said numerous areas in Bhandup will not receive water on December 9 and December 10 as the civic body plans to replace a 4-km stretch of a British-era pipeline that brings water to the city from Tansa reservoir. The BMC said it will replace the existing 1800 mm diameter pipeline with a 2400-mm pipe for better water supply in the future. Bestowing to BMC, there will be no water supply in some areas of S Ward on December 9 and December 10.

While some areas in K East, H East, L, and G Northwards may receive water, the pressure will be extremely low. The upgrade will lead to low water pressure between Andheri East and Bandra Kurla Complex, Kurla, and Dharavi. The BMC has urged citizens of the area to store enough water on the previous day and use it economically.

S ward: Duck Line, Rajaram Wadi, Shriram Pada, Khindipada, Tembhipada, Sonapur, Tulshetpada, Pratap Nagar, Jamil Nagar, Samarth Nagar, Subhash Nagar, Drakshabagh, Utkarsh Nagar, Rajdeep Nagar, Nahur (West) and Bhandup (West) will not get water for 24 hours. Similar areas near Lal Bahadur Shastri Road, Jaybhim Nagar, Best Nagar, Aarey Marg, and adjoining area, Filter Pada, Mango Filling, Rawate Compound, Ram Nagar, Paspoli Village, Morarji Nagar, Gaondevi Hill, and Sarvodaya Nagar will experience water cut. Chakala, Prakash Wadi, Govind Wadi, Malpa hill no. 1 & 2, Hanuman Nagar, Mota Nagar, Shivaji Nagar, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Colony (Part), Charat Singh Colony (Part), Mukund Hospital, Technical Complex, Lelewadi, Indira Nagar, Mapkhan Nagar, Takpada, Airport Road Premises, Chimatpada, Sagbagh, Marol Industrial Complex, Ramakrishna Mandir Marg, J. B. Nagar, Bagarkha Marg, Kranti Nagar.

Kurla North Complex, Bareilly Mosque, 90 Feet Road, Kurla-Andheri Road, Jari-Mari, Ghatkopar Andheri Link Road, Savarkar Nagar, Mahatma Phule Nagar, Tanaji Nagar, Saki Vihar Marg, Marwa Industrial Road Adjacent Complex, Satya Nagar. Dharavi Ganesh Mandir road, A. K. G. Nagar, Dilip Kadam Marg, Kumbharwada, Sant Gorakumbhar Marg, Prem Nagar, Naik Nagar, Jasmine Mill Road, Matunga Labor Camp, 90 ft Road, M. G. Marg, Dharavi Loop Marg, Sant Rohidas Marg.

Opposition Parties Extend Support To Dec 8 ‘Bharat Bandh’ Call By Farmers’ Unions

By

Afternoon Voice

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December 7, 2020

Opposition parties have lent their support to “Bharat Bandh” on December 8 called by farmers’ unions in protest against the new farm laws introduced by the central government. Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said that his party will hold demonstrations in all states on Tuesday.

“Congress has supported the voice of farmers and will support Bharat Bandh on December 8 in every district and state. All parties and even NDA allies are concerned. Our district and state units will hold demonstrations,” Khera told a news agency. Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) president MK Stalin also extended support to the Bharat Bandh.

“The Opposition has already said that we will support the bandh (December 8th Bharat Bandh) and participate in it,” he said. Communist Party of India (CPI) general secretary D Raja said that the Central government, instead of being adamant, should repeal the new farm laws.

“The government should not remain adamant and should agree to repeal anti-farmer, anti-national agrarian laws. After several rounds of talks, the government is not conceding. Farmers have given a call for Bharat Bandh. Our party has given support and extended solidarity with protesting farmers,” he said. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) spokesperson Sudhindra Bhadoria said that his party is in support of farmers and their call for Bharat Bandh.

“After these bills came, farmers are protesting. But the government is not listening to them. The government should leave this attitude and agree to farmers’ demands. BSP chief Mayawati has supported Bharat Bandh. BSP is in support of farmers,” he said. Telangana Rashtra Samithi Member of Legislative Council (MLC) K Kavitha also announced her party’s support for the Bharat bandh.

However, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Saugata Roy said that his party stands with protesting farmers but will not support Bharat Bandh in West Bengal. “TMC stands with agitating farmers but we will not support Bharat bandh in West Bengal. It (bandh) goes against our principles,” he said.

Other Opposition parties including Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Samajwadi Party (SP), All India Forward Bloc (AIFB), Shiv Sena and National Congress Party (NCP) have also extended their support for the ‘Bharat Bandh’ call. The leaders of the Opposition parties issued a joint statement while extending solidarity with farmers call for a Bharat Bandh on December 8 demanding the withdrawal of “retrograde Agri-laws”.

Sukhbir Singh Badal led Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), which left the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to protest against farm laws, has also announced to lend its support to Bharat Bandh. The Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP), an ally of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Rajasthan has also extended its support to the call for ‘Bharat Bandh by farmers’. Demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should withdraw the farm laws, party chief Hanuman Beniwal on Sunday announced that the party will decide on whether or not to stay in National Democratic Alliance (NDA) after December 8.

Meanwhile, Congress MPs from Punjab staged a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, demanding a winter session of Parliament to discuss farmers’ issues. “Session should be called; anti-farmer laws should be reconsidered and withdrawn. The government is avoiding the session. It is against democracy,” Congress MP Manish Tewari said.

Hundreds of farmers have been protesting on different borders of the national capital since November 26 against the three newly enacted farm laws–Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020. Farmers’ leaders have held several rounds of talks with the government but all of them remained inconclusive so far. After the fifth round of talks, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has called another meeting on December 9.

Silt Drying Scam Of BMC Needs Urgent Scrutiny

By

Vaidehi Taman

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December 6, 2020

When sewage is clogged, the BMC takes up the task and clears the sewage, the sediments which were clogging the drainage is called silt or sludge. This silt is a breeding ground for various microorganisms like bacteria, fungi, etc. If left untreated, they may dry and fly off with air. Some are so microscopic in size that they can even bypass the face mask and infect people, especially children, and the elders. Besides that, the bigger danger that lurks are the mosquitos that feed on them, increasing their population and often getting infected by viruses causing dengue and malaria. Treating such sediments methodologically and scientifically is very necessary to control the invisible health hazards for the citizens of our city. BMC has a sewage treatment plant, and that requires certain expertise to operate. Only companies that are highly qualified to treat the silt are given the plant to be operated. To prove their expertise, a 3rd party certification is required which endorses the company after evaluating them and tells if the company bears expertise in conducting such crucial tasks. In this case, it is the National Accreditation Board for Testing & Calibration Laboratories (NABL) which endorses a company or a laboratory, after carefully evaluating their technical competency in a subject matter issued a tender, calling for companies which must have experience of treating the sewage waste methodically, and there is the only way to find if they actually do possess, and that is through a certification awarded by an evaluating third party.

Various companies participated to win the tender in January 2019. One of the choosing criteria to win a tender is the lower-cost of operations for a span of 5 years. The tender was won by Girish Khandagade, a businessman who claimed that he has the relevant certification and experience to carry out the job. The tender had very tight criteria and somehow Girish fulfilled all of them. However, the issue came to the light when an RTI activist enquired about the certifications and they discovered that everything which the company had submitted was technically incorrect and not genuine. The real issue begins here. After claiming that they will treat the silt and that they possess the experience of doing so, the plant remained shut.

He proceeded by showing his running expenses to the BMC and continued getting the money paid. However, the catch here is simple, to run a plant you need electricity. The electricity bill went from above one lakh to a couple of thousands in the following months, then it went down to fewer thousands and then in negative, asking the board to pay the money to the plant. The plant stopped working and BMC continued paying.

Also read: Dadar Silt Yard – Tipple Scam By Girish Khandagale

In a nutshell, Girish Khandagade, a businessman, submitted the tender of treating the sludge (or silt, the sediment after sewage clean up), he won the tender and claimed to be running the plant, if the plant was running the electricity bill would go higher, in fact, the bill went lower and at one point, it went negative. So, Girish not only played BMC but also played with the electricity board.

The questions in our mind should be, at the times of pandemic, where is the sludge getting treated? Is it mixed with other things and sold as something that we don’t know? How harmful is it to the health of the people where the silt is left untreated and if any death arises, who should be held responsible?

The notorious criteria of awarding the tender to the cheapest bidder have not only enabled corporate thugs to enter the market but also affected the quality we would expect from the work done by the hardworking tax money we pay to the government. People like Girish take advantage of such protocols and hoard your money that was paid to the government, the systematic intervention is minimal.

When it comes to taking care of the city, BMC has been the front runner, from their Clean-up drive to active participation during the COVID times, from pre-planned unclogging of drainage to prevent trains from stopping during the rains to working on silt treatment, they have been doing a good job. However, the lack of vigilance on their part is the result of people like Girish gaming the system. The department must take responsibility about who is taking care of what happens after the tender is won? Who is checking if the silt was actually treated and not discarded as a biohazard into the open? We expect that people like Girish should not just be banned from bidding on the projects but must also face consequences of their actions, it must be investigated. Sometimes the sheer greed results in a lack of empathy towards humanity.

When Engineers work up a solution, they affect almost everybody around them. BMC must act on a higher authority and make sure that companies who do this must face the consequences. It is time, people start demanding answers, crores of tax money is being duped by one man, his actions were not just of greed but also showcased that he has no remorse for human life. Treating untreated silt is a high responsibility job, it not only pollutes land, but also air, puts a steady decline in people’s health, most affected by bacteria, germs, and other pathogens are the children and the elders of the family. Untreated silt can even destroy the crops and infect the waters running around them. What is he doing with the silt if not treating it? The entire city is under an electricity power crunch and people like Girish are fabricating the electric meter and getting money from the board, as a result, it is disturbing the budget of the electric board, and who pays for the prices when they go high? The citizens of the city.

If the companies Girish are not dealt with now, they will continue duping the system, increase electricity charges for the masses, win tenders from BMC, hoard taxpayers’ money, leave disease-spreading silt untreated, and in worst cases be responsible for the death of elderly and children, while still enjoying the luxury of being scot-free.

No Exemption From Paying Property Tax; There Are Around 4.20 Lakh Property Tax Payers In Mumbai

By

Afternoon Voice

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December 4, 2020

This year, the corporation will issue tax demand notices to residents having houses measuring less than 500 square feet. As per the estimates of the 2020-21 budgets, the civic body should net Rs 6,768 crore in property taxes, which is one-fourth of its total income. Generally, property tax bills are distributed in April and the BMC announces around 2 per cent discount for early payment. But this year, as the lockdown started in March, various groups and political leaders demanded that it be waived off. The BMC wrote to the state’s Urban Development department for clarity. An officer with the assessment and collection department of the BMC said that they were hoping that the decision will be taken in the monsoon assembly session. But there wasn’t any clarity even after that.

In the present scenario, BMC is going through a financial crisis that is the reason they have decided to collect property tax for the current year from everyone, including houses measuring less than 500 square feet. The decision is expected to create a political row as it was the ruling Shiv Sena which had pushed to waive off the tax for smaller houses. There was also a demand to waive off property tax this year due to the pandemic, but the civic body did not receive any clarification from the state government. As such, it has decided to collect the tax, which is the second-largest source of revenue.

Sunil Dhamne, deputy municipal commissioner said “The property tax bills will be delivered as soon as possible, the notices will be sent within a fortnight and there won’t be any early bird scheme as hardly four months are left in the financial year.”

Additional Commissioner P Velrasu said that the BMC will not be able to give any exhumations this year in property tax. Last year, the corporation delayed sending bills due to ambiguity over taxes for smaller homes. There are around 4.20 lakh property taxpayers in the city, including 1.36 lakh having homes measuring less than 500 sq ft. Bills to these homes weren’t dispatched last year. As per a Government Resolution (GR) in 2019, only the general tax component in property tax can be waived off. So BMC has decided to issue bills by deducting the general tax component for houses measuring less than 500 square feet.

In March 2019, the then BJP government approved to amend the Property Tax Act to affect the waiver. But the GR in 2019 only amended section 140 (C) of the Act, which caters to the general tax component, merely 10 to 30 per cent of the total. The remaining components are water tax, storm water drainage tax, BMC education cess, state education cess, employment guarantee cess, tree cess, road tax, etc. The current government has not taken a decision on the matter yet.

OLA And Uber Cabs, Threat And Liability To Mumbai

By

Vaidehi Taman

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December 4, 2020

During this COVID-19 pandemic, Ola cabs came up with big advertisements showing how safe and secure they are but in reality, it’s a hazard. Above all the booking experience is another challenge; overall the Ola has lost its integrity. Today morning, I booked an Ola auto-rickshaw from my place to the office. The app showed the ride was three minutes away. I waited almost a minute and did not find him at my location. While tracking, I got to know he hadn’t moved at all from his initial position. So I give him a call to know his whereabouts. He told me his net pack finished, that’s why I am unable to track him; he is right below my building. I rushed down and saw there was no auto. Again I called him and asked his location, he said his phone is broken and hence could not navigate to my location. He gave me his location two minutes away from my gate, Since he was two minutes away, I thought I would walk up to his location. He still was not there, I cancelled my ride and I was charged for cancelling my drive. In this entire process, I wasted my 40 minutes and got bullied by Ola and the driver.

Let us take another scenario if you want to go to place A from B. A is a hugely populated area where the frequency of getting rides is high and B is the lesser one. As soon as you book a cab, They (Ola or Uber driver) wouldn’t call or come to your place, instead, they (not all) would wait for us to call them, after that they would ask for the location where you need to go and after getting to know your location, they would cut your call saying that they would be coming but after some time they won’t come and ultimately you have no other option than cancelling the ride (obviously you can report it to Uber or Ola but if you are going for some urgent work then those 30 minutes waiting period to reach customer executive or help desk is a task, even if you succeed in reaching them they will render an apology for the inconvenience and you have to get ready for another brutal experience.

These ola drivers are not limited to cheating clients, they cheat their company too. For example, the cab driver comes to your pick up point. As soon as you get inside the cab he would tell you that I am going to cancel the ride, instead, you give me the same amount as displayed by Uber or Ola before booking. And now if I am in a hurry I would do it because I have to reach my destination as soon as possible. This is one example but they have various ways of cheating people. The irony is that Ola Uber drivers demanding a guaranteed monthly income of 1.5 lacs. Engineering and medico Even highly qualified degree holders don’t get this guarantee. They are not reasonable in their demands. Apart from all this, if you look at these cabs you will find Car interiors dirty as most drivers do not bother to keep it clean daily. There smells they do not bother in keeping an air-freshener/fragrance to mask the foul smell. Most of the time car A/C does not work, either there is a fault with the A/C or the driver wants to save on fuel cost. Car insides are sometimes infested with mosquitoes as the drivers keep the windows open during breeding time. Nowadays many drivers do not use Google Maps navigation while driving; instead, they keep asking the passenger constantly for guiding them in the right direction, which is very much annoying.

The worst of all experiences is this one I had recently – nowadays most of the drivers are not allowed to cancel customer’s requests more than once or twice, so they employ a nasty and possibly illegal tactic to cancel a customer’s request – what they do is that as soon as they get your request, they drive for some distance till your pick up point and input in their phone app that they have already picked you up & then drive away and disappear. Once you realize this and press Cancel, you are charged with Rs. 50 /- cancellation charge, which you have to contact Customer Support and contest with them.

Moreover, drivers on behalf of partners run most of the Ola cabs, these cars are purchased on car loans for business purchase and owners of the car hardly drive these cars. About 50% of the cars operating in the city are in jeopardy of being seized by banks and other financial institutions, as most drivers are not being able to service their debts, which may result in loan defaults, the pamphlet claimed. It further said that if the demands for better remuneration and improved working conditions are not met, the drivers will go on a hunger strike. The drivers alleged that their incomes have reduced drastically with the taxi-hailing firms continuing to acquire more cabs while restructuring the incentive schemes.

With no real regulation on the number of taxis on the roads, their numbers have swelled. When Uber and Ola started their services, they attracted drivers by offering them extraordinarily generous incentives and facilitating loans for cars. Attracted by the charm of owning their taxis, and blinded by the incentives, many of the drivers did not question the sustainability of the tariffs they were made to offer. Nor did they question the longevity of the incentives. Over time, with enough taxis on their apps, the companies have withdrawn most incentives. Some of the drivers will eventually have to stop playing their taxis, dashing their entrepreneurial dreams. Already, some have started defaulting on their loans, prompting some lenders to stop new loans to drivers wanting to buy cars and join the app-based taxi revolution. With the companies making losses—then, they are funded by venture capital and expected to make losses. The companies have other problems as well. The companies see their drivers as contractors. The drivers want to be considered employees. This is true in India too; so much for the whole entrepreneurship thing. In the UK, a court has ruled that Uber should recognize its drivers as employees. There are cases in other parts of the world as well. Recognizing drivers, as employees would dent the much-vaunted asset-light model of these companies.

However, as the markets matured, systems for holding these companies accountable have become stronger. The cab services are gaining ground, as are pressures on these services to invest in their own infrastructure and comply with local norms. As the costs of these changes add on, the balance sheets of aggregators like Uber and Ola could start looking more and more like those of traditional players, making them potentially undifferentiated and unattractive to investors. Too big to fail: As mentioned, most aggregators run on very asset-light models. This means someone else owns the infrastructure, the people, the maintenance, the depreciation, the compliance, and the domain expertise – these companies come in and hoist an app on top of it and call all of it their own. What happens if and when they choose to stop or withdraw from a market? The ecosystem that depends on their demand generation and subsidies could potentially collapse.

Big Blow To HDFC Bank: RBI Ordered HDFC To Stop New Credit Card Allotment

By

Afternoon Voice

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December 3, 2020

The Reserve Bank of India ordered HDFC Bank to close down digital launches, new credit cards. The banking regulator issued the order to HDFC Bank with respect to certain incidents of outages in internet banking/ mobile banking/ payment utilities of the Bank over past 2 years, including recent outages in internet banking and payment system on November 21 due to a power failure in the primary data centre.

The Supreme Court will continue hearing pleas seeking an extension of the loan moratorium period and waiver of interest on interest on term loans in view of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Supreme Court is likely to hear 19 petitions challenging the constitutional validity of provisions relating to insolvency of personal guarantors under the IBC on Thursday.

The regulator, HDFC Bank said in a regulatory filing on Thursday, has issued an order on 2 December with regard to certain incidents of outages in the internet banking, mobile banking and payment utilities over the past 2 years. This also includes recent outages in the bank’s internet banking and payment system on 21 November due to a power failure in the primary data centre, the bank said. These restrictions, albeit temporary, come less than two months after Sashidhar Jagdishan’s appointment as the chief executive when a sharper focus on digital banking is being expected.

HDFC Bank said on Thursday that it has, over the last two years, taken several measures to fortify its IT systems and will continue to work swiftly to close out the balance and would continue to engage with the regulator in this regard. “The bank has always endeavoured to provide seamless digital banking services to its customers. The bank has been taking conscious, concrete steps to remedy the recent outages on its digital banking channels and assures its customers that it expects the current supervisory actions will have no impact on its existing credit cards, digital banking channels and existing operations,” it said.

The December outage was not owing to any cyberattack but because the lender ‘underestimated’ growth in payment volumes and the disruption was more of a capacity issue, Jagdishan, the then executive director had said in January this year.

In December last year, customers complained that they were unable to pay their loan EMIs or settle credit card bills on time. RBI deputy governor M.K. Jain had said in December that the regulator has taken into account the outage and has deployed a team of experts to investigate the matter. The RBI team will investigate the reasons behind the outage and accordingly give directions to HDFC Bank, Jain had said.

“What we did not realise is the kind of increase in businesses across liabilities, assets and payment products. Even within payment products, we have been patronising multiple channels, whether it is cards or the unified payments interface (UPI) volumes. We underestimated the growth in these volumes,” he had said.

A Fan Gives Divine Status To Politicians In India

By

Vaidehi Taman

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December 3, 2020

From accessories, goods, mercantile to temples, Indian politics has seen it all from their kind of Bhakts. Modi likes to take selfies and his face is used noticeably in all government and most of the private initiatives. In February 2015, some Modi supporters built a temple with his status as the God in a village located around 300 miles from Ahmedabad. However, the temple was dismantled after a blow from Modi himself. Recently, there were pictures in circulation where he was painted as Shivaji Maharaj and now ahead of Bengal elections, he has been given Rabindranath Tagore Bengali poet’s look.

He hit headlines when Mahatma Gandhi’s image was replaced with Modi on the calendar promoting Khadi. However, the opposition alleged that the PM did it purposely. It didn’t stop here. After the completion of three of the Modi government at the Centre, BJP celebrated ‘Modifest’ across India, which has gone unnoticed by the party leaders and people. In most of the places only the volunteers were seen and no other visitors. Huge money was wasted on these fests. Corruption does not mean getting caught in some scandal but this type of misuse of public funds is also corruption, and Modi needs to realize this. For self-glorification, he cannot waste public funds. From making suits embossing his name on it to feeding peacocks Modi always loved promoting himself. His worshippers are one step ahead of him when it comes to venerating their leader lord. They leave no stone unturned while comparing him to Lord Rama and Shivaji Maharaj. They often give him new titles like a saint, god, or worrier to Tiger. Modi is not the only leader in this country who has a mad fan following.

It seems politicians in India take such beliefs very seriously and never lose an opportunity to project their face and name, even at the risk of frustrating the public forever. Probably, they also believe that their photos can win more votes than their works for the people. Sometimes, when they don’t project themselves on their own, their followers do that to show their devotion to the leaders. While all politicians love to project themselves. In 2013, the Pondicherry government proposed to offer subsidized cement to low and middle-income group people and name the scheme after Congress president Sonia Gandhi. She was also in news in 2014 when a Congress legislator from Andhra Pradesh built a ‘Goddess Sonia’ statue, depicting her as ‘Telangana Talli’ (Mother of Telangana) to show his devotion towards the leader. Tamil actor, director, and former CM of Tamil Nadu, Late Maruthur Gopalan Ramachandran has a temple dedicated to him in Thiruninravur, Chennai.

A couple that had been ardent of the late actor MGR built up this temple in memory of him. On one occasion, MGR was having a cool drink and left it unfinished. The remains were sprinkled on the ground as holy water. Just like the woman who made the temple in his honor, there were others who thought of him as a holy man. In India, we often think of politicians as miracle-makers. To a certain extent, what we have is a form of hero-worship. But it doesn’t last very long.

Former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee temple is located at Satyanarayan tekri in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh. It came up 17 years ago, ostensibly for the politician’s work for the cause of his mother tongue. Late Jayalalithaa’s image was displayed prominently on almost all schemes of her government in Tamil Nadu. Late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa was omnipresent in the state. From salt to canteens to pulses to cement, several schemes were named after her. Not only this, her photo was prominently displayed on almost all items distributed by her government. Though the former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister projected himself as a ‘development-oriented’ leader, Akhilesh never shied away from putting his image on most of the schemes of his government — be it Samajwadi cycles, school bags or laptops. Interestingly, Akhilesh also used the image of his father and former Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav prominently alongside him. As Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, BSP supremo Mayawati was attacked by the opposition for using public funds for building ‘elephant parks’ and statues of Dalit icons like Babasaheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar and Kanshi Ram. Mayawati also became probably the first politician in the country to have installed her own statues alongside these icons in the state.

Not only politicians but the film stars too have their temples and worshippers, in South Kolkata, there is a temple, which is deeply devoted to the megastar of Bollywood Amitabh Bachchan. There is a specially carved out chair (from the movie ‘Aks’) on which is kept a photo of Big B, and his shoes. On a daily basis, the head priest recites the well-written ‘Amitabh Chalisa’ amid his ardent fans and worshippers.

There was a temple devoted to film star Khusbhoo, later torn down by her fans after she made controversial remarks on pre-marital sex in 2005. Some temples are hole-in-the-wall shrines with a small idol; others are like fan clubs for supporters. Tamil Nadu’s top heroes like Rajinikanth, and of the current crop of movie stars, Joseph Vijay is worshipped as demi-gods today. Fans garland their posters and throw flowers, coins, and cash notes when their heroes appear on screen in a frenzy imitating rituals of temple worship. Telugu film star turned politician late NT Rama Rao was an icon, especially for playing roles in films as the Hindu god Krishna. During his election campaign, supporters showcased large images from his films in his avatar as the god Krishna. In 1993, the matter went to the courts in Andhra Pradesh after someone complained that the depiction of “NT Rama Rao as an incarnation of Lord Krishna” amounted to “exhorting voters in the name of religion to vote for his Telugu Desam Party”. Film stars and politician have their own set of Bhakts, flattering fans in India give divine status to them, hero-worship is not new in India.