vol. 14 • issue 199 rni no. mahen/2007/21778 postal regn

The Dynamic Daily Newspaper of Navi Mumbai

Sunday, 31 January 2021

VOL. 14 • ISSUE 199 RNI No. MAHEN/2007/21778 POSTAL REGN. No. NMB/154/2020-22/VASHI MDG POST OFFICE

Pages 8 • Price 2www.newsband.in

By Crime Reporter

The Crime Branch of Navi Mumbai Police

has arrested an inter-state gang involved in stealing Royal Enfield bullet mo-torcycles. The gang after identifying the bullet motorcycles parked on the side of the road, used to connect a new igni-tion switch, after which they used to flee with the motorcycle within few minutes. According to Police Commissioner Bi-pin Kumar Singh, Crime Branch Unit-1 recovered 44 bullet motorcycles and a Maruti Suzuki

car from the gang. The investigation has found that the gang stole bul-lets from various places in Mumbai, Navi Mum-bai, Thane, Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad, Ahmedna-

gar and Goa.Since last September,

there were rising com-plaints of new bullet mo-torcycles, parked on the

Inter-state gang arrested for stealing bullet motorcycles

N.M.M.T bus pass distribution camp for senior citizens to be held in Seawoods

(W) N.M.M.T bus pass

distribution camp for Senior Citizens in Seawoods West is being organized on Sunday 31st January, 2021 from 10 am to 1 am at Shri Shanesh-war Mandir Sector 46, Seawoods. Senior citizens of Seawoods West division are re-quested to take ad-vantage of this camp.

Mahanagar Gas Lim-ited to conduct cycle

rally & walkathonContinuing its en-

deavour of contribut-ing towards environ-mental sustainability, Mahanagar Gas Lim-ited is conducting ‘Saksham 2021’, a cycle rally and walk-athon in Thane and Navi Mumbai on 31st January 2021…

(More on page 3)

NMMC & PCMC extend lockdown till February 28 As per the guide-

lines issued by the Maharashtra Govern-ment, the Navi Mum-bai Municipal Corpo-ration (NMMC) & the Panvel City Municipal Corporation (PCMC) have extended lock-down restrictions in restricted areas in their jurisdiction till 28th February, 2021…

(More on page 4)

Officials inspect condition of mangroves in Kharghar

CONTINUED ON PAGE... 6



Kharghar citizen group had complained about misuse of mangrove zone in sector 16,

Kharghar and demanded speedy solution

44 bullet motorcycles worth Rs. 1 crore seized

By Ryhea George

The Panvel City Mu-nicipal Corporation

(PCMC) will be giving polio dose to 73,935 children in the age group of 0-5 years on 31st Jan-uary from 8 am to 5 pm. The programme is being held under the National Pulse Polio immunisa-tion drive. The Com-missioner of PCMC, Sudhakar Deshmukh has asked the residents of the jurisdiction to come and get their chil-dren vaccinated.

There are 20 wards and 29 villages in the PCMC jurisdiction.

Around 73,935 children will be given polio dose on that day. 349 polio

booths have been set up and a total of around 1,100 experts would be present in booths and to supervise the drive

along with 74 supervi-sors. There are 6 UPSCs and around 51 teams

would be going door-to-door to administer polio dose to the children. 20

PCMC to administer polio doses

to 73,935 children Drive will be held on 31st January from 8 am to 5 pm

By Indrani Basu

After several com-plaints registered

by the citizen group ‘Kharghar Wetlands and Hills’ regarding the misuse of mangroves, dumping of debris, an investigating team ar-rived at Kharghar to take account of the con-dition of the mangrove area located at sector 16 Kharghar on January 28 and 29. Sector 16 man-

grove area is a notified mangrove area and it comes under CRZ 1.

After Tarang Sarin, an environmentalist wrote to Maharashtra Biodiversity Board re-garding the destruction of natural habitat in Kharghar wetlands and mangroves, the Board directed Panvel City Municipal Corporation (PCMC) to look into the matter and carry

out a detailed investi-gation. Accordingly, on 28th January, 2021 Deputy Commissioner, Vithal Dake along with Kharghar PCMC ward officer, Bhandari along with two staff mem-bers visited the site in Kharghar Sector 16.

Yet another com-plaint was made to Ma-harashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) by Naresh-

chandra Singh, who highlighted the illegal activities at mangroves and CRZ 1 areas in Sec-tor 16, Kharghar. The MCZMA directed Dis-trict Collector, Raigad and Additional Princi-pal Chief Conservator of Forests to look into the matter and carry out a detailed investigation. On 29th January, the

Photo by Sumit Renose

File Photo

2 Sunday, 31 January 2021

PUBLIC NOTICENOTICE IS HEREBY given to public at large that my client Ms. SHEHNAZ PATEL, aged about 54 years, Indian Inhabitant, having address at Flat No.B-28, 2nd Floor, Bombay Links CHS Ltd., Plot No.69, Sector 17, Vashi, Navi Mumbai, Tal. & Dist. Thane-400703.The following original documents such as: 1]. Agreement For Sale, dated 17/04/1986, executed between M/s. SITHCON and Mr. Rahimsha Abdullasha Patel & Mrs. Shiraj Rahimsha Patel, registered with Sub-Registrar of Assurance of Thane, under doc-ument Serial No.1970/1986; dated 02/05/1986; 2]. Various Main-tenance Bills & Payment Receipts issued by M/s. Bombay Links Co-operative Housing Society Ltd., in respect of Flat No.B-28 on the 2nd Floor, in the society’s building known as “Bombay Links Co-operative Housing Society Ltd.”, situated on Plot No.69, Sector-17, at Vashi, Navi Mumbai, Tal. & Dist. Thane- 400703, has been lost from my client while traveling by auto-rick-shaw from Sector-7 Vashi to Sector-17 Vashi Navi Mumbai; and thereafter my client approach to lodged Police Complaint with Vashi Police Station, Navi Mumbai under its Property Missing Registration No. 0312/2021, on 28/01/2021.All persons claiming an interest in the said property or any part thereof by way of sale, gift, lease, inheritance, exchange, mort-gage, charge, lien, trust, possession, easement, attachment or otherwise howsoever are hereby required to make the same known to the undersigned at my office within Fourteen (14) days from the date of publication hereof, failing which the claim of such persons shall be deemed to have been waived and/or abandoned. Sd/- S.A.SIDDIQUE, Advocate High Court. 04, Vardhaman Chambers, Sector No.17, Vashi, Date: 31/01/2021 Navi Mumbai-400703. Tel: 27894503.

Printed and owned by Kailash Shankarlalji Gindodia Published by Shiv Kailash Gindodia Editor: Varda Sharma Printed at Siddhakala Print Media & Publications Pvt. Ltd. Plot No. W-230, T.T.C. Ind. Area, MIDC, Khairane, Navi Mumbai – 400 710 and published at 1313/1314, 13th Floor, Real Tech Park, Plot No. 39/2,

Sec. 30A, Vashi, Navi Mumbai 400 703. • RNI No. MAHENG2007/21778 • Postal Regn. No. NMB/154/2020-22/Vashi MDG Post Office • ABC Certificte No. 133/2106 Phone : 2087 0513 / 2781 5380 e-mail : [email protected] website : www.newsband.in

ATTENTION READERS: While every effort is made to check the genuineness of party/parties inserting ads in this paper, we cannot be held responsible for the truthfulness of its contents. The publishers, Editor and/or the staff cannot be held responsible for any loss or damage due to transactions that they may en-ter into guided by the ads.

B.K. Vishwasbhai of Brahmakumari Gita Pathshala at Kegaon-Vinayak in Uran taluka met Ravindra Budhwant, Senior Inspec-tor of Police, Uran and gave him a calendar (By Dinesh Pawar)

By Lakshman Sundar

Sri Vara Siddhi Vinayaka Seva Samaj celebrated the famous

Thai Poosam in honor of Lord Muruga (Lord Karthikeya) at its temple premises at Sector 29, Vashi on Thursday, January 28, 2021.

The day started off at 7 am with eleven Dravya Abhishegam and Abhishe-gam with milk on Lord Muruga by Shri Dilip while Dr. Krishnan chant-ed mantras and slokas. The idol of Lord Muruga was beautifully decorated first with Vibhuti (sacred ash) and then with chan-dan and garlanded with flowers.

On the same evening, Sahasranaamaarchana to Lord Muruga was per-formed by Brahmasri Ven-katesa Ganapadigal from Vashi.

After family Sankalapam and Deepaaradhana, prasadams were given to those who were present. In view of the prevailing COVID 19 pandemic, only temple officials participated in the functions.

Importance of Thai PoosamThai Poosam is an important

festival dedicated to Lord Mu-ruga or Lord Kartikeya observed in the Tamil month of Thai (Janu-

ary – February). It is celebrated mainly by the Hindu Tamils in India Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Sin-gapore, South Africa, UK, USA, Canada, Australia, Mauritius, Re-union and in many other parts of the world.

Lord Muruga, the Supreme Commander of the celestial army and a fearless defender of righ-teousness, was called upon by His parents Lord Shiva and God-dess Parvati, to annihilate a de-mon named Tarakasura, who was troubling the sages and saints. Lord Shiva gave his son eleven weapons to fight the demon. The twelfth weapon given by God-dess Parvati to Muruga was the

Vel or lance. Lord Muruga was victorious over Tarakasura on the Poosam Nakshatra day in the Tamil month of Thai. The Vel, also known as light, won over the dark force. Lord Muruga's Vel dispels the darkness of our lower

consciousness and allows higher intelligence to un-fold within our mind. The Vel represents infinite wis-dom that can liberate us from negative energies. It is a tool that destroys kar-mic thought patterns that have gathered over many lifetimes. The Vel gives us the ability to think and to act with power. Thai Poo-sam in short is celebrated to commemorate this vic-tory of good over evil.

The most important event on the day is that of devotees carrying various

types of Kavadi to the Murugan temples. The most important Ka-vadi pilgrimage takes place at the Batu Caves in Malaysia.

The deity associated with Pushya is Brihaspati, the 'Guru' or Teacher. Thus, Thai Poosam is a promising time to get blessed with Lord Muruga’s energies and liberate oneself from the negative clutches obstructing the path of success.

Sri Vara Siddhi Vinayaka Seva Samaj celebrates Thai Poosam

Abhishegams, Alankaraams, Archanas & Aarathis For Lord Muruga (Lord Karthikeya) at SVSVSS, Vashi On Thai Poosam Day On January 28, 2021.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE...1

INTER-STATE GANG AR-RESTED FOR STEALING...

side of the road in Navi Mumbai and surround-ing areas, getting stolen. Senior police officials ordered a special op-eration to nab the gang involved in the theft in Navi Mumbai. Accord-ingly, Senior Inspector Sunil Shinde of Crime Branch Unit-1 formed four different teams of Assistant Inspectors of Police Rahul Rakh, Ru-pesh Naik, Raju Tadvi and Hershal Kadam to investigate the case.

The teams visited the spot where the bullet motorcycles were being stolen within the limits of Navi Mumbai Police Commissionerate. They traced the accused on the basis of the information obtained through tech-nical analysis. Sohail Imtiaz Shaikh (28) and Saurabh Milind Kan-raje (23) were arrested from Vashi Sector-17. The Crime Branch then arrested Amol Shivaji Dhoble (35) from Ma-hape MIDC. During interrogation the three confessed that they had

stolen bullet motorcy-cles from various areas in Navi Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Ahmednagar. The police seized 44 bullet motorcycles worth Rs 1 crore from their posses-sion, said Commissioner of Police Bipin Kumar Singh.

Modus operandiThe gang used to buy

a new ignition switch that was readily avail-able at a motorcycle spare parts store and removed the socket of the ignition switch that was left open under the handle of the motorcy-

cle and would and used to flee with the vehicle within minutes. After looting the motorcycle, the gang made fake RC book-smart cards, fake insurance and fake num-ber flats by pretending to be recovery agent of the bank.

According to the in-vestigation, the gang committed 12 crimes in Navi Mumbai Police Commissionerate, 14 in Thane City, 14 in Pimpri Chinchwad, 3 in Mum-bai, 3 in Pune City, Pune Rural, Ahmednagar Ru-ral and Goa.

3Sunday, 31 January 2021

By Chandrashekhar Hendve

Since the last three years, Kharghar

Taloja Colony welfare Association (KTCW A), an organisation which is a conglomerate of more than hundred societies, has been fighting for pol-lution free environment. The organisation has been testing the air quality with the most re-puted laborato-ries. The reports have confirmed that the air in Kharghar and surrounding areas is not only contaminated with particulate matter but also with poisonous gases such as formalde-hyde.

“We had also or-ganised a massive public Morcha in front of the MPCB office, Belapur almost a year back. The MPCB officials had as-sured to work on pol-luting organisations and factories. Further, the

Maharashtra pollution control board had given a written assurance to KTCWA that many ac-tivities would be lined up in the coming year,” said Mangesh Ranawade, KTCWA official.

“Till date the resi-dents are facing every

night the menace of pungent smell and irrita-tion due to the rising air pollution levels coming from polluting factories based at Taloja. Several senior citizens and pa-tients are complaining of breathlessness and head-ache due to this rising air pollution,” he added.

The members of KTCWA visited the Ad-ditional Commissioner Police (Crime), B.G. Shekhar office to request the police department to

launch an FIR against the MPCB officials on account of negligence to perform their duties.

“The MPCB officials should be booked under the act of negligence towards public health and lack of performing duties leading to pollu-

tion instigating unrest amongst citizens,” added Ranawade.

KTCW team also visited the

Taloja police station to give an application to take action against MPCB officials on the same account. They met the senior police inspec-tor, Kashinath Chavan and informed about the rising menace due to air pollution in the area.

“KTCWA will now wait for one more week and thereafter appeal to the magistrate to launch an FIR if the police doesn't do so,” stressed Ranawade.

KTCWA demands FIR against MPCB officials

Since last three years KTCWA has been fighting for pollution free environment

Ward Committee D Chairperson

Sushila Gharat has de-manded the immediate repairing of the toi-let at Panvel bus stand and handed over a let-ter to the Panvel City Municipal Corporation (PCMC) in this regard.

“Hundreds of pas-sengers travel from this bus stand on a daily ba-sis. However, the work of this bus stand has stopped. Also, due to the poor condition of the toilet here, the female commuters are highly inconvenienced,” said

Gharat.She further said,

“The toilet is in a very poor condition and the slab is leaking and could collapse any time. Also, as the toilet is not cleaned on a regular ba-sis, there is foul smell always”.

By Ryhea George

Despite repeated de-mand by the resi-

dents to the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) and the Panvel City Municipal Corporation (PCMC), the Central Park in Kharghar has not been opened for general public. Infuri-ated by lack of action, corporator Netra Patil of ward no. 4 has threat-ened to reopen the Park herself with the help of the residents.

She has also written a letter to the PCMC and CIDCO officials. “As per the rules of the state, most of the pub-lic spaces have been opened and the people of Kharghar want the Central Park, which is one of the biggest parks in Navi Mumbai, to be opened as well. As Cen-tral Park is spread over a vast area, there won't be any issue with regards to following social distanc-ing and people can eas-ily follow Covid rules as well. We have appealed to the CIDCO officials to open the park,” said

Netra.Sanjay Nadgaude,

superintendent engineer of Kharghar node said, “We have received a Notice from PCMC to open the park and we are working on the same. As the Central Park had been closed for several months due to the pan-demic, many things

need to be taken into consideration including cleaning etc. Since it is a major public place, we have to follow proper procedure to ensure safety of the citizens visiting the park. All the covid norms would be taken into consider-ation.”

“It is more than 20 days since the Notice was sent. We will be forced to open the doors of the Central Park our-

selves if CIDCO fails to open the park for public soon,” said Netra.

Mansi Worlikar, a Kharghar resident said, “The residents of Kharghar have been waiting since long for the Central Park and other public parks to be reopened. We are wait-ing eagerly to get back

to our favourite exercis-ing and leisure spots. We want our favourite place to be opened soon.”

Urvashi, a Kharghar resident exclaims, “Re-opening of Kharghar’s Central park can be re-ally good as people can come for morning walk. As it is vast, we can also meet our friends like be-fore to enjoy or chit chat. I would personally like to go there on weekends just to meet friends.”

Toilet at Panvel bus stand should be repaired immediately: Sushila Gharat

Corporator Netra Kiran Patil demands reopening of Central Park

By Chandrashekhar Hendve

Continuing its endeavour of con-tributing towards environmental

sustainability, Mahana-gar Gas Limited is con-ducting ‘Saksham 2021’, a cycle rally and walk-athon in Thane and Navi Mumbai on 31st January 2021. This is an initiative of Petroleum Conserva-tion Research Association (PCRA) under the aegis of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India. Propagating the message of ‘Cycle for Health, Environment & Conser-vation’, PCRA is organizing cycle rally in 300 cities across the country.

The aim is to inspire people to lead a healthier lifestyle, while con-tributing for a better environment

and spreading awareness on fuel conservation by promoting the use of cy-cles for short distances. The cycle rally will be a 5km Green Ride and the walkathon will be a 1.5 km walk encouraging the people to opt for a healthy lifestyle.

The cycle rally & walk-athon will be held on 31st January, 2021 at 7 am from Thane and Navi Mumbai.

The details of venue at these lo-cations are as mentioned below:

Mahanagar Gas Limited to conduct cycle rally & walkathon

Location NAVI MUMBAI THANE Venue Details IES High School Upvan Lake Garden, Premnath Maruti Patil Marg, Upvan Lake Road, Sector-1, Vashi, Thane (West) Navi Mumbai- 400703. Thane- 400606


A Giant Leap Forward

By Dr. Monica Khanna

More often than not, when one

compares government schools to private ones, there is unani-mous agreement that private schools provide far better education and opportunities than government schools. From infrastructure to the quality of teachers and the overall ambi-ence, private schools are perceived as hav-ing an edge over gov-ernment schools. Most parents who can afford private schools would consider the choice a no-brainer.

However, the story of K. Jayalaxmi, an eleventh grade sci-ence student at the government high school in Anandkottai, is a reminder that it is not always the school, but the student who writes his or her destiny. This remarkable and feisty young girl has not merely won an online competition that will take her to NASA, but has also won the hearts of millions of people by her sheer determi-nation and will power to achieve her dreams.

The sole breadwin-ner of a family which consists of a mentally challenged mother and a younger brother, Jay-alaxmi is truly an inspi-ration in so many ways. With a father who lives separately and does not send money on a regu-lar basis, Jayalaxmi has taken the respon-

sibility of the family upon herself. She has not only been taking tuitions, but also sell-ing cashews to earn a living and meet the household expenses. Not to be dissuaded because she studied in Tamil medium, Jay-alaxmi took coaching classes for English so that she could be pro-ficient in the language. She aspires to be like her role model APJ Ab-dul Kalam, and make a rocket.

With the support of well-wishers, she is trying to collect money for her travel expenses, and turn her dream into reality. By doing so, she is giving wings to

o t h e r

g o v e r n m e n t school students to have the courage to fly – especially those who are conditioned into questioning their own capabilities and po-tential; those who are made to feel inferior by their more privileged counterparts, and are ridiculed for their sup-posed incompetency; those who are denied opportunities in the job market because of the pre-conceived notions about government school education and the expectation that the child’s foundation

would be weak. The comparison is

unfortunate, but exists in all spheres of life. Judgments are made without giving students a chance to prove them-selves in a competitive world, and barriers are placed at the entrance, preventing young-sters from crossing the boundaries. Needless to say, schools do in-deed play an extremely significant role in shap-ing the personality of the individual, helping the child to hone and polish his or her skills and explore his or her talents. Yet, it is ulti-mately up to the child to either make the most of the opportunities given; ignore the op-portunities and remain complacent, indifferent or disinterested; or rise beyond the limitations

of the environment and strive towards

success despite the obstacles en-countered.

Just like Jayalaxmi, there

are plenty of other chil-dren who have carved a niche for themselves despite the fact that they have not studied in the ‘best’ or most highly ranked schools. If we can only encour-age our children to take the risk of leaping forward and overcom-ing the hurdles they encounter, instead of crawling their way through life, we may have more Jayalaxmis who will make our na-tion proud.

The writer is Associate Professor,

Indira Institute of Business Management, Consultant,

Indian School of Management and Entrepreneurship

Vsisters celebrated vasant rithu with a

lively programme and traditional haldi kum-kum. The members were in colourful attire for the sank-ranti and vas-ant panchami programme on Friday. The pro-gramme began with a bhajan b e a u t i f u l l y sung by Durga Shenoy, Sheela Kamath, Jaya Shenoy and An-jani Pai.

Dumb charades were played where one Vsis-ter enacted the name of a film without uttering a word and the others had to guess it. Kati Patang, Hum aapke hain kaun, School teacher, and other titles were enacted by Mughdha Nadkarni,

Jaya Shenoy,Vidya Kud-va, Shobha Bhandarkar, and Asha Shenoy. A beautiful Krishna song was sung by Prabha Prabhu.

Sudha Kamath, Savitha Nayak and Savitha Joshy conduct-ed the Housie game. Dr Veena Adige was felici-tated by Mughdha Nad-karni and Durga shenoy for keeping members busy during the lock-down with ten contests,

group chanting and oth-er programs. ‘It was so refreshing to meet after so many months be-ing home bound during the lockdown’ was the

general comment of the group members.

26 members attended the program. The prize winners of the cook-ing contest held on line, during the lockdown, brought their prize win-ning entries for the oth-ers to appreciate.

Vsisters celebrate Vasant Rithu

By Abhitash D. Singh

As per the guide-lines issued by the

Maharashtra Govern-ment, the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) & the Panvel City Municipal Corpo-ration (PCMC) have extended lockdown re-

strictions in restricted areas in their jurisdic-tion till 28th February, 2021.

The decision was taken after Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray reviewed the current Covid-19 situa-tion in the state.

Sanjay Kakde, NMMC Additional Commissioner while speaking with the News-band correspondent said, "Even though the positive Covid-19 cases

in the satellite city are in control and are below 50 case per day, we do not wish to take chances. As per the government guidelines, we too have extended the lockdown restrictions in the city till 28 February, 2021.”

S u d h a k a r

Deshmukh, PCMC Commissioner said, "We are following the Maharashtra Govern-ment guidelines in ex-tending the lockdown restrictions and accord-ingly have extended the lockdown restrictions in PCMC jurisdiction till 28 February, 2021."

NMMC Additional Commissioner Sanjay Kakde and PCMC Chief Sudhakar Deshmukh said, "During the ex-tended lockdown till

28th February, 2021 if anyone is found to be violating guidelines laid down by the state gov-ernment, strict action will be taken against the violator under the Epidemic Disease Act, 1897 an offence punish-able under section 188

of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860)."

Over the past few months, the Maharash-tra government and both NMMC and PCMC have eased several lockdown restrictions. Nowadays many organisations and also facilities have been allowed to operate and from 1st February the state government has also issued timings for all the general public to commute in the local trains.

NMMC & PCMC extend lockdown till February 28


By Ryhea George

The farmers in the country are ve-hemently protesting against the

three farm acts which was passed by the Parlia-ment of India in Septem-ber 2020. Farmer unions and their representatives have demanded that the laws should be repealed with immediate effect. The leaders of the farmers have rejected the Supreme Court of India’s stay or-der on the farm laws as well as the involvement of the Supreme Court ap-pointed committee. Nine rounds of talks have taken place between the central government and farmers represented by the farm unions between 14th Oc-tober, 2020 and 15th Jan-uary 2021. However, all were inconclusive.

The acts, often called the Farm Bills, have been described as "anti-farmer laws" by many farmer unions and politicians from the opposition also

say it would leave farmers at the "mer-cy of corporates". The farmers have also requested for the creation of an

Ongoing farmers’ protest: Residents voice their views

MSP (Minimum Support Prices) bill, to ensure that corporates are unable to control prices. The gov-ernment, however, main-tains that they will make it effortless for farmers to sell their produce directly to big buyers and stated that the protests are based on misinformation.

On Republic day 2021, thousands of farmers stormed New Delhi's his-toric Red Fort, with oth-ers breaching barricades and clashing with the po-lice. The protestors scaled the walls of the iconic monument and a flag was hoisted alongside India's national flag. Tear gas and flash bangs could be seen on live streams from the city's streets as police moved to contain large crowds of protestors in tractors and on foot from breaking through barri-cades. Both police and pro-testers were spotted with large lathis on the streets.

The residents of the satellite city have mixed opinions on the ongoing agitation.

By Crime Reporter

Under the Road Safety campaign,

the Navi Mumbai Transport depart-ment, has launched an innovative initia-tive ‘One Day with Police’ with an aim to involve citizens and spread aware-ness on road safety. Four women judges of the Navi Mumbai Court, Justice Trupti Deshmukh, Justice Anamika Motale, Justice Sanjana Jagushte and Justice Dhanshree Pawar, also registered their participation in

the campaign and regu-lated traffic on the road at Bhaurao Patil Chowk in CBD. They thanked

the drivers for following the traffic rules and gave them roses and ‘Thank You’ cards. They also

appealed to the drivers violating the traffic rules to abide by traffic rules.

Deputy Commis-

sioner of Police, Purush-ottam Karad and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.

Judges participate in ‘One Day with Police’ initiative

To honour women police officials,

wives of policemen and social workers for their untiring efforts during the pandemic, the ladies of Smiles Foundation held a Haldi Kumkum ceremony along with the officials of the Nerul Police station.

Team Smiles mem-

bers Uma Ahuja, Shali-ni Vidhani, Priyanka Singh, Shefali Nair, Avneet Bhatia, Bhavna Aggarwal and Aruna Anand were present.

“When most people were at their homes during the pandemic, the police were at the forefront guarding us. This is just a small way

in which we showed our gratitude to our Covid Warriors. We have come forth without any political agenda because we want to honour them for their dedication and determination during such difficult times,” said Uma Dhiraj Ahuja, President- Smiles Foun-dation.

Navi Mumbai Police & Smiles Foundation organize Haldi Kumkum function

By Chandrashekar Hendve

A blood donation camp was organized

by Mayur Pandit Youth Foundation at Ichchapurti Ganesh Mandir, Airoli. On this occasion, former op-position leader of the Navi Mumbai Municipal Cor-poration Vijay Chowgule, Prema Pandit and Ratna-kumar Pandit and other Shiv Sainik office bearers were present. The camp was inaugu-

rated by lighting a lamp at the hands of Chief Guest, Vijay Chowgule.

Blood donation camp held


EditorialISSUE: 199 31 jANUARy, 2021

In the past few years, the vehicu-lar population in Navi Mumbai

has grown manifold. The modes of transport have multiplied and the vehicular density is increasing ex-ponentially with every passing year. However, the quality and quantity of the road network and traffic con-trol aids have not kept pace with the demand. The traffic discipline has deteriorated and there seems to be no respect for the traffic rules and the traffic authorities. It is very un-fortunate that the statistics for the road accidents are increasing at an alarming pace, matching the pace at which the people are driving these modern machines. The gravity of the situation has forced the govern-ment to direct its attention towards road safety measures and to seek so-lutions to the problem. Celebrating “Road Safety Week” every year is a feeble attempt in that direction.

While a number of factors are re-sponsible for road accidents, prime reasons are blatant flouting of traffic rules and most importantly primitive and inadequate traffic control aids. Traffic signals are effective means of regulating traffic. However, if these are not installed before proper sur-vey, they can become a nuisance for the motorists and pedestrians alike. Adequate street lighting, smooth rid-ing surface, properly functioning of traffic control aids, traffic markings are some of the ways of reducing road accidents. Since a large num-ber of accidents involve pedestrians, it is necessary to devote attention

towards their safety. An adequately designed and encroachment free pe-destrian pathways are essential for segregating the vehicular and pe-destrian traffic and they can provide the much desired sense of safety and protection to the pedestrians. Special attention should be given towards lighting pedestrian cross walks and junctions.

An effective way of controlling and curbing accidents is the strict implementation and enforcement of traffic rules. The driving license should be issued only after rigorous examination process. While helmets should be made compulsory to the riders of two wheelers and fastening of seat belts should be made manda-tory for the drivers of four wheelers. By imposing other legislative mea-sures like introducing fines for flout-ing rules, imprisonment or endorse-ment on licenses for reckless driving, road accidents can be minimized. The other field which needs imme-diate attention is traffic planning. It is today a very specialized field and cannot be designed by thumb rules as is being done today by the au-thorities. It needs understanding of the subject besides studying the traf-fic behaviour and the psychology of the commuters in a particular region / city. So, there is immediate need to have the traffic study carried out by professionals and long term plan-ning done with futuristic approach, for Navi Mumbai, to optimize the infrastructure and to have easy and speedier and safe commuting.

Road Safety campaign Describing stem cell research as the

“brightest” subject in the field of medicine, Dr. Pradeep Mahajan, Chairman & Manag-ing Director of StemRx Bioscience Solutions Pvt. Ltd, said the world will soon find panacea for many diseases such as COVID, Cancer, Par-kinson’s and even Al-zheimer’s.

Many types of can-cer such as bone mar-row and blood, are al-ready being treated with the application of stem cells or NK (naturally killer) cells taken from healthy blood relatives of patients. In fact, we always carry repair kits with us in terms of these NK cells, said Dr. Ma-hajan. Stem cells of a newborn are being used to treat bone marrow cases, solid tumours and when used along with

chemotherapy, they pro-duce wonderful results, he explained.

Dr. Mahajan dis-closed that clinical trials are already in progress

in the US, Russia, Israel and Korea to tackle the novel Corona. Asked how it works, he said the NK cells cause re-generation, replication and immune-modulation healthy blood is injected into a patient.

There have been

positive results in treat-ing even long COVID cases as there has been a “complete resolution” of inflammation in the lungs.

India, he said, is not too far behind in this research as ICMR has already started inviting clinical trials with strict protocols on safety and efficacy.

Asked about TB, Dr Mahajan said the MDR disease can also be treat-ed.

He said stem cell treatment will become part and parcel of our lives soon once the clinical trials are com-pleted and safety is es-tablished. “And I am not talking theoretically,” he stressed.

Dr. Mahajan recalled that anti-biotics and po-lio vaccine took years for the society as a whole to accept them.

Stem cell may cure Corona to Cancer: Dr. Pradeep Mahajan

Dr. Pradeep Mahajan

For representational purpose only


PCMC TO ADMINIS-TER POLIO DOSES...

transit teams will be present in all the public spaces such as railway stations pro-viding polio doses.

“The motto of this Pulse Polio Pro-gramme is to cover all the kids in the jurisdiction in a day. If all any child has missed the dose, the dose will be given till Friday, 5th Feb-ruary 2021. This is the first drive for the year 2021”, said Deshmukh.

While speaking

to Newsband RCH officer (Reproductive and Child Health), Dr. Rehana Mujawar said, “Our aim is to give dose to all the children in the area of PCMC. We would like to give polio dose to 73,935 children and protect them from polio. The polio dose helps the children to fight against all the for-eign infections that are invading their body. I request all the parents to bring their children to the booths and give them polio dose”.

By Ashok Dhamija

Central Railway (CR) will operate Mega Block to carry out mainte-

nance work on its suburban sections (Harbour and Main lines) of Mumbai Division on Sunday 31st January, 2021 for infrastructure upkeep and safety as per the schedule detailed below:

A) Vashi - Kurla-UP & DN Har-bour lines

From: 11.10 am to 4.10 pm

UP Harbour ser-vices to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Ter-minus (CSMT) leav-ing Panvel / Belapur / Vashi from 10.21 am to 3.41 pm and DN Harbour services to Vashi / Belapur/ Panv-el leaving CSMT from 10.18 am to 3.39 pm will remain can-celled. On account of this there will be no direct Harbour lines services between Navi Mumbai and Andheri too. However Special trains will be run on CSMT -Kurla and Vashi-Pan-vel sections during the block period. Harbour line passengers are permitted

to travel via Trans-harbour line / Main line from 10.00 am to 4.30 pm

B) Byculla – Matunga UP and DN Main Fast lines

From: 11.05 am to 4.05 pmUP Main Fast line services leaving

Kurla from 11.06 am to 3.45 pm will be diverted on UP Main Slow line be-tween Matunga and Byculla, halting as

per respective sched-uled halts; rediverted on UP Main Fast line at Byculla and will arrive destination 15 minutes beyond schedule. DN Main Fast services leaving Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Termi-nus (CSMT) Mumbai from 10.49 am to 3.44 pm will be diverted on DN Main Slow line

between Byculla and Matunga halt-ing as per respective scheduled halts; re-diverted on DN Main Fast line at Matunga and will arrive destination 15 minutes beyond schedule.

Passengers are requested to bear with the Railway Administration for the inconvenience caused.

CR mega block on SundayHarbour services to be affected between

Vashi and Kurla stations


By Dr. Vandana Mahajani“There are three

things standing in the way of a revival of In-dia which we must first overcome, the caste system, corruption, and the proliferation of religion in other than personal life”- Subhash Chandra Bose.

Have we overcome these? The question is asked with the view that after 71th repub-lic day celebration we still see these chal-lenges glaring in the face of our nation. India has been unified only by three great empires. The Mauryan Em-pire, the Mughal empire and the British empire.

Let us re-member the Brit-ish did not give us independence in 1947. They carried out a ‘transfer of pow-er’ to the then party in majority, The Indian National congress headed by Nehru. It became a re-public only in the year 1950. So the previous three years after inde-pendence we still were controlled by the Raj.

Let us therefore have a look into the history of recent past of our nation. Au-rangzeb destroyed the empire established by Akbar. He intensified the hatred of Hindus and Sikhs. He re im-posed the hated Jazia tax. This led to revolts by the Sikhs, the Mara-thas and the Ahoms in Assam and other parts of India.

In this scenario entered the British East India Company. It helped these weak kings set up a modern infantry. The company destroyed the fabric of

the nation by destroy-ing its local industry and promoting East India Company that wanted to sell machine manufactured goods. They forced the locals to grow opium which they could trade in China. They cut of limbs of weavers who made fine muslin cloth. People were frustrated.

The spark came when our men were forced to open with mouth the greased car-

tridges lined with fats of cow and pig. Almost 80,000 Indian soldiers rebelled. The only problem was their scat-tered efforts. The Brit-isher’s quelled this up-rising with brute force.

After this they started their strategy of divide and rule. They fractured the Indian polity and ex-ploited every cultural, religious, ethnic and linguistic fault line in the society. The varna system was made part of administration.

Then came the First World War. About 1.3 million solders were sent overseas to fight the war. 72,000 soldiers laid down their lives in it. Most of the soldiers were Sikhs and from north. After the war all they got was a massa-cre at Jalianwala bagh.

Gandhi jumped in this time and turned it into a movement for Sam-poorna swaraj. He kept it purely non violent in nature.

The third strand came with the INA started by Subhash Chandra Bose. He was a realist and realised that the non violence movement was within limits of British. After the First World War the demobilised body of 1.2 million Indian

soldiers spread the Idea of na-tionalism. Dur-ing World War II India had con-tributed a strong force of 2.5 mil-lion men.

It was time to take into con-fidence the Ger-mans and the Japanese who were also en-emies of British. The Japanese had made an army out of prisoners of war they held.

They wanted Bose to manage the forces. The congress never wanted Bose to be its president for a second term and he was sidelined. Here the Japanese wanted him and so taking a long perilous journey he reached Japan. Ja-pan was impressed by his sincerity. Bose with 1,500 army officers and 60,000 men declared war on British. About 26,000 men were lost in Kohima, Imphal and Burma. INA lost battles, but won the war of Independence. It was after WWII that the 2. 5 million strong Indian Army was up in arms against the Brit-isher’s and they saw it as a time to quit. Within two years after WWII the sun had finally set on the British Empire in India.

Inspire: Revisiting the past on this Republic Day


OFFICIALS INSPECT CON-DITION OF MANGROVES...

circle officer, Sandeep R Rode from the Panvel Tehsil and Sanjay Patil from State Forest De-partment visited the site in Kharghar, Sector 16.

During that inspec-tion, several environ-mental activists and residents namely Tarang Sarin, AK Nuli and Sa-chin Rajput, Jyoti Na-dkarni, Sham Phadnis, Seema Tank and Umesh Tank along with Naresh Chandra Singh were present at the site.

N a r e s h c h a n d r a Singh said, “We have been highlighting the plight of the mangroves since long. Unauthor-ized activities were spotted in 2020 at this mangrove area. These

included artificial cre-ation of multiple newly made bunds across the water body, splitting it into multiple smaller water bodies, which is in violation of both CRZ and wetland rules. Not only that, even nylon nets all over the entire water body was put evi-dently to prevent birds from landing and feed-ing in the water body. This is an infringement of Wildlife Protection Act.”

Jyoti Nadkarni, an-other green warrior said, “It is shocking to see large diesel genset be-ing used for aquaculture activities. This is not allowed in CRZ areas and is an infringement of the Coastal Aqua-culture Authority Act, 2005. Large pumps are

also being used to pump out and pump in water between the water body and the creek. All along the water creek, man-groves and water body, barricades have been placed. One can also see electricity installations with multiple switches, which is strictly prohib-ited in CRZ area.”

Seema and Umesh Tank who have been monitoring the wors-ening of the condition of the mangrove zone complained, “We have noticed presence of sev-eral dozens of aeration equipment used to reg-ulate oxygen levels in water, which are com-monly seen in shrimp farming. A motorable path has been created by destructing fully grown mangroves and several

shrubs.” The group also led

the investigating team towards Sector 17 and showed the remains of left-over food, empty beer bottles, paper plates, chairs, tables, etc., which were lying near a makeshift hut and barricaded fence made of green garden net.

Birder Tarang Sarin noted, “On our way back, we saw hundreds of Indian Cormorants, Black Tailed Godwits, Sea Gulls, Egrets, Her-ons, Munias, Kingfish-er, etc. The authorities too were impressed to see the rich biodiversity we have in our back-yard, some of which are on the threatened list. We demand an urgent removal of the garbage and debris and give

back the natural habi-tat to the birds, animals and living creatures.”

The inspection team was given informa-tion on the ecological importance of the site, as there are many rare and endangered species sighted there.

The authorities in-spected and took all the necessary details of the said spot along with pictures. The detailed report will be made by PCMC and sent to CI-DCO along with one copy to police to file FIR. The officials along with the residents did a joint survey and enqui-ry of the area with man-groves and water body, which lies in the CRZ 1 zone.

“We are extremely grateful to the Deputy

Commissioner, Vithal Dake, other officers from Tahsil, Forest and CIDCO and their entire team for registering the detailed report of the site,” shared Sham Ph-adnis. “On concluding the visit, the inspecting officials have prom-ised to share a copy of the draft report for our verification before finalization and fur-ther action” he added.

Naresh Chandra concluded, “We demand the urgent transfer of the mangroves and their buffer zone to the For-est department. These mangroves and CRZ ar-eas are critical not only for the flora and fauna but for the protection of the city from natu-ral calamity and tidal waves”.


By Indrani Basu“People have no idea how many

animals die due to polythene con-sumption or fall sick every day or around the year. Even unknowingly, we consume plastics because plastic molecules have been found in vegeta-bles and plants and even in drinking water. It is high time to think seriously about plastic and its disposal,” shared Vasundhara Gupte, a young activist from Vashi working towards plastic waste management. This 12th grade student and her team under the group ‘Urvari’ is planning to make 200 Eco-bricks for constructing a dog shelter.

She shared, “We have been a p p r o a c h i n g mostly college students via so-cial networking sites to prepare Eco bricks at home and drop in at any of our drop station across the city. We have been collecting the bricks and will be starting our project to make a common shel-ter for the strays. We have already re-ceived 150 Eco bricks donated by col-lege students and a very few citizens. But we want to approach more and more people residing in Navi Mumbai as well as Mumbai to come forward and donate us Eco bricks so that we can make community dustbin and oth-er utility goods from that.”

The Dog shelter will be construct-ed by Eco brick at Agro Society Gar-den in CBD, Belapur. Prachi Merchant from this society told, “We need to remember that firstly this is about the

responsibility towards self, family and community. It is a culture of cleanli-ness. It is waste segregation at source. Polythene and plastic waste covering about 100 sq.ft area can be stuffed in a 1 litre bottle alone.”

Vasundhara informed, “We have taken up small Eco brick projects in the past, such as community dustbins made entirely out of PET bottles and plastic waste. However, our current Eco-brick project is of a much larger scale. It is an Animal Shelter to protect stray animals, especially during harsh weather condition. For this project, we have been recycling 200 bottles and

20 kgs of plastic waste and will be using ‘Pride of Cows’ 1 litre milk bottles. These bottles are sturdy. We request citi-zens not to dis-card the bottles, instead they can hand over to us or they can make Eco bricks them-selves with that bottle to manage

their day-to-day plastic waste”. ‘Urvari’ is an environmental youth

organisation founded by two teens Va-sundhara Gupte and Khushi Shah and they are committed to working for en-vironmental protection, conservation and aware ness. What sets Urvari apart from the rest, is their ability to take immediate and effective action. Urvari has undertaken a wide range of proj-ects over the past few months includ-ing plantation and cleanliness drives, a plastic upcycling contest, plogging runs, food runs and even Ecobrick projects.

City based teen group plans to make animal shelter with Eco bricks By Ryhea George

The prices of onions have come down

sharply as the supply has increased at the Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC), Vashi. The onions are cur-rently being sold at Rs 25-30 per kg in the whole-sale market.

Since Au-gust-September last year, the price of the on-ion has been on the rise due to the exces-sive rainfall. The crops were damaged and there was very little arrival during November-December. APMC, Vashi received 7000 quintals onions in August that came down

to around 4000 quintals in December, register-ing a dip of 40 percent. The average price of on-ion had reached over Rs

45 per kg in the market in APMC Vashi. The re-tail price also rose to Rs 70 to Rs 100 per kg de-pending upon the qual-ity. Onions were also

being exported during the lockdown.

“During November-December, the whole-sale market was receiv-

ing just 50 trucks of onion per day. Even the qual-ity was poor and the prices per kg varied from Rs 40 to Rs 50. The present supply is almost twice and the qual-ity is good too. The price will start reflecting

in the retail mar-kets too. Now, we are receiving 100 trucks of onions per day,” said Ashok Walunj, Direc-tor, Onion-Potato divi-sion, APMC.

Onion prices fall100 trucks arrive daily in APMC

Urge citizens to join in the initiative

An Eco brick is a plastic bottle packed with used plastic to a set density and useful to manage plastic waste at home. They serve as reusable building

blocks. These eco-bricks are four times stronger than the regular hollow blocks. Eco bricks can be used to produce various items, including furniture, garden walls and other structures. Eco bricks are produced primarily as a means of managing consumed plastic by sequestering it and containing it safely. The making of Eco brick is quite simple. Just put your plastic waste in any discarded PET bottle and stuff the waste till it is packed and heavy. The bottle and the packed plastic are clean and dry to prevent the growth of bacteria. Plastic is cut or ripped into small pieces then packed little by little, alternating between add-ing the plastic and compacting it, layer by layer. The bottle is rotated with each press to ensure the plastic is evenly compacted throughout the bottle. This helps prevent voids and that the packing reaches the requisite solidity Completed Eco bricks are packed solid enough that they can bear the weight of a person without deforming—a density range between 0.33g/ml and 0.7g/ml. The Eco-brick first developed in Argentina, is a unique building material to help communities recycle plastic and build housing by reducing manufacturing costs by 40% with a key alliance and revenue structure. In India Haryana is the state which has been working on eco bricks.

vol. 14 • issue 199 rni no. mahen/2007/21778 postal regn

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