Articles by Jeet Mashru
BMC issues stop work notice to ‘illegal’ construction at Juma Masjid
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has issued a stop work notice to Juma Masjid in South Mumbai due to allegations of illegal construction. Former trust members claim that unauthorized work is being carried out inside the heritage structure. The current trust denies the allegations and states that there is no construction happening at the mosque. A writ petition has been filed in the Bombay High Court regarding the issue.
Updated on Jul 29, 2023 12:49 AM IST
Potholes make traffic crawl on Vile Parle flyover
Potholes on the Captain Vinayak Gore Flyover in Vile Parle, Mumbai are causing traffic jams and doubling commute times for motorists in the area. The flyover is being used as an alternative route due to the closure of the Andheri Subway, which frequently shuts down due to waterlogging. Residents have complained about the lack of action from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in fixing the potholes on the flyover. Citizens also say that the narrow bridge and potholes make the situation worse.
Updated on Jul 28, 2023 12:56 AM IST
Jeet Mashru, Mumbai
Foul water, which smells like gutter, making us sick: Residents of Juhu Gaothan
While residents of Juhu Gaothan said that they are falling sick because of getting blackish water, which smells like a gutter, people in Mulund West are complaining of receiving muddy water, which is unfit to be used. While some of the Juhu Gaothan residents claimed that the issue has been continuing for a month, some others have insisted that it has been going on for a year.
Updated on Jul 27, 2023 04:49 PM IST
Life and times in the ‘Republic’ of Andheri
It has become de rigueur to see some of them to swap their personal vehicles with public transport to reach their destinations on time. A few months ago, tired of a two-hour drive from her home in Juhu to Mira Road, Hema Malini surprised her commuters when she took the metro on her way back and reached her destination in half an hour
Updated on Jul 23, 2023 12:59 AM IST
Heavy rains, high tide disrupt Mumbai
Seven spots in the city received more than 100mm of rainfall between 8am and 6pm. During this period, the city received an average of 73.62mm of rainfall in the island city, 88.30mm in the eastern suburbs and 63.29mm in the western suburbs
Updated on Jul 22, 2023 12:44 AM IST
Jeet MashruShashank RaoMegha Sood
Demolition drive amid rain leaves 200 families homeless in Malvani
Over 200 families in Malvani's Ambujwadi were left homeless after bulldozers demolished their unauthorised huts during heavy rain. Activists criticized the timing and called it an inhuman act. The deputy collector defended the move, stating that they were instructed to remove illegal encroachments by the guardian minister. Residents were seen trying to recover their belongings from under the debris.
Updated on Jul 21, 2023 12:51 AM IST
Jeet Mashru, Mumbai
One dead, four injured in Bhayandar building collapse
One person was killed and four others injured when a portion of a building opposite Bhayander railway station collapsed. The building had been categorised as dangerous and had no tenants. The deceased, identified as Durga Ram, used to work as a cobbler at the station. The injured have been admitted to a hospital. The building is being demolished and there are plans to demolish two more dilapidated buildings in the area. Local shopkeepers had received an eviction notice from the corporation and were looking for alternative sites.
Updated on Jul 21, 2023 12:46 AM IST
Jeet Mashru, Mumbai
Juhu residents irked by ban on beach entry
Cops say citizens are only restricted from going into sea only. It was done to protect people from drowning
Updated on Jul 19, 2023 12:35 AM IST
Give sanitation workers a better deal, national commission tells BMC
The National Commission for Safai Karmacharis (NCSK) met with the BMC commissioner to discuss issues such as health insurance, housing, and promotions for sanitation workers. The BMC claimed to have addressed the concerns raised by the commission. The NCSK had rebuked the BMC for not providing health insurance and called for the reinstatement of proper coverage. The issue of promoting sanitation workers who are eligible for other jobs was also discussed. The BMC stated that it had started the process of hiring for 1,100 posts and that eligible sanitation staff would be given preference.
Updated on Jul 16, 2023 12:21 AM IST
In Mumbai, people fall sick due to contaminated water
Cases of gastroenteritis do go up during monsoons, but doctors in Mumbai said this year, cases have gone up by around 20 to 30%, compared to previous years.
Updated on Jul 15, 2023 10:09 AM IST
How Metro’s ‘jugaad’ ensured this heritage precinct’s safety
Innovative methods of blasting underground were employed to create the underground Hutatma Chowk Metro station, nearly complete.
Updated on Jul 13, 2023 12:42 AM IST
Tweets by Kiara, Kartik help Mumbai family locate relatives in Himachal
Within a few hours, there was a response from a local, saying the family was safe and sheltering at a military camp at Sissu near Manali. “We got a call from someone called Siddharth, who said he had spoken to the local police after reading the tweet,” said Dipin Shah, a relative of the family. “He confirmed that the family was indeed at the military camp”
Updated on Jul 12, 2023 01:07 AM IST
4 agencies pass the buck to repair this 1.5-km stretch at Dahisar toll naka
The potholes appeared after the first rains, following which we wrote to MBMC. They have said they will attend to it soon. Both MBMC and NHAI fill up potholes on the patch. MBMC has been doing it in the area to ensure people are not troubled
Updated on Jul 11, 2023 01:00 AM IST
5 AQI monitoring stations to be functional soon
The official from the BMC’s environment department said that the locations were selected based on the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) guidelines and after getting consent from the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB)
Updated on Jul 07, 2023 01:01 AM IST
Chandivali residents felicitate ‘brave’ motorists for plying on potholed road
Mandeep Singh Makkar, founder member, Chandivali Citizens Welfare Association (CCWA), said, “We felicitated the citizens for their bravery. It takes courage for people to use this potholed road. The planned 90-feet road is nowhere to be seen. Additional commissioner P Velrasu in February told us that the work will begin in a month, but nothing has happened till July”
Updated on Jul 02, 2023 12:27 AM IST
One week of rain and potholes emerge
Residents in Mumbai are reporting the emergence of potholes on arterial roads as the monsoon season begins. Despite the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation taking over maintenance of the Western Express Highway and the Eastern Express Highway, potholes have been reported on both roads. The BMC has issued tenders worth over ?140 crore to fill potholes, but heavy rainfall has caused waterlogging and damage to the roads. The BMC is working to fix the potholes as a priority using new technologies such as reactive asphalt. The city has already surpassed the normal rainfall threshold for June.
Updated on Jul 01, 2023 12:37 AM IST
Banyan tree collapses on house, 1 dead
Late monsoons in Mumbai have already claimed nine lives, including a 22-year-old migrant worker who died when a banyan tree collapsed on his house.
Updated on Jun 30, 2023 12:32 AM IST
Tree collapse claims 2 in western suburbs; 1 injured in Govandi wall collapse
Two men died in separate incidents in Mumbai due to tree collapses during heavy rain. Many parts of the city were waterlogged, and multiple trees and branches fell. There were also reports of house and wall collapses, as well as a landslide. The Andheri subway had to be shut down, but the BMC managed to clear out the water. The city's successful desilting of nullahs helped with quick drainage. BMC commissioner Iqbal Chahal visited flood-prone sites and observed that areas around Gandhi Market remained flood-free.
Updated on Jun 29, 2023 12:41 AM IST
As cops arrest man for stealing 26 manhole covers, BMC struggles to keep thieves at bay
A 29-year-old man has been arrested in Mumbai for allegedly stealing 26 manhole covers belonging to the city's Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and selling them to a scrap dealer. The BMC has been faced with a spate of such thefts over the past few years, which has become particularly concerning during the monsoon season when gaping manholes can lead to fatalities. The corporation has announced that "strict action" will be taken against offenders, and has warned scrap dealers they will also face legal action if they purchase stolen goods.
Updated on Jun 28, 2023 08:40 AM IST
Megha SoodJeet Mashru
2 die in Rajawadi bungalow collapse, 7 injured in another house collapse in Ghatkopar
Six incidents of house and wall collapses were reported in Mumbai on Monday during the ongoing monsoon season. Two deaths were reported in a house caving incident on Sunday while a collapsed balcony injured seven people on the same day. The city recorded light rains on Monday, and 17 incidents of tree and branch falls were reported. In May, the city's municipal corporation had listed 226 buildings in the city as extremely dangerous due to their dilapidated state and vulnerability to harsh rains.
Updated on Jun 27, 2023 07:22 AM IST
Repair of potholed hotspot road in Vikhroli stuck in bureaucracy between BMC and Mhada
A dangerous road in Mumbai's Vikhroli East, which connects to a police station, school and a market, remains unrepaired due to bureaucracy between the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and Mhada. Advocate Ritesh Karkera, who lives in the area, contacted the BMC for repairs ahead of the monsoon season. The BMC said there was a pipeline leak that Mhada had to repair. Mhada has been unable to do so for months. The situation has worsened after heavy rain, with residents of Tagore Nagar having to pass through potholes filled with water.
Updated on Jun 25, 2023 01:16 AM IST
Waterlogging, traffic snarls in many parts as heavy rains lash city
In just three hours, the city recorded 88 mm rain on Saturday. At 5pm, IMD’s Santacruz weather station (Mumbai’s base station) had recorded only 27.8 mm rain, by 8.30pm the reading was 115.8 mm
Updated on Jun 25, 2023 01:04 AM IST
Chaos, traffic snarls in Chandivali as housing complex shuts their internal road connecting Powai
Problem compounded as Panch Shrishti road already closed for reconstruction; locals say private road should be open on humanitarian grounds till BMC completes work
Updated on Jun 23, 2023 12:46 AM IST
Jeet Mashru, Mumbai
Citizens demand a detailed timeline of Gokhale Bridge reconstruction for transparency
In its letter to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) chief and the CM, the Mumbai North Central District Forum (MNCDF), a citizen welfare and redressal platform, requested to publish a detailed timeline for the reconstruction of the delayed Gokhale Bridge for transparency
Updated on Jun 22, 2023 01:02 AM IST
Bandra, Khar residents afflicted by open garbage dumps, fear the onset of the monsoon
Attributing the problem to the NGOs, A resident said the waste was either not picked up daily or the timings of the pick-up were ad hoc, due to which slum dwellers and chawl residents had no option but to dump the garbage at spots such as the Murugan Chawl area, Guzder Bandh Road and the ‘Rajesh Khanna garden’ where community bins once stood
Updated on Jun 21, 2023 12:54 AM IST
‘Gokhale Bridge will definitely not open this year’
When the bridge was closed last year, elected representatives had promised that one lane would open by May 2023. Less than a month ago, chief minister Eknath Shinde, on a visit to the site, had said that he had spoken to the steel company supplier and also called up the divisional railway manager
Updated on Jun 18, 2023 01:17 AM IST
Husband’s Aadhaar not mandatory for admitting pregnant women: BMC to hospitals
Last month, Sunita Gangole, a resident of Gujarat’s Umbergaon, who visits Mumbai for four months a year to work on pre-monsoon projects, was denied treatment at Rajawadi hospital in Ghatkopar. “I visited the hospital for my pregnancy-related treatment. They asked for my husband’s Aadhaar. When I denied having it, they made me sit from morning to evening and did not give me the case paper. They even asked me to go back to my village,” she claimed
Updated on Jun 15, 2023 11:35 PM IST
Jeet Mashru, Mumbai
With only 94 lifeguards, City beaches exposed to more tragedies
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has announced it will appoint 120 security guards to the six tourist beaches in Mumbai after four teenage boys drowned at Juhu Koliwada beach. The guards will work in two shifts during the day when beaches see the highest footfall, mostly tourists. The recent tragedy is not an isolated incident, and locals, fishermen and experts have all called for more lifeguards and better amenities and equipment to prevent such incidents. The city currently has a total of 94 lifeguards deployed across all its beaches.
Updated on Jun 15, 2023 01:06 AM IST
Stop manual cleaning of nullah, storm water drains, demand sanitation workers
Safai kamgars in Mumbai demand that nullah desilting and cleaning be categorised as sewer cleaning and manual cleaning by labourers be banned. The Jan Haq Sangharsh Samiti protested at the district collector's office demanding compensation for four workers who died during this year's pre-monsoon cleaning. The JHSS and sanitation workers also demanded that they be hired directly by the government instead of a contractor.
Updated on Jun 14, 2023 01:04 AM IST
Bappa! Save us from sickly sweet aroma of laddoos, say Siddhivinayak neighbours
Built in 1977, the housing society, now accommodates many senior citizens who often suffer from nausea due to the constant smell of ghee, used in the prasad
Updated on Jun 14, 2023 05:31 PM IST
Jeet Mashru, Mumbai