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Saurabha Kulshreshtha

Articles by Saurabha Kulshreshtha

Uddhav, Prakash Ambedkar join hands to keep ‘democracy alive’

Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray on Monday announced an alliance with the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi led by Prakash Ambedkar, grandson of Dr BR Ambedkar, ahead of Mumbai civic body elections.

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi (VBA) leader Prakash Ambedkar. (HT PHOTO)

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Updated on Jan 24, 2023 08:34 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha, Mumbai

Expect hefty power bills from April as BEST proposes a 14% tariff hike

Effective April, around 10 lakh residential consumers of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) Undertaking may have to pay more as the power supplier has proposed a tariff hike of 14

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Published on Jan 24, 2023 12:45 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha, Mumbai

Power tariffs in city may go up from April

Starting April, power consumers in the city may have to pay more as two major suppliers - Adani Electricity Mumbai Limited and Tata Power Company - have proposed tariff hikes to Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC)

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Published on Jan 21, 2023 11:59 PM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Can Uddhav Thackeray continue as Sena party president beyond Jan 23?

Meanwhile, arguments by both the warring factions vis-à-vis their claim to the name and party symbol of the pre-split Shiv Sena have concluded. The ECI will hear the case next on January 30, following which a final order is expected in February

Mumbai, Dec 17 (ANI): Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) chief Uddhav Thackeray addresses during the protest march by Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) against the Maharashtra Government and State Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari's remarks on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, in Mumbai on Saturday. (ANI Photo) (Deepak Salvi)

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Published on Jan 21, 2023 12:35 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Why BMC’s FDs are making news, and should they be spent?

In his speech on Thursday kicking off multiple projects in the city, but also the BJP’s civic campaign, prime minister Narendra Modi made a reference to the “money that is being kept in banks instead of being used for the city’s development

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Published on Jan 21, 2023 12:26 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha and Yogesh Naik

Uddhav likely to miss unveiling of father’s portrait

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday decided to pay tribute to his father in a separate programme.

On Wednesday, Assembly speaker Rahul Narvekar announced that a portrait of Shiv Sena founder, Thackeray, will be unveiled in the central hall of the state legislature on the occasion of his birth anniversary on January 23 in a function which will start at 6 pm. He also said that all members of the Thackeray family have been invited to the event. (HT PHOTO)

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Published on Jan 20, 2023 12:37 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Civic hospitals to get generic medicine stores

Mumbai: The government will soon open 24x7 generic medicine stores on campuses of local body-run hospitals across the state

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Published on Jan 19, 2023 12:42 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Uddhav’s Sena questions validity of Shinde’s election as chief leader

Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) in a counter attack on chief minister Eknath Shinde’s Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena (BSS) raised question on the validity of Shinde’s election as chief leader saying the latter did not have support of organisation and office-bearers, and hence, his election was invalid

Mumbai, India - December 15, 2022: Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders Ajit Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray, Prithviraj Chavan with other leaders during a press conference, at Ajit Pawar's offical bungalow, Devgiri, at Malabar Hill, in Mumbai, India, on Thursday, Dec 15, 2022. (Photo by Bhushan Koyande/HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)

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Published on Jan 18, 2023 12:57 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

‘If farmers can pay mobile and DTH bills on time, why not power bills?’

The MD emphasised that due to non-payment of bills, MSEDCL had to borrow money from lenders to purchase electricity, and the interest that was levied on the loan was dumped on honest residential/commercial/industrial consumers who paid their bills regularly

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Updated on Jan 17, 2023 12:35 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

11 chawls on NTC mill lands to be redeveloped

Union textiles minister Piyush Goyal on Sunday announced that the government would speed up the redevelopment of 11 chawls located on the nine mill lands owned by the National Textiles Corporation (NTC). The redevelopment will afford the 1,892 chawl residents in South and Central Mumbai bigger houses of 405 square feet carpet area

Mumbai, India, June 21, 2014: Tata Mill at Parel in Mumbai, India on Saturday, June 21, 2014. (Photo by Kalpak Pathak / Hindustan Times) (Hindustan Times)

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Published on Jan 16, 2023 12:53 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Can discuss alliance if Shinde snaps ties with BJP, says Prakash Ambedkar

Ambedkar, however, brushed aside any such idea, saying he had already finalised a deal with Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and he would never ally with partners of BJP. But he would consider joining hands with Shinde if he severed ties with the saffron party, he added

Chief minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, and VBA chief Prakash Ambedkar at Chaityabhoomi in Dadar on December 6, 2022. (Satish Bate/HT Photo)

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Updated on Jan 13, 2023 01:06 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha, Mumbai

Ministers’ remarks on applications not final order: State

The state government has directed the administration officials not to take even the chief minister’s remarks on an application, suggesting steps to tackle an issue or redressing grievances, as the final decision on the matter

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Published on Jan 12, 2023 01:01 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha, Mumbai

Sena UBT counters BSS over ‘validity’ of Uddhav’s election as party chief

The BSS is trying to show that Thackeray’s appointments as chief whip in assembly and Lok Sabha were not legal. Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders said they would counter the same when they argue in favour of the ECI

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Published on Jan 12, 2023 01:01 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha and Yogesh Naik

Another private player applies for power distribution licence; state employees blow a fuse

The unions of state utilities’ employees have raised a red flag, reiterating their claim that the privatisation move will affect the financial health of Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL), which is the primary supplier in these areas

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Published on Jan 10, 2023 08:45 PM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha, Mumbai

Two Sena (UBT) leaders question party’s functioning

The two leaders – deputy chairperson of legislative council Neelam Gorhe and leader of opposition in the council Ambadas Danve – have raised eyebrows in political circles as their remarks have flagged how their party chief Uddhav Thackeray has been handling the affairs of the party.

The issue came after Gorhe remarked about the need for corrective measures and change in party functioning. “If the office bearers and local leaders of various districts are switching loyalties to CM Shinde, then Shiv Sena (UBT) needs to change its style of functioning and some corrective measures are needed,” Gorhe said in a press conference. (HT PHOTO)

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Published on Jan 08, 2023 01:00 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Fadnavis relaunches his pet project junked by Thackeray

Mumbai: Deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis’ pet project, the Jalyukta Shivar Abhiyan (JSA), is all set to be relaunched by the Maharashtra government

Around <span class='webrupee'>₹</span>9,500 crore was spent in phase one to implement the scheme in 22,593 villages. The state cabinet approved the second phase of the JSA on December 13, and an order on its revival was issued by the government in the first week of the new year. (HT PHOTO)

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Published on Jan 08, 2023 12:58 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Maharashtra govt diverts ₹12.91 crore for pilot’s passion project

Captain Amol Yadav shot to fame a few years ago after he assembled a prototype of a six-seater aircraft on the terrace of his Mumbai house and subsequently presented it at the ‘Make In India’ exhibition in 2016. Later, in 2018, the then Devendra Fadnavis-led BJP government announced that it would allot land to the pilot near Palghar

Govt diverts <span class='webrupee'>₹</span>12.91 crore for pilot’s passion project

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Updated on Jan 07, 2023 07:50 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Employees of power utilities end strike after Fadnavis’s assurances

Strap: Several parts of state face outages up to 8 hours Employees of three state-owned power companies called off their strike on Wednesday afternoon after deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis assured them that the state government had no plans to privatise the electricity distribution sector

Thane, India - January 04, 2023: Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) employees protest against privatization and its takeover by Adani Group on the third day, outside MSEDCL Office, at Wagle Estate, in Thane, India, on Wednesday, January 04, 2022. (Praful Gangurde/HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)

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Updated on Jan 05, 2023 12:27 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha, Mumbai

Fadnavis skips controversial Sillod agri festival, raises eyebrows

The festival was at the centre of a controversy due to allegations that agriculture minister Abdul Satta had ordered agriculture officers to collect funds for the five-day festival from seed and fertiliser traders and dealers

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Published on Jan 02, 2023 12:43 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Five farmers accuse Sattar, relatives of land grab

Five farmers and a social activist from Sillod have filed a massive 1,400-page complaint with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) alleging land grab by state agriculture minister Abdul Sattar, his relatives and close associates. They have also demanded a probe into the minister’s assets

Mumbai, India - October 26, 2019: Newly elected MLA Abdul Sattar of Shiv Sena arrives to meet Party chief Uddhav Thackeray at Matoshree in Bandra in Mumbai, India, on Saturday, October 26, 2019. (Photo by Kunal Patil/Hindustan Times) (Kunal Patil/HT Photo)

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Published on Jan 02, 2023 12:40 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Nadda, Shah to visit 18 LS constituencies in Maharashtra in 2023

The campaign – aiming to strengthen the party base for the 2024 general elections – will begin on Monday from Chandrapur and Aurangabad.

BJP has identified 144 Lok Sabha constituencies in India which are currently represented by MPs of other parties. Out of these 144 constituencies, 18 are from Maharashtra. However, all the constituencies do not belong to rival parties like Shiv Sena (UBT), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), or AIMIM but also to Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena (BSS), including that of Dr Shrikant Shinde, son of chief minister Eknath Shinde. (HT PHOTO)

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Published on Dec 31, 2022 12:37 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

SRA proposes free of cost homes to upper-floor residents

Mumbai: Residents of the many multi-storeyed slums and chawls dotting the city and suburbs have reason to rejoice as the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) has proposed to the state government homes free of cost in slum rehabilitation projects to those living on upper floors of such structures

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Published on Dec 28, 2022 01:21 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

After Shinde, Sattar in the soup over land allotment

The Bombay HC has stayed the allotment by Sattar of a 35-acre government land in Washim district which he had allotted to a local resident during his tenure as revenue minister in the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.

File photo of Abdul Sattar, with chief minister Eknath Shinde (Facebook/AbdulSattarOfficial)

india news

Updated on Dec 25, 2022 04:49 AM IST

ByHT Correspondent

Cabinet approves Adani’s bid for Dharavi redevelopment

Mumbai: The Maharashtra cabinet on Friday approved the bid of the Adani group in the Dharavi Redevelopment Project

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Published on Dec 25, 2022 12:24 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

Shore up Uran power plant to meet needs, say experts

The government recently asked its electricity distribution company, the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company (MSEDCL), to buy electricity from Pioneer Gas Power Limited (PGPL) for 15 years to ensure an uninterrupted supply of electricity to Mumbai.

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Published on Dec 24, 2022 12:29 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

MSEDCL ordered to buy power from defunct private company

MSEDCL has expressed its reservations on the proposal, pointing out that its share in Mumbai is just five to six percent, and the government should ask the major suppliers to the city—BEST, Tata Power and Adani Electricity—to buy additional power to face a potential shortage in future.

Mumbai and its nearby suburban areas experienced a power outage on October 12, 2020. Following this, several measures were planned to rectify the situation, which had happened due to a shortage in supply. On October 10 this year, the state energy department wrote to MSEDCL, asking it to sign a power purchase agreement with Pioneer Gas Power Limited (PGPL) to buy power for 15 years. (HT PHOTO)

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Updated on Dec 23, 2022 12:50 AM IST

BySaurabha Kulshreshtha

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Saurabha Kulshreshtha

Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray on Monday announced an alliance with the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi led by Prakash Ambedkar, grandson of Dr BR Ambedkar, ahead of Mumbai civic body elections.

Effective April, around 10 lakh residential consumers of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) Undertaking may have to pay more as the power supplier has proposed a tariff hike of 14

Starting April, power consumers in the city may have to pay more as two major suppliers - Adani Electricity Mumbai Limited and Tata Power Company - have proposed tariff hikes to Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC)

Meanwhile, arguments by both the warring factions vis-à-vis their claim to the name and party symbol of the pre-split Shiv Sena have concluded. The ECI will hear the case next on January 30, following which a final order is expected in February

In his speech on Thursday kicking off multiple projects in the city, but also the BJP’s civic campaign, prime minister Narendra Modi made a reference to the “money that is being kept in banks instead of being used for the city’s development

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday decided to pay tribute to his father in a separate programme.

Mumbai: The government will soon open 24x7 generic medicine stores on campuses of local body-run hospitals across the state

The MD emphasised that due to non-payment of bills, MSEDCL had to borrow money from lenders to purchase electricity, and the interest that was levied on the loan was dumped on honest residential/commercial/industrial consumers who paid their bills regularly

Ambedkar, however, brushed aside any such idea, saying he had already finalised a deal with Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and he would never ally with partners of BJP. But he would consider joining hands with Shinde if he severed ties with the saffron party, he added

The state government has directed the administration officials not to take even the chief minister’s remarks on an application, suggesting steps to tackle an issue or redressing grievances, as the final decision on the matter

The BSS is trying to show that Thackeray’s appointments as chief whip in assembly and Lok Sabha were not legal. Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders said they would counter the same when they argue in favour of the ECI

The unions of state utilities’ employees have raised a red flag, reiterating their claim that the privatisation move will affect the financial health of Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL), which is the primary supplier in these areas

The two leaders – deputy chairperson of legislative council Neelam Gorhe and leader of opposition in the council Ambadas Danve – have raised eyebrows in political circles as their remarks have flagged how their party chief Uddhav Thackeray has been handling the affairs of the party.

Mumbai: Deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis’ pet project, the Jalyukta Shivar Abhiyan (JSA), is all set to be relaunched by the Maharashtra government

Strap: Several parts of state face outages up to 8 hours Employees of three state-owned power companies called off their strike on Wednesday afternoon after deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis assured them that the state government had no plans to privatise the electricity distribution sector

The festival was at the centre of a controversy due to allegations that agriculture minister Abdul Satta had ordered agriculture officers to collect funds for the five-day festival from seed and fertiliser traders and dealers

Five farmers and a social activist from Sillod have filed a massive 1,400-page complaint with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) alleging land grab by state agriculture minister Abdul Sattar, his relatives and close associates. They have also demanded a probe into the minister’s assets

The campaign – aiming to strengthen the party base for the 2024 general elections – will begin on Monday from Chandrapur and Aurangabad.

Mumbai: Residents of the many multi-storeyed slums and chawls dotting the city and suburbs have reason to rejoice as the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) has proposed to the state government homes free of cost in slum rehabilitation projects to those living on upper floors of such structures

The Bombay HC has stayed the allotment by Sattar of a 35-acre government land in Washim district which he had allotted to a local resident during his tenure as revenue minister in the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.

Mumbai: The Maharashtra cabinet on Friday approved the bid of the Adani group in the Dharavi Redevelopment Project

The government recently asked its electricity distribution company, the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company (MSEDCL), to buy electricity from Pioneer Gas Power Limited (PGPL) for 15 years to ensure an uninterrupted supply of electricity to Mumbai.

MSEDCL has expressed its reservations on the proposal, pointing out that its share in Mumbai is just five to six percent, and the government should ask the major suppliers to the city—BEST, Tata Power and Adani Electricity—to buy additional power to face a potential shortage in future.

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