QMumbai: BJP-Sena Alliance Formula; PMC Employees Protest & More
Catch up on the latest news from Mumbai.
1. BJP-Sena Alliance: Sena Wants at Least 126 Seats, BJP Says No More Than 120
Ahead of the Assembly polls, BJP chief Amit Shah held a marathon meeting with CM Devendra Fadnavis, state party chief Chandrakant Patil and other state core committee members in New Delhi on Thursday. The alliance formula will be finalised after the CM conveys Shah’s decision to Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray. It will be announced only after September 28.
The meeting, which went on for nearly nine hours from Thursday afternoon, was to finalise candidates. Fadnavis is also learnt to have conveyed and discussed the saffron seat-sharing negotiations with the Sena with Shah. The formula discussed includes 126 seats for the Sena and 162 seats for the BJP and its smaller allies.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
2. 130 PMC Employees Protest Outside Residence of HDIL Promoters
Around 130 staffers from various branches of the Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank protested outside the Khar residence of the Wadhavans, the promoters of real estate company Housing Development & Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL), early Thursday.
The bank’s large loans to the troubled real estate company are currently being examined by the Reserve Bank of India.
A team of senior PMC bank employees, who met HDIL vice-chairman and managing director Sarang Wadhavan, said the latter assured them that he was working to resolve the issue at the earliest.
(Source: Indian Express)
3. Mumbai Metro 3 Corridor: Save as Many Trees as Possible, MMRCL Told
A judicial committee set up by the Bombay High Court to look into felling of trees to make way for the Metro 3 line, told the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MMRCL) on Thursday that while constructing the underground Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ corridor, it has to save as many trees as possible and also ensure that the transplanted trees live on.
In June 2017, the HC had appointed Justice Indrajit Mahanty and Justice A A Sayed to look into the grievance related to felling of trees as part of Metro construction. In the absence of Justice Mahanty, Justice Sayed on Thursday addressed the issue.
(Source: Indian Express)
4. Byculla Zoo Revamp: BMC to Set up Sewage Treatment Plant to Meet Water Needs
Anticipating the need for increased water in Veermata Jijabai Bhosle Udyan and Pranisangrahlay, popularly known as Byculla zoo, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has proposed to construct an underground sewage treatment plant (STP) from which recycled water can be used for non-potable purposes.
Byculla zoo is currently undergoing a Rs 400-crore revamp as part of which new animal enclosures and facilities for visitors will be constructed.
As part of the revamp, the BMC has also planned special enclosures for exotic animals on seven acres of the Mafatlal Mill compound, which was handed over to the civic body.
(Source: Indian Express)
5. New Cat Snake Species Found; Named After Uddhav Thackeray’s Son
A new species of cat snake called Thackeray’s Cat Snake (Boiga thackerayi), named after Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray’s son, Tejas, a wildlife researcher, has been discovered in the Western Ghats after 125 years. Cat snakes or cat-eyed snakes are identified by the genus Boiga and are named after their vertical pupils, similar to cats.
The discovery is the first since 1894, when a species from the genus was found in the Western Ghats. The findings were published in the Journal of Bombay Natural History Society on Thursday.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)