1. 50,000 ‘Affordable’ Homes Up For Sale In Mahul And Trombay
The Maharashtra government, which could not build a single house under its much-touted affordable housing scheme in the last three years, now plans to sell 50,000 vacant houses which were built for project-affected persons (PAP) in Mahul, Trombay and Vidyavihar, as part of the same plan.
The houses, measuring 250 sq ft each, were built by MHADA for those affected by projects undertaken by the BMC and the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA), for roads, metros, gardens etc. Twenty-five thousand houses each were handed over to the BMC and the MMRDA.
(Source: Mumbai Mirror)
2. ’93 Blasts Verdict Part II: 24 Yrs On, Closure… Almost
Over 24 years after serial bomb blasts ripped through the city, arguably changing it forever, a special court is likely to pronounce its verdict today in the second part of the 1993 blasts case, where seven accused are standing trial. In the first part of the trial, which concluded in 2007, 100 people were convicted, while 23 were acquitted.
This verdict will bring closure to the case as far as the arrested accused are concerned. More than 30, including the main conspirators like Dawood Ibrahim, Tiger Memon and Mohammed Dossa are absconding. However, this verdict may well determine the future of the case as far as the absconding accused are concerned.
(Source: Mumbai Mirror)
3. 23 BMC Employees Clear SSC Exams This Year, Earn a Hike In Their Salaries
In Dongri’s narrow, crowded gullies they are called ‘Miracle 23’, a throwback to Bihar’s ‘Super 30’ – the IIT success story involving students from underprivileged families that has caught the nation’s imagination. While Dongri’s ‘Miracle 23’ have not broken into any top-notch technology institute, their success is no less worthy of celebration.
‘Miracle 23’ is the story of a bunch of class IV BMC employees – sweepers, manhole cleaners, and road and pipeline repairmen, each earning less than Rs 6,000 a month for the gruelling work – who this year cleared their SSC exam, several years after dropping out of schools.
(Source: Mumbai Mirror)
4. Mumbai-Nagpur Super Highway: 2000 Farmers Knock On High Court Door To Save Their Acres
Nearly 2,000 farmers from over 40 villages in Maharashtra’s Nashik district have decided to take the legal route to thwart the state government’s bid to acquire their land for the Mumbai-Nagpur Super Highway, a pet project of CM Devendra Fadnavis.
The farmers, who claim that their land is being forcefully taken away by the government for the proposed link that is being developed by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), have started filing Public Interest Litigations (PILs) in the Bombay High Court.
(Source: Mumbai Mirror)
5. Was It Harassment On Facebook Or Bad Results That Pushed Girl To Suicide?
It was not just one factor in life that pushed a 21-year-old girl towards suicide, but a number of them. Not only was she depressed about the atmosphere at her home, but was also worried about an unknown person, who used to send her lewd messages through Facebook. However, the situation became worse when she failed in three subjects of her first year Commerce examination and hanged herself to death on Wednesday morning.
No one at home
According to police, the deceased has been identified as Nayna alias Sanchita Suresh Wagh, a resident of Shiv Shankar Chawl in Patel Nagar area of Kandivali (west). She lived with her parents and younger brother, none of whom were at home at the time of the incident. After her father returned home, he found the main door locked from inside. He knocked several times but did not get any response. After that he went to the backside of the house and through the window saw her hanging. Police said that a suicide note has been recovered from the spot, which mentions that she was not happy with her life.
(Source: Mid-day)
6. Zakir Naik's Islamic International School In Mumbai Illegal, Says Government
The Mumbai civic body's education department has said that controversial preacher Zakir Naik's Islamic International School (IIS) in south Mumbai is operating without authorisation. Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's south Mumbai region education inspector B B Chavan, in a letter issued yesterday, stated that no school can run without the NOC (no objection certificate) of the local governing body, as defined under provisions of the Right to Education Act, 2009.
(Source: Mid-day)
7. Mumbai Crime: Cops May Soon Identify Kritika Chaudhary's Killer
Mother and brother of Rajjo actress Kritika Chaudhary reached Mumbai on Wednesday from Haridwar and performed her last rites at the Vile Parle crematorium, even as the police said they are coming closer to identifying her killer, continuing to grill the "prime suspect" detained in the case.
Kinspeak
Speaking to mid-day, her younger brother Deepak said, "I had been trying to call her for the past several days but couldn't get through. I had spoken to her last on the morning of June 7; she'd sounded cheerful, as she had been celebrating her birthday week. She'd even told me that she wanted to try her hand at direction and had got a chance to be an assistant director of a TV serial."
(Source: Mid-day)
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