QMumbai: City Gears up for Food Shortage; Smooth Monsoon Traffic

Mumbai municipal school children malnourished; Matunga becomes the city’s first all-women station.

1. Brace for Milk, Veggies Shortage

Mumbai did not feel the impact of the first day of the strike launched by farmers in parts of Maharashtra on Thursday, with around 200 trucks carrying onions and potatoes and 400 trucks carrying other vegetables and fruit reaching the Agriculture Market Produce Committee (APMC) in Navi Mumbai.

But protesting farmers intercepted a number of tankers and trucks headed for the city on Thursday, spilled the milk they carried and dumped sacks of fruit and vegetables on the highways. This means Mumbaikars are likely to face a supply crunch on Friday.

The farmers maily have two demands: a complete waiver of loans, and a minimum support price for their produce, to be fixed at 50 per cent more than the production cost. In Nashik, farmers were also protesting the forceful acquisition of their land for CM Devendra Fadnavis’s pet project — the Mumbai-Nagpur Expressway, or Samruddhi Corridor.

(Source: Mumbai Mirror)

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2. MMRDA Commissioner: Mumbai Traffic Flow Will Be Flawless During Monsoon

U.P.S.Madan, Metropolitan Commissioner, MMRDA, on Thursday inspected the alignment of 25- km long from Mahim Causeway to Dahisar [E] on Western Urban Road, which is now under the MMRDA.

according to Madan, the maximum pre-monsoon works such as desilting of Nalla along Western Urban Road on both sides and making wear coat are completed. He instructed the concerned official to complete the remaining works as early as possible.

MMRDA Commissioner: Mumbai traffic flow will be flawless during monsoon

The team also inspected the works which are on going the 16.5-km long Andheri-E to Dahisar-E, Metro-7 Corridor on Western Urban Road to make sure that the traffic flow remains smooth during monsoon..

(Source: Mid-Day)

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3. 1 in Every 3 Children in Mumbai Municipal Schools Malnourished

Despite an extensive mid-day meal programme, a third of children in schools run by India’s richest municipal corporation in India’s richest city, are malnourished, according to a new report that quotes the corporation’s own data, obtained through a right-to-information request.

Malnutrition has increased more than four times in Mumbai, from 8 percent in 2013-14 to 34 percent in 2015-16, as the city leaves a rising proportion of its mid-day meal budget unused, according to the report released on 30 May. The report was released by Praja Foundation, a nonprofit organisation focussed on governance.

The malnutrition was revealed during routine health checks conducted in Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) schools.

(Source: The Quint)

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4. Cash-For-Noc Claim: BMC Chief Demands Report

Hours after Mirror reported allegations that BMC’s auditors for civic works may have granted quick quality clearances to contractors for cash, municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta on Thursday summoned a top official from the vigilance department and demanded an explanation.

Mehta asked chief engineer (vigilance) Prakash Kadam to submit a report on the claims that the department dispatched over 3,000 no-objection certificates to contractors, who had undertaken various civic projects, in just a month without conducting proper inspections. Before that, the division’s auditors had taken almost a year to issue only 60 NOCs, documents that contractors need to claim payments from the civic body.

A section of corporators has described the massive jump as a cash-for-NOC scam.

“I have asked the vigilance department to present all the facts of the case. I will examine them and decide the further course of action. If we find irregularities in issuing the NOCs, stern action will be taken,” Mehta told Mirror.

Another senior municipal official said Mehta would also review the functioning of the vigilance department.

(Source: Mumbai Mirror)

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5. Matunga Is Now First All-Women Station of City

In about a week from now, the Central Railway will hand over Matunga station to women staffers. Matunga will become the first railway station in the city – and the first station on Central Railway --to be operated by an all-women staff.

(A Metro station in Jaipur – Shyam Nagar – was the first in the country to run by women, but let that not take away from Central Railways’ admirable move.) The station will have over 30 women staffers, including 11 booking clerks, 7 ticket collectors, 2 chief booking supervisors, 5 Railway Police Force personnel, 5 pointspersons, 2 announcers, and a station manager.

The man behind the move is DK Sharma, general manager, Central Railway. “It is about empowering women,” said Sharma. “Some of our passenger reservation centres and even ticketing systems for suburban trains are entirely handled excellently by women, so it was decided that an entire station should be handed over to them.”

(Source: Mumbai Mirror)

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6. Gym to Motivate BEST Workers

In an attempt to motivate its staff , the BEST administration has decided to install gyms across its depots, prepare diet charts, felicitate employees who perform well and establish career counselling centres for their children.

These measures come at a point when the BEST has been struggling to pay its employees for months. The gyms will be set up across all 26 depots of the BEST and will be fully functional in two months.

The gym will have basic equipment allowing employees to do weight-lifting, push-ups, pull-ups and stretching. Drivers will be expected to visit these gyms after finishing their daily duties. BEST’s new General Manager, Surendra Kumar, will be preparing the diet charts.

(Source: Mumbai Mirror)

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7. Lights out at Hostel Over Rs 17 Lakh Dues

As many as three hostels, including one girl’s hostel, had their electricity connection cut off on Wednesday for nearly 12 hours due to non-payment of dues – this, at a time when students are busy preparing for their semester exams. According to sources in the Social Justice and Special Assistance department, the bill of nearly Rs 17 lakh had been raised seven years ago, but a payment was never made.

According to the students, BEST officials came at around 2:30 pm to disconnect the electricity. “I had my exams today and I was forced to study in darkness,” said Ajay Mane, a first-year Bachelor of Ayurveda Medicine and Surgery student. With no fans, the students had to suffer in stifling heat.

The three hostels – Backward Class Boys Government Hostel; Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Boys Government Hostel; Sant Mirabai Girls Government Hostel in Worli – are looked after by the Social Justice and Special Assistance department of the state government.

(Source: Mumbai Mirror)

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8. Senior CR Officer Carries out Surprise Check at CST

Railway authorities at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, who were taken by surprise on Thursday after a senior Central Railway official dropped by unannounced to inspect the heritage precinct, were asked to fix issues related to cleanliness and beautification of the building.

“Make the public urinal at CST’s local section air-conditioned within a week. Also, clean the south and east facade of the heritage structure as soon as possible,” Sharma reportedly told concerned officials, who assured him the work will be completed within a week.

Currently, tourists only get to see the splendour of CST’s western side as the north side view is covered by the roofing over platforms, and the view is blocked on the eastern side by a few temporary structures. The area in front of the southern side is shrouded behind a BEST bus stop, being used occasionally by the railway staff.

After the surprise inspection, Sharma inaugurated a yoga camp being organised from June 1 to 20 for railway officers and staff. The twohour daily camp is being organised with the help of Patanjali Yoga Samiti Mumbai at the Central Railway Auditorium in CST.

(Source: Mumbai Mirror)

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