QMumbai: Crocodile in City Drain; No-Trust Motion Against Speaker

All the city news you should read today.

1. Yes, There Are Crocodiles in Mumbai’s Drains. 4.4-foot Specimen Found, Released

A 4.4-foot-long marsh crocodile was rescued from a drain near a construction site in Mumbai’s eastern suburb of Mulund late on Sunday.

It took forest officials and animal rescue groups around seven hours to coax the reptile, which weighed around 8.8 kg, into the nets and haul it out of the drain near Yogi Hills in Mulund (west).

The crocodile was first spotted around 3pm on Sunday by residents of a housing complex, who called the Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare (RAWW). “We reached Aristo construction site in Mulund (west) and located the crocodile,” said Pawan Sharma, president, RAWW.

Crocodiles are found closest to Mumbai in Tulsi and Vihar lakes inside the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, located within the city boundaries, and in Powai lake. This is not the first time they have been spotted out of their territory, but usually, they are found out of their areas in the monsoon, during floods.

Source: The Hindustan Times

2. Ten Thousand Farmers to Begin March to Mumbai Today

More than 10,000 farmers are expected to gather in Nashik on Tuesday to commence a “long march” to Mumbai, 180 kilometres away, to stage an agitation outside the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly against continuing distress in the agrarian sector. The march, called by the Akhil Bharatiya Kisan Sabha (ABKS), is expected to reach Mumbai on March 12.

Leaders said they expect one lakh farmers in the march by the time the protesters reach Mumbai. “We will not leave the premises of the legislature until the issues raised by us are resolved, ” said Ajit Navale, AKBS state general secretary.

Source: The Indian Express

3. Ashwini Bidre Murder: Search for ‘Trunk Full of Body Parts’ Called Off on Day 1

The search operation to locate the metal trunk supposedly containing chopped-up body parts of API Ashwini Bidre was called off on Monday after rescue teams had no luck on day 1 despite searching for almost four hours.

A team comprising Navi Mumbai police, Thane Rural police and the Indian Navy began the search mission at the Bhayandar creek (Versova Creek) at around 12 noon on Monday and called it off at around 4 pm.

Six deep sea divers combed the area where the slain woman cop’s body was allegedly disposed of by the accused.

Commander Mehul Karnik, CPRO, Indian Navy, said: “The naval divers carried out searches at the place where the trunk with the body was suspected to have been thrown. They were equipped with oxygen cylinders along with other equipment for this operation. They couldn’t, however, find anything as the visibility was very poor due to high saltation and water being very muddy.”

Source: Mumbai Mirror

4. No-Trust Motion Against Speaker

Members of the Opposition in the assembly moved a no confidence motion against speaker Haribhau Bagde on Monday for his alleged partisan behavior. The motion was led by Congress and NCP members who alleged that Bagde allowed the passage of Motion of Thanks on the governor’s address without any debate.

Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, leader of Opposition in the assembly, said that 24 Congress and NCP members along with senior PWP leader Ganpatrao Deshmukh had signed the notice. Vikhe Patil accused the Speaker of trying to silence the Opposition benches.

“It’s the Speaker’s job to protect rights of all members and allow them to speak. But Bagde flouted all constitutional norms to give the government an escape route from the debate,” he said.

Source: Mumbai Mirror

5. Junior College Teachers Roll Back Their Protest

The evaluation process of HSC answer sheets, which was stalled in many colleges across the state as a section of junior college teachers had called for a boycott, is set to begin as the teachers’ union agreed to roll back their protest on Monday after the government education department accepted some of their demands.

Nearly 72,000 teachers in the state – around 15,000 from Mumbai – from the Maharashtra State Federation of Junior College Teachers’ Organisation (MSFJCTO) were on strike since February 21, when HSC exams began.

The teachers had decided to boycott paper correction as the government was not heeding their demands related to payment of their salaries, aid to colleges and pension scheme, among others. On Monday, Education Minister Vinod Tawde announced that the government has decided to give individual recognition to teachers recruited in 2012-2013, whose approval process had been stalled. In order to get salaries from the government, teachers’ appointments have to go through an approval process.

Source: Mumbai Mirror

6. 22-year-old Man From South Mumbai Stabs Neighbour After Losing Uno card Game

A 22-year-old man stabbed his neighbour to death on Saturday in south Mumbai in a fit of rage over losing an UNO game.

According to the Agripada police, the victim, Abuzar Ansari,24, was playing a game of cards with his neighbour when the incident took place at 6.15pm.

Police said Ansari used to return home from work and spend time with his 50-year-old mother Ayesha Ansari and play UNO cards with his neighbours’ kids.

On Saturday, Ansari saw his neighbour Noor Mohammed Mansoori in the area and invited him to play. Mansoori, who is unemployed, agreed and they started playing in front of Ansari’s house. Savalaram Agavane, senior police inspector, said after an hour, Mansoori began shouting at Ansari and accusing him of cheating.

Source: The Hindustan Times

7. Nirav Modi Scam: CBI Arrests Director of Gitanjali Group

The CBI yesterday made four arrests in connection with the alleged Rs 12,636-crore fraud at Punjab National Bank (PNB) perpetrated by billionaire jewellers, Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi, officials said.

The agency arrested two employees and an auditor of the Nirav Modi group of companies, while a director of the Gitanjali group of companies owned by Choksi has also been taken into custody, they said. Manish K Bosamiya, the then AGM (operations) of Firestarter International Ltd owned by Modi, and then Finance Manager Miten Anil Pandya were arrested for their alleged role in the preparation of applications for fraudulent Letters of Undertakings (LoUs) submitted to Punjab National Bank.

Auditor Sanjay Rambhia, a partner in the Mumbai-based Chartered Accountancy firm Sampat and Mehta, was also arrested in connection with the ongoing investigation, the officials said.

Source: Mid Day

8. TISS Protests: Students Divided Over Strike; Confusion Reigns

While one faction wrote to the administration stating they were calling off the protests, another group said that the agitation would continue until all demands were met.

Discord crept into the ranks of the students at the forefront of the protests at the Mumbai campus of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) since the last 13 days, with a section of them announcing withdrawal of the stir while another group is still staying put.

Students, including some from TISS’ off-campuses in Hyderabad, Guwahati, and Tuljapur, have been protesting against the withdrawal of financial aid to students from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes since February 21.

Source: Mumbai Mirror