1. Maharashtra Police Claim To Have Unearthed Maoist Plots To Kill PM Modi, CM Fadnavis
The Maharashtra police claim to have unearthed separate Maoists plots to purportedly assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a “Rajiv Gandhi-type incident” during one of his road shows and targeting state chief minister Devendra Fadnavis for initiating operations against rebels.
In a submission before a local court on Thursday, the Pune police said it had found a letter in the computer of Delhi-based activist Rona Jacob Wilson, one of the five accused of inciting violence in Bhima Koregaon, detailing a plan to kill the PM.
The letter addressed to one “comrade Prakash” by another person identified by the letter R, and sent last April, raised concerns over the Modi-led BJP winning 15 states and talks of procuring weapons and ammunition worth Rs 8 crore. “We are thinking along the lines of another Rajiv Gandhi-type incident,” the letter read, adding, “targeting his (Modi’s) road shows could be an effective strategy.”
Public prosecutor Ujjwala Pawar told the court that the letter revealed a plot to “kill someone” and did not name any leader. Pune’s joint commissioner of police Ravindra Kadam said the letter is one of the documents found by the Pune police team.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
2. Maharashtra SSC Result 2018: Success Rate Rises; 125 Students Get 100%, Including 4 In Mumbai
Mumbai’s overall student success rate in the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examinations has risen slightly, results announced by the Maharashtra Board for Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) on Friday afternoon revealed.
Mumbai’s pass percentage for the Class 10 state board exams stood at 85.05%, up from 84.9% last year. Similarly, the state’s pass percentage also improved, from 85.7% in 2017 to 86.4%.
The number of students scoring 100%, however, declined this year, to 125, from last year’s 193. Four of these students are from Mumbai.
The number of candidates scoring above 90% has increased significantly in Mumbai as well as across Maharashtra. While more than 10,000 students in Mumbai scored higher than 90% last year, this year 13,329 students scaled that height; in Maharashtra 63,331 students fall in the category, up from 48,470 who scored above 90% in 2017.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
3. Koregaon Bhima Violence: Gadling Admitted To Hospital For High Blood Pressure
Surendra Gadling, one of the five accused arrested by Pune City Police over alleged Maoist links, was on Friday admitted to the Sassoon General Hosital after he complained of high blood pressure. Gadling was admitted to a hospital in the early hours of Friday, after he complained of ill health. Police said Gadling’s condition was stable and he had undergone some medical tests.
Gadling, a lawyer from Nagpur, and the four other accused were arrested on Wednesday in connection with a case filed over Elgaar Parishad, a one-day conference held at Shaniwar Wada in Pune on December 31. As per the complainant in the case, the “provocative speeches” at the conference, which was organised to mark the 200th year of the Battle of Bhima Koregaon, led to the violent clashes the next day at Koregaon Bhima.
Police had said the five accused — Gadling, Elgaar Parishad organiser Sudhir Dhawale, Delhi-based activist Rona Wilson, Nagpur University professor Shoma Sen and Mahesh Raut, a former Prime Minister Rural Development (PMRD) Fellow, had been arrested over evidence of “Maoist links”. They have been booked under sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA)
(Source: Indian Express)
4. Car Deal Gone Sour, Businessman Opens Fire At Birthday Party In Govandi
A monetary dispute over a car deal on Friday turned violent after one person allegedly opened fire at a birthday party at a hotel in Govandi.
The incident occurred when Rakesh Sonawane and his friend Shweta Pande, residents of Sion, were at a birthday party at hotel in Govandi, when businessman Jatin Ahuja, a resident of Navi Mumbai, reached the place with his friends and allegedly first fired a round in the air with a pistol, entered the party hall, pointed the gun at Rakesh and Shweta, and fired another round at them. Ahuja has been arrested.
“The two miraculously escaped unhurt in the incident,” a police official said. The incident happened around 2.15 am on Friday, police said.
(Source: Mumbai Mirror)
5. Plastic Waste Management: Have Formed Special Task Force, State Govt Tells Bombay HC
The state government on Friday told the Bombay High Court that it has formed a special task force to find solutions to the problem of plastic waste management. The court will hear the matter on June 22. An affidavit was filed by Sanjay Sandanshiv, Secretary in the Environment Department, which said the department had issued a letter on April 4 to all Divisional Commissioners, Municipal Commissioners, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, the Directorate for Municipal Administration, all District Collectors, all Chief Executive Officers of Zilla Parishads and all Municipal Councils to inform them of the directions of the Bombay High Court on April 13 and to comply with the order.
In April, the Bombay High Court refused to stay the state government’s decision to ban plastic. The court, prima facie, had held that the prospects of the government’s notification on the plastic ban were “reasonable”. The court also passed an order preventing the prosecution of consumers for three months. Granting interim relief to manufactures of plastic items, the court asked them to make a representation before the state government within a week.
(Source: Indian Express)
6. Mumbai Ready To Pay ₹179 More To Travel An Hour Less
Mumbaiites who do nothing on their usually long commute between home and work are willing to pay up to ₹179.2 more to save an hour’s travel time. Those who use the time to read, speak with co-passengers or surf the Internet on their smartphones are not willing to pay as much, the Indian Institute of Technology – Bombay (IIT-B) said, in a study that could give urban planners pointers on how to make your commute better.
The study assigns value to the time people spend travelling. This is called Value of Travel Time Savings, or VTTS, and it is the amount individuals are willing to pay to save an hour. The average VTTS a Mumbaiite who does nothing while travelling by public transport, using a private vehicle, cycling or walking is ₹179.2. A person occupied during the time is willing to pay, on an average, 26% less — ₹132.2 to save an hour of travel time.
The researchers said the outcome of the study is important for policy makers and transport planners to understand how the value attached to travel time reduces when an individual is able to do other things while travelling. They used the example of popular cab aggregator, Ola, which has info-tainment devices in their cars to keep commuters engaged. Varun Varghese, the principal investigator of the study from the Centre for Urban Science and Engineering (CUSE), IIT-B, said transport planners must now prioritise public transport modes. “If a public transport mode can enable individuals to involve themselves in a multi-tasking activity, they will also attach value to that particular travel,” he said.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
7. BMC To Order Probe Against ‘Lax’ Officer
The BMC said on Friday that it will initiate a probe against a woman officer of F-North Ward’s disaster control cell for not allegedly responding promptly to a complaint about a manhole cover remaining open in Matunga during Thursday’s downpour.
The civic body has also filed a complaint with the Matunga police, claiming that the manhole lid had been opened illegally. The police will file an FIR after conducting a proper inquiry and fixing blame.
Mirror reported on Friday about how Ravi Patil, a supervisor for a contractor appointed to look after the garden under the Matunga flyover, stood guard near the open manhole near Five Gardens for one and a half hours on Thursday, cautioning motorists to keep away from the gaping hole.
Patil had told Mirror that he first dialled the disaster management cell number. But there was no response from the first two numbers he dialled, and a woman attending the third said she would alert the people concerned after finishing her lunch.
Asked about this, Mahesh Narvekar, BMC’s disaster control chief, said, “I will initiate an inquiry in this matter.”
(Source: Mumbai Mirror)
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