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Time of India
28-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
BMC fines 4 contractors 40L for pumps that failed to stop flooding
Mumbai: A day after parts of the island city went under in the face of an early monsoon downpour, BMC cracked down on four contractors tasked with operating mini pumping stations at key locations to avert flooding. Each operator has been fined Rs10 lakh for malfunctioning pumping stations at Dadar Hindmata, Sion Gandhi Market, Yellow Gate at Masjid, and Chunabhatti. Admitting to disruptions caused by waterlogging on arterial roads, a BMC statement said the pumps "were either not functioning on time or not operating at full capacity. This led to traffic and civic life being disrupted in…Hindmata and Gandhi Market. At Masjid…station, waterlogging for a few minutes affected train operations. Although Chunabhatti did not receive much rain, the pumps there were not running at full capacity." The corporation said "no negligence or lapse" would be "tolerated". Critics questioned the action against the contractors saying the penalty was negligible and civic officials responsible for overseeing the work were getting away without even a rap on the knuckles. In BMC's defence, additional municipal commissioner Abhijit Bangar said the corporation was caught off-guard by the intensity and speed with which the monsoon swept into Mumbai. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Luxury Meets Legacy at Signature Global SPR, Gurgaon Signature Global Book Now Undo "The monsoon hit Kerala on May 24. As in previous years, we expected it to take 7-10 days to reach Mumbai. Our plan was to finish all pre-monsoon work by May 31 — we would've been prepared had the rain followed the usual pattern," he said. BMC's top brass are planning to hold a debriefing session on Wednesday with ward level officers and storm water department staff to discuss Monday's fiasco. Officials fear that debris from ongoing road works may have entered and blocked drains during the rains. Works were taken up on a war footing on Tuesday to tackle this problem. This year, the corporation had reduced the number of pumps deployed to push water into stormwater drains in low lying areas to 417 from 482 last year. However, Monday's fiasco may prompt the BMC to heed demands from ward level staff and up the number. Even as chronic flood-prone areas like King Circle and Hindmata remain a challenge, new trouble spots have emerged at such places as Flora Fountain and Mantralaya in Nariman Point. Bangar said, "We didn't see the point of keeping pumps deployed for 120 days across the monsoon, only for them to be unused or run for just an hour. The idea behind scaling back from last year was to deploy them where actually needed, not just for the sake of it." Deputy municipal commissioners across the seven zones in the metropolis have now been asked to inspect their areas for gaps and report necessary fixes. "Based on their findings, a meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday to decide the way forward for similar intense rain events," Bangar added. Along with other monsoon works, BMC this year plans to spend close to Rs 150 crore for filling potholes. The amount allocated is less in comparison to the Rs 205 crore spent last year. Incidentally, the corporation spends Rs 150 crore every year for taking dewatering pumps on rent for the four monsoon months. However, former corporator and Samajwadi party MLA Rais Shaikh questioned the overall approach saying BMC was neither making contractors more accountable by putting hefty penalties nor did it have systems in place to discipline its own staff.
Time of India
27-05-2025
- Time of India
Shirgao Jatra Stampede: Officials Given Extra Week to Respond to Show-Cause Notices
Panaji: The officers who were issued a show-cause notice in connection with the Shirgao Jatra stampede, that killed six and injured 74 persons, were given one more week to file their reply. The officers sought the summary of the inquiry report to file their reply. Chief secretary V Candavelou told TOI , 'We have provided the summary of the inquiry report to the officers who have been issued a show cause notice. We have given them time to file their reply.' On May 13, state govt had issued show-cause notices to eight officials, including the district magistrate, North Goa SP, deputy collector of Bicholim, DySP Bicholim, mamlatdar, PIs of Bicholim and Mopa police stations, and the panchayat secretary of Shirgao, who were on duty during the incident and have been transferred since. Chief minister Pramod Sawant, making the report of the fact-finding inquiry committee (FFIC) public, said that the report collective ly held the temple committee, district administration, district police, village panchayat, and crowd behaviour, particularly that of 'dhonds', responsible for the tragedy. Based on the preliminary inquiry, govt transferred then North Goa collector Sneha Gitte, then SP North Goa Akshat Kaushal, Bicholim DySP Jivba Dalvi, Bicholim PI Dinesh Gadekar, and Bicholim deputy collector Bhimnath Khorjuvekar, with immediate effect. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Luxury Meets Legacy at Signature Global SPR, Gurgaon Signature Global Book Now Undo Six people died and 74 others were injured in the stampede early on Saturday morning. Three of the victims— two women and a 16-year-old boy — were identified as 'dhonds', special devotees of the goddess. The stampede, perhaps the first in post-Liberation Goa's history, occurred on the second day of the five-day jatra that began on May 3. Some injured people continue to be admitted to the hospital for medical treatment. The Shree Devi Lairai Devasthan committee stated that the state administration fell short in making the necessary arrangements for the jatra. In Shirgao, a dedicated road will be built, and staggered timings will be made for the 'dhonds' to go from the temple pond to the 'homkund'. The govt will widen the road before the next jatra, taking locals into confidence, he said. 'To ensure that such a stampede does not take place in Goa in the future, we will take precautions,' Sawant said.
Time of India
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
‘Lacked any semblance of due process': Judge orders Trump administration to help return deported Guatemalan man
A military aircraft waits for migrants to board from a bus at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. (Picture credit: AP) A federal judge has directed the Trump administration to facilitate the return of a Guatemalan man who was deported to Mexico despite raising fears of persecution there, a move the court said likely violated due process protections. The man, identified in court filings as OCG, is gay and had been granted protection from removal to Guatemala under a US immigration judge's ruling. However, immigration authorities instead sent him to Mexico, where he previously said he was kidnapped and raped, before ultimately ending up back in Guatemala. He is currently in hiding. US district judge Brian Murphy, in his order issued late Friday, described the deportation as having 'lacked any semblance of due process,' as reported by the news agency AP. Murphy noted that 'no one has ever suggested that OCG poses any sort of security threat,' adding that the government's action represented 'the banal horror of a man being wrongfully loaded onto a bus and sent back to a country where he was allegedly just raped and kidnapped.' According to The New York Times , the judge also criticised the government for its contradictory statements, first claiming OCG expressed no fear of Mexico, then later admitting it could not identify which official had received such a statement. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Luxury Meets Legacy at Signature Global SPR, Gurgaon Signature Global Book Now Undo Judge Murphy has now ordered the government to further investigate how that information was recorded, including its reliance on a software system called the ENFORCE Alien Removal Module. The ruling adds to a growing list of judicial rebukes against Trump-era deportations. In a similar case, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an El Salvadoran man, was deported in error despite 14 years of residence in Maryland. The Supreme Court ordered his return, though the administration claims it is unable to do so, citing state secrecy and foreign detention. In OCG's case, Judge Murphy noted that, unlike Abrego Garcia, the man is not held by any foreign government, making the task of returning him far simpler. 'Facilitating his return would not be costly, burdensome, or impede the government's objectives,' Murphy wrote. Murphy also condemned a government filing that mistakenly revealed OCG's full name, increasing the risk to his safety. 'That's a bell that perhaps cannot be unrung given the permanent nature of the internet,' the judge said. In declarations submitted to the court, OCG said he lives alone in his sister's home in Guatemala, rarely ventures outside, and is in 'constant fear.' 'I can't be gay here, which means I cannot be myself,' he said. OCG is one of several plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit challenging deportations without due opportunity to present claims of potential persecution, in violation of international obligations. Lawyers for the group are also trying to prevent the deportation of eight other men to South Sudan, where conditions remain volatile. The Trump administration reportedly flew them to a US military base in Djibouti, where they are believed to be held. US secretary of state Marco Rubio acknowledged the use of the US base in Djibouti and warned that court interference could strain diplomatic ties with Libya and Djibouti. The White House has dismissed the plaintiffs as 'monsters' and labelled Judge Murphy, a Biden appointee, a 'far-left activist judge.' However, Murphy has continued to assert judicial authority in protecting basic rights, ordering that detainees be allowed to speak with lawyers. As of Friday evening, their legal counsel had still not been granted access.
