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TOI : PUNE: The much-awaited Pune-Nashik train will finally be inaugurated this month. Moreover, commuters on the Pune-Lonavla section have another reason to rejoice as six new rakes will be made available by August this year to increase the frequency of local trains.

The Pune-Nashik train will run via the Karjat-Panvel route. “We have to start the train before March 31. We have intimated the authorities in Delhi regarding this,” said Sowmya Raghavan, Central Railways general manager, at a press conference on Monday.

The announcement about the introduction of the train was made by railway minister Lalu Prasad Yadav in the railway budget in February 2007. The railways have already announced the schedule of the train. It would cover the distance of 291 km in seven hours and 20 minutes.

Answering a question by TOI about the long-pending demand for increasing frequency of local trains between Pune and Lonavla, Raghavan said six new rakes would be available between August and October this year. The rakes would have 12-coaches and would be run on alternate current (AC).
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TOI : PUNE: Hundreds of workers of sugar factories across the state will take part in a two-day agitation in Pune to protest against the delay in payment of their wages for the past five years.

The workers will hold a dharna beginning on Tuesday at the sugar commissionerate and will later decide the future course of action, according to general secretary of the Federation of Sugar Factory Workers, Madhukar Katre, president Panditrao Shewale and executive president Subhash Kakuste.

Katre said that the workers are paid wages for just two months but are forced to work all the year round. While several packages have been announced for the sugar factories over the past five years, the workers have been living a hand-to-mouth existence,
he said.

In one of the packages, the sugar factories were asked to get soft loans, however, the workers have not received their salary arrears. As the provident fund deducted from the salaries has not been deposited, the widows of deceased workers are not able to get any pension, Katre said.

According to the federation, the workers were given an assurance by Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar in October last year that sugar factories would be given a loan of Rs 67 per quintal of sugar production. The factories were told to pay salary dues from this loan.
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TOI : PUNE: The women folk in Akurdi had a reason to rejoice on Sunday as their long-pending demand of closing down two liquor joints — one a country liquor shop and the other a wine shop — had been granted by the district collector.

The women had been conducting relentless campaigns against the shops as they were causing nuisance in the area for the past several years. Their efforts bore fruit when the two shops were sealed by the excise department on Saturday night on the directives of the district collector.

The women celebrated their joy by taking out a peaceful victory march in the area.

Geeta Sutar, a local resident, said as the country liquor shop was located close to the vegetable market, the women used to face eve teasing from customers visiting this shop. Memorandums demanding closure of the shop were submitted by the women to the excise department, zilla parishad and the district collector, among others.

Mumtaz Inamdar, a local resident and a member of Bhagyavidhata women self-help group, said the wine shop sold liquor loose instead of bottles. Drunken customers used to tease women passing by the road.

The harried women submitted a memorandum to local corporator Javed Shaikh, who helped the women in meeting the authorities and getting the shops closed. Their united efforts resulted in sealing the two shops on Saturday.

Shaikh said he had urged the operators/owners of the country liquor and wine shops not to sell liquor in loose, but it had proved futile. Shaikh said that the women submitted a memorandum to the district collector on September 4, demanding closure of the two shops.

Copies of the memorandum were sent to chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh and guardian minister Ajit Pawar. Some action was taken, but again the shops were operating as usual.
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TOI : PUNE: The Kothrud police on Monday arrested Ninad Thatte of Kothrud-based company Aryan Technology for allegedly duping several investors to the tune of Rs 76 lakh.

The accused had lured investors by promising higher interest rates per month. Thatte, who was arrested following a complaint by Jagdish Joshi of Wadgaon Dhayari, was remanded to police custody till March 5 by judicial magistrate first class Kalpana Patil.
According to the police, Thatte, who deals with computers and investments, had issues advertisements in leading newspapers asking people to invest in his company. The company also had a web portal showing details of the investment.

Thatte promised an interest rate of six to 15 per cent per month depending on the nature of investment.

Complainant Joshi, who had invested Rs 8.5 lakh, was assured 15 per cent interest per month. However, in the first week of February, he found the office closed.

According to sub-inspector Tejasvini Yadav, who is investigating the case, the accused, who hails from Mumbai, may have committed similar offences in Nagpur and Goa as well.
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