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TOI : PUNE: While, the report submitted by an eight-member committee probing the cause of deaths of conservancy workers between October 2005 and September 2007 has revealed that none succumbed to occupational hazards, officials and workers’ unions, all, agree that there is a need to spread awareness about safe sex and de-addiction among the workers.

Elaborating, a top civic official said, “The probe has established that mere provision of masks and gloves will not reduce the fatalities among the conservancy workers. Efforts need to be undertaken to educate the workers on the importance of de-addiction and use of contraceptives.”

In view of this, the PMC has decided to provide the workers with health cards and educate them on the importance of safe sex and de-addiction.

Workers union leader Mukta Manohar too said that 108 deaths among the conservancy workers was mentioned in the documentary, ‘Kachrakondi’. “There is a need to improve the living conditions of conservancy workers. We are also guiding them on avoiding liquor.”

Sanjeev Wawre, ward medical officer of Ghole road and also of solid waste management, said special sessions for the conservancy employees were organised to help them fight liquor addiction. “We are also working with the NGO for HIV intervention.”

The report says that workers died due to diseases like AIDS, liver cirrhosis, heart attack and blood pressure.

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TOI : PUNE: With the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (Merc) slated to conduct hearing of the revised Pune model of zero load-shedding on April 25, experts feel that the proposed reliability charge of an average 85 paise per unit can be brought down to half.

The Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd’s (MSEDCL) proposal seeking Merc sanction for the appointment of Tata Power Company as interim franchisee to secure 100 MW power on a 24-hour basis from April 4 to June 30 to prevent load-shedding in Pune and fixing of the reliability charge was submitted on Thursday.

The proposal has worked out the reliability charge in three stages namely upto April 4 at the rate of 54 paise per unit, Rs 1.18 per unit for the period April 4 to 15 followed by 89 paise per unit from April 16 to 30. Further, the reliability charge from May 1 to 31 has been proposed at 85 paise per unit and 77 paise per unit from June 1 to 30.

While the tri-party agreement signed by MSEDCL, Tata Power Company and Tata Power Trading Company Ltd is valid upto September 2008, the MSEDCL proposal has sought permission for an arrangement that will be in effect only till June 30.

Reacting to the proposal, Shantanu Dixit of Prayas energy group said that there was a need to bring down the average reliability charge of 85 paise per unit proposed by MSEDCL.

“Pune needs additional power only for 12 to 16 hours but through the agreement with Tata Power Company we have to buy 100 MW for 24 hours. If Tata Power is allowed to sell the excess power during the night time to some other consumer, the reliability charge can be reduced,” he explained.

Dixit pointed out that the MSEDCL has so far kept mum on the…More

TOI : PUNE: The Kondhwa police are still clueless about the reasons behind the suicide of stock-broker Sandeep Shah (33) of Bramha Majestic Complex at NIBM road in Kondhwa.

Shah, who had a Religare franchisee, allegedly ended his life by consuming a white powdery substance on Thursday. According to Shah’s wife, Nitisha, Shah ended his life after he suffered a major loss in the share market.

Shah’s older daughter Neha, who was vomiting uncontrollably after consuming the substance, is now out of danger. She was admitted to a local clinic here. Shah’s dog had also died, apparently from licking the substance off the floor.

Sub-inspector S.R. Waydande, who is investigating the case, told TOI that the police had not yet been able to ascertain the reason why Shah had taken the drastic step of ending his life.

He further said that Nitisha did not give any details of the loss caused in the transactions because she was in a state of shock. The police have sent the powder recovered from the victim’s house to be analysed, Waydande added. Print Save EMail Write to Editor Get personalised news s…More

TOI : PUNE: The Sangvi police on Thursday registered a case of attempt to murder against unknown persons for allegedly opening fire on labour supply contractor Mahanand Ishwar Yadav (29) of Pimpale Saudagar, who was travelling in a car with his friend in Aundh on April 11.

Yadav escaped unhurt as the bullet hit the car’s roof.

According to the police, Yadav and his friend Deepak Rokade had left office around 8.30 pm. Yadav first went to Rokade’s residence.

The duo then proceeded to a city restaurant for dinner and then left in their car for Pimpale Saudagar going via Aundh.

As they were driving, two peoplen on a motorcycle approached from the opposite direction. The pillion rider opened fire with a revolver but missed Yadav.

Yadav approached the anti-extortion cell, Pune, after six days, to lodge a complaint and the cell referred him to the Sangvi police.

Yadav told the police that he did not have any personal enmity with anyone. He further said that he had received threatening calls in August and September last year from an unknown person. Yadav and Rokade had discovered that the call had been made from a public telephone in Shivajnagar.

Yadav runs a firm calls Unity facility private limited at MIDC in Bhosari and suspects that the reason for the attack could be because he has become an established supplier of labour to private firms.

The police have a description of the assailant who had opened fire on Yadav. Assistant police inspector Sarjerao Gawade is investigating further. Print Save EMail Write to Editor Get personalised news s…More

TOI : PUNE: The trial via video-conferencing in a number of fake stamp paper cases involving Abdul Karim Telgi and others has come to a standstill since the last three months because of non-payment of telephone bills.

The state government had installed the video-conferencing system (VCS) at the Yerawada jail here for expediting the trial against Telgi following a supreme court order to this effect in 2003.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had charge-sheeted Telgi and other members of the organised crime syndicate in as many as 48 cases. Many of these cases were being tried through the VCS on a daily basis in Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Chennai.

Telgi’s lawyer Milind Pawar told TOI that BSNL had initially stopped the incoming and outgoing calls of the VCS after the state prison department failed to pay bills to the tune of thousands of rupees despite several reminders.

However, deputy inspector general of prison (western region) Ravindra Kedari claimed that the VCS was not functioning due to technical reasons since the last one-and-a-half month. He alleged that the BSNL had billed the prison department in excess, hence the delay in payment.

Kedari said that the BSNL subsequently refused to accept payment of the bill because it had outsourced the job of maintaining the cable lines to a private contractor. Print Save EMail Write to Editor Get personalised news s…More

TOI : PUNE: A high-level probe into the cause of deaths among conservancy workers of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) between October 2005 and September 2007 has established that many of them have died owing to ‘non-occupational hazards’, including AIDS, liver cirrhosis, heart attack and blood pressure.

This has been revealed in a report submitted by an eight-member committee. The probe, ordered by municipal commissioner Pravinsinh Pardeshi, claims that 108 conservancy employees died between October 2005 and September 2007, and not 225 as claimed by a section of the Press.

Interestingly, in a recent reply to civic activist Vihar Durve under the Right to Information Act, the PMC had said that the total number of employees who died while in service from October 2005 to October 2007 was 225.

Speaking to TOI, Suresh Jagtap, deputy commissioner (solid waste management), said, “There is no ambiguity in the RTI reply and our probe report. The number of deaths of conservancy workers is 108. The total number of deaths, including employees from other departments, was 225.”

However, in the same breath, he asserted “For us, every human life is important. We are making every effort to improve the working conditions of the conservancy staff. At the same time, we wish to ensure that our measures to restrict the number of fatalities among the conservancy workers is not misdirected,”.

Unions, officials stress on need for health education Print Save EMail Write to Editor Get personalised news s…More