The industrial belt of Pimpri-Bhosari near here was shocked by news of the devastating fire at a chemicals factory in which 10 women workers died and eight others were injured.

Fifteen fire engines battled the blaze till late on Wednesday night to bring it under control.

The factory was engaged in supplying cover material for bombs made at military ammunition manufacturing units and had a storage of highly inflammable chemicals that had been kept in 20 big containers.

An explosion preceded the fire that engulfed the premises of the factory which employed around 35 workers, majority of them being women. While rest of the employees on the shift yesterday managed to flee to safety, four women were charred to death on the spot.

Later, fire brigade personnel discovered the bodies of six others who suffocated to death as the bathroom in which they sought shelter was filled with thick smoke.

Three women jumped off the first floor of the two-storey unit and suffered fractures, police said.

Fire brigade and police officials said the exact cause of the fire was under investigation. Print EMail DiscussNew B…More

Police said that MNS opened up its branch office at Satpur at Prabhu Nagar and had put up its hoarding posing its chief Raj Thackeray.

The hoarding, however, was found torn the next morning leading MNS activists to protest, they added.

Women activists of MNS also staged agitation on the road at Satpur demanding arrest of the accused.

Police said the situation in the area was well under control.
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They suspected that Rangpal was a police informer. The police booked Makhansingh Kalyani, Khannasingh Kalyani, Pilisingh Kalyani, Jalsingh Kalyani, Hukumsingh Kalyani, Shaktisingh Kalyani, Vickeysingh Kalyani and Ravisingh Kalyani in this connection. Print EMail DiscussNew B…More

The bandh was called by the Rickshaw Panchayat - the largest union of rickshaws in Pune - whereby the rickshaws remained off the roads. Some drivers, with black bands tied on their mouths, held demonstrations under the leadership of Amar Shaikh, executive president of the Pimpri-Chinchwad unit of the Panchayat, near the Babasaheb Ambedkar chowk in Pimpri.

Deputy regional transport officer, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Sarjerao Shelke said the drive against unauthorised plying was done jointly with the traffic police. The officials checked licences, permit document, insurance documents, pollution under control (PUC) certificate and other papers that a driver needs to carry with him. Six officers of RTO were part of the drive.

Nishikant Bhujbal, police inspector of the Pimpri traffic police said, “Around 360 rickshaws seized during the drive on Tuesday have been kept at the Bhakti Shakti chowk in Nigdi, while 36 have been kept at Bhosari. Around 15 assistant police inspectors and police sub inspectors, as well as 50 policemen, took part in the drive. Drivers of 62 rickshaws produced the necessary documents before the RTO authorities and their rickshaws were released.”

Shelke said, “The Piaggio rickshaws should have grills on the rear. All rickshaws should display the licence number and areas in which they are permitted to ply distinctly on both the sides. The drivers must carry their licences, insurance documents, PUC certificates and other papers. Vehicles with rural permits should have a red line painted below the yellow line.”

The drive against the rickshaws flouting various traffic rules slowed down on Wednesday, as policemen were deployed at…More

Police suspect that Dangat was murdered because of a rivalry.According to the Dehu Road police, the incident took place at Savera chowk in Kiwale village.

The accused Rahim Shaikh, Babu Surai, Farid Shaikh and Nagendar, who are allegedly involved in the murder are absconding. They all are residents of Dehu road.

Dangat, who was a resident of Vikasnagar, Dehu road, was traveling with his cousin Sukhadev alias Sukesh Dangat for work in the morning. They halted near hotel Savera close to the expressway at around 10 am.

The two were about to enter the hotel when Dangat realised that he had forgotten his mobile in the car and asked Sukhadev to fetch it. While he stood waiting, the four accused came in another car and stopped their vehicle close to Dangat. Rahim and Babu dismounted with revolvers in their hands, while the other two came with swords. They opened fire on Dangat and assaulted him with swords. “Dangat lost his live on the spot,” the police said.

The police suspect that the incidence was an outcome of a rivalry between the two families because of an affair between Dangat’s younger brother and Shaikh’s sister. Kumar was supporting the affair and had thus invited trouble.

“Two cases of feuds between the Shaikh and Dangat families are lodged with us. In September 2007, the Dangat family had a dispute with the Shaikhs and the former had opened fire on the others,” PI Mahesh Sawant said. Print EMail DiscussNew B…More

Prima facie, the police suspect it to be a case of cylinder explosion, which resulted in fire and heavy smoke. The exact cause of the blaze was being ascertained.

While the bodies of four victims were recovered in a completely charred condition from the accident site, the other six victims, who were holed up in a bathroom in their attempt to avoid the blaze, died of suffocation.

The manufacturing unit, Sai Industries, is part of a relatively dense cluster of small scale units. It supplies celluloid containers to the ammunition factory, said deputy commissioner of police (zone III) Mahesh Patil said at the accident site.

Among the nine injured, who were admitted to the Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital (YCMH), the condition of one victim, who suffered a head injury, was stated to be critical.

Patil said that 28 workers, including 23 women, were attending various jobs inside the unit when the explosion happened.

As a spontaneous reaction late in the evening, irate residents from Landewadi and adjoining localities gathered at the accident site and indulged in sloganeering against the police and the fire brigade.

They alleged that the fire brigade reached the spot around 4.30 pm whereas the blast occurred sometime between 3.30 and 4 pm. Similarly, they alleged that the police too reached the site around 5 pm.

A section of protestors demanded access to the unit on suspicion that some more victims may have lost their lives. Senior police officials were working on defusing the tension.

The unit is located close to settlements like Shantinagar, Ambedkarnagar and Landewadi, which account for over 3,000 settlers, mostly…More

The revellers, dancing to a blaring music system, were indulging in obscenities at a resort, Taj Cottagf, when the raid was carried out, Lonavala police said.

Those arrested included three managers of the party and drivers of the vehicles who travelled from Mumbai to Khandala, police said.

The arrests were made under IPC 292 and various sections of Mumbai Police Act. Print EMail DiscussNew B…More

Deputy commissioner of police (zone II) Satish Khandare, who heads Faraskhana and Vishrambaug area, said a large number of mandals pass from Laxmi road on the immersion day. “With Tambadi Jogeshwari and Tulshibaug Ganesh mandals changing their route to Kumthekar road, an attempt will be made regarding equitable distribution of the mandals on all roads,” he said.

Khandare added that with these two ‘manache Ganapati’ heading from Kumthekar road, several others will follow them. “There is a need to create awareness regarding the issue of congestion on Laxmi road on the immersion day. We will arrange another meeting with the important mandals by the month end to take a call on our proposal.”

Every year, the immersion process starts with Kasba Ganapati, followed by Tambadi Jogeshwari, Guruji Talim and Tulshibaug proceeding via Laxmi road to Alka Talkies chowk. The fifth important Ganapati, Kesariwada, has already started taking Tilak road to reach Alka talkies chowk for the last four years. Last year, over 267 mandals passed from Laxmi road, 147 from Tilak road, 72 from Kumthekar road and 12 from Kumthekar road.

The city police have also suggested purchasing door and hand frame metal detector, installing CCTVs, increasing the number of private security and keeping active members who will prevent any desecration of Ganesh idols during the ten-day festival. Print EMail DiscussNew B…More

District collector Chandrakant Dalvi on Tuesday told TOI that the administration would soon initiate talks with farmers and villagers regarding acquisition of land.

Dalvi said, “The site for the airport has been finalised near Rajgurunagar, which is about 30 km from Pune. The Maharashtra Airport Development Company has been mandated to develop the airport, while the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation will carry out the land acquisition process. Nearly 3,330 hectares of land from more than seven villages has been identified for the airport project.”

Dalvi said, “Along with the airport work, the administration also has plans to develop the region. This includes construction of roads to other parts of the district. We will ask the respective authorities to chalk out and develop road links to the airport simultaneously. Due attention will be given to finalisation of the plan and submission of the same to the infrastructural development committee for further approval.”

The estimated cost of the airport is Rs 7,000 crore. Print EMail DiscussNew B…More

From computer-monitored body suits conveying details of the soldier’s health to the nearest post to shoes that generate charge as he walks for batteries in the equipment he’ll carry, the future infantry soldier as a system (F-INSAS) project aims to accomplish much more.

Surendra Kumar, director of ARDE, told reporters on Tuesday that the programme will integrate a miniature computer system with the soldier.

While the current cost of indegeniously developing the technology is pegged between Rs 75 and Rs 100 crore, it would cost the country around Rs 500 crore to import the same, said Kumar.

“Currently, the capacity of a soldier on the border is limited to the equipment he carries. We seek to empower him with multi-purpose weapons that will help him through every possible situation,” said Kumar.

The ARDE is working on ‘round the corner combat’ weapons that will help locate the exact position of the enemy and communicate that to the soldier. “The new weapons will have long range and high accuracy,” said Kumar.

Giving details of the body suit the ARDE is developing, Kumar said it will have nodes monitoring the soldier’s health while he is out on the field. In the event of him being hit or injured, his condition will be auto-communicated to the nearest post.

Kumar said that while the weapon prototypes “have been realised”, the ARDE will discuss the designs with the Army. “It will take three years to roll out the state-of-the-art weapons and five years for the entire concept of F-INSAS. We make it a point to involve the ultimate users right from the concept stage,” said Kumar.

‘Invisible’ vehicle The ultimate protection for the soldier is…More

Sarika Ravi Ghorpade of Ashoknagar, Yerawada, was admitted to the Dalvi hospital near the Shivajinagar ST stand on Sunday for the delivery, said her father Raghunath Katkar. On Monday, at around 3 pm, she gave birth to a baby boy. However, at around 7 pm, the baby died. Meanwhile, Sarika’s condition became critical and she was shifted to Sassoon hospital for further treatment. But she died there late on Monday night, said Katkar.
Sarika’s father alleged the Dalvi hospital authorities were responsible for the tragedy. “We will file a police complaint against them for negligence.”

Speaking to the media, Sucheta Parte, gynaecologist at the Dalvi hospital, said that after the delivery on Monday, Sarika had suffered a severe bout of dysentery. “We immediately administered antibiotics. However, her condition became critical and she needed immediate intensive treatment. We didn’t have the required facility in our hospital and decided to shift her to Sassoon. We informed her relatives present in the hospital about the decision.”

She added, “We arranged for an ambulance and with the assistance of a resident doctor shifted her to Sassoon.” She claimed that as per the hospital paediatrician’s report, the baby died due to a cardiac problem.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday afternoon, Sarika’s family members and neighbours gathered at the Shivajinagar police chowky in large numbers demanding that a case be registered against Dalvi hospital.

Speaking to the media, Sarika’s neighbour and president of Indian Sikalkari Sangh, Sardar Laxmansingh Bawri said that though Sarika was shifted to the Sassoon hospital on Monday night, she was admitted to the emergency ward only after an hour.

Medical superintendent of…More

The Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics has tied up with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for the project to forecast crop condition and drought-like situations with the help of satellite images. The project started last week.

Satellite images of the ground where the crops are harvested will be matched, analysed and calculated with the data provided by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and a conclusion will be arrived at.
Initially, the project will be carried out in Karnataka on a pilot basis. Later, it will be implemented in other major agricultural states like Maharashtra.

A three-member team of the Gokhale institute, headed by Rajas Parchure, joint director of the institute, will be part of the project. Works such as data analysis, forecasting and methodology will be done by the Gokhale institute team.

“We will mainly receive three types of data — yield, satellite images and data from the IMD. This will be done for rabi and kharif crops. The satellite images of the crop, right from harvesting to its final outcome, will be taken at various phases. These images will be compared with the rainfall data provided by the IMD and the yield of that particular crop from that particular field from where the image has been captured,” Parchure told TOI. Print EMail DiscussNew B…More

Meanwhile, the workers demanded that they be compensated for the theft at the site in Ahmednagar. They claimed that property such as steel angles, old doors, light fittings, doors and windows has been stolen over the past six months since the land was auctioned. According to the workers, the liquidator appointed by the high court had refuted that there was a theft at the site.

The 210 workers of the company represented by civic activists group, Common People’s Front, made history when they participated in a high court-directed auction in February and placed a successful bid of Rs 6.01 crore for taking over the company land in Ahmednagar. The company, with its production facilities in Pimpri, Ahmednagar and Sarola, had closed down on August 28, 1996.

Dominic Lobo, president of the Common People’s Front, told TOI that the workers have withdrawn the special leave petition filed in the Supreme Court to challenge the liquidator’s report that there had been no theft at the site. Lobo said the workers would continue to pursue the case in the high court and demand compensation for the theft and other losses suffered during the last six months. The case would come up for hearing in the high court on Thursday.

According to Lobo, the workers have deposited an amount of Rs 1.5 crore as cost of the land. They have…More

State public health minister Vimal Mundada revealed these figures during her visit to the city on Monday to felicitate the beneficiaries.

The operations were carried out using a Rs 70-lakh fund set up for the treatment of children with heart ailments under the NRHM. Of the 51 children who underwent the operations, 27 were girls.

A total of 80 children in the district were found to have heart problems during health check-ups conducted in the 2007-2008 academic year. The check-ups were a part of the school health programme run by the state public health department.

As many as 2,80,889 children from 3,698 schools in the district underwent the check-ups last year. The school health programme is run across the state in various Zilla Parishad, residential, aided and non-aided schools, as also schools for physically challenged children.

The programme will be carried out on a five-year basis. Each child will be given a health chart to record health-related details.

Mundada said that in the current academic year, till July-end, over five lakh children from 3,327 schools underwent the health check-ups.

A total of 180 children underwent operations of various kinds in the state at cost of Rs 2.66 crore in the year 2007-08 under the NRHM, she stated.

The Rs 25-crore funds allocated by the Union government for the project for the current year will be used for children who need to undergo operations of any kind on a priority basis, the minister further said. Print EMail DiscussNew B…More

Speaking to TOI, joint director of GIPE Rajas Parchure said expansions would be focused on two key areas. “We have a masters course in economics and doctorate of philosophy (Ph.D) courses, but we do not really offer specialisations. The masters programme was designed years ago and needs to change,” Parchure said.

Besides with rapid industrialisation, there is a demand for specialists in each area and this being a premiere institute for economics, the courses must match the demands, he added.

Initially, the Institute will introduce specialised courses in financial and agricultural economics, in the first two years. Later, it will also look at international economics and pure economics theory as specialisations.
These courses are directly required by the industry today and students opting for these will be greatly benefited as professionals.

In 1962, the UGC had recognised the institute as a centre of advanced study in agricultural economics. Later, in 1964, the institute was developed as a centre of advanced study in economics.
In 1993, keeping in view its professional standing and scope for further development, the Government of India declared GIPE as ‘Deemed to be a University’. The UGC team will visit the Gokhale institute campus in the first week of September.

Parchure added, “GIPE began as a research institute and, later, we added academic programmes. We cannot continue the same academic programme for years, especially since we are a deemed university. We should have several programmes because of this and that’s one reason why we want to expand.”

Besides the courses, the Institute will need infrastruture developments. Moreover, a new…More