Additional director general of police’s car catches fire, no casualties

MUMBAI: Additional director general of police (traffic) Arup Patnaik had a close shave when his official car caught fire in south Mumbai on Monday.

The incident took place near the traffic junction off the University of Mumbai - while he was on his way from the Old Customs House, where the office of the Highway Traffic is located, to Mantralaya, the state secretariat here.

The incident took place at around 11.45 am. Prima facie, it appears that the fire was because of a short-circuit. Soon after the incident, a team of officials from the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad reached the spot to check. Experts from the Motor Transport (MT) and the car manufacturer are examining the car to know the cause of the fire.

Patnai has been earlier the joint commissioner of police (law and order) in Mumbai. He is also a contender for the post of new Mumbai Police chief.

Patnaik, his operator Santosh Pawar and the car driver, Bagal Kote, recieved minor burns while the car was completely gutted. Soon after the three smelt petrol, they stopped the car and got out.

When Patnaik bent down to check, he saw the petrol leaking from the engine had made a puddle below the chassis. The petrol suddenly caught fire and in seconds the car was engulfed in it.

Katrina Kaif ignores security, hails local cab

Mumbai, Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif is said to be becoming a security hazard to herself, and her latest disregard for all rules of self-preservation takes the cake.

On Monday morning when Katrina was required to fly to Bangalore for an event with her “Raajneeti” co-star Ranbir Kapoor, she just hopped into a taxi with her hand-luggage and took off. Much to the shock of the cabbie who had no clue about the ’star’ passenger he was carrying until he looked into his rear view mirror.

“But what’s the big deal about hopping into a cab to rush to the airport? Thousands of girls do it all the time. What’s there to get hyper? My driver was late because he got caught in a traffic snarl,” Katrina, 25, told IANS.

“If I had waited any more, I would’ve missed my flight. So I waved for a cab hopped in and zipped off.”

While Katrina cracks up at the recollection of the moment when the cabbie spotted her in the rear, her “Raajneeti” crew were far from amused when they saw her hop out of a cab unaccompanied.

Ranbir and director Prakash Jha were seen soundly ticking her off for her disregard for security rules.

Releasing Friday, multi-starrer “Raajneeti” is a dark political thriller that will highlight behind-the-scenes happenings in the corridors of power.

In fact, Katrina has always disregarded security threats.

Some time ago when hordes of young and old people had descended on her at a public gathering, she had fobbed off the security arrangements made by the organisers, arguing: “They love me. They can never harm me.”

The actress has been indulging in such reckless security-adventures much too often these days. According to a close friend, she takes off on her own, usually accompanied by her trusted driver and no other companion just for a spin far away to drive off loneliness.

What concerns people close to Katrina is her utter obliviousness to obvious security dangers.

“Katrina doesn’t realise the effect that her solitary presence in crowded places can have on people. Hopping into a cab early morning in Mumbai when there are no cops around is just not done. But she refuses to believe anyone would harm her,” a close friend said.

The British actress lives on her own here and her latest adventure-ride to the airport on her own has left her family far from amused. Her youngest sister Isabel, who has been studying cinema in the US, may cut short her acting course to join Katrina in Mumbai.

It seems Katrina’s days of zipping off on her own are nearing an end, thanks to the timely intervention of her family.

Mumbai, Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif is said to be becoming a security hazard to herself, and her latest disregard for all rules of self-preservation takes the cake.

On Monday morning when Katrina was required to fly to Bangalore for an event with her “Raajneeti” co-star Ranbir Kapoor, she just hopped into a taxi with her hand-luggage and took off. Much to the shock of the cabbie who had no clue about the ’star’ passenger he was carrying until he looked into his rear view mirror.

“But what’s the big deal about hopping into a cab to rush to the airport? Thousands of girls do it all the time. What’s there to get hyper? My driver was late because he got caught in a traffic snarl,” Katrina, 25, told IANS.

“If I had waited any more, I would’ve missed my flight. So I waved for a cab hopped in and zipped off.”

While Katrina cracks up at the recollection of the moment when the cabbie spotted her in the rear, her “Raajneeti” crew were far from amused when they saw her hop out of a cab unaccompanied.

Ranbir and director Prakash Jha were seen soundly ticking her off for her disregard for security rules.

Releasing Friday, multi-starrer “Raajneeti” is a dark political thriller that will highlight behind-the-scenes happenings in the corridors of power.

In fact, Katrina has always disregarded security threats.

Some time ago when hordes of young and old people had descended on her at a public gathering, she had fobbed off the security arrangements made by the organisers, arguing: “They love me. They can never harm me.”

The actress has been indulging in such reckless security-adventures much too often these days. According to a close friend, she takes off on her own, usually accompanied by her trusted driver and no other companion just for a spin far away to drive off loneliness.

What concerns people close to Katrina is her utter obliviousness to obvious security dangers.

“Katrina doesn’t realise the effect that her solitary presence in crowded places can have on people. Hopping into a cab early morning in Mumbai when there are no cops around is just not done. But she refuses to believe anyone would harm her,” a close friend said.

The British actress lives on her own here and her latest adventure-ride to the airport on her own has left her family far from amused. Her youngest sister Isabel, who has been studying cinema in the US, may cut short her acting course to join Katrina in Mumbai.

It seems Katrina’s days of zipping off on her own are nearing an end, thanks to the timely intervention of her family.

Two youth knocked dead in Mumbai

Two youths were allegedly killed after being knocked down by a luxury bus on a flyover bridge at Lower Parel in central Mumbai, police said Thursday.

Sachin Jadhav (23) and Pradeep Salunkhe (24), heading to Dharavi area on a bike, were hit by a luxury bus on the flyover bridge late Wednesday night following which the two sustained injuries. The driver along with his vehicle escaped the spot after the accident, police said.

The two youngsters had head injuries and were bleeding profusely. They were rushed to a nearby hospital where they were declared dead before admission, they added.

No helmet was found at the site of the incident, indicating they were not following safety measures, police said. Traffic police have made mandatory for bike riders to wear helmets in the city.

A case against unidentified persons was registered for causing death of a person due reckless driving, police said adding that a probe was on.

Delhi Traffic Police Makes Facebook Debut

For the New Delhi resident, heavy traffic jams, accidents, poor coordination at traffic signals are everyday fare. While some of us have learnt not to react, there is now a forum that enables the Delhi citizen to ask questions, offer suggestions and become “fans” – all on the recently launched Delhi Traffic Police Facebook page. In just three days, it crossed 1000 fans and now has 1,713 people who “like” the page.

While the aim seems to have been to set up a strong two-way communication channel with citizens, image building for the Commonwealth Games, which the city will host in October, is clearly an objective too.

“Management of traffic in Delhi, during Commonwealth Games, will be a big challenge as well as a great opportunity,” the police say on the page. “Delhi Traffic Police cannot possibly succeed without the active participation and co-operation of all road users in Delhi.”

This page allows Delhi road users to request police presence in certain areas, make complaints, and ask questions, for example about the fines for different traffic offenses. A few have also expressed their appreciation for the work of the traffic police.

“We have launched this page to know the views of the public and establish a flow of communication with the residents of Delhi,” says Mr. Rajan Bhagat, spokesperson for the Delhi Police.

“We need suggestions to improve. Every comment cannot be an appreciation, thus we are looking into the problems faced by the residents of Delhi and this is a new channel,” added Mr. Bhagat.

The page administrators encourage the followers of this page to send their grievances toinfo@delhittrafficpolice.nic.in.

When asked about the response, Mr. Bhagat said, “The response has been great, we have been receiving a number of emails and are trying to respond to each grievance as quickly as possible.”

The page also acts as a traffic monitoring service of sorts, with Delhi traffic information posted on an hourly basis by both the police and Facebook users, with messages like, “Traffic obstruction at GT Karnal road as one HTV broke down” or “Vehicle has been removed and traffic normalized.”

Such updates have received numerous “Facebook likes” and have also inspired Facebook members to post traffic updates from wherever they are.

Mr. Lalit Kumar Sharma, the administrator of the page was very upbeat as he said, “We can change, together, step by step.”

Going by the We Hate Mumbai Traffic Police Facebook page, the Mumbai Traffic Police would do well to follow suit.

Fresh veggies at the break of dawn

When you have to wake up at 4.30 am to go the bhaji market, the stress doesn’t let you sleep very well. Thoughts of piles of palak, coriander, lettuce and lime aren’t exactly a turn on when you flop under the sheets at 1 am. Instead, you dream of a capsicum genie, beetroots frowning down at you and onions whispering conspiratorially.

But the next morning is a completely different veggie game.

The area outside Plaza theatre, at the foot of the Dadar Bridge is a blanket of green sprinkled with a few reds and bright yellows. By 4.30 amapproximately 20 trucks filled with greens rumble in from Navi Mumbai’s APMC market. As Mumbai’s first traffic jam starts, you know its time for business.

In half and hour, by 5 am, the maal is unloaded and as the smell of fresh vegetables acts as coffee, money is already exchanging hands. The place is swarming with hoteliers who want to pick a good bargain. “Half an hour’s business here is worth half a day’s at the regular market,” says Shankar handing out four kilos of palak to Mohan Rane, a bhajiawala at Matunga who claims office-goers swear by his palak pakodas for breakfast each morning.

It’s the same story with another restaurateur from Bandra who comes to Dadar each morning, not only because it’s cheaper but simply because when he started out with a small vada-pav shack, he formed a bond with Mohan, a 55-year-old bhajiwala who refuses to spare time to have a conversation. “Mohan is my lucky charm,” says the guy picking up bails of onions, coriander, a tokri of lime and fresh garlic.

Once the restaurateurs are done with their wholesale haggling, and as the sun brightens the scene by 5.45 am, it’s time for housewives, maids and butlers to make their way to the bridge. As smaller bargains of a couple of kilos are struck, most vendors are already shouting out rates so that they can start clearing off. Says Ritu Parekh, a Mahim resident, who comes here every alternate morning, “I jog at Shivaji Park from 5 am to 7 am. After a couple of rounds, I get bored. That’s why I drive over to pick up the fresh veggies and then go back and jog again.”

By 6 am, it’s time for the Mahiyar Adenwalas of Dadar to arrive. Adenwala buys only from Savitabai. She is the only one who will sell 50 gm ginger-garlic, ½ kg onions, Rs 12 worth methi. “I walk my dog Sassoon every morning, and buying vegetables is a good way getting exercise,” says Adenwala as Savitabai indulges her customer of five years.

For Lakshmi S, a Borivli resident who works at Parel, the Dadar market is reason for her to get some time to herself. “I come to the market every Friday pick up groceries for the week and drop them at my office by 7 am. For the next two hours before its office time, I am free to do what I want,” says Lakshmi who mostly spends the time catching up on the novel she has been trying unsuccessfully to complete for the last one week.

By 6.30 am almost all vendors have wrapped up, are sweeping the street, settling down for their first glass ofchai and maybe a samosa-pav. The chaos is now calm. “My day’s business is complete,” says Eravati, “Now, I can relax for the rest of the day.”

To me, the market brings fond memories. Of picking up friends at the Dadar Parsi Colony to go for picnics and trips out of town. And somehow the fragrance of fresh green shall always be entangled with the sweet, sticky, joyous smell hot jalebis being fried at the other end of the bridge.

But, it’s 7 am and the fantasy is over. The green-red-yellow carpet is replaced almost instantly by grey concrete.

Did the vegetable genies wave a magic wand or did a market really complete a day’s business in under one pre-dawn hour?

With a defunct CCTV, Mumbai highway turns hotspot for robbers

The Vakola junction in Mumbai is fast emerging as the chosen spot for robbers in the city, with two major highway robberies, to the tune of Rs 5 crore, taking place in less than 10 days.

Police officials attribute this to the defunct CCTV camera at the junction -- a fact that robbers seem to be aware of.

On May 2, diamonds worth Rs 2.90 crore were stolen from Rakesh Sharma, who was on his way to Kalbadevi. Eight days later, Tapan Kumar Mazi was heading to South Mumbai from the airport, when two bike-borne robbers accosted him at Vakola junction and left with 10 kg gold.
In both cases, the modus operandi was clear -- the robbers followed the victims, in a car in Sharma's case and on a bike in Mazi's, and then forced them to halt at Vakola junction, where they were confronted and made to give up their valuables.

"The robbers seem to be aware that the CCTV is not working at the junction and hence they trail the victims up to that point before confronting them. The CCTV, installed after 26/11, belongs to the traffic department and we can do nothing about it," said a police officer.

Meanwhile, the police are yet to apprehend or even identify the people behind either of the robberies. The victims couldn't give the police any descriptions and the CCTV didn't yield anything.

When contacted, DCP Brijesh Singh refused to comment on the defunct CCTV. "Investigations are on to solve the cases," was all he said.

Bandra residents hit the streets, snoop on unruly pub crawlers

MUMBAI: If you plan to party in one of the nightclubs that have mushroomed in Bandra over the past few months, be extra careful about your traffic behaviour even if there are no khaki-clad men in sight. For, residents of the area, fed up with the unruly behaviour of drunk revellers, have taken it upon themselves to keep their roads safe from the dangers of rash driving and utter chaos.

Bandra residents have been complaining that traffic snarls and noise pollution levels escalated tremendously since Escobar opened in December 2009, at the junction of Linking Road and 28th Road, which already housed two restobars, Dhanraj and On Toes. After news of Poison reopening in the form of Royalty made the rounds, residents decided it was time to call it a day. In fact, such was the menace that they were forced to form the advanced locality management (ALM), Revival Citizens' Group, only so that their problems would be taken seriously.

"Individual complaints made to the local and traffic police were brushed aside. We needed to get together and form a group, so that we would be taken seriously. Then, when we still didn't get any response, we started patrolling the streets ourselves," said Manuela Saldanha, secretary of the ALM. "At any given point in time, there have been at least 30-40 people stepping out of their homes on Friday and weekends, stopping cars from zipping into no-entry zones. We have not got out in the last week, but we have noticed a drop in the chaos," she added.

Because of these clubs, residents said they find it difficult to keep their minds calm, with loud music and vibration often going on till as late as 2 am. "The lanes are very narrow and both the sides are lined with cars. Even after the clubs shut down, people are drunk and shouting on top of their voices. The cars make too much noise as well. It becomes hellish at nights," said resident Nitin Gokarn.

The month-long patrolling has already had a good fallout. Not only has Escobar shut down citing reasons of renovation, but traffic snarls in the vicinity have also reduced. Each time they caught a car parking in front of a no-parking board, or even entering a no-entry zone, they would call a traffic police official, and ask him to take up the issue. "Since we didn't have any authority, we couldn't ask people to produce their driving licences. But we got help from the traffic police. We'd call them each time we found offenders, and their cars would be towed away, and their licences taken," said Saldanha

Heavy vehicles still hold sway on Ghodbunder Rd

Flyover construction prompted curbs, cops claim to have booked violators

Contrary to the claims of traffic police, residents of Ghodbunder Road have alleged that traffic and heavy-axle vehicles are passing along this road blatantly, since the work on the three flyovers on the stretch began.
The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) undertook the construction of three flyovers on Kapurbavdi Junction, Majiwada and Patlipada around six months ago. This, the residents believe, has led to a major disruption of traffic along the stretch.
Taking the hassles faced by the residents into account, the Thane traffic police disallowed the passage of multi-axle and heavy vehicles on Ghodbunder Road in the day time. “Traffic police claim that they have banned the movement of heavy vehicles here. But that is not true,” said Mohnish Acharya, resident of Ghodbunder Road.
As per the data provided by the Thane Traffic Police, close to 700 vehicles pass through Ghodbunder Road every hour. The entry for heavy vehicles such as containers, trailers and tankers has been restricted in the TMC limits from Gaimukh Octroi Naka from 7am to 10pm. For all four-wheeler goods vehicles, the entry is banned from 7am to 1pm and 5pm to 10 pm.
Bhagyashree Bhagwat, a resident, added, “The point is authorities are callous.”
Though the residents are miffed with the callous attitude of the civic body, the authorities beg to differ. Sudhir Dabhade, deputy commissioner of police (traffic), Thane, said, “Traffic scenario has been brought under control. At times, people mistake a truck or tempo for a heavy vehicle, but so is not the case.”
“Dumpers and vehicles carrying cement too move along this stretch, but their movement cannot be restricted taking the nature of the work into account,” he added.
The traffic police claim that 80% of heavy and multi-axle vehicles follow this norm while those who flout the law have to pay a penalty. More than 600 cases have been registered against vehicles who fail to abide by time limit.

Rude cabbies, auto drivers? Send an email

Mumbai: Don’t fret if a taxi or autorickshaw driver refuses to give you a ride and you can’t spot anyone in khaki to teach the driver a lesson. You can simply go home or office or the nearest cyber cafe, log yourself online and mail a complaint to the transport commissioner’s e-mail address, tcmaharashtra@yahoo.com.

Transport commissioner Dilip Jadhav, who heads all the regional transport offices (RTO)s, wants the public to directly interact with him and apprise him of the problems they face while hiring a taxi or autorickshaw in Mumbai. The complaints could be about anything: refusal to ply short distance, excess fare charged/tampered meters, fake tariff cards, misconduct by drivers or any other complaint.

“Citizens can send me their complaints over the net. I will mark them to the respective RTOs and ensure that prompt action is taken,’’ Jadhav told TOI. He said the RTOs had the manual system of receiving written complaints by post. “At present, one can send a complaint on a postcard by mentioning the offence of the driver, the vehicle registration number and the place/date/time of offence. But now, with almost everybody having access to computer, complaints can be sent over the internet,’’ he said. “I have given out my email id so that the common man does not have to run from pillar to post. However, complainants should be specific about their grievances and should provide us with all the details of an incident.’’

Jadhav, who took charge as the transport commissioner four months ago, is keen on modernising the transport department. One of his first projects is the setting up of a high-tech control room, which provides 24-hour helpline for taxi and autorickshaw commuters. “I have already sent a proposal to the state government to sanction funds for the control room. We will train our staff to handle complaints and help commuters in distress round-the-clock,’’ he
stated. The department is also discussing with MTNL for a toll-free number.

The department has another email address where commuters can send their complaints. The address—transportgrievance@mahatranscom.in—is being accessed by a dedicated emplyee, who co-ordinates with the RTO offices across the city. “We welcome the transport commissioner’s decision to have a personalised email for redressing public grievances,’’ said civic activist Krishnaraj Rao.

Monorail to reduce traffic, pollution in city

The commissioning of country’s first monorail is expected to considerably cut down traffic on Mumbai’s roads and reduce pollution as well. As per estimates drawn by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), BEST bus trips could go down by 5,000 a day, while, in the case of taxis and autorickshaws, it could go down by 10,000 once the monorail is operational.
“Monorail will, for sure, help save large quantity of fuel used for buses, taxis, auto-rickshaws and private vehicles. The safe, air-conditioned and comfortable mono is expected to attract most of the private vehicle owners as it will cover a 21-km distance from Chembur to Jacob Circle via Wadala in about 35-40 minutes. This ride will also cut down on fuel expenditure, travel time and parking woes faced by private vehicle owners,” said Ratnakar Gaikwad, Metropolitan Commissioner.

“It will reduce 5,000 BEST bus trips, 10,000 taxi and auto-rickshaw trips during a day, as monorail will accommodate 550 commuters per trip,” said Ashwini Bhide, joint metropolitan commissioner. The monorail is expected to ferry over 2 lakh commuters every day.

According to the MMRDA, since monorail does not require any fossil fuel, it remains free of air pollution and as it runs on a narrow 0.8-metre beam on rubber tyres, it makes little noise.

On the operational front, it will use regenerative braking which means when the train brakes, it passes on the electric power back to the system which can be used by other trains running on the system at that time. This would save about 25% power. The monorail will act as a feeder to high capacity Mass Rapid Transit Systems like suburban railways and metro rail services and will add to the public transportation network in the city.

The Rs 2,460-crore project is being designed and built by Larsen & Toubro and M/s SCOMI Engineering, Malaysia.

Motormen's agitation paralyses Mumbai

MUMBAI: Over seven million commuters, including office-goers and students, were severely hit Tuesday, the second day of the ongoing agitation by motormen manning Mumbai's crucial suburban trains.

The agitation by over 600 motormen on the Western Railway (WR) and Central Railway (CR), compelled the railways to issue a rare advisory Tuesday morning.

"People may undertake (train) journey only if it's very important," said a bulk SMS with a helpline No. 10721 to assist stranded commuters.

The motormen have been on a hunger strike since 6 am on Monday and are demanding a pay hike among other things. Their strike led to complete chaos in the city during the evening peak hour traffic on Monday.

Sensing the critical situation, a grim Chief Minister Ashok Chavan indicated that he would take up the commuters' matter with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

While hundreds of commuters managed to reach their homes late Monday, the situation was worse Tuesday morning with the railways announcing the cancellation of nearly 80 percent of the total 2,000 daily services.

The railways resorted to desperate - but insufficient - measures like permitting people to travel in long-distance trains and making them halt at all suburban stations.

The railways are also making alternative arrangements to grapple with the agitation, considered the worst in Mumbai since 1974.

The BEST and MSRTC chipped in to help the stranded commuters by deploying additional services in the city and elsewhere.

Mumbai University announced that any student who was delayed for the 40-odd final examinations need not panic, they would be permitted extra time to write their papers.

The motormen's agitation has had a cascading effect on Mumbai roads and highways which have been plagued by ugly traffic snarls since Monday night - and the situation was repeated Tuesday morning.

In fact, the railway agitation managed to overshadow the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks case, in which the verdict pronouncing Pakistani national Mohammed Ajmal Amir alias Kasab guilty was delivered Monday.

Roads clogged with desperate commuters

The motorman’s strike and cancellation of trains caused huge traffic jams across the city. The traffic police said every lane in the city was packed and the traffic was stagnant for over eight hours.

“This traffic jam will continue until the crowd on the roads decrease,” said a traffic officer.

The traffic police deployed 1,500 personnel on the city roads to control the traffic and maintain a smooth flow after the trains got cancelled and commuters opted for road transport.

“Every road is blocked and we are trying to deploy as many policemen to ease out the traffic,” said a traffic policeman.

“We are trying our best to help people reach their destinations and see to it that the traffic flow is smooth,” said Ashok Takalkar, assistant commissioner of police (traffic).

“It took us two hours to reach Dadar from Mumbai Central. All train commuters had crowded the Dadar TT circle waiting for buses and taxis,” said Sujata Pandit, a computer software designer who works at Nariman point.

“The policeman are shoving everybody in whatever vehicle they can. There is chaos in CST as commuters are panicking and running helter-skelter in search for vacant taxis or buses,” said a commuter outside the CST.

Commuters got into the first available vehicle to get home. They asked for lifts from private trucks and tempos.

“There was total chaos. We tried to accommodate commuters in all types of vehicles. Our main aim was to reduce as many people as possible on the roads and not allow the numbers to stagnate,” said a traffic constable at Matunga who was stopping an empty truck to let people board it.

“People created utter chaos as they were desperate to reach their destinations on time,” added the constable who had been trying to stuff people into a bus.