Coastal road command centre

MUMBAI: At 12.08pm on July 15, an alert flashed across the 30×6-ft video wall inside the Coastal Road’s Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) at Breach Candy.A car had caught fire inside the southbound tunnel. Within seconds, CCTV cameras zoomed in on the vehicle, the tunnel’s Linear Heat Detection System confirmed a rise in temperature, and an emergency call from a tunnel call box reached the control room.For the team manning the nerve centre of the Coastal Road, it was the biggest emergency since ICCC became operational in Oct 2025. The fire was brought under control without any casualties. But the incident exposed an equally important challenge, managing panic among motorists trapped in a confined underground space.TOI visited ICCC, located at the edge of the Coastal Road interchange at Breach Candy. The facility integrates traffic management, tunnel ventilation, firefighting, surveillance, and mechanical and electrical systems on a single platform.While Coastal Road has separate technical buildings housing equipment, ICCC serves as the central command point for monitoring and controlling the entire corridor, including the twin tunnels.“The centre is staffed round the clock by more than 100 personnel working in shifts. Representatives from police, traffic police, fire services and other emergency agencies are also stationed here to ensure coordinated decision-making,” said a BMC official.Unlike a conventional CCTV control room, ICCC continuously monitors thousands of data points generated by the tunnel’s critical infrastructure. Officials said the system has two key components: the Traffic Management Control System (TMCS), which oversees CCTV cameras, variable message signs and incident detection, and the Plant Management Control System (PMCS), which monitors electrical, mechanical, ventilation and firefighting systems.A key safety feature is the Linear Heat Detection System — a temperature-sensitive optical cable running through the tunnel that keeps monitoring heat levels and automatically triggers an alarm if temperatures cross about 60 degrees Celsius.“The moment the system detects abnormal temperatures, an alert appears on the control room screens. Operators verify it through CCTV feeds and activate the emergency response protocol,” said an official from L&T, the EPC contractor for the tunnel package that designed and built much of the tunnel infra and MEP systems.The tunnel is equipped with an Automatic Incident Detection System that analyses live camera feeds to detect stopped vehicles, wrong-way driving, pedestrians and unattended objects. “Once the fire alert was confirmed, the control room activated multiple systems. Public announcements were made in Marathi, Hindi and English, asking motorists to be calm, leave vehicles if necessary and go to the nearest cross-passage. The tunnel’s Saccardo ventilation system — comprising three reversible axial fans — switched into emergency mode to extract smoke from the affected section,” said an official from Tap Turbo Engineers, operations and maintenance contractor for Coastal Road’s mechanical and engineering systems.Officials said that under normal conditions, two of the three fans operate at around 70% capacity to maintain air quality. During a fire, the system automatically determines the direction in which smoke should be extracted and, if required, reverses the fans to push smoke away from evacuation routes. “Our priority is not only to extinguish the fire but to remove smoke quickly because smoke poses the biggest risk to human life inside tunnels,” an engineer at ICCC said.Officials said the biggest challenge during the incident was not equipment failure but human behaviour. Several motorists ignored repeated announcements to keep the emergency lane clear. Some abandoned their vehicles while others tried to reverse, blocking the route meant for fire engines and rescue vehicles. “Our systems worked exactly as designed. The delay occurred because rescue vehicles could not move freely due to panic among motorists,” said M Swami, chief engineer, Coastal Road.The incident prompted authorities to step up public awareness on tunnel safety. Additional signage on evacuation procedures has been installed, and officials said motorists must understand that saving lives takes precedence over saving vehicles. Drivers should switch off the engine, leave the key inside if instructed, evacuate through the nearest emergency exit and avoid reversing or making U-turns in the tunnel. “The systems can manage the fire. What they cannot manage is panic,” an official said.

Reliance Industries Ltd has presented an updated Coastal Road open spaces plan to the BMC (Representative image)

MUMBAI: With SC allowing only up to 15% of the Coastal Road open spaces to be used for ticketed recreational facilities and access-controlled areas, Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has resubmitted to BMC a revised master plan and concept design for the open spaces, proposing a network of gardens and recreational facilities across the reclaimed stretch from Nepeansea Road to Worli.The earlier plan had 19% of the area under ticketed recreational facilities.Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has resubmitted to the BMC a revised master plan and concept design for the Coastal Road open spaces, proposing a network of gardens and recreational facilities across the reclaimed stretch from Nepeansea Road to Worli.The revised plan includes an observation deck, a native tree museum, a scenic overlook towards Haji Ali Dargah, an event lawn at Worli, three cultural gathering spaces, two pet parks, including a dog off-leash area, an F&B destination, and six planning zones: Zone 1 (Nepeansea Road), Zone 2 (Breach Candy), Zone 3 (Mahalaxmi Temple), Zone 4 (Haji Ali and Racecourse), Zone 5 (Worli South) and Zone 6 (Worli North).The revision follows a Supreme Court clarification issued in June allowing up to 15% of the Coastal Road open spaces to be used for ticketed recreational facilities and access-controlled areas, while mandating that the remaining 85% remain freely accessible to the public.Civic officials found that 19% of the area proposed in the earlier plan fell under ticketed recreational facilities and asked RIL to bring it down to the court-mandated 15%, necessitating the revised submission, made on July 17.A BMC official said, “Our officials are scrutinising the revised plans submitted by RIL over a week ago. The plan submitted previously required a few changes and hence we suggested that a revised plan be submitted.”The revised master plan has drawn opposition from residents of Breach Candy and adjoining areas. Managing committee members of over 30 housing societies have written to the BMC chief objecting to the proposed access points from Breach Candy and seeking a wider green buffer along the residential neighbourhood.“The revised master plan shows multiple entry points from Breach Candy along with ticket counters. There is very little green buffer and more attractions in what is essentially a residential zone. We believe these matters deserve careful consideration before irreversible planning decisions are made. We therefore request a written response and an opportunity for resident representatives to engage with the planning team before the master plan is approved,” said a resident, alleging that many trees at the nursery set up in Worli as part of the plantation drive on the reclaimed open spaces had dried up.

The SUV involved in the incident

Mumbai: A 27-year-old executive with a private firm allegedly reversed his SUV at high speed to evade a drink-and-drive check on Linking Road in Khar (W) and crashed into a police patrol bike, injuring a constable, in the early hours of Friday.A breathalyzer test on the driver, Chandivli resident Siddharth Mahalingam (27), found the alcohol level at 166.8 mg/100ml, sources said; the legal blood alcohol concentration limit for driving in India is 30mg/100ml of blood.Khar police arrested Mahalingam and slapped him with non -bailable offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Motor Vehicles Act. Mahalingam was driving back home after a party when the incident took place.

The accident left constable Ashok Borude (44) of Khar police station with 12 stitches on his lower jaw and three on his forehead. Borude’s jaw got stuck in the rear glass of the SUV due to the impact of the crash, police said.Bandra traffic police had set up a nakabandi in front of Rajkumar Jewellers to take action against those driving under the influence of alcohol.On Sunday, Borude told TOI: “I was proceeding towards Santacruz for patrol duty around 2 am, when I noticed the black SUV reversing at high speed. I could not move the 220 cc department bike, which I stopped about 25 m away, and the SUV crashed into me. Despite wearing a helmet, my lower jaw got stuck inside the SUV’s rear glass and I got injured due to glass shrads. Luckily, I did not get hit by other vehicles that came from behind.”Borude, a Kalyan resident, was discharged from hospital after receiving medical assistance and has been advised 10 days’ rest.The police team on checkpoint duty said it was the first time they saw a motorist attempt to flee by driving in reverse at speed despite vehicles approaching from the same direction.Police have booked Mahalingam under BNS sections 110 (attempt to culpable homicide), 125(a) (rash or negligent act that endangers human life or the personal safety of others), 281 (rash or negligent driving or riding on a public way in a manner that endangers human life or is likely to cause hurt or injury), 324(4) (mischief), and under the MV Act sections 184 (dangerous driving) and 185 (driving by a drunk person).Police said the incident occurred barely 11 days after an eight-year-old girl, Reva Pawar, 8, was knocked down in Andheri (W) by a speeding scooterist riding in the wrong direction on July 15. Amboli police arrested the accused, scrap-seller Shabir Yusuf Shaikh, 30, from Ajmer Junction railway station on July 19 and invoked an additional charge of attempt to commit culpable homicide. Reva is undergoing treatment at Cooper Hospital for a skull fracture, and has been advised two months’ complete bed rest.

A wave of euphoria and excitement swept through Shivaji Park as near daily student protests culminated in a victory rally. The venue resonated with patriotic songs and protest anthems as the crowd waved the Tricolour

A wave of euphoria and excitement swept through Shivaji Park as near daily student protests culminated in a victory rally. The venue resonated with patriotic songs and protest anthems as the crowd waved the Tricolour

A wave of euphoria and excitement swept through Shivaji Park as near daily student protests culminated in a victory rally. The venue resonated with patriotic songs and protest anthems as the crowd waved the Tricolour

A wave of euphoria and excitement swept through Shivaji Park as near daily student protests culminated in a victory rally. The venue resonated with patriotic songs and protest anthems as the crowd waved the Tricolour

A wave of euphoria and excitement swept through Shivaji Park as near daily student protests culminated in a victory rally. The venue resonated with patriotic songs and protest anthems as the crowd waved the Tricolour

A wave of euphoria and excitement swept through Shivaji Park as near daily student protests culminated in a victory rally. The venue resonated with patriotic songs and protest anthems as the crowd waved the Tricolour

A wave of euphoria and excitement swept through Shivaji Park as near daily student protests culminated in a victory rally. The venue resonated with patriotic songs and protest anthems as the crowd waved the Tricolour

Mumbai: As a sea of citizens descended upon Dadar’s Shivaji Park on Sunday for a victory rally to celebrate Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation, the city’s student organisations said they are planning to keep the momentum from the weeklong protests going by forming a coalition of student organisations. They have already set their eyes on the next targets: Gen Z’s other demands of curbing the privatisation of education, bringing about reforms in NEET, and scrapping National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, possibly with a big rally on Kranti Divas on Aug 9.A majority of the 8,000-10,000 participants of the victory rally made similar demands. Even as a palpable wave of euphoria and excitement filled the air and senior politicians took to the stage, many students spoke to TOI at the venue about the tangible reforms and policy changes they wish to see.

Two major issues dominated: systemic educational stagnation and the financial strain imposed by govt’s mandatory E20 ethanol-blended petrol policy.“We want transparency over things like E20 and ethanol blending, which is ruining our cars,” said Vishal Mistry (22), who works as an accountant. “Maintenance costs for the upkeep of cars are going through the roof. Besides, I want serious education reforms. Children still carry 10-15kg bags with textbooks that are the exact same ones I used in my childhood. We should have tablets and electronics to reduce the physical load on children. I received any actual and practical skills training only after I started working. There should be skills training integrated directly into colleges and schools.”Postgraduate students said major policy shifts affecting energy and education ought to involve direct public participation rather than top-down execution. “Before decisions like ethanol blending are taken, there should be public votes on the subject—like referendums,” said Wade Reeves (23), a master’s student in child psychology. “I want the decentralisation of medical education. There is no need for there to be one ultra high stakes exam. It is also inequitable in terms of the costs of books and study material for those of lesser means”.Yug Bijlani (19), a junior college student, said “Poverty, homelessness and most importantly, roads are the places I want to see the country do better in. Roads are something that all of us use and there is simply no reason why it should be pothole ridden.”Multiple students pointed out how politicians need to take more accountability and be qualified about what they are talking about.Activist Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, said a coalition of student organisations can keep highlighting such issues. “We organise a peaceful rally every year on Aug 9 from the Tilak statue at Chowpatty to August Kranti Maidan to pay homage to the martyrs of the freedom struggle. But this year, we plan to do it with a difference. We are planning to seek participation from youngsters and want the rally to highlight their issues,” he said. While the agenda is not finalised yet, it will be planned and announced in the next few days.Acknowledging that “we are not sure how the ongoing protest will take shape over the next few days”, Tushar Gandhi said they are waiting to hear from the core Cockroach Janta Party team before taking a call.Aamir Kazi from All India Students’ Federation agreed that the Centre is yet to meet many of the demands and said they want to ensure that the youth movement does not fizzle out. “We are still contemplating the way forward for the movement. There are several issues concerning the youth that we plan to focus on in the coming days. The demands for curbing privatisation of education, scrapping National Testing Agency and NEP, and bringing reforms in NEET need to be taken up. We plan to raise these issues at the Kranti Divas rally. We are hoping for large participation from the youth.”Some organisations, such as Chhatrabharti Vidyarthi Sanghatna, plan to continue to highlight local issues through their ongoing protests against the state govt. “We have been demanding the resignation of the state’s school education minister, Dada Bhuse, over the teacher eligibility test paper leak. We also do not want MPSC exams to go online as planned by the state. With or without the coalition, we plan to continue our protest for these issues,” said Leslie D’Souza of the Sanghatna.

Mumbai: West Cyber Police on July 21 registered an FIR against a point-of-sale (POS) operator for allegedly selling several mule SIM cards, also called Ghost SIMs, which he procured in the names of several people using forged documents and sold to cyber fraudsters.The cyber team gathered information about a person identified as Prathamesh Chorat, who was known to be a POS operator and who allegedly managed to procure SIMs using forged documents of people, fraudulently procured, who would have submitted them for any other banking-related purposes.These SIMs were used by fraudsters for committing organised crimes, contacting citizens online, luring or threatening them, and gaining their trust.

“Fraudsters exploit the telecom point-of-sale (POS) system in India through rogue retail agents and fake customer identities to obtain illicit SIM cards. These illegally activated mobile lines, often referred to as ‘Ghost SIMs,’ are subsequently used by cybercrime syndicates to bypass biometric security checkpoints, orchestrate financial scams, and establish untraceable bank accounts,” said a cyber police officer.In the complaint, West region cyber police constable VS Dighe said: “For daily cybercrime operations, the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs has provided a centralised platform, the National Cybercrime Reporting Platform (NCRP), for registering cybercrime complaints. On this portal, various complainants from across the country contact Cyber Helpline number 1930 regarding their cyber fraud and register complaints. In these complaints, information about bank accounts used for fraud, mobile numbers, and held amounts is available.”Cyber fraudsters were committing organised crimes, contacting citizens online, luring or threatening them, and gaining their trust. “The extorted money is then transferred to various bank accounts. During the investigation, it was revealed that the accused are running an Organised Cyber Crime Syndicate by appointing field agents to collect original bank accounts and original SIM cards (original – bank accounts or SIM cards in another person’s name) from various parts of the country,” said Dighe in the FIR.After analysing the crimes registered and complaints on the NCCR portal, and reviewing the data received from I4C-NCCR, it was revealed that some SIM cards used in the said crimes and complaints were sold by specific POS agents in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. “Therefore, the following information about the POS agents who sold the said SIM cards was obtained from the respective mobile service provider companies. Upon searching the mentioned mobile number on the NCCR portal, it was found that complaints have been filed against them in West Bengal, Pune and Mumbai. From this, it was revealed that the aforementioned POS holder-operator is supplying mule SIM cards to cybercriminals,” said the cyber police.During the probe, the cyber police learnt that during the period Jan 2025 to May 2026, the suspected POS identified as Chorat obtained mule SIM cards in the names of various people and sold them to cyber fraudsters, thereby committing fraud. “They then transfer money from them by offering various deceptive inducements such as share market investment, digital arrest, task fraud and other similar schemes. During the investigation, it was revealed that the accused were running an Organised Cyber Crime Syndicate by appointing field agents to collect original bank accounts and original SIM cards (original – bank accounts or SIM cards in another person’s name) from various parts of the country,” said the officer.