Mumbai: An estate agent’s house was burgled and gold ornaments and other valuables worth Rs 16 lakh were stolen in Sion when he, along with his family members, left for a relative’s house. This is the second burglary in a year. Police suspect involvement of some known person as the burglary took place exactly 15 minutes after the victim’s family left the house.The complainant, Nikhil Joshi (36), who is into real estate, said on Saturday he had left his residence around noon along with his parents, wife and two children in their car to visit his aunt in Chakala, Andheri. Around 6.30 pm, his neighbour informed his mother on the phone that the safety door and main door of their house were open and the latch appeared to have been broken.The Sion police are scanning the CCTV footage to identify the biker and a pillion rider who came wearing helmets and broke the doors.Joshi immediately alerted the police and returned home around 7.15 pm. On entering the house, he found the cupboards in his parents’ and his own bedrooms open. Clothes and belongings were scattered on beds and the floor, while the cupboards appeared to have been forcibly opened using a tool.The family subsequently checked their valuables and found gold and silver ornaments, silver utensils, cash and foreign currency missing. The stolen property included Rs 1.2 lakh in cash, Dubai currency worth around Rs 1.3 lakh, seven pairs of gold earrings, two pairs of gold mangalsutras, a gold kada, a gold chain with two lockets, gold rings, bangles and a Rudraksha gold chain. The complainant’s family is still estimating the valuables and the figure could go up.The thieves also allegedly took several silver articles, including plates, glasses, lotas, bowls, a silver set, jewellery and a silver coin, besides a Rado wristwatch.The complainant told police that CCTV footage from the building showed two unidentified persons wearing helmets and black raincoats entering the premises around 12.18 pm. The duo were allegedly seen emerging from his residence, with one of them changing the direction of the CCTV camera before both left the building around 12.31 pm.Sion Police have registered a case against two unidentified persons and are examining the CCTV footage to identify the suspects. The total value of the stolen property has been estimated at Rs 16 lakh.

Mumbai: Vector-borne diseases surged across the city in July, with malaria and dengue cases more than doubling and a spike recorded in leptospirosis and gastrointestinal infections compared with the previous month.In June, cases stood at 655 for malaria, 266 for dengue, 7 for chikungunya, 33 for leptospirosis and 603 for gastro. In July, the reported cases increased to 1,380 for malaria, 466 for dengue, 7 for chikungunya, 78 for leptospirosis, 851 for gastro, 58 for COVID-19 and 105 for H1N1.Malaria followed a similar trend as last year, while there has been a fall in reported dengue cases. An increase in malaria cases is being observed in the following wards: E Ward (Byculla, Madanpura, Mazgaon), K-West Ward (Andheri, Nehru Nagar, Amboli), G-South Ward (BDD Chawl, Sasmira), F-South Ward (Parel, Bhoiwada, Sewri) and H-West Ward (Hill Road, Turner Road, Perry Cross Road).Meanwhile, an increase in lepto cases is seen in the F-North Ward (Bharatiya Kamla Nagar, Sangam Nagar, GTB Nagar), M-East Ward (Bharat Nagar, Shastri Nagar, Shivaji Nagar), T Ward (Gautam Nagar, Dargah Road, Ambika Nagar), K-East Ward (Nani Mamoo Chawl, Saki Naka, Chakala MIDC) and G-North Ward (Dharavi).BMC health department officials said surveillance teams surveyed over 6.5 lakh households in July, provided preventive antibiotic treatment for lepto to 51,000 residents and carried out vector and rodent control operations, tracing and destroying mosquito breeding sources. A total of 42,284 buildings were fogged for mosquito control and 3,406 rats were caught.

The arrested accused have been identified as Yash Babare, a Vikhroli resident; Pratik Shinde of Pune; Aniket Godse of Satara and Sameer Kuchekar, alias SK, of Pune.

MUMBAI: Powai police have arrested four persons for allegedly kidnapping and assaulting a 28-year-old content creator who had posted videos criticising a Chinese betting app and warning people against it.Police said the victim, Vikhroli resident Chetan Deolkar, was allegedly kidnapped from Powai on July 26 and assaulted inside a moving SUV for nearly 12 hours before being abandoned at Kalamboli late that night. The case was solved within 24 hours of Deolkar approaching the police, officials said.The arrested accused have been identified as Yash Babare, a Vikhroli resident; Pratik Shinde of Pune; Aniket Godse of Satara and Sameer Kuchekar, alias SK, of Pune.According to police, the accused were allegedly involved in making reels promoting a Chinese betting app and objected to Deolkar’s videos criticising it. They allegedly called him to Panchkutir in Powai on the pretext of discussing the matter before abducting him.Deolkar approached Powai police after seeking medical treatment. “Since the complainant was scared at the time, he sought medical treatment and then came to Powai Police Station to file a complaint. His statement was recorded, and a case has been registered against Yash Babare, Pratik Shinde, Aniket Godse, Sameer Kuchekar alias S.K., and three other unknown persons who were with them,” said a police officer.In his complaint, Deolkar said he had been creating “Counter Reels” for around eight months to raise awareness against the promotion of betting apps by social media influencers.“I am professionally engaged in filmmaking and has an Instagram account @relatewithchetyal. I creates reels and various types of content on this Instagram account. For the past eight months, I had been creating counter reels on my Instagram account to raise awareness, as I believed it was wrong for selected famous Reel Creators on Instagram to promote betting apps (Chinese apps) for download,” he said.Deolkar alleged that Shinde was also promoting the betting app through his Instagram account and that he had “Roasted” Shinde’s reels and stories.“About five to six months ago, an unknown person named Aniket had called me on Instagram and threatened me not to ‘Roast’ the reels and stories promoted by Shinde’s betting app. However, since the betting app was wrong, I continued to ‘Roast’ Shinde’s reels and stories,” Deolkar said in the FIR.Police said Shinde allegedly held a grudge against Deolkar and planned the kidnapping. The investigation was conducted under the supervision of DCP (West Zone-3) Datta Nalawade by a team led by ACP Dadasaheb Yadugade, senior inspector Atmaji Sawant, inspectors Sushant Badgar and Sandeep Chavan, and other police personnel.Police first arrested Babare in Vikhroli, following which he allegedly led investigators to the other three accused.According to police, Deolkar was called to Powai for a meeting and allegedly forced into an SUV around 11.30 am on July 26. He was made to sit between the front and rear seats. When he tried to scream, one of the accused allegedly pressed a foot against his throat, while another pulled out a knife and threatened to stab him in the stomach. Police said Kuchekar also assaulted him.The accused allegedly drove around for several hours while assaulting Deolkar and questioned him about his videos.“Why do you make videos against our betting app? If you want to promote the app, do it, but why against us!” they allegedly told him.Police said Deolkar eventually told the accused that he would not make reels against them. He was allegedly dropped at Kalamboli at around 11.35pm.Police are now investigating the role of the three unidentified persons named in the complaint and probing the alleged betting app network.

Mumbai: BMC has initiated legal action against a housing society for allegedly violating tree conservation regulations by poisoning trees and another for carrying out pruning beyond the limits permitted by the civic body.According to the civic body, non-cognisable offence cases have been registered at the respective police stations against the office-bearers of DGS Shital Tapovan Housing Society near Dindoshi Metro station in Malad East for poisoning trees and Kalpataru Aura Housing Society in Ghatkopar West for pruning beyond the prescribed limit.In the first case, the civic body said it received an online complaint alleging that two roadside trees outside DGS Shital Tapovan Housing Society had been deliberately damaged by administering poisonous injections. Following the complaint, officials from the garden department conducted a joint site inspection with the complainant. During the inspection, officials found around 20 holes drilled near the base of the trunk of a peltophorum tree located along the road outside the society’s entrance gate. Based on the preliminary findings, BMC lodged a complaint against the office-bearers of the housing society and the developer. Subsequently, Kurar police registered a non-cognisable offence under Section 8 read with Section 21 of the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act, 1975.In the second case, BMC received a complaint, which alleged that more than 100 trees within the premises of Kalpataru Aura Housing Society in Ghatkopar West had been pruned beyond the limit permitted under the civic body’s approval. A site inspection by officials of N Ward confirmed that although permission had been granted for tree pruning subject to specified conditions, the pruning carried out exceeded the approved limits. Following the inspection, BMC registered a case against the housing society at Parksite police station.The civic body reiterated that prior permission is mandatory before cutting, damaging or pruning any tree and that all conditions attached to such permissions must be strictly followed. Violations attract penal and criminal action under the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act, 1975.BMC additional commissioner Avinash Dhakhne has stated that causing damage to any tree, administering poisonous substances or injections, cutting trees or destroying them are punishable offences under the law. Dhakhne also appealed to citizens to immediately report incidents involving damage to trees, including poisoning, illegal cutting or destruction, and to cooperate with the civic body in protecting the city’s environment.

Mumbai: A delayed result and an unusually high failure rate have triggered concern among students enrolled in Mumbai University’s distance education programmes, with Yuva Sena representatives demanding an urgent review of the assessment process and the academic calendar.The first-semester results for the first-year BCom programme were declared after four months, instead of 45 days. Of the 2,543 students, only 457 passed, while 2,086 were declared unsuccessful. The situation was similar in the first-year Arts programme, where 460 of 2,224 students cleared the examination and 1,764 failed.Yuva Sena senate member Pradeep Sawant met university registrar Prasad Karande. He sought clarity on the second-semester results, ATKT examinations and admissions to the next academic year. Sawant warned that further delays could disrupt the academic calendar and affect thousands of working students who depend on distance education to continue their studies.Students have also complained of delayed study material, last-minute notices, inadequate communication from university officials and possible shortcomings in answer-sheet evaluation.The representatives pointed to the sharp decline in enrolment in the university’s distance education division. The department reportedly had nearly 80,000 students in 2022, compared with about 20,000 now.The University of Mumbai clarified that 1,764 of 2,224 BA students and 2,086 of 2,543 BCom students were marked unsuccessful in Semester I, but many had failed in only one or two subjects. Since each course includes multiple internal and external assessments, failure in any subject places a student in the unsuccessful category. The BA pass rate was 20.68%, compared with 23.35% last year, while BCom improved from 13% to 18%. Students will not lose an academic year, as they may enter Semester II and clear failed subjects later. ATKT exams begin on Aug 25.