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Mumbai: The number of Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols being installed across the city has decreased significantly. While authorities are assessing the numbers, Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) chairman Siddhesh Kadam, while speaking to TOI, confirmed the minimum 15% decrease in PoP idols. Ganesh mandals committee, on the other hand, pegged the reduction at 40%. Ganesh mandals said following Bombay high court guidelines and the subsequent BMC campaign to promote eco-friendly idols, not only households but also several public mandals have switched to shadu, pulp and fibre idols.The demand for metal idols was also huge, indicating the permanent resolve of several Mumbaikars to stop buying idols every year, said MPCB spokesperson Sanjay Bhuskute. "In fact, I would say there is almost a drop of 40% in the PoP idols this year as many public mandals, other than private idols, have moved to eco-friendly materials such as pulp and fibre, other than clay," said Girish Walawalkar, secretary of the Bruhanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Samanvay Samiti, a coordination committee of mandals. Walawalkar said although the number of public mandals and household idols has increased this year as well, the demand for eco-friendly idols was mind-boggling. "There is also an enhanced awareness about artificial ponds. Some societies have their own ponds where clay is used for gardens while PoP is given to local authorities or idol makers for reuse," he added. A popular Ganesh mandal in Girgaum has made a significant switch to an eco-friendly reusable idol after using PoP for years. The first Sutargalli Ganpati mandal has carved a 39-foot tall moorti out of fibre, which is foldable. "This is a new record in Maharashtra. Once Ganeshotsav is over, the idol can be folded, its different parts separated and stored in boxes. Next year, the idol will be ready again," said spokesperson Sanjay Jadhav. The idol's face itself is 3 ft tall. The visarjan will be a mere symbolic abhishek along the seafront, after which the moorti will be brought back and dismantled. Over in Marol, Andheri East, the Marolcha Raja is celebrating its 60th year with a tissue paper moorti for the first time. Vice-treasurer Sagar Chonkar said, "Earlier, we had a PoP idol, but during the pandemic, we shifted to shadu mati, performing immersion in a specially arranged tank filled with rose water, which was later reused for trees and plantations. Now, as we step into our diamond jubilee year, we have introduced a new eco-friendly initiative by creating our idol from tissue paper." Ananta Rajwadkar, a Chinchpokli resident, said after several rounds of talks within their joint family, they finally bought a big-size brass idol of Ganesha, which cost over Rs 14,000. "We hope over the next two years we will not only save on the cost but will be able to concentrate more on devotion, entertainment, art, and culinary works given the number of guests over the 10 days of festivity," he said. Rajesh Mahajan, who has a metal arts workshop in Kurla, said the demand for crafting metal idols by melting old brass utensils has been increasing every year. "Many of my neighbours have crafted metal idols, though they ask their children to make miniature clay Ganesha idols at home for puja and immersion to mark rituals as per Vedic prescriptions," he added. BMC deputy municipal commissioner Prashant Sapkale said the entire 935 metric tonne of clay was distributed to over 480 idol makers by the BMC, besides nearly 10,800 litre of eco-friendly colours. Officials said this is a record in itself over the previous years. In 2024, around 600 tonne of clay was distributed while in 2023, the year the offer for clay began, it was around 400 metric tonne, officials said, indicating the massive jump in demand for eco-friendly idols. Walawalkar said the leading idol makers in the city had to manufacture the biggest lot of eco-friendly idols for various mandals this year, other than for overflowing orders for household shadu Ganesh. "The only issue with PoP idols is that the public mandals in Mumbai, unlike in other cities in the state, do not have enough space to store the same big idol and reuse it next year in a different avatar," he added, pointing out that various NGOs, besides BMC and mandals themselves, will be working hard to clear all waters of big PoP idols immediately upon immersion by dismantling them and ensuring the PoP's reuse next year.
Mumbai: The birth of three penguin chicks at Mumbai's Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan and Zoo has sparked an unexpected row not over their care, but their names. BJP functionary Nitin Bankar from the Byculla Assembly constituency has objected to the chicks being given English names, insisting they be named in Marathi instead. The BMC is expected to respond by June 10, after which Bankar will decide his next move. Speaking to The Free Press Journal, Bankar said, "When penguins were brought from abroad, we accepted that their names would be in English. But these chicks were born on the soil of M ...Read More >
VIJAYAWADA/GUNTUR : Governor S Abdul Nazeer has planted a Sapota (Sapodilla) sapling in the Raj Bhavan lawns here on World Environment Day, on Thursday. Governor Nazeer participated in the sapling plantation programme under the 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam' initiative, coinciding with World Environment Day. Speaking on the occasion, the Governor said, "Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is an effort to show our respect and dedication towards our motherland and nature. The Governor said this campaign aims to plant a tree in the name of a mother and create a lasting memory, ...Read More >
New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday carried out searches at 15 places in Mumbai and Kochi in connection with the Mithi River desilting scam that caused a wrongful loss of more than Rs 65 crore to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), official sources said. The massive crackdown is underway at the premises across Mumbai and Kochi linked to the accused and suspects as part of an ongoing probe into alleged financial irregularities. According to the sources, the searches are being carried out under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) at locat ...Read More >
Mumbai: The death toll in Monday's BEST bus crash rose to seven and the number of injured to 42 even as the driver, Sanjay More, booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, claimed he had noticed a spark and mistakenly accelerated the bus instead of applying brakes. Seeking More's custody, police said they want to investigate if he intentionally used the vehicle as a weapon. The bus on Route 332 had accelerated on a congested 200m stretch near Kurla station hitting vehicles and pedestr ...Read More >
Bengaluru Power Cuts: Citizens of Bengaluru brace yourself for long hours of power outages from June 29 and June 30. More than 100 areas will be impacted as BESCOM undertakes its quarterly maintenance work in various of its division. Bengaluru Power Outages June 29: According to the update by BESCOM on its X handler, there will be power outages in Kittaganahalli, Palasandra, Saptagiri, Maruthinagar, Sankapur, Raghavendra Nagar, Goolarivee, Baddihalli, Kesaramadu, C.M Badawan, Kalalli and SKS village on June 29 from 10 am to 5 pm. BESCOM's executive engineer has appealed to consumers to coop ...Read More >
Mumbai: The Maharashtra government on Monday sought three more weeks to finalise its policy on the immersion of Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols, prompting the Bombay High Court to ask it not to delay further given the upcoming festival season. A bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep Marne was hearing a batch of petitions filed by Ganesh idol makers' associations challenging the Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) guidelines that prohibited both the manufacture and immersion of PoP idols. Earlier this month, the High Court had permitted the manufacture and sale of such idol ...Read More >
Amritsar: BJP MP Nishikant Dubey from Jharkhand has claimed that Britain assisted India in executing the 1984 Operation Bluestar at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, stoking a new controversy.In a post on X on Monday, Dubey alleged that then PM Indira Gandhi "launched an attack on the Golden Temple in collaboration with Britain", with British Army officers present in Amritsar.He uploaded a classified British document, "Sikh Community", claiming that on Feb 23, 1984, the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office mentioned in a letter that the Indian govt had sought British advice over a plan to remove Si ...Read More >
New Delhi: Three Indian citizens vanished mysteriously in Tehran. Darkness closed in as hope seemed lost. A ruthless Pakistani gang with potential links to ISI snatched them away, casting a shadow of fear. But relentless Indian diplomats refused to back down. Against all odds, a daring rescue mission ignited. Now, the captives are free, and a chilling game of espionage comes to light. The Punjab-based trio - Amritpal Singh from Hoshiarpur, Jaspal Singh from SBS Nagar and Hushnapreet Singh from Sangrur - had landed in Iran on May 1. Promised a clandestine route to Australia via Dubai and Tehra ...Read More >
Srinagar: Before towering cranes and cutting-edge engineering transformed the Himalayan landscape, the monumental dream of connecting "Kashmir to Kanyakumari" by rail began with the plodding footsteps of humble mules. This extraordinary backstory underpins the official realization of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL), inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 6, 2025, a project crowned by the awe-inspiring Chenab Bridge. According to Afcons Infrastructure Limited, the company behind the Chenab Bridge, the earliest and most formidable hurdle wasn't just the design of ...Read More >
Srinagar- Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Saturday said foreign countries were told clearly during the post-Operation Sindoor diplomatic outreach that in case of a fresh provocation, India would repeat its action. Speaking at a discussion at the Ahmedabad Management Association, Tharoor said Indian delegations which visited foreign countries in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor managed to convey that India acted with restraint and responsibility. "In other places, we actually were able to get some very high-placed people to say not only that they respected and supported India's right of self- ...Read More >
Gadwal: In a significant step towards uplifting the underprivileged and fulfilling the promises of the Telangana State Government, local MLA Bandla Krishna Mohan Reddy presided over the distribution of Indiramma Housing Scheme proceedings to eligible beneficiaries of Gadwal Mandal. The event was held today at the MLA Camp Office in Gadwal district headquarters. The Telangana government, under the leadership of Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, has been actively implementing welfare schemes across all sections of society. Special emphasis has been placed on women's empowerment, free electricity, g ...Read More >
Varanasi: A massive drive was organised in Varanasi as part of the statewide campaign to plant a record 37 crore saplings across the state on a single day on Wednesday.Varanasi was assigned a target of planting over 18 lakh saplings under the campaign.UP minister Ravindra Jaiswal, district panchayat president Poonam Maurya, and MLC Dharmendra Singh inaugurated the event by planting sacred Triveni trees (Peepal, Banyan, Neem) at the STP Ramna premises. Following this, all public representatives, officials, and school children planted trees. District magistrate Satyendra Kumar said that over 18 ...Read More >
NEW DELHI: Former head of Air India and chairman of the Railway Board Ashwani Lohani is the new Prime Ministers Museum and Library (PMML) director. The official order for his appointment was issued on Wednesday. A 1980-batch officer of the Indian Railway Service of Mechanical Engineering (IRSME), Lohani is known for turning around various organisations during his illustrious career. Following his retirement from IRSME service, he joined the GMR Group as the CEO. According to the order dated June 4, his appointment to the post of director, Prime Ministers Museum and Library in the rank and pa ...Read More >
Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh) [India], June 6 (ANI): Thousands of devotees rejoice as they make their way to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple today, a momentous occasion in the spiritual and cultural landscape of India. Uttam Kumari Sheluwal, a local from Nepal, said,' We've come to Ayodhya to visit the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple, where our beloved Bhagwan Shri Ramchandraji resides. Our family's Ishtadev is Bhagwan Shri Ram, and we worship Mata Janaki too. We're thrilled to be here in Ayodhya, the city of Lord Ram, and can't wait to have Darshan of Prabhu Shri Ram. We're grateful to Chief Minister Yogi ...Read More >
Bengaluru, Jun 7 (PTI) A 26-year-old man allegedly beheaded his wife following a heated argument on the outskirts of Bengaluru after he suspected her of having an extra-marital affair, police said on Saturday. After killing Manasa, Shankar travelled with her severed head on his scooter to the nearest police station and confessed to the crime, they said. The man was later arrested, police said, adding that the incident occurred at Heelalige village, near Chandapura, Anekal taluk late on Friday. According to the police, the couple were married for over five years and have a four-year-old daug ...Read More >
New Delhi: Alleging "blatant misuse" of agencies to defame its leaders, AAP on Thursday questioned why the first information report filed against former Delhi ministers Saurabh Bharadwaj and Satyendar Jain was being kept under wraps and "selective" press notes were being leaked to the media.Bharadwaj, who is Delhi AAP convener, alleged that only two former ministers were named in the case without any reasonable cause while all the officers of the health and public works departments, who were actually responsible for executing the hospital projects, were spared. "Is the FIR so baseless that BJP ...Read More >
New Delhi, June 30 (SocialNews.XYZ) Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Monday said the government is taking concrete steps to make the national capital pollution-free and green. "Public transportation is being rapidly converted to electric vehicles, which will not only reduce pollution but also provide Delhi residents with clean and affordable transportation," said CM Gupta in a post on X. Elaborating on steps being taken to clean the city's air, she said, "Dust pollution is being effectively controlled at construction sites and major roads through technologies like smoke guns and sprinkler ...Read More >
MADURAI: Likening the custodial murder of Ajith Kumar in Tiruppuvanam to an 'organised crime by police where the state kills its own citizens,' Madras high court lambasted the Tamil Nadu police and said the action against the perpetrators should be more stringent than in normal murder cases.A division bench of Justice S M Subramaniam and Justice A D Maria Clete pointed to 44 external injuries on the person of Ajith Kumar and said no part of the body was spared by the delinquent cops. "Even an ordinary murderer would not have inflicted such kind of injuries," the bench said on Tuesday.The natur ...Read More >
Agartala (Tripura) [India], June 5 (ANI): Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha said that the state government is prioritising quality education for students, and quality teachers are being recruited through the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET). Saha also informed that more recruitments will be made in the future. Also Read | Centre Notifies Waqf Management Rules 2025; Portal, Database, Audit of Waqf Properties. "Textbook education can never be the standard of life. One can become morally strong through education. Along with education, children should also be engaged in social work," he said. CM ...Read More >
Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), considered the richest civic body in the country, tabled its budget of Rs 74,427 crore for 2025-26 at its headquarters in Mumbai on Tuesday. The additional municipal commissioners presented the budget to BMC commissioner Bhushan Gagrani, the state-appointed administrator. BMC is currently run by an administrator since the term of the corporators ended on March 7, 2022. This is the third year of the budget being presented to the administrator, in deviation from the norm where the municipal commissioner presents the budget to the standing co ...Read More >
Thiruvananthapuram: Ravada A Chandrasekhar took charge as the new State Police Chief on Tuesday. He succeeds Shaik Darvesh Saheb, who retired on June 30. His tenure will run until July 1, 2027. A 1991-batch IPS officer currently serving as Special Director with the Intelligence Bureau, Chandrasekhar is on central deputation. He was selected over Nitin Agarwal, who topped the official list of probables. The appointment order, issued by Kerala Chief Secretary Dr A Jayathilak on behalf of the Governor, was released soon after a cabinet meeting held on Monday. Hailing from Andhra Pradesh's Godav ...Read More >
Shivamogga/Hyderabad, July 6 (Maxim News): Tensions ran high in Bangarappa Layout of Shivamogga's Gudda locality on Sunday after unidentified miscreants allegedly vandalized idols of Lord Ganesha and Naga, causing widespread outrage among local residents. Here To Join Us On WhatsApp The incident, which took place in Shantinagar Ward, involved newly installed idols located along the main road. According to sources, the Naga idol was found discarded in a roadside drain, a move residents see as a deliberate act of disrespect to their religious beliefs. Angered by the incident, locals staged pr ...Read More >
Mumbai: Net profit of Nifty 50 companies at the aggregate level is expected to increase 4.6% year-on-year while revenue may increase 4.5% for the June 2025 quarter. Net profit is likely to show single-digit year-on-year growth for the first time in at least nine quarters amid an anticipated poor performance by select companies, including Tata Motors, IndusInd Bank and Coal India. The sample's revenue is expected to grow in single digit for the fourth consecutive quarter reflecting persistent muted demand scenario. Select companies from metals, pharmaceuticals, cement, banking and finance and ...Read More >
Baramulla, Jul 5: Hundreds of mourners from Delina and its neighbouring villages Saturday participated in the Muharram procession, the 9th day of the month of Muharram-Ul-Haram at Delina area of north Kashmir's Baramulla district. The procession was one of the series of processions being held in the month of Muharram, the first month of Islamic calendar. Dressed in black and carrying flags bearing religious inscriptions, participants from the villages of Hygam, Bulgam, Bohripora, Syedpora, Uri, Boniyar and other villages marched from new Imambargah through the National Highway NH-1 to the ma ...Read More >
New Delhi, Jun 5 (PTI) Sixteen top Maoist commanders are on the radar of the security forces as part of their operational strategy to eliminate Left Wing Extremism (LWE) from the country by March 2026, official sources said. The forces on Thursday killed 67-year-old Narasimha Chalam alias Sudhakar, a member of the Maoists' Central Committee, the topmost governing body of the outlawed CPI (Maoist), in the forests of Bijapur district in Chhattisgarh. This came a fortnight after CPI (Maoist) general secretary Nambala Keshav Rao alias Basavaraju (70) was neutralised by the security forces in the ...Read More >
Bhubaneswar: Chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Thursday announced an ambitious plan of planting 7.5 crore saplings across the state within a year. Speaking at the state-level celebration of World Environment Day at the OUAT Agriculture Education Hall in city, the CM emphasised the importance of public awareness and collective responsibility in protecting nature and ending plastic pollution. "A healthy environment is essential for a healthy society," he said.Addressing the rising threat of single-use plastic, the CM urged citizens to support a mass movement to eliminate plastic from daily li ...Read More >
India's next space hero is here. It's Shubhanshu Shukla.In a historic leap for India's space exploration, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is set to become the first Indian astronaut to travel to the International Space Station (ISS). Scheduled for launch on June 10, aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket as part of Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), Shukla's journey will make history as he becomes the first Indian astronaut to travel to the ISS.Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) is a pioneering private spaceflight mission that will not only send India's first private astronaut to space but also mark the return to human spa ...Read More >
New Delhi: The Ayodhya Ram Mandir was open to the public in January last year. The first floor of the temple will have Raja Ram installed in his grand, kingly form. This step also involves performing Pran Pratishtha for several deities throughout the complex, including those in seven nearby shrines and seven additional mandapams. As the second phase of the consecration ceremony of the Ayodhya Ram Mandir has started, let us tell you about the beautiful golden top (Shikhar) and the new first floor of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir. About the First Floor of Ayodhya Ram Mandir The Ram Mandir T ...Read More >
Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh) [India], June 6 (ANI): Thousands of devotees rejoice as they make their way to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple today, a momentous occasion in the spiritual and cultural landscape of India. Uttam Kumari Sheluwal, a local from Nepal, said," We've come to Ayodhya to visit the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple, where our beloved Bhagwan Shri Ramchandraji resides. Our family's Ishtadev is Bhagwan Shri Ram, and we worship Mata Janaki too. We're thrilled to be here in Ayodhya, the city of Lord Ram, and can't wait to have Darshan of Prabhu Shri Ram. We're grateful to Chief Minister Yogi ...Read More >
Mumbai, Jul 2 (PTI) The Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP) has released its first eligibility list, with over 75 per cent of tenement holders qualifying for new homes under the ambitious slum redevelopment scheme, according to data released by the DRP. All bona fide residents who settled in Dharavi before January 1, 2000, are eligible for a 350 sq ft flat within Dharavi. All such residents will qualify for the resettlement unless they do not provide documents. Also Read | Odisha Shocker: 32-Year-Old Tribal Woman Gangraped in Forest Area of Jajpur District; 2 Held. Those who settled between ...Read More >