City: Mumbai

Antibiotics left over in the strip after completing the 7-day course, capsules that cannot be consumed after the doctor decided that a different drug regimen was in order, vitamin supplements that are thankfully not required any longer. All of us have surely, at some point in our lives, found ourselves with medicines that we may not have a use for in the near future. On the other side, we have heard of people avoiding going to a doctor, fearing that they would not be able to afford the medicines that may be prescribed. "Discharge taken against advice" is a common…

Sessions Court and experts say shoddy builders to be held liable A sessions court has ruled in favour of a Bhandup housing society on a complaint against the builder for substandard construction. It was alleged that the construction was sub-standard as the material used was of inferior quality. The complaint was filed under sections of the Indian Penal Code sections related to endangering life or personal safety of others and common intention. The maximum sentence under the charge is imprisonment up to three months or a fine. The President of Cooperative Societies Residents & Users Association (CSRUA) said that Maharashtra…

As of 6 August, the Mithi river in Mumbai became the first to have booms or 'thrash traps' installed across it. This machinery imported from Finland transfers garbage collected from the river, via a conveyor belt, to another conveyor belt that segregates the waste which is eventually recycled.  Booms are temporary floating barriers made up of light materials like plastic chained across water bodies to prevent and collect floating garbage from flowing into the sea.  Booms obstruct floating debris without affecting marine life in any way.  How will Mithi be cleaned up?  Booms placed near Bandra Kurla Complex on the…

Pratishtha Shelatkar, a student of Suvidyalaya High School in Borivali, a government-aided private school, used to attend morning classes before the pandemic struck and schools were shut down. Most kids in Pratishtha’s class come from underprivileged families with their parents working as labourers, cleaners or other low income jobs; hence, families of these children can barely even afford to pay bills, let alone be able to afford a smartphone and timely data recharges.  In most of these families, only one of the parents has a smartphone but the children don’t have access to it until the parents come back home…

Stalin Dayanand is an environmentalist and Director of the Mumbai-based environmental NGO, Vanashakti. His passion for environmental protection and conservation has resulted in many success stories in Mumbai and elsewhere in the Maharashtra.Some of his landmark works include keeping wildlife corridors in the western Ghats  of Maharashtra from falling prey to to mining, securing protection for wetlands in Maharashtra, protecting mangroves in the Thane creek and Sewri and saving over 3000 trees from being cut for a road widening project in Wada.He is campaigning hard to protect 3000 acres of open spaces and forest lands in Aarey Colony Mumbai from being…

Vaccinated Mumbaikars allowed to board local trains Around 35 lakh vaccinated Mumbaikars breathed a sigh of relief on August 16 as they finally boarded local trains. Although a power outage caused the harbour line to cease operations on August 18, the line has now resumed. Commuters living in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) especially rushed to stations in Mira Road, Dombivali, Vasai and other MMR locales. However, citizens are required to now purchase monthly passes if they wish to ride Mumbai's trains. This move has angered railway passenger associations as they say that non-regular travelers who have been vaccinated may…

With a massive shortage of vaccines staring in its face, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is now devising ways to prioritise vaccination for its local population especially its lower-income groups. With an impending third wave of the pandemic, the BMC wants to ensure that it can reach and vaccinate a maximum number of people despite its limited resources. “We are now tieing-up with non-government organisations to help vaccinate those residing in the slums and the neglected, unpenetrated population,” said additional municipal commissioner, Suresh Kakani.  After focusing on specific high-risk groups like the frontline workers, pregnant and lactating women and even…

The pandemic has deepened the difficulties and dangers faced by sex workers in gaining and maintaining clients. Lockdowns and lack of relief have wrecked any semblance of financial stability they previously had. Moreover, while sex work is not illegal in the country, police violence against women categorized as ‘prostitutes’ continues unabated.  Such public sentiments and aggressive policing are rooted in a long history of brutally criminalizing sex workers. In fact, it has resonance in various legal and medical regulations enacted during British rule of South Asia. Historically, British authorities painted sex workers not only as purveyors of disease but as…

Bombay’s pivotal role in the Independence movement and particularly in the Quit India movement has not been recognized enough, according to Tasneem Zakaria Mehta, who is also the Managing Trustee and Honorary Director of Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Mumbai City Museum in Byculla. What can be done about it? “We strongly feel that our museum should now take up this subject,” she added, recalling that institution was once a British museum and its origins are reflected in the collection. It was established in 1872 as the Victoria and Albert Museum. It got its current name only in 1975. Mehta was…

E-Pass facility launched for Mumbai's trains Maharashtra government launched an online e-pass facility on August 12 to enable fully vaccinated people to travel in suburban trains in Mumbai from Independence Day onwards. Officials said that the state's Relief and Rehabilitation Department had developed a web link to provide e-passes to employees and essential workers. Representative Image The same link will now make e-passes available to fully vaccinated citizens who have completed 14 days after their second dose, for Mumbai suburban railway travel. The digital process will not be a replacement for the offline ticketing system which will continue to be…