| 2008-08-27 | Skywalk at Ulhasnagar (West) will have 250 shops
Keeping the interest of pedestrians and hawkers in mind, Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA) has listed the number of shops to be constructed on skywalks at various places. As per the list, the skywalk at Ulhasnagar (West) will have 250 shops, which is the maximum on any skywalk.
Construction of this skywalk is expected to cost about Rs22.66 crore. The Santa Cruz skywalk (West) will have 200 shops and its construction cost is estimated at Rs22.50 crore. The skywalk in Mulund (West) will be the longest (1.92 km) and will accommodate 175 shops. It will cost about Rs46.30 crore.
MMRDA is planning to construct about 50 skywalks across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) will build 14 of these.
Tenders have been floated for about 36 skywalks and work for most of them should begin in October.
?Tenders for 14 skywalks will be opened on August 29. On September 15, contracts for 12 skywalks will be finalised. MSRDC will open the bids for six skywalks on September 1,? said a senior MMRDA official.
The skywalk at Bandra (East), which ends at Kalanagar Junction at present, will be extended till Kherwadi Junction. The work has been awarded to Das Offshore Engineering at a cost of Rs9.8 crore. Work for the skywalk at Bandra (West) will start in October, though the name of the contractor is not yet known.
The 36 skywalks will take about six months to complete. The skywalk at Mulund (West) will take about nine months to complete. All the skywalks will be four metres wide, but wherever there are shops, the width will be seven metres. | | 2008-08-27 | Students rock-n-roll, the Sindhi way
An inter-school and inter collegiate Sindhi dance competition, Sindhu Dhara was organized by the Sindhu Sakha Sangam in association with DK Plus recently.
Students from several schools and colleges from Ulhasnagar showcased Sindhi values and culture through the dances that they performed on-stage.
RKT College was crowned the best participant and was awarded a cash price and memento while the Netaji School bagged the best performance award at the event. Members of the Sindhi cultural group also staged a play 'Sapnan ji Duniya' based on the theme of how people come to Mumbai with a thought of achieving their dreams. The play received a huge ovation from the audience who were thrilled by this Sindhi cultural fest. The skit on national integration that followed was a visual treat. |  | | 2008-08-15 | Celebrating 60 years of Ulhas
It’s been 59 years of existence for the city of Ulhasnagar and its residents, the Sindhis, who moved here after India attained Independence say they are more than happy to have lived their life here
The foundation stone of Ulhasnagar that was laid on August 8, 1949
As the country celebrates its 61st year of freedom, the suburbs have one more reason to celebrate. Sindhunagar better known as Ulhasnagar is entering into its 60th year of existence. 59 years ago, on August 8, 1949, the first and the last Indian Governor General of India, C Rajgopalachari laid the foundation stone of this town. The new township was carved out for the displaced migrants mostly Sindhis who were beginning a new life after migrating to India.
It is a proud moment as the Sindhi community in India rose from ashes after they migrated. Around 94,400 people took shelter in Ulhasnagar. In 1947 the business community fought for their religion with oppressors from Pakistan but had to unfortunately leave their soil. Thousands of Sindhi families came to India with empty hands and eventually etched their identity here.
Speaking of their survival, the Sindhis say they did find it difficult initially. ''After migration we faced a huge problem regarding survival. But being a business community, we started on our own without waiting for help from the local government. We started selling confectioneries and other goods which were supplied to us for our livelihood. Some of us started tiny cottage industries, which actually became our main income source,” says Prahlad Advani (80), the three times ex-president of UMC.
Sithaldas Harchandani (72), a journalist by profession says that his perceptions about Ulhasnagar were proved wrong after he shifted here in the early 90’s. “When we shifted here, the only place we could afford to buy a home was Ulhasnagar. Despite the fact that the political atmosphere here was not sound and that the town was becoming infamous for its illegal activities, we decided to settle here. Ulhasnagar welcomed us with open arms. After I started working in social and government agencies, I realized that Ulhasnagar is not as bad as it looks. Some pockets are bad but these are not places where Sindhis live,” he says.
According to some elders within the community, though they came to Ulhasnagar with hardly any material belongings, they were here with the lamp of culture and faith. Some Sindhi migrants had brought along with them the Akhand Jyoti, (eternal lamp) from Peerkhet (Sindh), which the community believes has helped and guided them to not only survive but also flourish. The lamp was installed in a small hut like temple on April 1948 today known as Chalio Saheb temple. The temple attracts Sindhis from across the world. Bhagat Khanuram, the priest of this temple says, "When we lost our home, and our belongings, we were confident that only this lamp would guide us in future and all along this journey has proved it.''
Today, though the town has started losing its initial shine, old-timers refuse to leave the town. “When we came here, none of us even thought of settling in this town permanently. We were sure that sooner or later, we would be able to go to our homes. But that was not to happen as Ulhasnagar was destined to be our home. My family shifted base to America but I still can't leave this town,” shares up Advani.
Sindhis had brought the Akhand Jyoti from Sindh which they believe has helped them flourish
Fast facts
30,000
The total capacity of the camps
1948
The year when this transit camp was handed over to the relief and rehabilitation ministry till 1964 under the Government Premised Control Act, 1954 Vithalwadi station serviced the township Basic amenities like water and
electricity were provided by the Barrage Dam, Badlapur and Ordnance Factory, Ambernath.
October 1960
When the first District Municipality was appointed under the presidency of then MLA Nevandram Gurbani
1962
When the municipality started collecting Sanitation Tax
1963
When Property Tax was also included
1.76 Crore
The UMC budget in 1975-76
416 Crore
Today’s UMC’s budget
1974
The first developmental plan for
Ulhasnagar was passed
4.7 lakh
The population of Ulhasnagar according to 2001 census 60:40
The ratio of Sindhi and non-Sindhi community
13 km
Total Area of the town
1816
Per Capita Income
115 km
Roads
126 km
Underground Drainage
60
Gardens
5
Grounds
1
Swimming Pool
13935
Street Lights |  | | 2008-08-10 | Police raid suburbs, net armed history sheeters
In wake of the serial bomb blasts in Bangalore and Ahmedabad, the Anti Extortion Cell, the Property Cell and two units of the crime branch conducted flush out operations in Thane suburbs. The sleuths carried out a series of raids on suspected criminal hideouts in the city and recovered firearms as well as stolen mobile phones from their possession. In all ten criminals were also nabbed during the drive.
In the first raid carried out by the AEC on August 4, a house was raided at Kalher village near Bhiwandi following a tip off. The cops recovered two firearms and a magazine of pistol from the three criminals holed up in the house. The criminals were identified as Chinu alias Vicky Gora Khan (21), a resident of Orissa, Mohammed Ali alias Mulla (28), a resident of Lucknow and Mohammed Qayyum Shaikh a resident of Kolkata. The trio has been booked under the Firearms Act for possession of illegal firearms and the offence has been registered with the Narpoli police station, Bhiwandi. The police are trying to ascertain whether the detained criminals were allied to any underworld gangs or not.
Earlier the AEC had seized two country made kattas and three rounds of live cartridges in two different raids carried out in Kalyan and Naupada area in Thane. The raids were carried out in the end of last month immediately after the two deadly serial bomb blasts.
The police arrested Sanjay Dhamane from Kalyan and Vishal Sawant from Thane in connection with the seizures. While Dhamane is a history sheeter from Kalyan, Sawant is an ill-famed name in the record books of the Naupada police station.
In another operation carried out by the cops from unit VII of Ulhasnagar on August 4, a country made revolver and four live cartridges were recovered from a home in the area. The police arrested one Ajay alias Kanta Santosh Thakur 23, a resident of Ulhasnagar. The arrested criminal is a native of Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh and was residing in the town for the last several years. The police claim that Ajay is a well known criminal of the area and was involved in two separate criminal cases including one of armed dacoity in Kalyan East. He is on the records of Kolsewadi police station of Kalyan and Central police station of Ulhasnagar. |  | | 2008-08-10 | Martyr s statue in bad shape
Sindhi martyr Hemu Kalani's statue at Shahid Hemu Kalani Chowk is in a state of neglect. Earlier known as Venus Chowk this traffic island was named in the honour of the freedom fighter by the then Municipal Council of Ulhasnagar in 1981 as a tribute to the martyr.
Ulhasnagar was a city created to accommodate the migrant Sindhi population in 1949 that shot up from one lakh to five lakh in the last sixty years. The house of the Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation has 37 corporators from this community who are always ready to conserve Sindhi culture.
It may be recalled that the UMC spent Rs.8.5 lakh on a project named 'Beautification and renovation of Shahid Hemu Kalani Chowk', a couple of months ago. Though the area around the bust of the statue was renovated and is being maintained the statue itself is in a bad state with a withered old garland lying around it and a peepal tree growing out of the base of the statue. |  | | 2008-08-10 | Ulhasnagar to have SkyWalk
If every thing goes as per MMRDA's plan, Ulhasnagar city would get a spanking new skywalk by February next. The MMRDA has plans to construct two skywalks in the suburb, one which would be in the east while the other in the west part of the city.
The estimated cost of these skywalks is collectively Rs 3,486 lakh. Each sky walk will have three entry and exit points. The skywalk at East will have landings at Koyande statue, Tagore society, and will be built at a cost of Rs 1,220 lakh whereas the one at West will have landings at CHM College, and Pinto Park and will be built at a cost of Rs 2,266 lakh. The length of the skywalk in the East side will be 645 mts and will be 4 mts wide. The length of the skywalk on the West side will be 798 mts and will be around 4.7 mts wide. The skywalks will approximately have a height of 5.5 metres and the piers and super structure will be made of steel, with poly carbonate roofing.
"Since last three decades the population of the city is increasing rapidly and so is the pedestrian traffic on the streets. Also, the station area in Ulhasnagar is in pathetic condition," said an official from MMRDA.
According to rough estimates, these skywalks would benefit around 1 lakh residents of the suburb. The skywalk would be constructed along with similar ones at Nallasopara, Vasai Road, Goregaon, Kandivali, Vile Parle, Masjid stations and CST. The authority has allocated budget for skywalk construction this year.
DIlip Kawathkar, PRO MMRDA confirmed the project and said that the bids for constructing these skywalks would be out in few days.
- Sudesh Malvankar
Facts and figures
3,486 : The total estimated cost of both the skywalks in lakhs
1,220 : The total estimated cost in lakhs of the skywalk in Ulhasnagar east
2,266 : The total estimated cost in lakhs of the skywalk in Ulhasnagar west
3 : The number of entry and exit points for each of the two skywalks
645 : The length of the skywalk in Ulhasnagar east in meters
4 : The width of the skywalk in Ulhasnagar east in meters
798 : The length of the skywalk in Ulhasnagar west in meters
4.7 : The width of the skywalk in Ulhasnagar west in meters
5.5 : The height of the skywalk in meters
1: The estimated number of pedestrians in lakhs who will use the skywalk daily |  | | 2008-08-03 | Ulhasnagar Man Behind bars for Prank SMS
A resident of Ulhasnagar was arrested by the Mumbai police early this week for creating panic in the wake of the recent bomb scares in the state. 22-year-old Deepak Dhanvani, reportedly tried playing a prank on his friends by sending SMSes and warning them of a bomb threat. However, his prank backfired and eventually landed him behind bars last Sunday.
Dhanvani sent a message to his friends from his phone last Saturday stating that Ghatkopar station is on the target of miscreants and would be bombed soon. Incidentally, the message was noticed by a police constable who happened to be the father of one of his friends. The constable immediately alerted the control room who in turn alerted the government railway police.
Immediately, after the city police got the information, security on all railway stations, including Ghatkopar was beefed up. Later when the ATS investigated the case, they tracked Dhanvani and arrested him from his residence. And while investigating Dhanvani, an employee of a Thane based call-centre revealed that his motive was just mischief.
This is the second time that Ulhasnagar is in the news for wrong reasons.
It may be recalled that in January this year, the Ulhasnagar police arrested Manohar Bagchandani, a businessman from Siru Chowk in Ulhasnagar 1 on charges of sending threat mails and obscene contents to VVIPs including the President of India and Congress President Sonia Gandhi. The police received the lead from a courier company from where the man dispatched the posts. He was arrested from a courier shop, near the State Bank of India on Wednesday after the police laid a trap. Police said he was behind some bomb scare calls in Mumbai and suburbs in the recent past.
Also some time back, a businessman L Budhrani lodged a complaint with the Ulhasnagar police against an unknown person for allegedly trying to defame him. The man according to Budhrani was sending indecent messages and pictures of him and his family to others. On August 21, Bhagchandani allegedly called the Ulhasnagar police station posing as Budhrani's wife and said that bombs had been placed in CHM College, Ashok Talkies and the Ulhasnagar branch of the State Bank of India. He also sent two threatening letters to the Prime Minister and the President's offices using Budhrani's identity. |  | | 2008-08-02 | Say goodbye to traffic woes
The suburban commuters can now heave a sigh of relief as the beat marshal system of traffic management will now be introduced in Bhiwandi, Kalyan, Dombivli, Ambernath and Ulhasnagar in the next few days. With the implementation of this system the traffic woes in our suburbs will finally come to an end.
On Wednesday, the Thane Police launched the beat marshal system, a pilot project, to address traffic woes in the prime traffic prone areas in Thane. This system of traffic management was earlier implemented only in local police stations wherein the constables would patrol the area on their motor bikes.
Taking into consideration the increase in the density of traffic in the suburbs, the incorporation of this system of traffic management would address the traffic problems more effectively than traffic policemen posted at signals.
"These beat marshals can reach places quickly on their bikes and address the problems effectively as compared to traffic policemen posted at signals. They can continuously patrol the areas which are not feasible for constables posted at a particular location," said Sudhir Dabhade, DCP Traffic.
Kalyan will have four beat marshals while Dombivli, Ulhasnagar, Ambernath, Bhiwandi will have two each. These cops will have walkie-talkies and cell phones on them to help them expedite their job.
"In case of an accident leading to traffic congestion, the local police would do a panchnama, then arrest the offenders. The beat marshals will ensure that no traffic congestion takes place in the area due to the accident," he states. Parking problems and other traffic related offences will also be addressed by them he added.
|  | | 2008-08-01 | Social networking with a difference
“Let’s go to an old age home next weekend,” writes Akshay Shah in an e-mail to his network of friends. Not the typical weekend plan of a 22-year-old? But, this group of twenty-somethings is not ordinary, and so are their plans.
Although, the internet is the preferred tool of communication for Shah’s network of around 30-odd IT professionals from various investment banks across the city, unlike Orkut or Facebook, their network — Umang — aims exclusively to help the under privileged in the society.
“Umang aims at one activity every week, be it spending time at a home for the aged or teaching street kids or holding blood donation camps,” says Ashish Goyal, 24, an investment banker.
“All of us wanted to do something for the society, be it for the aged or the children. That is when we came up with Umang,” Goyal said.
All volunteers with Umang have weekends off. “In the first week of July, we donated books and clothes to Takshashila Vidhyalaya at Ulhasnagar, while in the second week we collected 150 bottles of blood at a blood donation drive at TCS Campus, Kanjurmarg,” said Shah, an IT professional and one of the founders of Umang.
“Last Sunday, we visited Justice HK Chainani’s Elders Home in Mulund. We had great fun with the aged at home,” said Shah. Sometimes, investing just little time is more than enough, said Hema Parmanandani, 28, a finance consultant. “Umang is open to anyone who has the best interests of the society at heart,” she said.
Over the next few weekends, Umang will organise blood donation camps,
find sponsors for educating the gifted poor children, and conduct awareness and
education programmes to help clean the city. |
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