Pune: The State Election Commission (SEC) may conduct the long-pending zilla parishad and panchayat samiti elections in phases, separating those within the 50% reservation ceiling from the local bodies having breached it. Elections are due in 32 zilla parishads (ZPs) and 336 panchayat samitis. Of these, a total of 17 ZPs and 83 panchayat samitis…
Pune: A worker died and five others sustained minor burn injuries after a fire broke out at a powder-coating unit in the Bhosari MIDC area on Saturday. The incident occurred around 3.45pm when a blast inside the unit triggered a sudden fire and thick smoke, causing panic in the vicinity. Teams from the Pimpri Chinchwad…
PUNE: The Pimpri Chinchwad police on Friday arrested a 33-year-old cab driver from Thergaon on the charge of murdering his partner from Wakad and setting her body ablaze at Dhoki in Dharashiv district on Nov 26. The suspect, Aniket Kamble, told police that the woman, who was already married, was pestering him for marriage, which…
Pune: Filthy premises, no staff to cook food on weekends, dysfunctional toilets, inadequate educational facilities, corporal punishment, violation of basic rights, and complete neglect of children are some of the issues flagged by Priyank Kanoongo, a member of National Human Rights Commission. He conducted a surprise visit to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Centre, an observation home…
Pune: An unusual and unsettling factor has shaped the rhythm of political campaigning in Manchar, Ambegaon and Junnar — the fear of leopards. Big cats freely roam the fields and occasionally wander into residential pockets in search of food in the dark. Even experienced candidates are now treating the setting sun as a hard deadline.Rajeshree…
Pune figured as the fourth-most congested city across the globe, and third-most congested in India, according to the TomTom Traffic Survey 2024. The Denmark-based agency had collated mobility data from over 500 countries to reach this conclusion.The indisputable situation is amply exemplified in the city’s busy Mundhwa-Manjari connecting stretch, used by thousands of commuters on…
Pune: In a revamped approach for dealing with heavy vehicles, especially trucks, violating traffic norms, the Pune police have started registering culpable homicide cases against such truck drivers.“We have so far registered 40 FIRs against the truck drivers across the city since Nov 15,” Himmat Jadhav, deputy commissioner of police (traffic) told TOI. These cases,…
Pune: Residents of Narhe staged a protest march on Sunday seeking robust steps to curb accidents along the Navale Bridge stretch of the Pune–Bengaluru highway.Authorities, they said, respond with temporary fixes only after major accidents and leave commuters in the looming dangers.On Nov 13, eight people died and several others were injured after a truck…
Pune: Ajit Pawar, deputy chief minister and finance minister, who set off a controversy last month by saying that he holds the keys to the state’s coffers and will favour those who vote for his party’s candidates, on Sunday said that his comments were blown out of proportion. “Those comments were casual. The state’s money…
Pune: The election process in several municipal councils and nagar panchayats across the state has halted after the State Election Commission (SEC) found out that returning officers had illegally allotted poll symbols to candidates whose appeals against nomination scrutiny were either pending, decided late or not heard at all by district courts. In its order…
