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New Delhi: Jewellery is timeless but when it comes to trends, every season, occasion and era brings with it a wave of intriguing new designs so make sure you are opting for the right pieces this season. Ishu Datwani, Founder of Anmol Jewellers, lists some tips.

• The big jewellery trend to look forward to in 2018 will be very classic European with designs and finish in an international tone.
• Classic diamond jewellery with statement diamonds and precious coloured gemstones like emeralds, rubies and tanzanite is expected to trend in 2018.
• Jewellery set in rose gold is another very popular trend as rose gold gives a very classy, elegant and luxurious look and works well for Indian skin tones.
• When it comes to bridal jewellery, diamonds will continue to shine as the eternal charm of Polki is here to lead the show.
• Samir Sagar, Director, Manubhai Jewellers, agrees that rose gold is expected to continue shining in 2018, especially in the lightweight segment.
• The metal has become popular as the warm pink hue brings with it a dash of luxury and can be clubbed with yellow gold and white gold jewellery too.
• Daily wear lightweight jewellery studded with diamonds in pink gold is trending amongst the young, urban, working women. The USP of these diamond collections is that they give the wearer the pleasure of adorning the luxury metal with diamonds on an everyday basis as the range starts from Rs 35,000 only.
• In bridal jewellery segment, Jadau continues to be in trend.
• Gold chokers with long kanthas studded in kundan karigari with colourful gemstones in hues of green, pink, red, blues and pearls have become a new trend, especially with Bollywood divas donning the same for reel and real life weddings.

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New Delhi: With the summer heat scorching and the mercury level soaring, comfort is a serious concern for many. In this scenario, selecting the right fabric is a necessity so opt for the right clothing that makes you feel fresh. Designers Prarena Grover and Dhruv Sehgal list some must haves fabrics and few avoidable ones.

Must have fabrics
Cotton: Beyond any doubt pick up that cotton dress or the cotton shirt from your wardrobe. It not only makes you look smart and elegant but also scores high on the comfort level.
Reason: During summer it is a general tendency to sweat a lot and in such a situation cotton is just the apt fabric that absorbs this sweat. This helps in giving the much required relief and helps in cooling down your body temperature. In addition, cotton fabric gives you a relief if you are prone to any allergic reaction. Thus, cotton is just too apt for your sensitive skin.

Linen: The pastel coloured linen wear is just so perfect for your summer days. Fret no more and choose the right linen wear for yourself.
Reason: Tired of threat of unnecessary sweat? Considering that linen is highly absorbent and a good conductor of heat it helps in keeping your body free of moisture. So, the linen dress or blouse not just feels good to touch but also quickly removes your perspiration during the summer days.

Khadi: Khadi saris to the dress to shirts, it is the perfect wear for your summer evening.
Reason: Khadi is that handloom fabric which uses no chemicals in manufacturing. This skin friendly hand oven, organic fabric is just too perfect for your summer days.

Sheer: This is the ideal fabric for humid days. It is the fall and the interesting cut of the fabric makes it a must-have in your summer days.
Reason: As a fabric usually meant for wedding gowns or floral costumes or stockings or lingerie sheer does very little in the way of warmth for the wearer. This is the reason why it is one of the favourite fabrics for summer wear.

Avoidable fabrics

• Denim: Denim is a strict no for your summer days. It hugs your body too much and creates unnecessary suffocation in summer.
• Synthetic wear: Never indulge in a mix fabric in summer. It creates discomfort and may sometimes cause skin infections in this regard.

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Beards are to men what make-up is to women, and a quick Internet search of actors in a pre- and post-beard phase will confirm this. Such has been the impact and acceptance of facial hair that they have gradually crossed the barriers of hipsterdom to find their way to boardrooms. But are corporate firms with a strict formal dress code open to men with beards?

"We have a strict dress code, where a shabby demeanour is unacceptable. We even keep daily checks; employees cannot walk into the office in jeans or sports shoes, especially when they have client interactions. But full beards are not a concern. We have employees with full beards and twirled moustaches," says Sudhir Dhar, CHRO – director HR, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.

Dr Sujaya Banerjee

Rohan Vaswani, CHRO, Nexus Malls, a fully owned subsidiary of investment firm Blackstone Group, shares a similar thought. The company follows a formal dress code from Monday to Thursday and smart casuals on Friday. "You can't walk into the office with your shirt not tucked in or in bright blue trousers. But beards, if they are well-kept, are fine," shares Vaswani.

Dress to impress
"The first impression is created by the physical appearance of a person; it's later that you have an interaction and people get influenced by your personality. So, if you seem shabby, you create a perception even before you talk," says Dhar.

He adds that as long as one is confident of carrying it off and not look out of place, a beard is acceptable.

Rohan Vaswani

"We conduct training on executive presence — how to look, behave and dress like a leader. These aspects are now becoming increasingly important as often, you find that people are competent but they don't make it beyond a point because they don't look like the part or someone who can represent the organisation before multiple stakeholders. It's not about good looks but about appearance. A haircut and a well-groomed beard are a part of this understanding. You can't have a two-day stubble where you look like you have just woken up and come to work. We actually check if there's a valid reason behind an unkempt stubble: Is the employee unwell? Or is he battling a low?" says Dr Sujaya Banerjee, CEO and founder of Capstone People Consulting.

Do you shave before an interview?
Most HR personnel we spoke to felt there's no middle ground; you either opt for the clean-shaven look or wear a groomed full beard. "It's better to shave off a two-day stubble and not go in between. It can be interpreted as a sign of laziness," warns Dhar.

"I am more interested in knowing if a person has the right competence and capability for the job. The older generation, however, associates beards with carelessness and mistrust. Traditionally, even in films, the bearded guy will always be the villain or from the underworld. If a full beard is groomed, it's fine. Long hair is not allowed. You are not an artist or performer, you are corporate. Hence, certain norms remain. We allow personal freedom as long as you stay well-groomed," adds Banerjee.

Make a bearded impact
"Some people look smarter with a beard," says Dhar. Vaswani feels that real estate companies are often promoter-driven, and the vision of the promoter and the top management often reflects on the staff where people would go the extra mile to keep with the image. "Those with gaunt features can look fuller with a beard. It also saves you the trouble of having to shave every day. A good beard can actually help you appear stronger. Also, today, people look for organisations where individuality is encouraged, where you can bring your authentic self to work. It's motivating to be in an organisation where you can express who you are, as long as it doesn't hamper business. So, if the beard is within acceptable parameters, all's well," says Banerjee.

Grooming tips
Keep it clean
Wash your beard three times a week to prevent the build-up of dead skin cells.
Keep it moisturised Oil your beard daily to keep it soft and moisturised.
Shape it up
Trim your beard when you see stray hair or as desired to maintain the shape. Repeat this once every two weeks when you want to maintain a consistent length.
Kaushal Pratab, founder, Shepherd For Men 

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New Delhi: Apart from making healthy organic life choices, incorporating a night time skincare regime into our daily lives, will go a long way in keeping the skin looking healthy and glowing. Start your regime by thorough cleansing and do not forget to use a toner, suggest experts. Shankar Prasad, Founder, Plum, and Megha Sabhlok, Brand Director, Just Herbs, have given some inputs:

Cleanse: Going to bed with make-up on is the worst thing you can do to your skin. It leads to chemical accumulation, blocked pores and reduces the ability of skin to absorb nutrients. Make sure that you use a gentle cleanser first to remove make-up and grime. If required, follow up with a foaming face wash.

While the idea of cleansing the grime on your face with castor oil might seem unappealing to you, however, it not only can draw out the dirt from your pores and purge, it also has anti-inflammatory properties. People with all skin types can benefit from this method.

The best natural cleansing technique is to use one-third castor oil mixed with two-thirds of any oil of your choice; almond, sunflower seed, virgin olive or any other natural, organic oil. Massage the oil gently onto your face with firm strokes focusing on your problem areas

Use a soft washcloth soaked in warm water to cover your face. The warmth allows the oiled pores to soften and open up in order to gently release the toxins and impurities.

Gently wipe without scrubbing and repeat again. This should remove the oil along with the dead skin cells, bacteria and impurities from your face leaving you with deeply cleansed glowing skin.

Tone: This helps reduce pore size, balance skin pH and remove any leftover dirt and make-up still left. Toning will further nourish and hydrate your skin leaving it supple and refreshed. Rose water tops the list for its fragrant refreshing appeal and its universality in suiting all skin types.

Refrigerate a good organic brand and apply all over face and neck using a cotton ball. Green Tea with a few drops of tea tree oil makes for an antibacterial toner that especially suits oily skin types.

Anti-ageing serums: Address your anti-ageing concerns with elixir serums as they nourish and restore the natural glow and youthfulness to tired, ageing and pigmented skin. Plant polyphenols, carotenoids and flavonoids present in these serums slow-down skin ageing process. Once applied, let your skin fully absorb the serum for some time while you rest.

Massage with night cream or gel: Begin by spreading it across the forehead, down the nose, across the cheeks, the chin, neck and towards the chest. Gently massage the cream in upward strokes and circular motions by using your fingertips. This helps in evenly distributing the moisture all over your facial skin, increases blood circulation and minimises puffiness.

The facial oil: Facial oils repair and replenish the facial skin while you sleep. Apply 4-5 drops of facial oil on fingertips and gently massage it in circular motions from nose towards ears while applying horizontally, and always against the gravity while applying vertically.

It is usually applied after the gel/cream as it helps seal-in the moisture.

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New Delhi: You may not be able to escape the sweltering heat when you are outside, but you can make your home a cool haven by playing around with colours and adding greenery to your walls, suggest experts. A colour palette, when used well, can help in creating a naturally refreshing environment at home.

Peeyush Bachlaus, Head of Marketing at Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd, suggests four decor trends, in hues that range from cool blues and soothing greens to mellow yellows:

For a blissful green escape: Surround yourself with the colours of a secret garden, leaving everything else a pristine white. The colour green is well-associated with nature, allowing a room to feel relaxing to the eyes and refreshing for your mind. When paired with white, this palette can turn a bland room into a welcoming paradise. Green is also one of the easiest colours to adorn your interiors as pairing various shades of green with just about any other colour can work beautifully.

For a breezy haven: Large plants and strong colours are natural decor accents that bring lushness into one's home. This summer, transform your interiors into a cool breezy tropical paradise with the help of verdant aquatic colours with a cheerful palette of cool blues, mellow yellows, bright oranges and lush greens. These colours will make sure that your time home is a breeze and you feel the freshness of an aquatic theme.

For an eccentric summer makeover: Given our busy lifestyles and the sweltering heat to add to it, we all need an escape. Let your home be that much needed exotic escape by curating one area in your home. Mix and match cool blue and violet walls fearlessly, framing it with crisp white accents. Natural materials and details make this a room for all to enjoy. Colours such as blues and whites are cool colours as they help keep our mind cool and relaxed even during the sweltering heat of the summers.

For a refreshing classic look: A carefully curated palette of white and near white tones that form a blank canvas to your artistic home. As a trend, masterpiece white walls are refreshing. Radiant light coming in through the windows is the accent in these calm rooms. Bring artwork to focus by trying out alternative accent wall colours.

Sujit Jain, Founder, Griin, says vertical gardens can transform your dull walls immediately and purify the environment too.
"Vertical gardens not only add to the aesthetic value of the walls but they come with a lot of functional benefits also. The thick vegetation limits the movement of heat and helps to regulate sunlight and temperature even during the hot afternoons that makes it a perfect fit for summer decors.

"Some varieties of plants are also useful in absorbing potentially harmful gases and cleaning the air inside modern buildings. In addition to this, incorporating vertical gardens in the decor of any building brings a living element to the environment and being around greenery helps in reducing the stress levels also."

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Voting day is here, but not all of us remember how exactly to go about it. Don't worry, mid-day's refresher has it all covered. Among the most important things to remember is to not forget to carry any one of the 11 accepted identity proof documents (see: Valid proof of identity) and to not use your mobile phone in and around the polling booth. Voting begins at 7 am sharp and will last until 6 pm.

While some of us may have got the voting slips, those who haven't got theirs need not panic. All you need to do is go up to one of the helpdesks set up at street corners and look for your name. If your name is on the list, the corresponding voting booth number and other details will be mentioned there. You can also look for your name online before leaving the house on https://electoralsearch.in. If your name is not on this list, you cannot vote. No argument. Do remember to register yourself on https://www.nvsp.in before the assembly elections.

Police officers being briefed about bandobast duty a day before voting day in the city. Pic/Sameer Marakande

No mobile phones

Mobile phones cannot be used within 100 metres of the polling booth, but for the working population of the city, who either votes on its way to or from work, you may carry your phone with you but must remember to either switch it off or keep it on silent mode. Cars and bikes, too, will have to be parked 100 metres away from polling booths. Only designated vehicles carrying people with disabilities will be allowed close to polling booths.

Only 11 valid ID documents

Please remember that the voter slip is not proof of identity. You have to also carry any one of the 11 identity cards. If you have none of them, once again, you cannot vote.

Please do not argue with the election duty staff, they have no role to play in this.

Shivaji Jondhale, Mumbai City Collector, said, "If there is no name on the electoral list, then people cannot vote. It is very important to be a registered voter. Further, if there is no voting slip but your name is on the electoral list of the Election Commission and you have a valid ID card, then by checking with the help desk you can find out the polling station and can exercise your right to vote."

Wait for the beep

The confusion about the long press while registering your vote on the electronic voting machine was cleared by Collector officials. They said your vote is considered registered once the long beep is heard. Do keep your finger pressed on the button until you hear it or your vote will not be registered.

Live Blog: Elections 2019 Phase 4 Live Updates: Anil Ambani, Rekha cast their vote

Come out and vote!

The Election Commission has taken various measures to ensure citizens come out and vote. The total number of voters in the city, is 96.39 lakh. The EC and Collector offices of the city are aiming at a voting percentage of at least 61% this time from 41% in 2009 and 51% in 2014.

Citizens, too, have come forward to help increase voter turnout. An ALM from Juhu has organised a pick-up for senior citizens to the polling booths. The EC, too, has organised help for people with disabilities. Further, in order to ensure proper transport system during the voting process, the Collector offices have organised 2,985 vehicles in Mumbai suburban district and 1,769 vehicles in Mumbai Island City.

There is a staff of 15,000 working in the island city and over 60,000 in the suburbs on election duty. There are 2,601 polling stations in the island city which has two constituencies, and 7,472 polling stations in the suburbs that have four constituencies, said officials.

Also read: Elections 2019: Mumbai Police to deploy 40,000 cops on election duty; issue guidelines

Students, take that selfie!

This year, the EC and government officials have been explaining the electoral process to young students in the hope that it reaches their parents at home. One of the initiatives is the 'selfie' movement, where students have been urged to take their parents to polling booths and put up selfies on social media with their parents after voting.

96.39l
No. of voters in Mumbai

61
Voting percentage that the Election Commission is expecting in Mumbai

Also read: Elections 2019: 422 polling stations in Mumbai declared 'critical'

Valid proof of identity

• Passport
• Driving licence
• Identity card issued by the Election Commission/Central and state government/ Public Enterprises / Local Body Institutes
• Bank passbook with photograph
• PAN card from the Income Tax Department
• ID card given by the Census Commissioner
• Job Card under Employment Guarantee Scheme
• Health card from the labour ministry
• Pension passbook or pension payment order with photograph of the retired employee
• ID card of MLA/MP
• Aadhaar card, too, will be considered as identity proof

Also read: Elections 2019: Popular politicians and key battles in Mumbai

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A habitual wife-beater has landed behind bars for trying to burn down his neighbour's house when the latter tried to rescue the woman during a fight. After the secretary of Shivswaraj Society in Pant Nagar, Ghatkopar filed a complaint against the accused Alok Verma, 35, the local cops arrested him.

According to the police, Verma used to often fight with his wife and beat her up while drunk. Speaking to mid-day, secretary Rajgopal Nadar said, "On April 26, Verma reached home inebriated and started fighting with his wife. He even threw the food outside the house and vandalised the utensils inside. Soon after, his son came to my house and begged me to save his mother."

Also read: Couple who are having a baby ask neighbours to cook, do housework for them

Nadar went to their house and tried to stop Verma. "When I was trying to talk to him, he suddenly pinned his wife to the floor and started punching her. I immediately pulled him up and shouted at him, asking him to leave or else I would call the cops," Nadar said.

According to the complainant, Verma felt insulted at being yelled at and in turn threatened Nadar with harm. However, Nadar took his words lightly as he was drunk. Around midnight, the accused returned with petrol and set the door to Nadar's home on fire.

When one of the residents smelled something burning, he went out to check and saw flames had engulfed Nadar's door and window curtains. However, the neighbours rushed to the house with water and managed to douse the fire.

"Initially, we were not aware of how this happened. But later when I checked the CCTV footage from the cameras outside my door, I saw who the culprit was. After that I approached the Pant Nagar police and filed a complaint against Verma," said Nadar.

When contacted, Rohini Kale, senior police inspector of Panth Nagar police station, said, "The accused has been arrested under various sections of the IPC. The matter is being investigated."

Also read: Ex-IAF wing commander's wife found dead at her house in Dwarka

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Amid the busy polling booths across the city, was a special room at the Mumbadevi polling station called the Sakhi Matadan Kendra - a polling booth managed entirely by women. The room had four female election officers dressed in sarees and the centre was entirely guarded by female police officers too.

The Election Commission began this unique initiative of an all-female polling centre in every constituency to make the electoral process more women-friendly. The booths were also decorated with rangoli and other art while cold drinks were offered to all the voters at these booths.

A senior officer at the booth told mid-day that the balloon and flower decorations and an all-women staff was meant to "encourage more female voters to cast their votes. It also provided a sense of refreshment among the chaos and tension of elections," she said. The Sakhi Matadan Kendra took up one room among the four at the Mumbadevi polling station.

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The art display at the debut edition of the festival

This weekend, if you step into the heritage precinct of the Great Eastern Mills compound in Byculla, you’ll get to feast your eyes on oil and watercolour paintings by 50 artists from across India. The showcase is part of the second edition of Art 35, a three-day carnival that celebrates affordable art. “Though we had a basic festival last year, I have taken it to a bigger scale this year by curating carpet displays, fashion apparel, jewellery and food stalls; paper and origami workshops for children and music performances too,” shares Charu Tewari, CEO of Ficus Fine Living, that’s presenting the festival.

Mooralala Marwada

The performance line-up includes an afternoon of Sufi renditions by Mooralala Marwada, a well-known folk singer from the Janana village in Kutch district of Gujarat. The artiste, who sings in the Kaafi form of music, will regale the audience with poetry of Kabir, Mirabai and Ravidas. Other must-catch acts include a Dastangoi storytelling session with Ankit Chadha and a stand-up comedy show titled Oye... Stand Up by Ankita Shrivastav and Mohit Sharma. The latter will also perform a solo act of Toba Tek Singh. The play based on Saadat Hasan Manto’s famous short story set in the aftermath of Partition will see the actor don 19 characters in 60 minutes.

Mohit Sharma in an earlier performance of Toba Tek Singh

The fest also offers a range of workshops — from one on digital photography by Himanshuu Chandrakant Sheth to tarot card reading by Ruchi Shah, finger painting, fabric painting, mural painting, collage making as well as cupcake decoration with fondants and frostings. Each workshop is curated for specific age groups, including two-year-olds.

What’s a carnival without yum food? Dig into chaat, sandwiches, baos and organic fare from the stalls set up at the fest. These include gourmet lunchboxes for `500 whipped up by Savor, a subscription service launched by the folks behind The Secret Supper Project along with probiotic European fermented milk drink, Kefir, by Moina Oberoi, who runs the city’s first Kefir delivery service. You can also binge on Mutton Kheema Samosas, biryani and other sumptuous fare from a pop-up by The Bohri Kitchen.

If you’re looking for retail therapy, check out faux and semi precious jewellery, fashion apparel by Neelu Oberoi as well as exotic carpets and hides from The Merge Projekt in Bandra.

A Nepalese farmer’s son will walk the ramp at the upcoming Mumbai style extravaganza, Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2017, and ‘he’ isn’t modeling menswear Anjali Lama, born Navin Waiba to a family of agriculturists in Nuwakot, is Nepal’s first transgender model. In another first, she is about to become the first transgender person to model clothes at an Indian fashion show next month.

Before Anjali, 32, could tackle the identity crisis, she was battling poverty. “My family is uneducated. We hail from a small village. We had no electricity when we were growing up. I completed my education by studying under lanterns,” she says, her flawless skin showing no signs of the struggle when we meet her at a central Mumbai hotel.

But juggling her dreams with anguish was something she learnt early. For as long as she can remember, Anjali wanted to be a girl. Finding solace in the company of her late mother and female friends, she realised she didn’t identify with the gender she was assigned at birth. “By the time i hit my teens, I was drifting away from the family. My brothers wondered what was wrong; they had already heard rumours. I decided to come out. When I did, they told me to stay away from the family. But my mother supported me. She would have been thrilled to see this,” she says, taking a moment.

Anjali’s success coincided with Nepal making progress in recognising the rights of transgender communities. The country allows its citizens to choose their gender identity, and issues passports with a third gender category.

In Kathmandu, where she moved to find her freedom, she was ostracized in the hospitality industry that she tried breaking into. Then, she met others like her and was guided to a community center that worked for LGBT rights. Friends suggested that with her lean frame (she’s 5’ 9”) and killer cheekbones, she stood a chance at modelling. “I liked the sound of it,” she says about the career she dabbled in back in 2009 while continuing to work for the centre. When she was featured on the cover of Voice of Women, a Nepalese magazine, that same year, she thought it would be her big break. “There were times I was better than the others but didn’t make it. My trainer at a modelling agency admitted it was my orientation that was coming in the way of success. Brands didn't want to associate with me.”

The next year, when she walked for an event titled, Monsoon Fashion Show, she caught a blogger’s eye, who told her story to the world. That was the turning point. “By 2016, I had established myself in Nepal,” she recollects, although she was yet to crack a premier fashion week. “I didn’t have the money to travel far or invest in an expensive photoshoot.” India was close at hand. She wrote to the Lakmé organisers last year to check if they’d entertain an entry from a transgender model. And although, they were game, she failed the audition. A disappointed Anjali returned to Nepal but couldn’t take the idea of walking the ramp before hundreds out of her head.

“I couldn’t sleep, and began working out to distract myself. I spent the year reaching out to agencies in Mumbai, gymming and learning the catwalk from youtube videos. “The models out there were young, beautiful. I was already 30,” she says, explaining how an attempt to put on weight with calorie rich foods ended in acquiring a paunch. “I decided to work out every day for 30 minutes, and managed to crack the auditions this year. I was in the top 5.”

Anjali says if she hadn’t made it, she was planning to quit modelling. But that’s another story.

Shacking up with friends at an apartment in Santacruz, she is already dreaming big the way everyone does in Mumbai. The breast augmentation she underwent in 2010 was a step towards transitioning fully, which she hopes to do with a sex change surgery. “I hear things get better for models with this big a platform, but my orientation worries me. That the fashion industry is a lot more open gives me hope,” she says, wondering if she’ll ever model for the designer she has her heart set on. “Manish Malhotra… I want to walk for him.”

'I realised I’m not the typical model'
He is “obsessed” with Manish Malhotra’s designs, but also digs Sabyasachi and Manish Arora. That’s a string of strong likes for someone who will model on the Indian runway for the first time.

Czech-born Petr Nitka, 23, is used to making news. And it’s no different here, with a ramp gig planned at fashion week in early February. Hailed as Czechoslovakia’s first gender-neutral model, Petr says over an email from his country that he, like his colleagues back home, is curious about what Indian designers are going to dress him in.

Having taken to modelling like fish to water, Petr first modeled for designer Alexandra Blanc at the South Africa Fashion Week in July 2016. Johanessburg-based menswear designer Roman Handt saw an article on him in a publication the next day, and was keen that Petr become the face of his brand.

A career in fashion, predictably, allowed him to explore his passion for make-up and clothes. Growing up in Ostrava, a city in north-east Czech Republic, he remembers a childhood marked by an unusual interest in getting made up. “When I was a kid, I was disappointed that I couldn't wear make-up or nice clothes. Contrary to that, I feel free now.”

His mother’s support and a move to Australia to pursue academics proved to be game changers. The trip led to a meeting with independent photographer Bharathan Kangatheran in Perth. When pictures from a shoot were published in a leading magazine, Petr met his moment of truth. “I realised that I wasn’t the typical model. The best aspect of being a gender-neutral model was that I could pursue my profound love for fashion.”

Petr, who in an interview to fashion magazine, Emma, last year, said he was a bit of a man and woman (“I am empathetic [like a woman] but I am lazy like a man. I’m a mix of both sexes.”), has worked towards moving away from conventional gender identification. Gender-neutral persons prefer not to identify as man or woman, and have recently begun taking on unisex pronouns like ‘they’ or ‘them’. Petr’s variegated choices reflect in long, mascara-lined lashes and unwaxed arms.

When he isn’t working, Peter prefers to dress in unisex clothing. “But I am skinny and it is difficult to find basic male clothing. I prefer simple fashion for women — skinny jeans and tops. They look like they were made just for me.”

Petr is excited at walking the ramp in India, because it’s only in strange places that he has found fame and acceptance. His career really began outside of his own country after he found that no Czech agency wanted to represent him. Now, he walks for brands that make menswear (Brandt) and womenswear (Jaroslava Prochazkova, Marcel Holubec, Lukas Krnac). Although, he does admit to designers finding it challenging to figure what they will dress him in.

Is Manish Malhotra racking his brain?

Marc Chagall, Over the Town, 1918

The director of the Louvre, where collections span from 6th century BC to the 19th century AD, once estimated that 80 per cent of the museum’s visitors come there to see just one thing - the Mona Lisa. However, Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece is considered overrated and unremarkable by some. Why, then, has it captured the imagination of artists over time, with everyone from Salvador Dalí to Andy Warhol adapting it in their own works?

Edgar Degas, The Dance Class, 1874

To understand what makes a painting iconic, sign up for Art of Looking, a Western art appreciation workshop for those aged 16 and above, organised by Flying Tricycle, which aims to conduct out-of-the-box art and design workshops. Co-founder Madhumita Srivastava will conduct the workshop, comprising seven two-hour sessions.

“It’s important to understand the context behind a painting - the time during which it was made, and how it may have come about as a reaction to something else,” shares Srivastava, who holds a Masters in Architecture from the University of Michigan, and a Masters in Fine Art (Design and Technology) from Parsons School of Design, New York.

Participants will be taken through works by Michelangelo, Van Gogh, Renoir, Picasso, Frida Kahlo, and Andy Warhol, among others. The aim is to take a look at a variety of styles, media, genres and techniques, from the Renaissance era right up to the 1980s.

The workshop will involve freewheeling discussions where she will help participants interpret their feelings about a piece of art, and form an opinion about it. “This is not a history lesson. In each session, I’ll bombard you with a slideshow of around 80 artworks. We’ll stop at a few iconic pieces to talk about why we like or don’t like them, and why they’re important. When you see all the pieces in one go, you’ll start noticing a pattern to them,” she believes.

The sessions will conclude with a visit to an art gallery. Here, Srivastava hopes to strike up a hot debate. “Every person notices different elements in a painting. In fact, the more abstract a piece is, the more interpretations you’ll get.”

She adds that she wants to rid people of the intimidation that often accompanies art. “We feel like we need to have a degree to understand art. But art is subjective - it’s about how it makes you feel.”

As promised during the 2016 Auto Expo, Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) brought 50 units of the Africa Twin to India, all of which have been booked and many delivered to enthusiasts across the country. We convinced HMSI to give us some saddle time on what they term "the most reliable, versatile and proven adventure touring motorcycle". Here are six reasons why the Africa Twin stands out.

Planning to go off-road? Press 'G' for Gravel mode

1. Design
The Honda has an imposing stance and the bright red-white-black colour combination is difficult to ignore. Not intimidating maybe, but surely attractive. The Africa Twin has been conceptualised on the company's current Dakar competition bike — the CRF 450. Many parts are very similar to the rally bike including the frame and the brakes. This gives the 2017 Africa Twin the necessary genes it needs to live up to its iconic predecessors that have conquered the Dakar Rally, the world's toughest raid.

Rally style console shows information including speed, gear position, odometer, trip metre and a clock

It's a tall bike with fully adjustable front forks. The dual LED headlights and tall windscreen accentuate the bike's towering figure. The seat's almost triangular shape makes it very comfortable for long rides as well.

2. Engine
This is the largest capacity Africa Twin ever made. Its 999.11-cc twin-cylinder, liquid-cooled engine produces 88.4 PS and 91.9 Nm of torque. The six-speed gearbox is managed through Honda's Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT), which changes gears automatically. The way it delivers power isn't too exciting. Instead, it comes in as a steady flow. However, the convenience of having a DCT makes it very friendly off the roads.

These buttons help engage the riding mode - Auto Drive, Manual or selecting Neutral

3. Using DCT
We have to admit that not having a clutch lever or gearshift felt quite unusual at first, but one can adapt to this in no time. It's brilliant because while off-roading, one can focus on the tricky sections, or stand on the pegs and ride, while the DCT takes care of the clutch modulation and gear selection on your behalf. All you need to do is select the drive or sport riding mode. If you like, you can select manual gearshift too and there are buttons on the left, that can be used to change gears manually on the go.

The seat narrows down as it meets the slender fuel tank, which makes the bike  manageable

Since the bike doesn't come with a clutch there are two things to keep in mind. Firstly, on an Africa Twin, one needs to ensure that the bike is in neutral when stationary, else it might pounce forward if one blips the throttle out of habit. Secondly, the DCT equipped bike comes with a handbrake on the left side of the handlebar, which can be mistaken for a clutch lever.

4. Off-Road Features
The bike comes packed with riding aids, which can help setup the bike in dozens of ways. It gets dedicated switches for gravel riding and one for ABS specifically for off-road, which allows the rear to lock and it can be activated by a simple push of a button. For now, it doesn't include Cornering ABS. There's a dedicated toggle lever just above the passing light on the left switchgear that changes the level of HSTC (Honda Selectable Torque Control).

5. Riding Dynamics
The Africa Twin comes with a massive 21-inch front wheel and an 18-inch wheel at the back, shod with dual-purpose Dunlop tyres. These did manage to give versatile grip on tarmac, wet roads, and even on some loose off-road surface. Long distance touring is what most buyers will be doing with it. There are slots to mount panniers on either side, and hooks to harness your saddlebags. Honda is offering accessories to make the bike more touring friendly.

6. Price and Fuel Efficiency
Honda claims that the bike returns 21.5 km/l, which is pretty decent from a bike of this size. The DCT has a big role to play in this. The 18.8 litre fuel tank will give the Africa Twin a range of close to 400 km. Coming to on-road price, depending on which part of country you belong to the Honda Africa Twin will cost you between R15-R16 lakh (on-road) and will compete with the likes of Triumph Tiger and Ducati Multistrada. The biggest advantage Honda has is its goodwill for making reliable products, and the convenience of having a DCT.

The Mule
Director: Clint Eastwood
Cast: Clint Eastwood, Bradley Cooper, Laurence Fishburne, Michael Peña, Dianne Wiest, Andy Garcia, Alison Eastwood, Taissa Farmiga, Ignacio Serricchio, Loren Dean, Eugene Cordero, Robert LaSardo
Rating:

Eighty-eight-year-old Clint Eastwood’s 37th feature has him directing and acting in a drama about an elderly man whose late-life drug running — egged on by desperate circumstances — becomes a tool for heavy rumination regarding conscience, morality, and reclamation. Nick Schenk (of Gran Torino fame) fashions this screenplay inspired by the New York Times Magazine article The Sinaloa Cartel’s 90-Year-Old Drug Mule, about a true event, written by Sam Dolnick.

The original mule was Leo Sharp, a World War II veteran and great-grandfather. But, for this film, Eastwood and Schenk take some creative liberties to present a sensibility that is more Eastwood than the real-life event would oblige. The experience delineates the nearly destitute senior Earl Stone’s (Eastwood) tryst with criminality conspired by an alienated family construct, and a flagging business. Earl was never there when he was needed by his family, ex-wife Mary (Dianne Wiest) and, especially, daughter Iris (Alison Eastwood). Their rejection of him when he runs out of money may be painful to watch, but it is fairly justified in the schema of broken relationships damaged by ego trips.

Eastwood, of course, lives the part. He fits the role, but as far as the fan-image goes, he seems frailer and less imposing than he did in his last cinema outing. But that physical deterioration doesn’t take anything away from the manner in which he has constructed this slow-burning, contemplative, engaging, humorous tale, which appears to be somewhat autobiographical in the manner in which it deals with relationships that are central to the story here.

We can see that Federal agents, led by a DEA Special Agent in charge (Laurence Fishburne), and newbie Colin Bates (Bradley Cooper), trying to nail some cartel drug runners out West, are eventually going to come across this unsuspicious drug-runner. But the film is not about that cat-and-mouse chase as much as it is about a conscience finally coming awake, and Earl making robust efforts to atone for his past mistakes.

Eastwood’s mule seems to bask in the freedom that easy money brings him, and appears to be unaware of the hellish depths that the murderous cartels would reach — and that’s precisely how the film plays out. With every film, like in this one too, Eastwood’s politics also comes out, loud-and-clear. He may be intriguing as a person, but not always politically correct as an actor-director voicing his personal world-view.

Earl’s eventual redemption also comes a little too easy, given the havoc he may have engineered by his flirting with the cartel. The tone shifts are jerky, the narrative veers to the ponderous and the experience doesn’t come across as entirely fulfilling — even though the cinematography and minimalistic appurtenances lend shadowy depth to the experience.

The supporting characters don’t get much screen-time, even though they are integral to the plotting. Eastwood hogs the show here. His apparent disconnect with the consequences relating to his actions is a hurdle that’s difficult to overcome. And that’s also because Eastwood’s image still manages to over-power his latter-life performances. As an audience, we are more likely to be distraught over his real-life physical deterioration than we are about the reel life character’s disempowerment.

Watch The Mule Trailer

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Replicas
U/A: Crime, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Director: Jeffrey Nachmanoff
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Thomas Middleditch, Alice Eve, John Ortiz, Emjay Anthony
Rating: 

The bland, expressionless Keanu Reeves as a scientist is a hard sell for even the most gifted filmmaker so one can't understand why he was chosen to lead the cast as an obsessive scientist wanting to clone his family back to life after a drowning accident. And that's not the only bad choice here. The story itself never develops beyond the perfunctory -allowing for quick jump forwards into sci-fi territory that doesn't appear conclusive in the least. The script appears to be written by novices who have little idea about the subject matter. Neither the Director, the tech team nor the cast seem to believe in this story. So they all appear to be playing a game of make-believe that only they enjoy. For the viewer the experience is sheer tedium.

Playing God in a high tech world is not a new concept but the treatment, tone and momentum must be good enough to gain attachment and believability. There's no such thing here. At no point are we ensnared by Will Foster's (Keanu Reeves) need to bring back his family from the dead. Neither his guilt nor his love for them are established here. And his corralling of his lab partner Ed (Thomas Middleditch) for support, is also not believable in the least. The talk of neural maps, synthetic brain, algorithms and consciousness sounds like mumbo-jumbo in such an unbelievable set-up – even when it's done in a futuristic facility called Bionyne.

Check out the trailer here:

When Will persuades his friend Ed to dispose the bodies of his dead family members it sounds insane and when he pretends to be his kids and responds to text messages from their friends it becomes all the more ridiculous. We never see his grief or experience his pain. And that's also because Keanu Reeves doesn't go beyond harried and lost in terms of expression. Both writer Chad St. John and director Jeffrey Nachmanoff don't appear to have figured out what exactly they wanted to convey here. They just run with the tide and make a mess of it. There's no style or mood to hold this sort of idea through. Nachmanoff hits the bland and straightforward route – on e that leaves the audience totally distended and discontent. This is the kind of hare-brained unbelievable stuff you wouldn't waste your hard-earned money on!

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Amavas
U/A: Horror
Dir: Bhushan Patel
Cast: Sachiin Joshi, Nargis Fakhri
Rate: 

The experience of watching a Ramsay Brothers horror is unique. It's almost synonymous to buying a ticket for a comedy. Dealing with Amavas, is pretty much the same. It's the modern-day equivalent to a Ramsay product. Do you love it? Yes, to bits! It's a laugh riot. But, that's not how director Bhushan Patel designed it to be, which is why, it's disappointing.

Patel, who previously directed the Bipasha Basu and Karan Singh Grover-starrer Alone, takes the tomfoolery a notch higher with this film. We are introduced to the familiar 'praacheenkal' knowledge of 'bhooth-pret'. There is a haunted mansion - resembling a cross between that in The Conjuring and Sushmita Sen's Vaastu Shastra.

Familiar tactics - creaking doors, spooky scores and shadows - are employed to evoke fear. Yet, the idiocy on display doesn't occupy my mind. What does is the fact that viewers could have been spared from the goings-on had the cast simply travelled to Paris. Let me explain. Karan Ajmera (Sachiin Joshi) is coaxed by girlfriend Aahana (Nargis Fakhri) to take a trip to the former's Brit mansion, instead of taking off on a romantic getaway to the French capital. On arriving, skeletons begin to tumble out, and they learn the reason behind the house being locked up for eight years. All hell breaks loose.

Even the slightest mention can be a spoiler in a horror, so we'll leave the details aside should you wish to catch this one. But, we can reveal that this uninspiring story ticks every clichéd check box in the horror rule book, including possessed bodies, hapless spirits, barren trees, a grave and temple bells. In addition, there's a half-faced doll, and a bored ensemble of supporting actors who look more clueless than the doll in question. As lovers, Joshi and Fakhri certainly lack chemistry. In fact, the latter's visible disinterest even overshadows Joshi's ineptness.

What is really horrifying is the depiction of the psychiatrist, played by Mona Singh. 'Calm down' or an increase of medicinal dose, are apparently appropriate responses to paranoia and migraine. While the boyfriend battles serious issues, the girlfriend busies herself by exploring the estate, and playing hide-and-seek.

The incoherence is baffling, and one is only compelled to wonder why a team of qualified artistes would create this kind of cinema. But since the movie doesn't take itself too seriously -the quality of VFX and continuity being obviously ignored - it is best relished as a comic caper.

As for Fakhri, who makes a comeback of sorts to Bollywood with this film, she had more meat in her five-minute act in the American thriller, Spy (2015) than she does here. Pro tip for the writers - Just send them to Paris next time. It's always a good idea!

Also Read: Nargis Fakhri annoyed with press prying into personal life; leaves Amavas promotions midway

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Captain Marvel
U/A: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Director: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck
Cast: Brie Larson, Samuel Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, DeWanda Wise, Samuel L. Jackson
Rating: 

Brie Larson's entry into the Marvel superhero fold as the titular hero in Captain Marvel is not the 'Wonder' we expected. Though Captain Marvel is the first Marvel Studios film to be built around a female superhero, it comes minus the savoir-faire that gave Marvel productions its high brand value over the years. There are two directors, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck at work here, alongside several writers including Nicole Perlman, Anna Boden, Geneva Robertson-dworet, Meg LeFauve, Ryan Fleck, Jac Schaeffer, Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch. And it does feel like too many cooks have literally subdued the vivacity and nihilistic exuberance unique to the comic book cinema superhero universe.

The Captain Marvel female counterpart first appeared in comic books in 1977 but the real inspiration for this film comes from Kelly Sue DeConnick's series, beginning in 2012, that featured the alter ego of Carol Danvers.

Check out Captain Marvel trailer here:

While the experience of this film is not exactly unfavourable, the narrative never really takes off into the stratosphere even though it has a storyline that has Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) straddle a galactic war between two alien races. The narrative is a little jumbled up and the eventual aim to launch her into the Avengers team becomes a little too obvious even as the non-linear plotting is laid out with convoluted reasoning. Danvers' is with the Air Force, but she is also the eponymous warrior on behalf of Starforce, an intergalactic fighting squad committed to battling the fiendish, shape-shifting Skrulls. As the film opens we see her being tutored by her mentor, Yon-Rogg (Jude Law), leader of the intergalactic military force of the Kree. Danvers is shown as uncertain about her past and as the narrative trudges along things get a little too murky and distorted for comfort. Danvers may go from cosmic to earthbound (C-53) in the fraction of a second and then back up into the skies again but for the viewer, this is not much of a roller-coaster thrill ride. The action is set in the '90's, the storytelling is obligatory at best, none of the characters stay on in your mind after the movie is done and the writing and direction lacks definition and seems a little too obviously patched-up towards a grander purpose.

Brie Larson tries hard to instil humour into the role but there's only so much she can achieve in a jumbled-up universe. She is solid if not exciting and that's the mainstay of this film – if at all it can be considered to have one!

Also Read: Captain Marvel reviews: Here's what the critics are saying

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Pet Sematary

U/A: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Director: Dennis Widmyer, Kevin Kolsch
Cast: Jete Laurence, Hugo Lavoie, Jason Clarke, Lucas Lavoie, Amy Seimetz
Rating: 

The 1989 version of Pet Sematary based on the 1983 Stephen King novel, was certainly no classic but it was a cheesy horror tale powered by a solid performance from Fred Gwynne and the title song from the Ramones was quite rage. Given the cult popularity of horror films today, it's no surprise that even such an unremarkable representative of the genre gets recast for the GenNext voyeurs of horror thrills. Co-directors Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer don't have much of a challenge on their hands, given the fact that there's no attempt being made here to tell the story from a different vantage point.

Dr Louis Creed (Jason Clarke), wife Rachel (Amy Seimetz), eight-year-old daughter Ellie (Jete Laurence), two-year-old son Gage (Hugo and Lucas Lavoie) and pet cat Church—relocate to a rustic home in the quaint rural town of Ludlow, Maine. Though there's plenty of land, with a mysterious pet cemetery and a strange bog behind the home there's not much of it in front - with a state highway running through right at the curb just off their driveway. So one would think that responsible parents would take the trouble of checking out their abode and taking the necessary precautions before moving in.

Check out the trailer here:

Such deliberate contrivance is of course a given for a horror film attempting to spook you by suggestions rather than facts. Soon enough the pet cat gets crushed under a speeding mammoth and the grieving Dr Clarke, helped on by friendly neighbour Jud Crandall(John Lithgow) takes the cat to be buried near the mysterious bog which apparently has mystical powers of resurrecting the dead. A rather convenient ploy to give wandering souls a rejuvenated body to do evil. The rest of it is rather brutal.

The film, as the book, is riddled with plenty of plot holes but King's book at least had a descriptive set-up that kept the interest going. The film doesn't have much exposition. The wife's torment from a traumatic experience during childhood is represented through hallucinatory flashbacks and the tragedies that befall the Creed family just keep piling up soon after they move in. The directors and writer Jeff Buhler, make a few deviations but they play out as altogether facile and non-requiting. The actors do their job well but the narrative doesn't create enough empathy for us to be worried about their fate. Closing it out with a Starcrawler cover of the Ramones's original theme may stir up some nostalgia but that's not going to spook you. Even King's original denouement gets replaced and that makes this particular effort altogether superficial.

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Amid the rising number of coronavirus cases across the city, the Mumbai Police on Monday took to Twitter to thank Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar for his humble contribution towards the Mumbai Police foundation amid the COVID-19 crisis.

Mumbai Police thanks @akshaykumar for contributing Rs. 2 Crore to the Mumbai Police Foundation. Your contribution will go a long way in safeguarding the lives of those who are committed to safeguarding the city - the men and women of Mumbai Police!#MumbaiPoliceFoundation

— CP Mumbai Police (@CPMumbaiPolice) April 27, 2020

While extending a thank you note to the action-superstar of the B-Town industry, Mumbai Police said that the contribution will help to safeguard the lives of the Mumbai Police personnel who are committed to safeguarding the city to fight the global pandemic.

In the past too, Sooryavanshi actor donated Rs 3 crore to help the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in order to help them to make rapid testing kits, personal protection equipments and face masks in its battle against the deadly virus.

#RohitShetty has facilitated eight hotels across the city for our on-duty #CovidWarriors to rest, shower & change with arrangements for breakfast & dinner.

We thank him for this kind gesture and for helping us in #TakingOnCorona and keeping Mumbai safe.

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 21, 2020

Besides helping Mumbai Police and the country's richest civic body, Akshay also contributed Rs 25 crores to the PM CARES fund to help the country fight the epidemic. Earlier, Mumbai police expressed gratitude to Bollywood director Rohit Shetty for facilitating eight hotels across the city for Mumbai police personnel.

Thanking Rohit Shetty for his kind gesture, Mumbai Police said that the facility would help on-duty corona warriors to rest, shower and change with arrangements for breakfast and dinner.

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To increase efficiency, effectiveness of patrolling and to give the city's foot soldiers some much-needed rest, the Mumbai police department has decided to adopt a new duty pattern.

Under the new pattern, the constabulary and officers will have to work 12 hours post which they will get a 24-hour break. Apart from doctors and health workers, cops too have been busy fighting the COVID-19 pandemic on the frontline. However, after constables (three already) started losing their lives to COVID-19, the top brass decided to set up a new duty pattern.

Accordingly, a new 12-hour shift has been introduced in the force. In this, personnel at police stations will be divided into three units, each working a 12-hour shift. "Duty will start at 8 am and end at 8 pm, when the next batch will come for night duty," a senior police officer said. "Whichever cop finishes his/her 12-hour duty at night, they will go home and come back to work the next day at 8 pm," added the officer.

This duty pattern will give each officer rest of a good 24 hours. "Even if this duty looks like 12 hours, a lot of multitasking is expected on this job as it includes patrolling, nakabandi and other activities. This makes cops new duty timings doable in such tough situations. As there are hardly any crimes happening in the area, the duty load has reduced," another a senior police officer said.

"Also, when an officer or constable gets more than 12 hours off, they can look after the families and their own health which will improve their immunity," the officer added.

Out of 94 police stations, 74 have adopted the new duty pattern and the rest will follow. "This duty pattern does leave me with a smaller force, but it reduces their exposure to the virus. As a frontline worker, we can't think about avoiding crowded places, but we can be well prepared for it," a senior Inspector from Eastern Region said.

"We have given instructions to all Zonal DCPs to chalk out a plan which will give a 12-hour duty and 24-hour rest to cops. We have to take care of our men, too. Currently, feedback from cops is good," Mumbai Police Commissioner, Param Bir Singh said.

Third cop succumbs to COVID-19

A third cop has died from COVID-19, taking the casualty toll among city cops to three. Head Constable Shivaji Sonawane, 56, attached to Kurla Traffic division, died on Monday. He was turned down by four hospitals on April 21, when his 25-year-old son tried tp get him admitted. Sonawane, a resident of Kurla's Kamani area, had a fever since April 20. The GP gave him medication and advised him to visit a hospital if he did not get relief. His fever did not subside and he started to feel breathless.

Sharad, Sonawane's son, took him to Rajawadi Hospital, Ghatkopar, on April 21, to get him admitted, but was told to take him to Kasturba. He was turned out at Kasturba, over no beds and at Nair and KEM too. Finally, it was after Kurla traffic division in-charge spoke to the Bhoiwada senior inspector that Sonawane was admitted at KEM Hospital.

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COVID-19 has now reached the doorstep of the state government, with four Mantralaya staff members testing positive for it. The state health department officials confirmed 27 deaths in Maharashtra, which was the highest number reported in a single day and the state's count of cases climbed to 8,590.

Civic officials said that of the four Mantralaya staffers, three tested positive on Sunday while one was confirmed on Monday. "They were on duty and include a sweeper and a driver. Contact tracing is underway and we will test the high-risk contacts," said a civic official. The official added that a portion of Mantralaya may be cordoned off if necessary. Guardian Minister Aslam Shaikh said that the staffers were taken to Kasturba Hospital for testing.

Four more ward boys of the TB Hospital in Sewri tested positive on Sunday taking the total count of infected staff members to 14. "One of the ward boys had directly gone to Kasturba Hospital and was admitted with symptoms. He has been shifted to the ENT Hospital. Two others are Thane residents and had sore throats," said Dr Lalitkumar Anande, medical superintendent of the TB Hospital, adding that two of the ward boys have been kept in isolation at the staff quarters.

No new cases in Mahim, Dadar
The number of cases in Dharavi continued to rise with 13 new cases reported on Monday. Majority of the new patients were senior citizens taking the total count in the area to 288. Civic officials said that no new cases were reported from Dadar and Mahim for three consecutive days and while 17 patients were discharged from Dadar, nine were discharged from Mahim on Monday.

The cumulative cases in Mumbai city are 5,776 while the total cumulative deaths here are 219. State health officials said that there were 522 new cases in Maharashtra, of which 369 were from Mumbai. Of the 27 deaths, 15 were from Mumbai, six in Amravati, four in Pune and one each in Jalgaon and Aurangabad. Among the deceased patients, 22 suffered from other ailments including diabetes and hypertension.

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No one informed us that my brother had been killed. We heard about his death on news," said Rakesh Tiwari, the brother of Kalpavrishkgiri Chikne Maharaj who was lynched in Palghar earlier this month, from Uttar Pradesh's Bhadohi taluka where the deceased priest's family lives.

On the night of April 16, a frenzied mob of close to 450 tribals lynched 70-year-old Chikne Maharaj, another priest and their driver, suspecting them to be thieves, at Gadchinchale village. While the incident made headlines across the nation, Chikne Maharaj's family learnt about his death only two days later.

Rakesh told mid-day over the phone that neither the police nor the authorities in the state informed them about his demise. We learnt through the news two days later that Kalpavrishkgiri had been brutally murdered in Palghar, he said.

Kalpavrishkgiri had left his home in Uttar Pradesh at the age of nine and was reunited with his family after 20-long years. When Kalpavrishkgiri was nine years old, he left home for Gramsabha Bhusavla school at Bhadohi one day, and never returned. We searched for him across the town but didn't find him." After reuniting with him 26 years later, the family learnt that he had gone to Nashik to become a monk, Rakesh said.

"We found his address when Kalpavrishkgiri was about 35-year-old and learnt that he had become a priest. After leaving UP, he had gone to Trimbakeshwar Shiva Temple to become a monk and later moved to Mumbai. He was a priest at Vandevi temple at Jogeshwari East. We accepted him and I used to meet him whenever I visited Mumbai."

Kalpavrishkgiri wanted to attend the last rites of our mother, who died on March 22, said Rakesh, adding that he couldn't make it to Uttar Pradesh due to the lockdown in Mumbai announced by the Maharashtra government in an attempt to contain the spread of the novel Coronavirus.

"On March 22, I called to my brother to inform him about our mother's demise, but due to the restrictions he could not attend her funeral. He was our mother's favourite son," Rakesh told mid-day. Rakesh said, "Our wish was to attend my brother's final rites but we received the information very later and that too from the media."

He also accused the police of failing to save his brothers and the two others with him. The videos clearly show that the police surrendered my brother to the mob, who then brutally thrashed him to death, said Rakesh, adding that the police could have saved Kalpavrishkgiri.

"Not a single police officer informed us about his death," Rakesh told mid-day.

Tilghate was driving Chikne Maharaj and Sushil Giri to Surat where the duo were headed to attend the last rites of a head priest, Ramgiri Maharaj. However, they came across the tribals, who were enraged by the rumours that a gang of child lifters were active in the region. While the police maintain that close to 450 people were part of the mob, a local leader had said as many as 2,500 tribals had gatheredthat night.

16 April
Day the two priests and their driver were lynched

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The Palghar pot is boiling with the Communist Party of India Marxist (CPI-M) saying they are going to file defamation cases against a couple of BJP leaders for defaming CPI-M, by making baseless claims against them for the lynching of the two priests and their driver in Gadchinchale village. Mumbai's Ashok Dhawale, Central Committee member, CPI-M said, "We will file the case shortly. When the CPI-M says something, it always goes ahead and never backwards."

The roots
Dhawale explained that the Communists have had their imprint in the whole of Dahanu and Talasari tehsil. "It has been our base since 1945 when Comrade Godavari Parulekar led the revolt of the tribals against landlordism and bonded labour. This is how deep our roots go into this land. We have the MLA seat in Dahanu, with the dashing Vinod Nikole defeating the BJP sitting MLA in 2019."

Work done
On accusations that it is the Communists and this party that foment violence, leading to mob frenzy and agitation, Dhawale shot back, "We have worked for drinking water and water for irrigation. We drive movements for uplifting the health infrastructure in the region, we have schools, colleges and hostels in Talasari district. We have worked for women's issues, rations..."

Long march
Dhawale added as a Mumbai example, "It was the CPI-M that was at the forefront of the long march of farmers from Nashik to Mumbai in 2018. One of the demands was better implementation of the Forest Rights Act. There was no violence on that march, not a single car window was smashed. It was during this time that a BJP leader spoke about Urban Naxals and that term has stuck."

Bullet train
Another name swirling in the Palghar blame game is that of the Kashtakari Sanghatana. Dhawale said, "The Kashtakari Sanghatana and the CPI-M have had a prickly relationship.

However about three years ago, we came together to galvanise people in the area against the Bullet Train project. We have buried the hatchet so to speak, since."

Parliamentary process
In the end, Dhawale said that the CPI- M was totally against the Maoist violence in fringe pockets, "We have always been part of the Parliamentary process, right from Independence. We have unequivocally condemned the Palghar lynching; for the right wing to link it to us, to defame us, is simply nonsensical."

Go and file
Mumbai's Shriraj Nair, national spokesperson Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), slammed the CPI- M saying, "If any villager is innocent we support him. We are for tracking down the culprits of this crime. For years though, the CPI-M has been brainwashing villagers and conducting anti-Hindu activities. They are also anti-development."

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With most areas in the city marked as COVID-19 hotspots and no transport available, residents feel that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) circular allowing pre-monsoon repair work and waterproofing in buildings before the onset of monsoon, is nothing but an eyewash. They are of the opinion that if the lockdown continues beyond May 3, it will be practically difficult to complete work before the rains, as no shops selling cement, sand, brick and waterproofing chemicals will be open.

Speaking to mid-day, Somasunderan Nair, director, Intercons Tectonic (Pvt) Ltd, a Vashi-based firm doing engineering and civil construction work, said, "It is just impossible for the labourers to go to different locations with no transportation available. They can't travel between construction sites located in different areas of Mumbai and Navi Mumbai."

Rekhi Sai Daffodils has been undergoing repairs since January

'All going to waste'
"Also, I had stored raw materials (cement and sand) worth a few lakhs of rupees at different buildings undergoing repairs, but all of it got stalled due to the lockdown," added Nair. He further said, "At one of our Kharghar site, the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) staff had asked the site supervisor to wind up all repair work, and at that time, a ready-mix cement mortar consignment was being offloaded from a Gujarat registered truck. Since the municipal staff warned of '15,000 fine per staff, the workers had no option but to leave the site. Nearly 700 bags of ready-mix cement mortar were offloaded, but I fear that all of it will go to waste. They have been lying unused for over one month and if the lockdown continues, we might have to dispose of the raw materials."

While the BMC has come out with a circular allowing work to be carried out, the NMMC and PCMC are yet to provide any clarity on such repair works.

Exposed beams of Rekhi Sai Daffodils in Kharghar

A Ghatkopar West resident, whose building is under repairs, said, "We have stored some materials in our building premises and have allowed some workers to stay on the compound. Even the contractor is ready to buy construction materials like bricks, cement etc from the local market, but for that we need to know where such outlets are open."

'Apply for online permissions'
When contacted, a senior official from BMC's Development Plan department said, "We have issued the circular which clearly states the directives. As per the directions of the state government, certain activities are being allowed during lockdown. However, the said guidelines were stayed by the government vide GR dated April 21, 2020 for Mumbai Metropolitan Region and Pune Metropolitan Region. However, to save some existing structures/buildings and prevent flood like situations during monsoon, certain construction activities within MCGM limits may be allowed in non-containment zones."

Navre Premises Cooperative society in Sion West

When asked that if the entire city is under lockdown, then how will the circular be implemented, the official said, "It is a fact that most of the areas in Mumbai are containment zones and no work will be allowed there. If the situation is under control after May 3, then as and when the lockdown is lifted, work can be started. Meanwhile, the contractors/societies concerned should apply for online permissions."

And if monsoon sets in by then, the official said, "The contractors can cover the open terraces with tarpaulin sheets and permission can be given for repairs post monsoon."

Expert speak
When contacted, senior lawyer, Vinod Sampat, said, "As far as the BMC is concerned, everyone is interested in protecting their own skin. There is no coordination between government departments. A simple solution can be easily worked out by designating one responsible official for the job. He would ensure that the residents' requirements are easily met and the construction materials are made available to those whose buildings are getting repaired. Secondly, there is no accountability among government officials and they are unpredictable. As far as possible, repair work should not be undertaken immediately. A better way would be to put tarpaulin sheets on the buildings and postpone repair work to the post-monsoon time."

He further said, "Moreover, it is very difficult to get skilled labourers now as most of them want to return home. And lastly, if any of the contractors or their workers test positive for COVID-19, the society managing committee members may be held responsible for not taking proper precaution."

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A 36-year-old man was arrested for beating his 70-year-old father in Bhandup to death after an argument on Sunday night. According to the police, the man, identified as Sachin Gorivle was having an argument about his employment with the deceased, Krishna, The Times of India reported.

Sachin did odd jobs for a living and was at home since the lockdown due to coronavirus outbreak in March. When Krishna argued with Sachin about his job, the latter attacked the former in a fit of rage. His mother and sister were in a different room when the incident happened.

Krishna was rushed to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

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The 73-year-old mother and wife of a police constable have tested positive for COVID-19 in neighbouring Navi Mumbai, an official said on Tuesday. The constable, who is attached to the Mumbai police, had tested positive for the infection earlier, while swab reports of his elderly mother and wife came out positive on Monday, public relations officer of the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation Mahendra Konde said.

In another development, a 42-year-old heart patient, who died while being shifted to a hospital in Navi Mumbai, tested positive for coronavirus post death, the official said. A 57-year-old medical personnel of a civic hospital in Mumbai has contracted the infection, and at least 12 civic workers, who came in contact with her, were quarantined, a release from the Palghar district administration stated.

As per reports, the number of positive cases in Palghar stood at 146, of which 10 patients have succumbed to the infection. Meanwhile, as many as 41 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Maharashtra''s Thane district, taking the tally to 728 in the region and toll to 21, after two more died on Monday, an official from the district administration said.

With 41 patients, Mumbra town has recorded the highest number of cases in the district.

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Amidst the general gloom of these days, we should never forget all the stories of courage and hope. One such uplifting account has lessons for all of us.

A teacher of a BMC school, came up with the idea to hold classes for students during the lockdown period. She has been holding conference telephone calls with students, who are now getting lessons via these telephone calls.

It must be remembered that these are kids that do not have access to the Internet or computers. There is a section of children in the city who are logging on to the Internet every day and have regular school online. While that is one of the upsides of our hi-tech lives these days, those that do not have this lifestyle must also be encouraged and be able to continue with their studies.

A report in this paper highlighted how this teacher is telling her students to come together via telephone calls and imparting lessons.

It is true, as she said, that too long a break results in children forgetting what they have learnt, or in extreme but real scenarios, dropping out of school altogether.

Students must be on our radar in these times. They face tough questions, about exams, their future and stress over what the next academic year will bring for them.
Teachers must be creative in bringing lessons to children. Parents must try to ensure that children re-learn and refresh what they had learnt in the past. Extra effort and pain are needed from all stakeholders in these times.

Clear communication by the school principal or management at regular intervals may dispel some uncertainty. Let efforts towards academics be full-on and let us take care of young minds and hearts which may be filled with confusion and trepidation.

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The Kalachowkie police have registered a case against three people who entered a sealed building on the pretext of checking for COVID-19 patients. The building was sealed after BMC officials found positive patients in it. The trio was equipped with thermal scanners.

According to the Kalachowki police, on Monday afternoon, the accused Aniket Chaugule, 25, Deepak Wagh, 24, and Ashok Chavhan, 22, visited Vikrant Sadan building in Chinchpokli and posing as BMC employees, told residents that they had come to checking for any positive patients in the building.

When the residents asked for documentary proof, the trio could not produce any. So, the residents called the Kalachowkie police.

As soon as the call was received, a police team reached the building and after interrogating the three found that they were not BMC employees. A case was registered against all three and the police quarantined them. The accused have been maintaining that they had come to do social work and had no intention of cheating anyone. Police are verifying their claims.

A police officer told mid-day, "Outsiders are banned from entering the sealed building. In such a situation, these three people violated the law by entering the building and lied to residents that they are BMC employees. We are investigating further," said Kalachowkie Senior Police Inspector Gokulsing Patil.

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Mumbai Police has been dropping creative posts to spread awareness about the Coronavirus lockdown and why it is best for you to stay home on their social media accounts. After giving its followers who are not abiding the lockdown options to chose from, the police department is back with an interesting post with a twist.

 "Increase your phone's brightness... There's a very bright idea waiting for you!" the police department wrote in the post on Instagram, and shared what appears to be a pitch-black picture. A Baburao-style secret message appears once you increase the brightness of your phone.

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mumbai Police (@mumbaipolice) onApr 28, 2020 at 9:25pm PDT

The hilariously interactive post shared a few hours ago managed to garner 18,361 likes with many lauding the creativity. One user who noticed that the word risk was misspelled as 'ricks', the police department was quick in coming up with an apt reply saying, "Yeh Babu Rao ka style hai!"

Another user said, "I read it like Baburao." A user said, "When Mumbai Police is out patrolling, bahar jaaneka bilkul ricks nai leneka."

What do you think about the post?

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In another incident that underlines the abject plight of migrant labourers, the Mulund police found 19 of them attempting to walk home to UP on foot in a bid to escape hunger and unemployment. The group was spotted sitting on a water pipeline during drone surveillance on Wednesday evening. What surprised the police was that usually, people run away as soon as they notice drones. However, these labourers, trying to escape hunger in the city, did not flinch and stared back at the drone. The group appeared to be headed in the direction of Thane.

The police across the state are using drones to keep an eye on their jurisdiction amid the COVID-19 lockdown. The police spotted this group around 7pm on Wednesday during routine surveillance and went for a closer look.

Vijay Prajapati, a migrant

The police noticed a few people sitting on a pipeline that supplies water. The drone was lowered to get a better look at the people and police counted 19 people sitting, observing the drone.

"People run away after they realise a drone is tracking them. But these people did not. We thought they are resting. All of them had bags hoisted on their backs or lying by their side," said an officer from Mulund police station. "We informed a patrolling van and some local politicians who rushed to the Veena Nagar," the officer added. The 19 people were taken to Mulund police station where cops and MLA Mihir Kotecha spoke to them.

Brahmadatta Tiwari

"Of the 19, 16 reside in Sonapur, Bhandup West and six are from Goregaon East. All are daily wage labourers," said Kotecha.

"They all belong to a village near Balrampur near Lukhnow, Uttar Pradesh. They planned to go to their hometown walking. All of them have been taken to Bhandup Shelter Home, where they will be given food."

A screenshot of the video of the labourers taken during drone surveillance by Mulund police. Pics/Suresh Karkera

Sonapur resident Vijay Kumar Prajapati, 38, said, "We all live in one single room. We don't have a single rupee in our pocket now. We have no option but to walk back to our home where our family is. We haven't had proper food for the past three days. So, instead of starving, we chose this path."

Brahmadatta Tiwari, 40, a Goregaon East resident, said, "We all belong to the same village. We discussed among each other about what to do as money and provisions are ending. With no other option left, we decided to walk back home."

Mulund police informed the labourers that the government has allowed for states to take back their migrants and if they want, they will be taken home.

7g
Time on Wednesday evening that the drone spotted the migrants on the pipeline

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Early on Wednesday morning, 27 students and six parents from Raigad district, who were among the 2,000 Maharashtra residents stranded in Kota, Rajasthan, arrived at the Gram Vikas Bhavan in Kharghar in a special private bus arranged by the district administration.

Fifteen of the students are from Panvel, three from Karjat, three from Pen, one from Pune, two from Thane and five from Alibaug, among others. They had enrolled at coaching institutes to prepare for NIIT, IIT and medical entrance exams.

According to the students, who are now in home-quarantine, exams were scheduled for April first week. For medical students, they were scheduled in the first week of May. Both exams have been postponed amid the Coronavirus lockdown.

The returnees inside the private bus

"Around 2 lakh students were staying in hostels and studying at a single institute in Kota. While most states have taken their students back, around 6,000 from Jharkhand and Bihar are still stranded," said Gauri Mayekar, a student from Alibaug who aspires to study medicine.

"I enrolled at my institute last April to prepare for my medical entrance examination. I had scored 78 per cent in PCMB (physics, chemistry, maths, biology) during HSC. My mother joined me in January and we were to return in March. We had to extend our stay due to the lockdown," Mayekar added.

Some parents from Raigad had approached the district's Guardian Minister Aditi Tatkare to help bring their kids back. Tatkare wrote to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. District Collector Nidhi Choudhary spoke to her counterpart in Kota and special permissions were issued to allow the bunch to travel in a specially arranged bus.

Another student Gaurav Maurya, 18, a resident of Pen, said that his common entrance exam for NIIT, which was to begin in April first week, has been postponed.

"I had got a scholarship and joined a well-known private institute in Kota. My parents had paid R56,000 for the whole term. My initial plan was to appear for the exam in Kota and then return home. But now I have asked for the centre to be shifted somewhere near my home," Gaurav said.

Amit Sanap, tehsildar, Panvel said, "We arranged for the students and parents to get a medical checkup at Gram Vikas Bhavan, Kharghar. Sub-district hospital doctors checked the students' temperature at the entrance. None of the arrivals showed symptoms of novel Coronavirus. Each of them was stamped for the 14-day home quarantine. All were happy to be home after being stuck in Kota since the lockdown."

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Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday called Prime Minister Narendra Modi about his nomination to the State Legislative Council. According to sources, Thackeray asked for PM Modi's help, saying if it doesn't happen, he will have to resign. The PM said that he would look into the matter and get more details. The Maharashtra Cabinet on April 28 once again asked Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari to nominate Chief Minister Thackeray to the State Legislative Council.

Earlier on April 9, the state Cabinet had recommended Thackeray's name for one of the two vacant MLC seats that were to be nominated by Koshyari to the Legislative Council to avoid a constitutional crisis. Thackeray was sworn-in as the Maharashtra Chief Minister on November 28, last year. He is currently not a member of either of the House -- Legislative Assembly or Legislative Council.

According to the Constitution, Thackeray has to be elected to either Assembly or Council within six months in order to continue in his post.

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Saddened by the news of the passing away of veteran Bollywood actor Rishi Kapoor, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief and politician Raj Thackeray paid rich tributes to the late actor. On Thursday, the MNS leader took to social media to pay homage and penned a heartfelt note calling Rishi Kapoor the first 'Chocolate boy' of the Bollywood film industry.

A fearless tweet takes a bow!#RishiKapoor #à¤Â‹षि_à¤Â•पà¥Â‚र #मनसà¥Â‡à¤ÂÂÂÂÂ…भिवादन pic.twitter.com/NcVk6VqLZG

— Raj Thackeray (@RajThackeray) April 30, 2020

Titled 'A fearless tweet takes a bow!', Thackeray began his note saying that the country lost two exemplary artists back to back, mentioning the demise of Irrfan Khan and and Rishi Kapoor in a span of two days.

Talking about Rishi Kapoor's entry into the Bollywood Industry, Raj Thackeray said that although Kapoor made his debut at a time when the film industry had a strong group of young actors including Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Rajesh Khanna, Shatrughan Sinha, and Dharmendra, he managed to become the voice of the youth and remained so to date.

Raj Thackeray's post

A heartfelt trubute penned by Raj Thackeray for the late actor, Rishi Kapoor

The MNS chief said that Rishi Kapoor did full justice to the Kapoor legacy. Throwing light on Rishi Kapoor's acting skills and his persona, Raj Thackeray said that looking at his effortless performances, one felt that there was no camera in front of him.

Raj also heaped praises on the late Rishi Kapoor for always speaking his heart out and taking a stand. "My family and I have a deep affection for Rishi Kapoor. His performances and his forthright conduct is something, I wholeheartedly appreciate. Be it a social cause, political debate or any current happenings, he was very articulate and forthright in his thoughts and words. One could see his true core reflect in his tweets. Even if there was a huge uproar on any of his tweets, he held his own and never refrained from taking a stand," Raj wrote.

Rishi ji, a person who showed the Cine world what “good looks” truly meant and a friend of the family for decades and 3 generations.
Our heartfelt condolences to the Kapoor family.

— Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) April 30, 2020

While concluding his heartfelt tribute, Raj offered his condolence to Rishi Kapoor's family and said, "A deeply passionate person who loved his craft. I offer my humble and heartfelt tribute to this exceptional artist who leaves behind a legacy that will be etched in the ethos of our Indian film industry for eternity."

Besides Raj, Maharashtra Tourism Minister Aaditya Thackeray also paid homage to Rishi Kapoor. He said, "A friend of the family for decades and 3 generations. Our heartfelt condolences to the Kapoor family."

Rishi Kapoor, who was diagnosed with cancer back in 2018, was admitted at Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital in Mumbai around three weeks ago and he passed away on Wednesday morning at 8:45am in the hospital.

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On Thursday, veteran actor Rishi Kapoor died at a city hospital after a two-year battle with cancer. He had spent several months in the US for treatment.

A day before that, actor Irrfan Khan died after being admitted to a Mumbai hospital following a colon infection. The superlative actor too, had been diagnosed with a neuroendocrine tumour two years ago and had sought treatment in the UK.

The death of the two Bollywood stalwarts throws all the pain and suffering of cancer into sharp relief. It hammers home the message that while the world and with it the news outlets are consumed with vaccine trials for Coronavirus and possible cures, we still have to find a cure for cancer. We have made great strides in the battle against cancer, and continue to do so. Yet, every death is a sobering reminder that for so many years, a definitive cure for cancer continues to elude us. Some experts claim that we may never find that one remedy that makes cancer go away.

Caretakers whose eyes brim with tears as they live with a loved one afflicted with cancer and the sufferers themselves long and hope that a cure may come in their lifetime.

Meanwhile, we may become even more adept at managing cancer, so much so that the big C loses its sting.

With that to ponder on, one hopes that cancer patients are getting timely care in these times, that chemotherapy patients are able to access medical centres, talk to doctors, and health facilities remain especially careful as their patients' immunity is already compromised to some degree. In these dark times, where Coronavirus statistics take centre stage, let us not forget that the combat against the other big C still goes on. The Emperor of Maladies may have met its match in terms of management but more power and wings to the search for a cure for that C too.

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Amid the rising number of COVID-19 cases in Mumbai, Deputy Municipal Commissioner (Zone IV) on Wednesday wrote to Addl CP West Region Manoj Kumar Sharma, demanding stricter implementation of rules in the containment zones between Bandra and Andheri, especially the slum areas in the belt.

These include Nehru Nagar (Juhu police station), Samta Nagar and Junaid Nagar (DN Nagar), CD Barfiwala Road and Juhu Galli (DN Nagar), Gaondevi Dongri, Gilbert Hill and Dhangarwadi (DN Nagar), Versova Village (Versova), Kranti Nagar, Anand Nagar, and Behraum Baug (Oshiwara). The municipal authority observed "that there is no fall in the rate of positively tested patients and are rather increasing. It appears that existing lockdown measures are inadequate," the communication said.

It asked local authorities to ensure that the localities, local pockets and chawls are strictly sealed and locked down to have effective control on spreading Coronavirus in these localities.

"This office has frequently informed senior inspectors of respective police stations regarding containment of areas in their respective jurisdictions on a day to day basis as and when positive cases are traced in particular localities," the letter read.

Sharma told mid-day that "the police have already increased patrolling in these areas and deployed more number of officials."

'Lack of individual toilets'

DCP Abhishek Trimukhe said, "We have barricaded these designated red zones and are ensuring that there is limited access. Only the government ration shops and medicine shops are allowed to be kept open. All other shops in red zones will remain closed. However, the main challenge in these slum pockets is that there are no independent toilets within the red zone itself. There needs to be a toilet facility otherwise people will keep venturing out of their homes to use the toilet. How can we keep denying people the need to use the toilet?"

Cops make the rounds of slum areas every day

He pointed out: "There is a heavy space constraint in these slum areas, as opposed to building societies, where containment is very good. The lanes are very narrow in some slum pockets and the population density is high."

Identification system required

Trimukhe said that the police had asked BMC to have some sort of identification procedure for people who are residents of these red zones. "Since the population of these areas is very high, a designated identification system would make it easier to identify and segregate people," he said adding that community meetings have been held with residents to explain the guidelines to them.

'Can't sit inside tiny homes all day'

Senior PI of Oshiwara police station Dayanand Bangar echoed Trimukhe's concerns. "People are always saying that they are either going to get medicines or buy milk but the biggest problem is that of common toilets," he said.

"Residents of these slum areas, who live in a 10x10 house, cannot sit at home all day," he said, adding that in areas like Kranti Nagar, there is zero growth of COVID-19 cases. "Even though this is a red zone, there are currently no positive patients here.

Seven people, who had gone for treatment, and are now back."

1.4k
No. of containment zones in city

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Mumbai Police shared a heartbreaking and inspiring video of one of the officers who was tested positive for coronavirus,  going away for his treatment, with a promise of winning the battle against the pandemic and joining back on duty soon.

The 15-seconds video was enough to make Twitter users emotional and they heaped praises for the cop for being courageous despite testing positive for the virus. The police department said in the caption while sharing the video, "Our 29 year old frontline warrior, who tested positive for Coronavirus, just summarised what we’ve been meaning to tell you all along."

The video shows the officer bidding adieu to his colleagues and getting into an ambulance that was waiting to take him to the hospital.

Our 29 year old frontline warrior, who tested positive for Coronavirus, just summarised what we’ve been meaning to tell you all along - à¤Â•à¤¾à¤¹à¥Â€ à¤ÂŸà¥Â‡à¤Â‚शन à¤Â˜à¥Â‡à¤ÂŠ नà¤Â•à¥Â‹ रà¥Â‡, मितà¥Âà¤°à¤¾! #AamhiDutyVarAahot #MumbaiPoliceOnDuty #MumbaiFirst#TakingOnCorona pic.twitter.com/tNJWg7Ljsv

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 29, 2020

The post shared on Twitter garnered more than 346,400 views and over 18,200 likes and was retweeted more than 3,600 times. The users commenting on the video said that they are praying for the officer’s speedy recovery.

That's the spirit ..salute to such a brave officer ...best wishes for his recovery

— Harish Raja (@hraja2016) April 29, 2020

I Salute and pray for the speedy recovery of all the Warriors who have been detected positive.
Tujhi kalji ghe Mitra.

— Akshay Raut (@akkir) April 29, 2020

His attitude says a lot about the young cop there... god bless â­Â
Yes tension gheu naka ... He will be back soonðŸ‘ÂÂŒ#PositiveVibes

— Neha (@IamNRGe) April 29, 2020

Get well soon sir love you all because of you we are safe and happy in mumbai..

— Aasif shaikh (@Asifshaikhseo) April 29, 2020

Salute ! Salute ! Salute

— Bharati Chaudhari (@bumekar) April 29, 2020

What do you think about the post?

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Enforcing prohibitory orders strictly, the Maharashtra police have registered over 85,500 offences against lockdown violators across the state and arrested 16,962 people so far, an official said on Thursday. While combating COVID-19 and enforcing lockdown since late March, police have registered offences under section 188 of IPC against 85,586 persons, who violated prohibitory orders, he said. Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code is related to disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant.

Also, 16,962 people were arrested for violation of lockdown-related norms, he said. During the period, at least 161 police personnel, 21 of them officers, have tested coronavirus positive, he said. At least 167 cases of assault on police have been filed in the state in which 580 accused persons have been arrested so far, he said. Police have registered 1,237 offences of illegal transportation and seized more than 50,000 vehicles during the lockdown period, he said.

Police collected Rs 3.02 crore as fine for various offences during the period, he said. At least 622 persons were detained by police for violation of quarantine norms, he added.

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Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has mandated 100 percent attendance for all its employees in offices and on-field, with some relaxation to people over 55 years of age and people with medical conditions. This comes as the country is under lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus, which has been found to be more fatal to elderly people and those with existing health complications. "All staff over the age of 55 years are advised to either work from home or work in the office and not go on the field. People in the medical department, including doctors, nursing staff and paramedics over the age of 55 years with co-morbidities are advised to stay home for two weeks," the order issued on Friday said.

The BMC also advised all staff, who live outside its limits like Thane, Navi Mumbai, Mira Bhaynder, or Palghar, etc, to contact the nearest Ward office so they can render their services to the nearest ward office from their residence, instead of their original current posting. Earlier this week, Mumbai Police had asked its personnel who are above 55 years of age to stay at home during the coronavirus lockdown.

According to the Medical Education and Drugs Department of Maharashtra, 7061 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the Mumbai Municipal Corporation area while 290 have lost their lives and another 1,180 have recovered after receiving treatment.

Maharashtra, however, remains the worst affected state in the country with at least 10,498 coronavirus cases as on Friday.

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Poets possess keys to aspects of the world that are often hidden from our collective view. It is why I turn to them as often as I do whenever I find myself treading water, trying to make sense of things that make me question everything I think I have known. Like our global pandemic, for instance. Nothing prepared us for the weeks of forced isolation, the overwhelming insecurities that bubbled up from within, or the creeping doubt that nothing we really did for a living was of any actual significance. And so, I turned to poetry.

I began with Ilya Kaminsky, whose work I have spent many hours over, grateful for their existence and troubled by how they came into being. Kaminsky's latest collection, Deaf Republic — and only his second in 15 years — seemed to come from a place of startling familiarity, despite the poems being set in a fictional city called Vasenka. They seemed recognisable because of what they described: citizens who lived happily during a war. 'And when they bombed other people's houses,' he writes, 'we protested / but not enough, we opposed them but not / enough.' It moved and angered me, as he spoke of people living 'in the street of money in the city of money in the country of money, our great country of money…' because so much of it resonated with what we have been living through.

The impact of reading this while in isolation was powerful because Kaminsky lost his hearing at the age of four in Ukraine. He lived in silence until he turned 16 in America and was fitted with hearing aids. I thought about what he had once referred to as 'seeing in a language of images,' and what it meant for me, as a reader, to look at his world from that prism. As cities outside my window began shutting down, his poems set me free.

I was given access to another worldview by the English poet Fiona Benson and her (coincidental) second collection, Vertigo & Ghost.

This one was dark too, relying on Greek myth to somehow shine a light on the sexual violence that women have always had to contend with. Benson did this by portraying
the god Zeus as a sexual predator, a man 'who shoved a sawn-off shotgun / through the letterbox calling softly /like he was calling to the cat / that terrible croon, / SWEETHEART, / I'M HOME.' It was unsettling because it forced me to unlearn everything I thought I knew about a divine figure we had been trained to respect, a god of lightning and thunder who was married to goddesses and somehow given a pass to violate them.

Benson's Zeus has no morals, stalking his victims, praising Presidents who live in shiny gold towers, a flawed deity who would fit into India's current Parliament like a glove.

Another collection, an older one by American poet Claudia Rankine titled Citizen, forced me to look at the thorny subject of race, which, as any residential society's WhatsApp group can show, is alive and well in modern India. On the surface, Rankine's exploration of the covert and overt ways in which bigotry rears its head in America shouldn't find parallels in the country we call home. And yet, the minute we replace skin colour with caste, cracks start to appear in our carefully constructed façade of a tolerant, peaceful civilization.

What Rankine does is focus on microaggression — the thousands of minor, daily acts of prejudice, intentional or unintentional, that people of colour must grow accustomed to and accept as they go about the simple business of living. It compelled me to think of our own responses to the COVID-19 lockdown and the hypocrisy with which so many of us chose to vilify poor Indians whose only fault was walking home to meet a primal need for safety.

I recognise that the act of reading poetry is not only a private one, it is also one of privilege, given the implication that I need not worryabout shelter or where my next meal must come from. I believe it is important though because isolation creates an atmosphere of extreme scrutiny, allowing us to make changes to who we are and what we believe in.

No one doubts that the world emerging blinking into the daylight at the end of this pandemic will be a new one; all one can hope for is that the changes we must wakeup to will be for the better.

When he isn't ranting about all things Mumbai, Lindsay Pereira can be almost sweet. He tweets @lindsaypereira
Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com

The views expressed in this column are the individual's and don't represent those of the paper

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There are at least 160 firefighters who are working indefatigably to sanitise the streets and buildings in these times.

A report in this paper detailed how fire brigade personnel are divided into 32 teams and are sanitising more than 3,000 spots in the city, including, of course, hospitals and other places. The service has pressed its machinery into effect but it is in the end, the human chain that is driving the humongous effort of sanitising a teeming, and impossibly crowded city.

Let us recalibrate some aspects of our life and living, post these measures. One of those must be a more conscious effort to fighting fires. Let us make things easier for these firemen. This means working fire equipment in residential buildings. Do press upon the housing society committee that it is absolutely non-negotiable that they have firefighting equipment in the building premises.

We must also have residents attending the drill and familiarising themselves with the working of fire extinguishers, otherwise, the installation is merely cosmetic.

Learn from credible websites about what constitutes as the first response during fires. Knowledge about how to react first, before the experts reach, is important.

Try to keep stairwells and passages free in all buildings for a getaway in case of fire. Landlords of commercial buildings must check if compounds can be de-congested for easier access in case of fire. Easier said than done in a city where every inch of space is a luxury, but some method to the parking madness may be effective to some degree.

Small measures can go some way to make life easier for our firefighters. A more concerted effort is needed, so that we become allies with our men in blue, who are today preoccupied with protecting us in a different way.

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After locking down the nation with just four hours notice on March 24 and leaving lakhs of migrant workers high and dry, the Centre on Friday launched Shramik Special trains to transport these workers and other stranded people home.

Indian Railway appealed to people not to crowd stations as the trains are only for those screened and registered by state governments. “No one should come to the station looking for trains. We will not issue tickets or entertain request from any group or individual. We will allow only those passengers whom state officials bring. The State is the final authority on deciding who travels,” an Indian Railway spokesperson said. The first train from Maharashtra, Nashik-Bhopal Shramik Special departed from Nashik station at 9:30 pm on May 1 as scheduled.

These special, non-AC trains will run from point to point. There will be different fares for sleeper and general class. The Railways and states shall appoint senior staff as Nodal Officers for coordination.

Migrants onboard a train for Hatia, Jharkhand at Lingampally, Telangana. Pic/PTI

Passengers have to be screened by states sending them and only asymptomatic people would be allowed to travel. Sending states have to bring these people in batches to the designated station in sanitised buses following social distancing norms and other precautions. It will be mandatory for every passenger to wear face masks. Meals and drinking water have to be provided by the sending states at the originating station. Railways said they will ensure social distancing, hygiene and provide a meal on longer journeys. On arrival, the home state has to screen, quarantine passengers if necessary and arrange further travel from the station.

Nine-point plan

Maharashtra’s Minister of Transport Anil Parab gave the following guidelines travellers must follow:

• Those willing to leave Maharashtra should fill forms and submit them to local police stations through their group leaders.
• The form will require basic details like name, address in migrant and home state, Aadhar card, mobile number. Each train will carry 1,000 passengers.
• Each migrant must get a certificate from a doctor stating that the traveller does not have COVID-19 symptoms.
• Based on this information, state will decide on booking tickets and make a list based on the applications.
• After preparing list, state will seek permission from the home state. After receiving NoC, action will be taken by district collectors to help passengers reach home.
• A section of the form will ask the traveller to choose the mode of transport — rail or road.
• Those wishing to travel by bus can form groups of 25, arrange a bus and inform the local police. Each state and district will have nodal officers.
• There is no restriction of movement within the state. Those who have gone out of Mumbai and are stuck can return. No restriction on people returning from Green Zones.
• However, people residing in Red Zones, especially in containment zones, cannot move.

No respite for Red Zone migrants?

People stranded in Containment Zones and Red Zones are likely to be prevented from leaving. This means many migrants in MMR, Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Nashik, Nagpur, Yavatmal and other affected districts stand no chance of leaving. Nodal officers at the district and state headquarter levels have started getting requests from people.

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The COVID-19 lockdown is turning out to be a blessing in disguise for all of Mumbai's pending rail work. Re-girding of a bridge on the Churchgate-bound fast line in the Bandra-Mahim section, which would have otherwise required cancellation of at least 250 local train services, was completed within 14 hours on April 30.

The steel bridge, which spans 9.15 metres and has seven cross-girders of length 5.8 metres is located on the Mithi River. The steel girders needed to be immediately replaced as they had got corroded.

Speaking to mid-day, Western Railway chief spokesperson, Ravinder Bhakar, said, "Mumbai suburban is one of the busiest rail networks of the world and to carry out work of such magnitude is a daunting task. This work required complete shutdown of traffic for eight hours on three consecutive days, which would have resulted in cancellation of at least 250 suburban services and cancellation/delay of at least 60 passenger trains in the section."

Sources said that the Railways decided to utilise the lockdown period and carry out the re-girding work by following all the social-distancing norms. Two cranes of 200 MT capacity, eight Farana cranes, 20 Hydra cranes and 18 excavators were deployed at the site.

Apart from this, the work was carried out by 30-40 track maintainers and contractual labourers, and a dedicated team of supervisors and officials.

All pre-block activity was completed on April 29 and the cranes were set up at the location. On April 30, work started from 9 am and the track part was completed by 8 pm. After that the overhead wires were fitted by 11.30 pm and the track was declared fit for train movement.

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The financial crisis caused due to the COVID-19 pandemic has led to school fees becoming a major point of discussion. While many schools have introduced novel concepts to ease the burden, parents are also discussing ways with managements to avoid issues with salary to staff.

Despite the constant demand by parents to cancel fees or give concessions, this is not possible for all schools. Principal of Smt. Sulochanadevi Singhania School in Thane, Revathy Srinivasan said, "Schools cannot do away with fees, after all, salaries need to be paid to staff."

Some relax norms

Many schools have their own model of relaxation in fees. Meera Isaacs, principal of Cathedral and John Connon School, said, "If some parents are facing genuine issues, we consider them. We have also waived off fine on late payment of fees."

Similarly, at the Sri Sri Ravishankar Vidya Mandir, the late fee is waived. Despite a PTA-approved hike in fees to be implemented this year, the school has decided to continue with the old fee structure for three months. Principal Rekha Kapoor, said, "This decision was taken due to the current situation."

Jamnabai Narsee School has not spoken anything about fees as yet. "Generally parents pay fees in the month of April. But we have not collected fees as we are yet to take a decision. We are not going to push for them so fast," said principal Zeenat Bhojabhoy.

Bombay Scottish, Mahim has deferred the increase in fees for the forthcoming year. Dhirubhai Ambani International School has decided to waive off transport and canteen fees. At Pawar Public School, one month extension was provided to parents to pay the first instalment.

'Govt must intervene'

Former education minister Ashish Shelar has written a letter to Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad, asking her to issue an order to schools to rollback fee hikes. But parents feel that the issue should not be politicised.

President of Parents of Private Schools of Maharashtra (POPSOM), Milind Gangurde said, "Many parents are dependent on jobs. Some are facing huge salary cuts or loss of jobs due to the situation. It is time the government intervenes and takes a strong stand in favour of parents."

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On April 3, welfare groups across the city, along with medical professionals and lawyers, issued a press release demanding the immediate withdrawal of the civic body's plans to convert any building in Mahul into a quarantine centre. They cited health concerns, due to the neighbourhood's high pollution levels. And yet, a month on, nearly 30 residents of Panchsheel chawl in Govandi's Lumbini Baug have been shifted to a makeshift quarantine facility at Videocon Society, Mahul. The residents had come in contact with a 55-year-old woman from their basti, whose cause of death was posthumously ruled as COVID-19.

The quarantine centre, where residents of Chembur's Cheetah Camp have also been shifted, houses approximately 100 people. The building's first and second floors are currently being used as a quarantine facility, with not more than two people to a room. The chawl residents say that the place lacks basic amenities such as running and drinking water as well as the presence of permanent medical staff. The premises is also covered with dust, has shabby sanitation facilities. Further, there has been no segregation between children and adults so far.

Smoke coming from a nearby oil refinery pollutes the area's air

The April 3 press note states that Mahul has been declared "uninhabitable" by at least two Indian courts "given the toxic environment due to the presence of polluting industries."

Citing hazardous air quality conditions, it further reads: "Mahul is completely unfit for human habitation, much less for treatment and care. To establish a quarantine centre in Mahul would not be beneficial from the health point of view, but would prove detrimental towards efforts taken by MCGM to control this pandemic."

Residents say the water is dirty and the toilets not fit for use. They argue that they were better off at their chawl

A 22-year-old resident of Lumbini Baug says, "One of the main problems is the amount of dust. If there was any running water, we ourselves would have washed the premises. This dust can cause sneezing and coughing among people who have allergies or weak immune systems."

He adds, "There is no running water in the toilets. At home, we were at least taking our own Vitamin C tablets, maintain a healthy diet, and eating nutritious food. We expected basic facilities at the centre. There is also no permanent medical staff present here. We have not received any therapy or medical treatment yet."

Advocate Lara Jesani, one of the signatories to the April 3 press note, says: "It is dangerous for people to be quarantined in Mahul because of the high level of pollution in the area. The place is congested and poorly planned and therefore creates health hazards for people who may already have a weak immune system, making it harder for them to cope with the virus."

M East Ward Assistant Commissioner Sudhanshu Dwivedi refused to comment or discuss the issue. Bilal Khan of the Ghar Bachao Ghar Banao Andolan says, "In cases filed by us, the High Court has passed two orders declaring Mahul polluted and unfit for habitation and hence, directed the government to shift the Mahul residents to an environmentally safe place. Coronavirus causes severe acute respiratory syndrome."

The faulty design and poor sanitation of the Mahul buildings [as established from CSA report] can also result in further spread of infection, thereby endangering the residents. "Without trying other abundantly available options it is shocking that the government has sent people to such a toxic environment and that too, as a quarantine measure."

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Migrant labourers, who are stranded in Mumbai, have started crowding outside police stations, after the Central government directive that they could be sent home. They are doing this, so that they can give in their details. Some were in Mumbai for work, others to study and some just to visit their relatives. They now all want to return home.

Mohammad Ilyas, 25, from the state of Jharkhand, who works at a sewing factory in Kurla, has stopped working, and has no money. "The factory owner is not concerned, so I am eager to return." Mohammad Zaaim, 19, from Lucknow, who came to Mumbai for some work with his relatives, has been stuck since February.

A Mumbai police official said that they have appointed the DCP of each zone as the nodal officer. Those wishing to travel back, need to fill a form and submit it to the local police station. "We will send the details of this form to the Nodal Officer of that district, only after which the person will be able to to return." Mumbai Police spokesperson DCP Prannoy Ashok said, "If there are many people from the same district who want to go back, then they can choose one person as their representative, and through that person, give their name to the police station. We appeal to everyone to not gather in crowds at the police station."

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It was a race against time for Bhiwandi police on Saturday, when they were informed that a special train would leave from Bhiwandi Road Railway Station for Uttar Pradesh. The exercise of shortlisting passengers who belonged to UP's Gorakhpur district, and bringing them to the railway station, took less than five hours. And through it all, there was no chaos. The joy on the face of the migrants—who could finally see sight of home—was inevitable. The Government of India on Friday cleared the inter-state movement of trains for migrant labourers. Bhiwandi, a hub of handloom industries, is the workplace for more than thousands of labourers all of whom have been stranded after the nationwide lockdown. The local authorities received information from the Railway department that a special train would leave from Bhiwandi on Saturday. With 24 coaches it would run non-stop, completing the journey within 30 hours. Each passenger underwent a temperature check before boarding.

"As soon as we received this information, we started gathering information on people in the area who were from Gorakhpur and began the exercise with help of the municipal corporation and revenue department," says DCP Rajaram Shinde. "We shortlisted 1,200 persons."

Shamshuddin Sheikh, a driver, says, "I have spent the last one-and-half months with almost no money and very little groceries. I have been waiting for this day, now I am happy as I am going home to see my parents, wife and kids."

Another handloom worker, Muniram Yadav, says, it took him six hours to complete his registration with the authorities. "I haven't told my family that I am coming. I am going to inform them only after the train leaves," he adds.

Each coach will accommodate 54 passengers. The police have provided food, water, face masks and sanitisers to all passengers.

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With the Railways levying a surcharge of Rs 50 on the normal second-class fare on the special trains, activists and politicians on Sunday, were wondering aloud why this was so.

"It is unfair that Railways is charging migrants for transport to their homes. The Centre is spending so much on free food, shelter and treatment, it could have also waived train fare for migrants with no money or job," said Ajit Shenoy of Mumbai Mobility Forum (MMF).

Rakesh Doshi, who along with hundreds others travelled home on Saturday night, asked why the Centre or the Railways couldn't absorb the cost. "These are difficult times. Everyone is short of money. The Railways contributed R151 crore to the PM CARES Fund, but is charging migrants train fare," another migrant, who is also an activist, said. Another MMF member asked, "I want to know if those airlifted from China and Iran were charged or was it a free flight back home? If they weren't charged, then the special train ride should be free."

Railway officials said it was not charging migrants, as the tickets are not being issued to individuals, but the state governments are looking at the aspect of ticketing. A spokesperson said tickets were booked by the district administration and every state has its own policy.

"While many states are bearing the cost, NGOs are contributing in others, and fare was collected from the migrants in some states. And no additional charge was levied. Only the regular superfast surcharge was added to the fare. The train is carrying 50 per cent of the capacity and returning empty. Also the ticket fare includes meals and bottled water. The fare is basic, not exorbitant," a spokesperson said. Another official said, "Practically speaking, if the trains are run free, there will be chaos and that there won't be any accountability and documentation".

Meanwhile, Maharashtra Energy Minister Dr Nitin Raut has written to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, requesting that the state government bear the cost of the migrants' tickets.

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Soon after Maharashtra government directive allowing standalone liquor shops to open in COVID-19 red zones (except the containment areas), AIMIM Lok Sabha MP Imtiaz Jaleel has said if liquor shops are opened in Aurangabad, he would force their closure, adding that it is not a time to sell alcohol and create problems for women.

"Government decides to open liquor shops even in red zone! If shops in Aurangabad open we will break lockdown restrictions and forcibly close these shops. Will make many women come out on the streets. This is not time to sell liquor and create problems for mothers and sisters," the Aurangabad lawmaker tweeted in a series of tweet.

Lambasting the Maharashtra government, he further asked what is the hurry to sell liquor in this difficult time. He further stated if this is the case then why not allow selling everything, why this "privilege only to liquor shops".

The state government had on Sunday issued a list of activities that will be allowed in different zones of the State during the lockdown."The state government has decided to allow standalone shops including liquor shops to open in red zone also except the containment zones. Though there is no restriction in the number of essential shops that can be opened, only five non-essential shops can be opened in each lane," the government order stated.

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This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever

Due to the lockdown, migrant workers who were stranded in Mumbai are being sent back to their villages. Today, the Mumbai Police sent 25 migrant workers from the city to Rajasthan. This is the first bus to transport migrant workers from Mumbai to their village.

According to Mumbai Police, the 25 people are from Jalore district in Rajasthan. All of these individuals were residing in South Mumbai and are migrant workers. The workers had requested the Mumbai Police that they be sent to their village, due to which, the Police has issued a permit to go to Rajasthan. The fare of the bus will be paid by the workers themselves which is nearly Rs 6,000 per person.

The people travelling in this bus are from Jalore district. They all formed their own groups and sent an application to the police, after which they were given a permit.

Dharmendra Singh is from Jalore district of Rajasthan and was working at a cloth merchant's in South Mumbai but the work stopped due to the lockdown. Singh had applied to the MRA Marg police station after which the police arranged for a bus for him to go back to his village. Dharmendra Singh said that he was stuck in Mumbai due to the lockdown and is thankful to Mumbai Police.

Hansraj Chaudhary, who is from Jalore district, said, "I used to work at a stationery shop in Bora Bazar and the work stopped after the lockdown. There was no source of earning and it was causing problems."

DCP Zone 1 Sangram Singh Nishandar told mid-day, "These people applied to go to their village after which we gave them a permit. They got their own medical assistance and now they are going back to their village."

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The civic body is bracing for the Centre's projection of a high number of COVID-19 cases in the coming days and to ensure full preparedness, it has beefed up work on new facilities to treat patients and has started recruiting additional medical staff to run these centres.

Senior BMC officials said that a major recruitment drive is underway to hire over 3,000 doctors, nurses and ward boys on a contractual basis. BMC is planning to rope in medical staff from the city and the green zones across the state. A senior civic official said a circular has been sent out to deans of medical colleges and ward officials for the recruitment.

Civic officials said they are preparing for around 70,000 COVID-19 cases over the next two weeks. "We will hire doctors who are part of the Indian Medical Association as well as interns, post graduate students from private medical colleges for the COVID Care Centres (CCC). Since the centres are meant for asymptomatic patients, there is no need for specialised medical equipment and can be run by a basic medical staff," the senior BMC official said. He added that the doctors, nurses and ward boys will be hired for a period of three months.

Additional Municipal Commissioner Suresh Kakani, however, said there will be some restrictions for doctors. We will only allow specialists who aged below 55 years as a precautionary measure, he said, adding, "The new recruits will work in three shifts."

The BMC is setting up CCCs for asymptomatic patients in various schools and colleges. Besides, city's largest centre, with a capacity of 1,000 beds, is coming up at the MMRDA grounds at BKC. "The work is underway and we are trying to complete it by next week. The centre will have beds and oxygen supply, but no ventilators," said an MMRDA official, adding that Jupiter Hospital in Thane is helping with designing the centre.

It will also have a laboratory that will be the primary testing centre for complete blood count and haematology. The MMRDA official said they will bear the cost of construction while the BMC will provide the staff and other support to run the facility.

The decision on who will run the facility is yet to be taken, said a civic official, adding, "The state government may ask a medical college to handle it."

3
Total no. of months the doctors, nurses and ward boys will be hired for

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