RNI No. MAHEN/2007/21778 POSTAL REGN. NO. NMB/154/2017-19/VASHI MDG POST OFFICE

The Dynamic Daily Newspaper of

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Navi Mumbai

VOL. 13 • ISSUE 147October

2019THURSDAY

24

By Chandrashekhar Hendve

NAVI MUMBAI: Thestreets across satellitecity are dazzling withbright lanterns, beauti-ful earthen diyas, co-lourful Rangolis, fairylights as the festival oflights, Diwali is justfew days away. Not onlythe main shopping ar-eas like the A mark,Jalaram Market inVashi Turbhe, Sector 9Market in Vashi, Ner-ul (W) are doing briskbusiness, even the in-ternal streets of the cityare bustling with activ-ity with hawkers sell-ing Diwali decorativeitems.

There is a noticeablechanging trend thisDiwali: the preferenceis more on ‘Make in In-dia’ and eco-friendlyproducts despite the

City streets wear acolourful festive lookResidents opt for 'Make In India'

and Eco Friendly products

fact that these are al-most 40 percent costli-er than the previousyears. Thanks to theawareness and sensitiv-ity towards nature, saycity based environmen-talists and activists.

“I always buytrendy lights that ar-rive in the market dur-ing Diwali to decoratemy house. However, Iwas touched by a videowhich I saw on face-

Contd. on pg. 7

Demand forhandmade

chocolates surgesbefore DiwaliThe gifting trend

is slowly changingwith more and morepeople opting forhandmade chocolatesand cookies over tra-ditional sweets andsavouries, say thesweet shop owners inthe city, who alongwith sweets are alsokeeping an array ofchocolates to lurecustomers…

(More on page 3)

One dead, oneinjured in trailer

accidentA young man was

killed and anothercritically injuredwhen a trailer hit thescooty in which theywere travelling. TheUran police have ar-rested the trailerdriver responsible forthe accident…

(More on page 5 )

Josephian’sCelebrate Festival

Of Light WithSharing & Caring

Diwali the festi-vals of lights whichis celebrated acrossIndia with religiousfervor and traditionsignifies victory oflight over darkness,knowledge over igno-rance, good over evil,hope over despair &of sharing & caring.To inculcate thesevalues among theyoung minds, at St.Joseph’s High SchoolSSC, New Panvel cel-ebrated Diwali basedon the theme ‘Joy OfSharing’.

(More on page 6)

NEWS IN

BRIEF Election results tobe declared todaySecurity tightened at the counting centres

By Chandrashekhar Hendve

NAVI MUMBAI: To en-sure no untoward inci-dent takes place duringthe counting of votestoday, security has beenbeefed up at the count-ing centre. The officialsfrom the election com-missioner department,NMMC and CIDCO willbe present at the count-ing centre at SaraswatiVidyalaya, Sector 5,Airoli. The countingprocess for assemblyelections in the statewill be begin from 8 am,said Election Officer.

The election count-ing results of the Airoliassembly constituencywill be held under thegovernance of election

officer Abhay Kargut-kar. 25 officers whichwill include election of-ficers and staff, RO &DEO, Nodal Officer,Supervisor, VVPATS

and ETPBS (votingmachine) operators,counting agents, man-agement will be de-

Contd. on pg. 2

By Chandrashekahr

Hendve

NAVI MUMBAI: Morethan 100 contractworkers of the sanita-

No Diwali bonus; sanitationcontract workers stage protest

tion department of theNavi Mumbai Munici-pal Corporation(NMMC) staged protestat Shivaji Chowk in

Vashi on Wednesday asthey did not receive Di-wali bonus despite re-

Contd. on pg. 2

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Deepavali Festival Special TrainsTo Run Via KR Route

By Ashok Dhamija

PANVEL: KonkanRailway has decided torun Special Trains be-tween Mumbai -Karmali in coordina-tion with Central Rail-way, in order to clearextra rush of passen-gers during DeepavaliFestival – 2019. Thesame will have halt atPanvel Junction too.The details are as un-der:

A) Lokmanya Ti-lak (T) – KarmaliSuvidha Special

Train no. 82129Lokmanya Tilak (T) –Karmali Suvidha Spe-cial will leave from LTT- Mumbai at 00:45 hrson Saturday, 26th Oc-tober 2019. The Train

will reach Karmaliat 14:30 hrs on thesame day. The aboveSuvidha Special willcomprise of 22 LHBCoaches including One2 Tier AC, Four 3 TierAC, Twelve SleeperClass, Three GeneralSecond Class and TwoGenerator coaches.Halts en-routeincludes Thane, Panvel,Mangaon, Veer, Khed,Chiplun, Savarda,Aravali Road, San-gameshwar Road, Rat-nagiri, Adavali, Vila-vade, Rajapur Road,Vaibhavwadi Road,Nandgaon Road,Kankavali, Sindhu-durg, Kudal, Sawant-wadi Road andThivim stations.

B) Karmali – Lok-manya Tilak (T)Special

Train no. 01006 Kar-mali – Lokmanya Tilak(T) Special on SpecialFare willleave from Karmali at18:30 hrs on Saturday,26th October 2019. TheTrain will reach LTT,Mumbai at 08:15 hrs onthe next day. The aboveSuvidha Special willcomprise of 22 LHBCoaches including One2 Tier AC, Four 3 TierAC, Twelve SleeperClass, Three GeneralSecond Class and TwoGenerator coaches.Halts en-route includesThivim, SawantwadiRoad, Kudal, Sindhu-durg, Kankavali, Nand-

gaon Road, Vaibhavwa-di Road, Rajapur Road,Vilavade, Adavali, Rat-nagiri, SangameshwarRoad, Aravali Road, Sa-varda, Chiplun, Khed,Veer, Mangaon, Panveland Thane stations.

Bookings of aboveSpecial Trains will openon Friday 25th Oct,2019 at all PassengerReservation System(PRS), Internet andIRCTC website. Pas-sengers are requested tokindly avail the servic-es. General Second Classcoaches of these specialswill run as unreservedcoaches and will bebooked through UTSsystem as applicable forsuperfast mail/expresstrains.

ployed. After eachcount, the informationwill be communicatedthrough mike. To en-sure transparency atthe counting centre, theCCTV will show the ac-tual counting throughdigital screening.

151 Belapur assem-bly election countingprocess will be held atAgri Koli Bhawan Ner-ul.

Meanwhile, policehave been deployed atthe Airoli counting cen-tre under the guidanceof the Commissioner ofPolice, Special Forces,

Home Guard and Re-serve Force, along withDeputy Commissioner,

Electionresults to...

Contd. from pg. 1

Rabale MIDC and Se-nior Police Inspector ofPolice and Rabale Po-

lice Station, will bemanning the countingpolling station.

No Diwalibonus...Contd. from pg. 1

peated demand.Diwali, this year

falls on Sunday and thebanks will remainclosed for the nextthree days due to festi-val. The angry protest-ers remarked that theNMMC deducts moneyfrom their salary everymonth and it is their

right to get the bonuson time.

“If the workers donot receive bonus byThursday or Friday,there will be no optionleft but to stage protestat the Additional Com-missioner’s (City andServices) office on Fri-day,” remarked SamajSamta Kamgar Unionleader Mangesh Lad,President Navi Mum-bai.

For inserting advertisementsin daily newspaper NEWSBAND

Contact : 2087 0513 / 2781 5380

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Demand for handmade chocolates surges before DiwaliBy Chandrasekhar Hendve

NAVI MUMBAI: Thegifting trend is slowlychanging with moreand more peopleopting for handmadechocolates and cookiesover traditional sweetsand savouries, say thesweet shop owners inthe city, who alongwith sweets are alsokeeping an array ofchocolates to lurecustomers.

“Since past twoyears, the rates ofsweets during Diwaligo up to 1200kg. Incontrast, chocolateswith nuts and dryfruits are available atRs. 800 per kg whichis economical,” saysSanika Gupta aresident of Vashi.

Agreeing withSanika, Dilip Roy saysthat the advantagewith chocolates isthat these havelonger shelf lifewhen compared tosweets. “DuringDiwali we get somany boxes ofsweets and as theyare made of milkand milk productsthey need to beconsumed within 2to 3 days. Whilechocolate one caneven eat after amonths’ time,” headds.

Seeing the trend,many home bakershave come up withbeautiful gift hamperscontaining a widevariety of chocolates

in different flavour,shapes and sizes tosuit the pocket. “I

customise hampers asper the demand of thecustomers. Dependingupon their likes, a gift

Chinmaya Swaranjali organizes two days Bhajan workshopBy Lakshman Sundar

VASHI : The mem-bers of the ChinmayaSwaranjali, Vashi,under the banner ofChinmaya Prerana,Navi Mumbai organ-ised a two-day BhajanWorkshop titled‘Swara to Iswara 2’ onOctober 19th & 20th,2019 at Senior Citi-zens Club, Nan-dadeep, Sector 8,Vashi. The whole hallwas brimming withBhajans.

The two-day Bhajanworkshop was inaugu-rated by the trustee ofthe Central ChinmayaMission Trust, SriParindra Kadakia whobriefed the audience onthe importance ofBhakti. The workshopwas conducted by SmtPramodini Rao, theAcademic and CampusDirector of ChinmayaNaada Bindu Guruku-la, a branch of Chin-maya Vishwa Vidyap-eeth.Purpose

Chinamya Swaran-jali is a Global Chin-maya Mission Pro-gram formed with thepurpose of instillingdevotion in the heartsof people through themeans of learningBhajans. Its motto:Swara to Ishwara.

The main purposeof the workshop wasto educate musiclovers to use theirmusical talents as anoffering to the Lord.Music can help onereach the Divine.Swara can become apathway towardsIswara. Music gives asoul to the universe,wings to the mind,flight to the imagina-tion and life to every-thing. Music is theharmonious voice ofcreation and an echoof the invisible world.The highest goal ofmusic is to connectone’s soul to theDivine Nature. Thatis what ChinmayaSwaranjali has beendoing for the peaceand harmony of theworld.

The Bhajan

workshop receivedvery good responsewith lot of partici-pants who came fromdifferent walks of lifefrom Navi Mumbai,Mumbai and beyondwith a commonaspiration to sing anddevotion for the Lord.

All the participantslearned manybhajans, along withuseful tips on how toperform for an audi-ence. The BhajanWorkshop concludedwith a vibrant valedic-tory function wherethe participants weredivided into smallergroups and theypresented two songseach.

All passionateparticipants left withan unquenchablethirst for more. Smt.Pramodini Rao

suggested half-dayworkshops twice ayear and a two-dayworkshop once everyyear to keep the spiritof music and devotionalive in future.

About Smt. Pramo-dini Rao: Popularlyknown as the Nightin-gale of ChinmayaMission, Smt. Pramo-dini Rao who firstperformed at Chin-maya Mission eventsin Mumbai at the ageof seven is today,Director at ChinmayaNaada Bindu, aGurukul for IndianPerforming Artssituated in Kolwan,Pune District inMaharashtra.

Smt. PramodiniRao was initiated intomusic by her mother,Smt. SusheelaAcharya, a singer,

composer and lyricist.She has a Master’sDegree in Hindustanimusic from BharatiVidyapeeth, Pune andSangeet Visharadfrom BhatkandeUniversity, Lucknow.Her classical trainingtook shape with herformal tutelage underGurus like Smt.Shampa Pakrashi,Smt. ShashikalaKaikini and Smt.Usha Deshpande ofMumbai. She ispresently takingadvanced training inclassical music underDr. Vikas Kashalkarin Pune.

Indian devotionalmusic is her forte andshe offers every songat the altar of theLord. Her maturecommand over thetenets of classical

music in rendering acomposition culmi-nates in a uniqueperformance markedwith a profounddegree of devotion.Smt. Pramodini Raois the co-founder ofChinmaya Swaranjali,the music wing ofChinmaya Mission,dedicated to upliftingthe minds of thelisteners throughdevotion. A dedicatedteacher, she has sungin and directed manymega light and soundshows under thisbanner. As a teachershe is known for herpatience and encour-aging nature. Herinimitable, unhurriedand systematic styleof teaching makesstudents aware of boththeir strengths andweaknesses.

hamper may contain abox of dark or whitechocolate with fillings

of nuts, coconut etc.The chocolates can bemade in differentshapes and sizes.

Besides chocolates, myhamper also contains,muffins, or tea cakes

of different flavour,”says Nidhi Agarwal,the founder of Cakeand Bake.

While chocolatesare the hottest pickthis Diwali, thereare demand forsweets as well.“Though the de-mand is not veryhigh for sweets, butthose who wish tocelebrate festivals ina traditional man-ner, do prefersweets,” saysDevesh, an owner ofa sweet shop in

Nerul. White peda ispriced at Rs 400 kg,kesar peda Rs 500 perkg, malai peda Rs 500

kg, while barfi andpistachio malai barfiis sold between Rs 400up to Rs 1500 kg.Kaju Katri is priced atRs 600 to Rs 2000 perkg.

Chocobar rolls arebeing sold at Rs 550,kaju based sweets infruit shapes likewatermelon, strawber-ry, orange, mango, arebeing sold at the rateat Rs Rs 700- 1000 perkg. Motichur, ChurmaLadu is sold at Rs 400kg and Sonpapadi,Badami Sonpapdi issold Rs 350 kg. Mixeddry fruit sweet is soldat Rs 800 per kg.While sugar freesweets are priced ataround Rs. 500 / kgand above.

Thursday, 24 October 2019www.newsband.in | dailynewsband@yahoo.co.in 4

Issue : 147 24 October, 2019

With Deepavaliright at our doorstep,how about adding somecolour to usher it in? Abig part of Deepavali,apart from the yummysweet treats and food,new outfits and spar-klers, are the rangoli’syou can find adorned atthe entry ways of manyhomes.

The most importantfeature of a rangoli isthat it is colourful, infact the word ‘rangoli’comes from Sanskritwhich means ‘colour’.What is a rangolithough? It is an artform in which colourfulpatterns are created onthe floor using materi-als such as colouredrice, dry flour, colouredsand or flower petals.Sometimes, diyas areadded to the design togive the rangoli an ex-tra bright element to it.Rangolis are often fordecoration purposes butthey are also believed tobring good luck. Thedesigns vary as theyreflect traditions andfolklore that are uniqueto each area. It is oftenused during many occa-sions such as auspi-cious events, marriag-es, and festivals suchas Onam, Pongal,Deepavali and so on.

Rangoli is a tradi-tional decorative folkart of India. They aredecorative designs on

Different shades and huesof Rangoli during Diwali

floors of living roomsand courtyards duringHindu festivals and aremeant as sacred wel-coming area for the de-ities. The ancient sym-bols have been passedon through the ages,from each generation tothe one that followed,thus keeping both theartform and the tradi-tion alive. Rangoli andsimilar practices arefollowed in different In-dian states; in TamilNadu, one has Kolam[2], Madanae in Rajas-than, Chowkpurna inNorthern India, Alpanain Bengal, in Bihar itis called Ari-

pana, andso on. The purpose ofRangoli is decorationand it is thought tobring good luck. De-sign-depictions mayalso vary as they reflecttraditions, folklore andpractices that areunique to each area. Itis traditionally done bywomen.

Over the years, tra-dition has even maderoom for modern addi-tions, that add someflair to this beautifulart. Generally, thispractice is showcasedduring occasions suchas festivals, auspiciousobservances, celebra-tions of marriages andother similar mile-stones and gatherings.Rangoli designs can beas simple as geometricshapes, deity impres-sions and flower andpetal shapes that areappropriate to the giv-en celebrations, but canbecome very elaboratewith many people com-ing together to work onthe designs. The base

material is usually dryor wet granulated riceor dry flour, to whichSindhoor(vermillion),Haldi (tumeric) andother natural colourscan be added. Chemicalcolours are another"modern" variation.Other materials thatare now used are co-loured sand and evenflowers and petals as inthe case of Flower Rang-olis.

The shape, designand material of arangoli can be influ-enced by the region andits traditions. A squaregrid is common in

North India as is a hex-agonal grid in SouthIndia, Onam rangolison the other hand aretypically circular. Thedesigns could be reallysimple or complex geo-metric shapes, impres-sions of gods and god-desses, or flower andpetal shapes — all de-pending on the occa-sion. Rangoli competi-tions are quite popularthese days and in manycases are used as anopportunity to raiseawareness for many is-sues such as climatechange, voting and soon.

In some cultures,they are drawn on thefloor or ground, in oth-ers they are drawn onthe walls or the doorsof the homes to stopany evil forces from en-tering. Anyway, rango-li brings prosperity tohome, wealth throughinvoking Goddess Lak-shmi and provide apeaceful living for thehumanity.

By C K Subramaniam

Strengthen the Nation byeducating the population

An illiterate nation cannot progress. This universal truth is allthe more visible in our country, which in spite of all the resourcesstill appears amongst the list of the developing nations. Unfortu-nately, in spite of the sound vision of the stalwarts who drafted ourconstitution and gave the education sector the due importance,even after more than five decades the country is largely illiterateand is lagging far behind. Enough attention has not been given sofar to the education sector. Every government since independencehas viewed spending on education as expenditure rather than assound investment for future. Due to this hindsight policy what wedeveloped is a pool of illiterate man power which is being viewedmore as a liability rather than an asset in this machine age.

After achieving independence, the first step should have beento transform the teeming millions, largely illiterate, into educatedlot as it would have strengthened the nation. In spite of clearly laiddown fundamental right for education in the constitution, variousgovernments both central and states failed miserably in providingeducation to most of the children on account of poor vision andlack of will. Incidentally the private sector could realise the enor-mous commercial opportunity in this vital field, which the govern-ments failed to comprehend. To do their bit, the governments tread-ed the easier path by formulating policies which apparently indi-cated government's contribution to this sector like making avail-able plots at nominal costs to the trusts for running educationalinstitutions. This turned out to be doubly beneficial for the trustsgenerally headed by some politician, who not only commercializedthis once noble profession to their gain, but also started dictatingterms and conditions for admission to these institutions, thus indi-rectly controlling the education sector. However, this was possi-ble only due to the connivance with the educational department ofthe government. Since the avenues for education did not growcommensurate to the population, these institutions came in de-mand and they started the policy of auctioning the seat in the insti-tution by way of donations. Since the demand could be met only bythe privileged few, the gap between the learning opportunities forthe poor and socially disadvantaged and the effluent lot, has wid-ened. The absence of educational institutions run by governmenthas made the matter worse.

In Navi Mumbai too, although in the past few years, a numberof good educational institutions have come up, but still there is ascarcity. More institutions should be developed so that there isopportunity for all. It shall be ensured that the institutions permit-ted on concessional plots follow the fee structure controlled bythe government and that they do not resort to donations and havetransparency in the admission procedure.

It is time that government realizes the importance of curbingilliteracy by making due investments in the education sector be-sides effectively controlling the private institutions. This way itcan convert huge human resource, which is being viewed more asa liability into asset, as is being visible in the IT sector. Most ofthe countries of the world are today selling their educational as-sets to foreign students for revenues besides cross subsidizingeducation for the students of their country. With educational insti-tutions like IITs and IIMs having made their presence felt on theglobal map, we can also establish educational institutions of re-pute and lure foreign students for revenue, for cross subsidizingthe education cost for students of our country.

Thursday, 24 October 2019www.newsband.in | dailynewsband@yahoo.co.in 5

By Chandrashekhar Hendve

NAVI MUMBAI:Rotary Club of NaviMumbai Palm Beachcelebrated its 8thCharter Day recently.

The programmestarted with theperformance by Ms.Hitee Chaudharifollowed by Ms ShristiRai and Master DevGupta on the Key-board. District Gover-nor Rtn. MohanChandavarkar alongwith first lady Ms.Veena Chandavarkarand other dignitariesgraced the event.

The club memberspledged to serve the

Rotary club of Navi Mumbai Palm beach celebrates its 8th Charter Day

humanity in all formsof service therebydemonstrating ‘Ser-vice Above Self ’.

“The club has

carried out over 20projects in last 3months with Octobermonth being focus onCommunity and

Economic Develop-ment. These include:Cleaning at Sector 15Belapur; Cooler andAnna Daan at Leprosy

Home; Sanitation atNavada Phata; BreastCancer check upcamp; Hygiene forchildren; distribution

of cloth bags etc.Diyas made by

economically back-ward class wasdistributed to all.

One dead, one injuredin trailer accident

By Crime Reporter

NAVI MUMBAI: A young man was killed and an-other critically injured when a trailer hit the scootyin which they were travelling. The Uran policehave arrested the trailer driver responsible for theaccident.

The deceased has identified as Zayed Palkar(18) while Samad Sheikh Irfan Mohammed hassustained injuries. Both Zayed and Samad livedin the Masid Mohalla area of??Uran. The two hadgone to Vashi for work on Tuesday. At aroundmidnight, the two men were returning on theirscooty to Uran. The incident happened near thePUC center in Jasai when a speeding trailer hittheir scooty. Zayed and Samad, both on scooty wereseriously injured. Zayed died shortly after beingcritically injured. Uran police have arrested thetrailer driver who escaped after the accident.

By Crime Reporter

NAVI MUMBAI: A weld-ing worker died due toelectric shock whilewelding an iron grillusing an electric drill onTuesday afternoon atthe Central FacilitiesBuilding at APMC. Fol-lowing the incident,APMC police have start-ed investigating the in-cident. The case has

Welding worker gets electrocutedbeen registered as anaccidental death case.

The deceased hasbeen identified as San-jit Kumar LalbabuPurve (24), a resident ofSector 19, Koperkhair-ane. He worked in afabrication shop of Ki-ran Jadhav in the samearea.

Kiran Jadhav hadtaken up the grill work

of the second floor officeat Central FacilitiesBuilding in APMC.Therefore, on Tuesdayafternoon, Sanjit Ku-mar and other workerswere installing a grillon the second floor ofthe Central FacilitiesBuilding. Sanjit Ku-mar was welding aniron grill with an elec-tric drill on the second

floor. Due to shock hefell from the secondfloor to the first floorand was injured. Hewas immediately takento the Municipal Hospi-tal in Vashi for treat-ment. However, doctorsdeclared him dead. Fol-lowing the incident,APMC police have ini-tiated further investi-gation into the matter.

Thursday, 24 October 2019www.newsband.in | dailynewsband@yahoo.co.in 6

Josephian’s Celebrate Festival Of Light With Sharing & CaringBy Ashok Dhamija

NEW PANVEL:Diwali the festivals oflights which iscelebrated acrossIndia with religiousfervor and traditionsignifies victory oflight over darkness,knowledge overignorance, good overevil, hope over despair& of sharing &caring. To inculcatethese values amongthe young minds, atSt. Joseph’s HighSchool SSC, NewPanvel celebratedDiwali based on thetheme ‘Joy Of Shar-ing’. Students of Pre-Primary Sectioncarried homemadesweets on the festiveoccasion greeted andlovingly shared itwith their classmates,the teachers. Anumber of activitiestoo were organized toinculcate traditionalways of celebrationson the occasion. Thisincluded creating

Dressed in traditional fineries the pre-primary students participated in various Diwali festival activities too.

Time to share and care with our classmates.

beautiful Rangolis,Handmade Lanterns,Diyas among others.The teachers alsoexplained the stu-dents dressed intraditional festivefineries about thesignificance of the

festive occasion andits significance invarious parts of thecountry much to thedelight of the youngJoesphians whoenjoyed each andevery moment of thecelebrations.

RCS Vashi Students Tryst With Indian Postal System

By Ashok Dhamija

NAVI MUMBAI: “Some-times, this life seemslike, that of a Postman.One who delivers hun-dreds of letters yetdoesn’t receives not asingle one for himself”.– Words of desire.

The ever evolving Indian Postal Services with its wide network across the country has been serving the generationsover the decades. Photo shows the students of Ryan Christian School Vashi posing in the back drop of the PostalVan at Vashi Post Office.

In order to educatethe tiny tots of its Mon-tessori and Primarysection on the practicalaspect of the functionof the Indian PostalSystem, city basedRyan Christian Schoolorganised an field trip

to the nearest Post Of-fice In Vashi recently.

On the occasion thestaff at the Post- officetook the children andteachers around andexplained the functionof various departmentslocated inside the pre-

mises. This includedthe various counterscatering to the public,namely those sellingstamps, envelopes,postcards etc. Laterthe children posted en-velopes with decorativestamps in the post box

A postal official enlightens the young guests on theprocess of sorting letters for its delivery at various des-tinations

Vashi Post Office officials warmly receive the specialvisitors and explain the functioning of various publiccounters

that they had preparedin class by drawingthemselves, writingtheir names and thepostal address of theirschool. The visit to the

sorting cell proved tobe an eye opener wherehundreds of letterswere collected, segre-

Contd. on pg. 10

Thursday, 24 October 2019www.newsband.in | dailynewsband@yahoo.co.in 7

book last year. Sincethen, I have been onlybuying earthen diyasnot only for my housebut even for gifting pur-poses,” says Rita

Anand, a resident ofGhansoli.

Isha Nair, a 13-year-old from Vashi,says for herDiwali isthe time tobe addition-ally con-scious to-wards envi-ronment. “Itis very im-portant toensure thatwe buy onlyeco-friendlyp r o d u c t sduring fes-tival. As itis the timeto spreadjoy and happiness, weshould ensure that wespread joy in our sur-roundings as well. Ev-

ery year, I give hand-made earthen diyas tomy friends. This yearI will not only be giv-ing diyas but also an in-door plant along withit.”

Speaking about thechanging trend,Dipesh Patel a trader

from Jalaram Marketsaid, “People are ex-tremely consciousabout what they buy.

With the Make in In-dia movement gainingmomentum, many inthe market have kept

City streetswear a...Contd. from pg. 1

local products only.” Hefurther said, “It is notonly local products thatpeople demand for, peo-ple are also looking foreco-friendly materi-als.”

Jitu another tradersaid, “The auspicioussymbol Swastik, which

earlier used to be avail-able in plastic, are nowavailable in metal,seed paper, clay.” He

added that the Swastikmade of seed paper andclay are the hottestpick this season.

Bank employees observenationwide strike

NAVI MUMBAI:Around 40,000 BankEmployees across thestate spread out inaround 10,000 BankBranches of PublicSector, Private Sectorand Foreign Bankfrom the state are onstrike mainly againstGovernment policy ofBank consolidation of10 public sector banksby closing 6 PublicSector Banks whichwas neither demandedby the customers,shareholders nor bythe employees andOfficers, they say.

The government is

likely to close around5,000 bank branchesas so to enable smallfinance banks fromthe private sector tooccupy the space andthus is privatizebanking business.

Around 2,000 bankemployees from thecity of Mumbaiassembled at AzhadMaidan and helddemonstrations.

Contd. on pg. 8

Thursday, 24 October 2019www.newsband.in | dailynewsband@yahoo.co.in 8

WIFA Hosts OFC ‘Just Play’ Program

Hundreds budding footballers partake in fun filled football sessions

By Ashok Dhamija

The Western IndiaFootball Association(WIFA), the governingbody of Football in Ma-harashtra furtherstrengthened its rela-tionship with the Oce-ania Football Confeder-ation (OFC) for imple-menting the ‘OFC JustPlay’ Programme inIndia. The theme of‘OFC Just Play’ isabout spreading theawareness of ‘sanita-tion’ and ‘hygiene’among young foot-ballers. A Just PlayFestival was organizedat the Cooperage Sta-dium in Mumbai re-cently with the aim togive messages relatedto effective hand wash-ing techniques whichwere imparted throughfun football sessions.The same was attend-ed by hundreds of bud-ding footballers fromthe city, Navi Mumbaiand other neighbouringareas. The same wascarried outbySkilllanders LeonMenezes and TanazMohammed

OFC, General Sec-

Hundreds of budding footballers who attended the Just Play Program pose with the dignitaries from FIFA, OFC and WIFA.

WIFA General Secretary, Souter Vaz (Right), signs theMOU as OFC, General Secretary, Franck Castillo (Centre)and Fiji Football Association, President and FIFA Coun-cil Member, Rajesh Patel look on the side lines of theJust Play program Also present was WIFA CEO HenryMenezes (not in photo).

The unique program not only taught children football inaddition to important issues like Gender Equality, Sani-tation, and Hygiene through the world most populargame. (not in photo).

retary, Franck Castil-lo and Fiji Football As-sociation, Presidentand FIFA Council Mem-ber, Rajesh Patel, hadvisited the WIFA officefor the festival whowere the special guestson the occasion signeda Memorandum of Un-derstanding (MOU) be-tween OFC and WIFA. This MOU aims to sup-ports the next phase ofimplementation of theOFC Just Play Pro-gramme in India anddetails the financialcontribution and tech-nical assistance pro-

vided by OFC towardsthe same.

The program will bedelivered by WIFA –OFC’s national imple-menting partner in In-dia. Souter Vaz, Gener-al Secretary of WIFA,its CEO Henry Menez-es, led the WIFA sign-ing delegation and dis-cussions.

“We thank the OFCfor their valuable sup-port to the WIFA-JustPlay in India. We en-sure our strong com-mitment towards thisprogram as we projectto extend this program

to other regions of thestate and target toreach out to 10,000kids through this pro-gram.” said Vaz

Castillo on the oth-er hand expressed hisconfident about the fu-ture of the programmenot just in Maharash-tra but also its expan-sion across India. “Thisis a fun and cost-effec-

tive programme pro-viding the first positiveexperience for childrenand promoting socialdevelopment. Thismakes it an incrediblyattractive programmefor those companiesthat are looking forready to go pro-grammes in order tolink with their existingCSR activities. The

contribution of theJust Play programmeto the Sustainable De-velopment Goals(Goals) has been ac-knowledged in a casestudy documented bythe Commonwealthsecretariat in 2018,”said Castillo.

The programme hasbeen active in Munici-pal Corporation acrossMumbai. The nextphase of delivery willfocus on developmentcentres as well astraining volunteers toassist in future pro-gramme delivery.

WIFA will continueto deliver the Just Playprogramme in Mum-bai, Maharashtra whilealso expanding thescope of programme de-livery to other towns inMaharashtra such asand in Navi Mumbai,Thane and Palghar.

The expansion of theJust Play Programmeinto India has beenmade possible becauseof the technical exper-tise and financial sup-port of OFC and theUEFA foundation forChildren.

Thereafter DevidasTuljapurkar, N.Shankar, Anil Prab-hu, Sandip Karalkar,Pralhad Patil, Rat-nakar Wankhede fromAIBEA. Arosar,G.M.V. Naik fromBEFI addressed thegathering.

A strike call was

given by All IndiaBank EmployeesAssociation (AIBEA)and Bank EmployeesFederation of India(BEFI) unions.

Striking employeesobserved 2 minutessilence over the deathof 6 depositors of PMCBank by observingcondolences. Strikingemployees alsoexpressed theirsolidarity to the

Bankemployees...

Contd. from pg. 7

ongoing struggle onPMC Bank Deposi-tors.

Suresh Dhopesh-warkar while conclud-ing the meeting saidthat this strike isbeginning of sustainedstruggle againstGovernment policyand will continue byinvolving customersso as to arrest AntiPeople BankingPolicies.

Thursday, 24 October 2019www.newsband.in | dailynewsband@yahoo.co.in 9

By Salma Prabhu

Welcome back tothis column where weare gradually movingup to getting betterand better on our Emo-tional Quotient.

It is festival timeand there would be somuch to do along withthe usual chores andresponsibilities. Butfestivals have a differ-ent feeling of joy andfun.

So last week be-cause of team work andtime management, Iwas able to squeeze inshoppings for staff andmaking 250 huge sizeDiyas and also hold anexhibition where eachand every piece got soldand the profits wereshared with NGO chil-dren who also learnt tomake the Diyas.

People often ask mehow do I manage to doso many things andmy simple answer isthat "I am blessed withtime". It is like an af-firmation that is in mydefault system be-cause I have been ob-serving that if one hastime management, onecan achieve a lot.

Planning and mak-ing a timetable is notjust the only require-ment of having goodtime. But ability to del-egate, train others, notbeing too obsessivewith perfection and let-ting go are also re-quired to have goodtime managementskills.

So let us list downthe requirements andhow to achieve.

1. Planning.Very important as

without a plan or ablue print, all will behaphazard.

Time Management-Emotional Quotient III

Planning can be fora day, a week, a month,a year, five years.When it is for morethan a week I call themGoals.

I generally do week-ly schedule and plan-ning and detailing is ona daily basis.

Planning is of twotype a general regularday or specific eventday.

Both would needhour wise distribution.

I would recommendalways keep time inbetween for relaxation.

Most planning faildue to a burn out orover exertion.

If it is a very verybusy day then alsowhile having a cup oftea or having food. Sitquietly and enjoy themeal. Relax and enjoythe meal. Bless andask the meal to giveyou joy and energy.

Post this tea ormeal. Just keep 30 sec-onds to close your eyesand focus on your nos-trils and watch yourbreath.

Repeat "I am calm,peaceful, loving, intel-ligent person". Go backto your schedule.

On a regular daytake three breaks.

2. Time tables aregood, but everyonemay not be able to fol-low them. Some peopleare good at making amental timetable. I al-ways recommend not-ing down in yourphone.

3. Use technologyto help you. SettingAlarms for various re-minders are excellent.They save you fromstressing your brain toremember. Just setalarms for drinkingwater, making calls,sending birthday mes-sages, study, check outon family etc.

4. Learn to let go bydelegating. See whatothers can do. Youwant perfection yourway and therefore youmay end up doing ev-erything yourself. Del-egate, get things done

and later just impro-vise or add to it.

Spend time intraining others to helpyou.

5. A very good wayto find more time is byidentifying the timewasters. I have noticedhow people lose trackof time while being onsocial media or aphone call. Or repeat-edly doing the samething.

A very good way isto note down timespent for each activityand then eliminate thetime.wasters. this isjust like when u wantto lose weight, youmaintain a caloriechart and check thatexcessive calories arenot taken.

Same way maintaina time check chart.

6. Be organized. Abiggest time waster isnot being organizedand wasting timesearching for docu-ments or things. Soeven if takes a monthto make a filing sys-tem, keep cabinetsclean, keep drawerstidy. Do it. Use tech-nology again. Make thelist of things in everydrawer and cabinetsand store in your note-pad. This will save youfrom searching al-ways.

7. Declutter wouldbe very helpful to getorganized. Let go, giveaway what you don'tneed or have not usedfor over a year. Do notbe a hoarder. We alllove to live in hotelrooms, because there isno clutter.

8. Feel good at theend of the day. Begrateful for the helpyou got. Mentallythank everyone andsleep with a peacefulheart.

Salma Prabhu isClinical Psychologist,

Career Counsellor,Author and

Environmentalist.You may write to her on

salmaprabhu7@gmail.com or call

9322851484.

Contd. on pg. 10

Sourav Ganguly ElectedPresident of BCCI

By Ashok Dhamija

Former Indian skip-per Sourav Ganguly,was formally inductedas the 39th President ofthe Board of Control forCricket in India(BCCI), the officialgoverning body ofthe game in India.Known for his nononsense approachboth on and off thefield, Ganguly isthe process becamethe first Indiacricketer after theMaharaja of Vi-zianagaram to be-come the presidentof the BCCI.

As may be recalledSourav Ganguly wasunanimously elected asthe President of theBoard of Control forCricket in India(BCCI). The decision

was taken at the Gen-eral Body Meeting inMumbai on Wednesdayafter the former IndiaCaptain had filed hisnomination for the post

last week at the BCCIHeadquarters in Mum-bai. Ganguly was theonly candidate who filedhis nomination for thePresident’s post.

Latter In the pressconference at the BCCI

Head Quarters , the 47-year-old, who previous-ly acted as the presi-dent of the Cricket As-sociation of Bengal(CAB), said he will lead

the Indian cricketboard the sameway he led TeamIndia.

“There will beno compromise oncredibility. It willbe a corruption-free and same-for-all BCCI, just as Iled India,” he said.The Prince of Kolk-atta, as he is re-vered by his mil-

lions of followers furthersaid “Virat Kohli underwhom India recentlyregistered their 11thconsecutive Test serieswin at home, defeating

Thursday, 24 October 2019www.newsband.in | dailynewsband@yahoo.co.in 10

By Vinod C Dixit

I remember aquestion raised by ourPM Narendra Modi,during his firstIndependence Dayaddress as primeminister, in 2014,said, “Parents asktheir daughterswhere they were ifthey return homelate. But, do they dothe same with theirsons? After all aperson perpetrating aheinous crime suchas rape is also some-one’s son. As parents,have we asked oursons where he isgoing? While we keepquestioning ourdaughters, why notuse same yardstickfor sons too?”

Our supreme lawof land i.e. our IndianConstitution hasenvisaged a dream oftrue social, economicand political democra-cy which guaranteesthe rich and moralprinciples of equality(of status, opportuni-ty, law) for ourcitizens but this hasnot yet been fullyrealized. Modi hasgiven stress on theneed of educating andprotecting the girlchild. Modi taken thisinitiative by launch-ing this Drive calledBeti Bachao - BetiPadhao. This is theresponsibility of everyhuman to save girlchildren. It must beensured that theydon't get killed in thewomb of their moth-ers.

For Modi to say onSurakshit Bharat forwomen shows thedeep concern forwomen’s safety andgender equality.India has witnessedsome path-breakingannouncements thatensured dignity andwelfare of this sectionof the populace, whichhas been subjected totokenism for manyyears. Enablingwomen-led develop-ment, several an-nouncements have

Modi’s Surakshit

bharat for womenbeen made.

As good citizens,we have a fundamen-tal duty to contributetowards bringing anorder to ensuredignity and respectfor women so that shecan also enjoy herhuman rights andfundamental rightswith sense of pride,freedom and confi-dence. To ensure thisat every level thesociety must worktogether to give anedge to the solution.

Some such an-nouncements made byModi governmenthave potentiallytransformed thesafety and securitynet for women inIndia. Modi’s govern-ment has passed theMuslim Women(Protection of Rightson Marriage) Bill,2017 in Lok Sabha.This bill makesinstant triple talaq(talaq-e-biddat) in anyform illegal and void.This Bill protectsright of Muslimwomen who arevulnerable at thehands of instanttriple talaq. It is a farcry from the arbi-trary practice ofdivorcing wives withjust an SMS orWhatsApp message.This bill is a begin-ning towards empow-ering married Muslimwomen who have beendefenseless if such anevent befalls them.

Mahila policevolunteers andwomen’s safety appcalled HIMMATreinforce the Govern-ment’s commitmentto allow women a safelife both in and out oftheir homes. TheTrafficking of Persons(Prevention, Protec-tion and Rehabilita-tion) Bill, 2018creates a law forinvestigation of alltypes of trafficking,and rescue, protectionand rehabilitation oftrafficked victims.Capital punishmentfor those found guilty

of raping a childunder the age of 12was introduced by thegovernment to detersuch crimes andensure those whobreach the dignity ofyoung citizens ofIndia are dealt withan iron hand. Build-ing of toilets restoressafety, dignity andprovides security tofemale members ofthe society.

According to Modithe son and daughterare equal. BBBPscheme is true to itswords. The schemeintends to improvethe efficiency ofservices for thewelfare of women andto raise awarenessregarding women’srights. The govern-ments focus on lowfemale sex ratio inalmost 100 districts.When women areeducated and aware,it leads to empower-ment of women.Education is the toolthat can help breakthe pattern of genderdiscrimination. Thelonger a girl is able tostay in school, thegreater her chancesto pursue worthwhileemployment and a lifewithout the hazardsof extreme poverty.

Awareness cam-paigns like BetiBachao beti Padhaoare directed towardssaving girl child,educating her andthen making her aself-sufficient citizen.Sex ratio at birth hasalready improved in104 identified dis-tricts, a statistic thatreflects that we arenow committed toprotecting our daugh-ters even before theyare born. Womencan’t defend them-selves against physi-cal and sexual abuseuntil they have theauthority to speakagainst it withoutfear. Knowledge givesthat authority.The writer is freelancer,

writer, author andcartoonist.

By Ashok Dhamija

MUMBAI: Central Railway (CR)will run Festival Special betweenMumbai – Nagpur to clear the extrarush of passengers due to DiwaliFestival as per the following sched-ule

Train No. 02024 Nagpur – Mum-bai Superfast Special will leave Nag-pur at 21.30 hrs o-n Monday 28 Oct,2019 and will arrive ChhatrapatiShivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT),Mumbai at 12.25 hrs next day. TrainNo. 82127 Suvidha Special will leaveCSMT, Mumbai at 14.20 hrs o-nTuesday 29 Oct, 2019 and arriveNagpur at 04.50 hrs next day. Haltsen-route includes Ajni, Sewagram,

CR To Run Festival SpecialOn Mumbai – Nagpur Route

Wardha, Pulgaon, Dhamangaon,Badnera, Akola, Shegaon, Malkapur,Bhusaval, Nashik Road, Igatpuri,Kalyan and Dadar stations. Theabove Special will comprise of OneAC-2 Tier cum AC-3 Tier, TwelveSleeper Class and Six General Sec-ond Class coaches*. Bookings for allthe Suvidha Special and SpecialTrains on Special Charges will openon Friday 25 Oct, 2019 at all PRSlocations and on websitewww.irctc.co.in.

*General second class coaches ofthese specials will run as unreservedcoaches and will be booked throughUTS system as applicable for Super-fast Mail/Express Trains.

gated, stamped andthen stored in pigeonholes for the postmento collect and deliver.In addition the specialguests were also madeaware of the way par-cels are delivered to dif-ferent places within thecity by the mail vanand those across thecountry and interna-tionally after being de-livered at the nearestoutstation railway sta-tion and airport for be-ing delivered across thecountry and interna-

tionally.“Excursions are

means of educating our-selves on how certainthings work and howwe rely on certain ser-vices. The tiny tots ofMontessori and Prima-ry sections began theirexploration at the VashiPost office where theywere warmly welcomedby the staff at the Post-office and were takenaround to various im-portant departmentsinside the vast pre-mises and enlightenedabout the functioning ofeach of these. They alsolearnt how to fold andplace their personal let-ters in envelopes ad-dressed to their School

and stamped with veryinteresting stamps. Itwas delightful experi-ence to see the excite-ment on the children’sfaces as they were post-ed their envelopes in thepost box.. Visiting apost-office was some-thing out-of-the-ordi-nary for the childrenalthough “post” thoughan ancient form of com-munication is still oneof the reliable onesamong the massesworld over. To sum upit was altogether agreat learning experi-ence especially in thesetimes of email & fax”shared Edwin Fernan-do, Headmistress of theinstitute.

RCS VashiStudentsTryst...

Contd. from pg. 6

SouravGanguly ...

Contd. from pg. 9

South Africa 3-0 in athree-match Test seriesis the most importantman in the Indiancricket, adding that hewill speak with himand support in everypossible manner. I lookit at that way. So wewill have a word withhim and as I said wewill support him in ev-ery possible way, hewants to make thisteam the best in theworld”.

Ganguly alsobrushed aside the need

for dual captaincy inTeam India and said “Idon’t think this ques-tion arises. India is win-ning at the momentunder the leadership ofVirat Kohli. They areprobably the best teamin the world. It hasbeen a great team to behonest with the waythey have played in the

last three to four years”.He further added

that “Our focus is tomake cricketers’ lifeeasier. When I was thecaptain and JagmohanDalmiya was the presi-dent, I don’t rememberthat we asked for some-thing and were ever re-fused”.

BCCI President: Sourav Ganguly (Unani-mous)The following were elected as the office bear-ers of the BCCI. Secretary: Jay ShahVice-President: Mahim VermaTreasurer: Arun Singh DhumalJoint Secretary: Jayesh George

Thursday, 24 October 2019www.newsband.in | dailynewsband@yahoo.co.in 11

Corn Cutlets (Corn Fritters)Corn Cutlets are a mouthwatering appetiz-

er which can be served as starters for a partyor even as an evening snack. Corn Cutlets arecrispy outside and soft inside. This is one ofthose snacks you can serve without any sauceand they taste delicious. They are also glutenfree, and vegan.

This recipe will make 12 cutlets. Course Appetizer, Snack Cuisine Indian Prep Time 10 minutes Cook Time 15 minutes Total Time 25 minutes Servings 4 People

IngredientsUS Customary - Metric2 cup yellow corn (I am using frozen corn)1 tsp fennel seeds (coarsely ground, saunf)

1/2 tsp salt1 tsp ginger (grated, adrak)1 Tbsp green chili (finely chopped, hari

mirch)1 Tbsp cilantro (finely chopped, hara

dhania)1 tsp mango powder (amchoor)

1/4 cup rice flour (chawal ka atta)Also Needoil to fry

MethodDefrost the corn, and pat dry. Then blend

the corn to coarse paste without adding any

water.Transfer the paste to a large mixing bowl.

Add all the spices, ginger, fennel, coriander,green chili, mango powder and salt, mix itwell.

Add rice flour to the corn mixture, mix itwell. Mixture should hold together, andconsistency should be like a soft dough. Ifneeded add little more rice flour.

Wash and grease your palm lightly, dividethe dough into 12 equal parts and shape theinto bullets.

Heat the oil in a frying pan on mediumheat. Oil should be moderately hot. To checkthe oil, drop a little piece of mixture, mixtureshould sizzle and come up. Drop the rollsslowly into it, taking care not to overlap them.

Fry the cutlets until they are goldenbrown, turning occasionally. This should takeabout 6-7 minutes. Take them out over apaper towel.Recipe Notes : Suggestions

Serve them hot! If you have prepared thembeforehand, heat them in a toaster oven or inoven to bring the crispness back. But theytaste good even at room temperature.

Thursday, 24 October 2019www.newsband.in | dailynewsband@yahoo.co.in 12

Panvel city will resemble Navi Mumbai in a span of10 years: Ganesh Deshmukh, Commissioner PCMC

Newsband: Why did you choose civilservices? How has the journey been sofar?

PCMC Commissioner: Civil service hasbeen my dream since childhood. My elderbrother, Mr Aabasaheb, former MD of thebank, always supported me and helped me inpursuing my dream. I started preparing for theexam during Graduation and after I complet-ed my Graduation, I sat for the exam and gotselected in the very first attempt. I was se-lected as a Municipal Chief Officer in 1995through MPSC and joined on 1.1.1996. Ini-tially, I took training in the Andheri followedby field experience at Ichalkaranji. Earlier, Ispent 12 years in Vidarbha as a MunicipalChief officer in the Risod, Akot, Karanja,Washim and Aachalpur municipal council. In2005, I shifted to Kolhapur as Deputy Munic-ipal Commissioner. For some time worked asin-charge Municipal Commissioner Kolhapur.Then in 2011, came in MMR region as Depu-ty Commissioner in KDMC followed by MiraBhayander. Since June 2017 I have been work-ing as a Municipal Commissioner: first in Nand-ed and now in Panvel.

Newsband: As PCMC Commissionerwhat is your vision for the city? What havebeen the major challenges?

PCMC Commissioner: First of all, I haveplanned few basic things for Panvel and itssurrounding areas like road mapping, prepa-ration of staffing pattern, setting up of officeprocedures etc. Now, I am focussing on thecity planning and infra projects. I am also pre-paring a Development Plan (DP) for watersupply scheme, drainage scheme, solid wastemanagement projects etc. These are some ofthe current projects on which I am workingpresently.

Major challenges are to complete the hand-ing over procedure from the City and Indus-trial Development Corporation Ltd. (CIDCO)and to provide sufficient water to the people.To prevent encroachment is another majorchallenge.

Newsband: PCMC is surrounded byseveral villages where till date basicamenities are lacking. How do you planto bring about a change?

PCMC Commissioner: Already we havecarried out City Development Plan (definingcity amenity development) and now Develop-ment Plan is being prepared which will help in

the proper land use planning. We have startedmaking the villages smart. Soon water distribu-tion network as well as drainage network will belaid.

Newsband: PCMC has undertaken beau-tification of lakes which is commendable.What facilities are in the offing?

PCMC Commissioner: Panvel is the City

of lakes. Dewale lake has already been beau-tified and the beautification work for anothermajor lake, Vadale lake is being undertaken.Lake beautification project will help in pre-serving the city’s culture and will also add toits beauty.

Newsband: The condition of PCMCschools is not upto the mark. How do youplan to bring them at par with privateschools?

PCMC Commissioner: So many schoolsbelong to Zilla Parishad. Recently we have grant-ed a land to the NGO which will provide nutri-tious meal to around 10,000 students at a time.Old school buildings are being redeveloped.

Newsband: Garbage disposal is an issuethat till date has failed to find a completeand effective solution. How do you think theissue can be solved?

PCMC Commissioner: No, no. We havefounded a fool proof solution for garbage lifting.Presently city is made garbage free. Processingis done in Cidco’s plant.

Newsband: Condition of roads continueto be pathetic. Your views

PCMC Commissioner: It is true that thecondition of the roads is not upto the mark. Wehave carried out road repair work of around Rs.100 crores in earlier Municipal council area. Inthe Cidco area, Cidco has promised to upgradethe condition of the roads and has floated thetender for the same.

Newsband: PCMC is planning to have anew building? When is the project likely tostart? What are the various facilities pro-posed?

PCMC Commissioner: The new proposedbuilding will come up on a land admeasuring 5acres with an approximately budget of Rs. 150crore. It will be one of the best buildings of thecorporation and will have many state of the artfacilities. This will be the building of the citizensand hence there will be facility for the residentsas well.

Newsband: Your message to the read-ers?

PCMC Commissioner: Panvel city is de-veloping at a rapid pace and very soon one willsee the resemblance of Navi Mumbai in a spanof 10 years. Just keep faith in the system. Onthe occasion of Diwali, I would like to wish ev-ery citizen a very Happy, Prosperous and SafeDiwali.

Before joining as Municipal Commission-er of Panvel City Municipal Corporation(PCMC) on 18th April, 2018, Ganesh Nil-kanthrao Deshmukh was Municipal chiefofficer at Risod, Akot, Karanja, Washim,Achalpur, Ambarnath. He was DeputyMunicipal Commissioner at Kolhapur,Kalyan Dombivali, Mira Bhayander. Hewas also Municipal Commissioner In-charge at Kolhapur and Municipal Com-missioner Nanded. Mr. Deshmukh hasdone B.Sc (Agriculture), M.Sc (Agrono-my )and L.L.B.(Special-Criminology). Hehas also done his Post Graduation in Ur-ban Management from Mumbai Universi-ty and Public Transport Management(CEPT university with Hong Kong andTaipei University). He was selected in Ma-harashtra Public Service Commission in1996. Mr. Deshmukh has several acco-lades to his credit some of these include:Excellent BOT project at Achalpur with1000 RCC otas and 400 shops; Kolhapurroad project, water project, drainageproject. He was honoured by Hon CM in2017 for Ranking First in the Maharash-tra state in municipal administration andwas also honoured by Hon. President ofIndia for excellent work in Swacha BharatMission in October 2017.

Ganesh Nilkanthrao Deshmukh joined as Municipal Commissioner of

Panvel City Municipal Corporation (PCMC) on 18th April, 2018.

In a tete a tete with Varda Sharma, Editor, Newsband, Mr. Deshmukh talks about

his journey, challenges as well as his future plans. Excerpts of the interview: