Mumbai News Live Updates: Mumbai-Pune among top 10 routes taken across India last weekend

Mumbai-Pune was among the top 10 routes across India witnessing a spurt in traffic for the extended weekend till May 1, revealed a study by redBus, an online bus ticketing platform. Over 3,500 private bus operators and 17 state road transport corporations offered a total of over 52,000 bus services across India. As many as 80 lakh passengers were estimated to have travelled by bus over the long weekend, the study showed. redBus study observed a 20% increase in reservations during the long weekend compared to the previous year. “The other bus routes in demand were Delhi–Manali, Guwahati-Tezpur and Dibrugarh–Guwahati, among others,” the study stated.

Chief minister Eknath Shinde has said that the BMC’s coastal road project will start by the end of this year as work was being carried out on a war-footing. Shinde again reiterated that Mumbai will become pothole-free in two years as cement concrete (CC) roads were being constructed. Shinde’s statement comes after CC road works faced criticism from Shiv Sena (UBT) and BJP leaders. With new companies which bagged CC contracts failing to start work, the BMC imposed a penalty of Rs 16 crore on three of the five companies.

CM Eknath Shinde laid out his vision for the Marine Drive promenade during his visit there on Monday.“Tourists from all over the world come to Mumbai. Especially, the Marine Drive area is a must-visit for all tourists. The BMC administration must provide various facilities of international standards to these tourists as well as to the citizens of Mumbai visiting for leisure. For the convenience of citizens and tourists, a toilet of excellent quality should be constructed at every one kilometre,” said Shinde.

The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has busted an inter-state drugs racket with the arrest of four persons, including the kingpin and a minor, and seizure of 2kg of mephedrone or MD, Rs 36 lakh in cash and Rs 7. 8 lakh gold, worth around Rs 4. 5 crore in total, from Bhiwandi.

Google India has removed over 3,500 personal loan apps from Play Store due to non-compliance with policies and regulations. The apps were illegally accessing user data, including contacts and photos. They were not even following guidelines on other matters.

Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray gave May 6 as the date of his planned visit to Barsu, the site of the proposed refinery in Ratnagiri, and NCP leader Ajit Pawar blamed the Shinde-Fadnavis government for what he termed as the collapse of law and order and the state’s poor financial situation at an MVA rally held at BKC on Monday evening. Ajit’s presence at the rally was noted as it came days after speculation that he could join the BJP and his subsequent denial and clarification.