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Mumbai: Demolition of 19th century Carnac Bridge begins

The Central Railway finally began the demolition work of Carnac Bridge in South Mumbai, on Friday.

In 2014, the bridge was identified as unsafe and was closed for heavy vehicles. The Carnac bridge lies between Masjid Bunder and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, and goes over the central railway tracks .

According to the central railway, it is expected to take three months to completely demolish Carnac Bridge.

22

Kerala Assembly passes contentious University Laws Bill

The Kerala Assembly on Thursday passed the contentious University Laws (Amendment) Bill 2022, which would result in curtailing the powers of the Governor in appointing vice chancellors (VC) to universities.

The bill, which came amid a standoff between the ruling LDF and Governor Arif Mohamed Khan over issues including the recent appointment of Kannur University VC, was slammed by the opposition UDF as an attempt by the Left government to appoint its "puppets" as vice chancellors. The Congress-led bloc boycotted the House proceedings over the matter.

The Bill, which envisages to bring some major amendments in the original Act will change the number of members and the structure of the search-cum-selection committee that picks the VC candidates, virtually limiting the upper hand of the Governor in their appointment.

21

SC questions delayed listing of Teesta bail plea in Gujarat HC

The Supreme Court on Thursday expressed serious displeasure over the Gujarat high court listing the hearing of activist Teesta Setalvad's bail petition after six weeks. It observed the state government was making "this lady an exception" even when she had not been booked under any stringent law like UAPA.

A day after it was urged by the Gujarat government not to give special treatment to Setalvad by entertaining her bail plea while her petition was still pending in the HC, the apex court said: "Unlike UAPA or Pota, there is no offence under the IPC that comes with a rider that bail should not be granted. These are not bodily offences, these are offences of documents filed in court. In these matters, the normal idea is, after the initial period of police custody, there is nothing which stops investigators from conducting a probe without custody. A lady is entitled to favourable treatment."

20

7 Railway Stations in Rajasthan, 2 in Haryana to be equipped with world-class facilities

Along with the big stations, the Indian Railway Board has decided to rejuvenate small stations as well. Nine stations of the North-Western Railway Zone, including seven stations in Rajasthan and two in Haryana, have been marked for development.

These nine stations are Kishangarh (Ajmer), Bhagat Ki Kothi (Jodhpur), Alwar, Bandikui (Dausa), Bhilwara, Sri Ganganagar, Phulera (Jaipur), Rewari (Haryana), Hisar (Haryana). All these stations will be equipped with world-class facilities on the lines of Rani Kamlapati Railway Station of Madhya Pradesh. Earlier, the North-Western Railway Board approved the redevelopment of 9 stations. Altogether 18 stations will be rejuvenated.

According to railway officials, earlier major stations, including Jaipur, Ajmer, and Bikaner, were selected but now small stations have also been included in the redevelopment work.

19

Noida twin towers’ demolition: Life yet to return to complete normalcy for residents; repair work to take a week

Three days after the historic demolition of Supertech's illegal twin towers, while a majority of the residents of Emerald Court and ATS Village have returned, life is yet to get restored to complete normalcy, claimed the residents. While Edifice Engineering, the company responsible for pulling down the towers, said that the geotextile clothes covering the adjoining towers of Supertech Emerald Court and ATS Village have been completely removed, the residents shared they are avoiding going out fearing pollution.

"A part of the twin tower collapsed at the place where we used to park our cars. The debris inside ATS premises has disturbed the parking space of five cars. We are avoiding going out as we still feel a heaviness in the air," said Rajiv Srivastava, a resident of ATS Village.