Mumbai's highs and lows of the day
In the wake of demonetization, BEST will adopt 'cashless' modes of payment and encourage millions of its commuters to go cashless. Maharashtra's rural economy however is stalling due to ripples from demonetization with no help in sight. Anil Kapoor lined up in an ATM queue to withdraw cash, surprising his fans. To read more on this and how a blaze 'gutted dreams' tap in!
Commuters on Harbor Line had their commute disrupted in the afternoon when wheels on one of the trains got 'jammed'. The stalled train was moved slowly to CST for repairs resulting in 'bunching of trains' along the Harbour route; commuters had to bear with 30-40 minutes of delay. By evening train traffic was normalized; the cause for wheel 'jam' is yet to be ascertained.
Dr. Sheetal Kamath and her hospital made the headlines on November 11 for refusing treatment to a 2-day old child for parents' inability to pay in new currency notes. The two-day old premature baby died for lack of treatment making the newborn the first victim of the demonetization chaos. A state-appointed inquiry panel has found Dr. Kamath guilty of negligence of duty.
Mumbai University's vice-chancellor, Sanjay Deshmukh, has committed to setting up Wi-Fi across all affiliated colleges. He has promised to introduce 'digital lockers' for easier access to marksheets and certificates and a mobile app to facilitate this. Mr. Deshmukh spoke of these developments at an interactive session with students called 'Coffee with VC'. 450 students from 20 affiliated colleges met Deshmukh at this gathering.
Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) will introduce a raft of features to encourage commuters and electricity consumers to make 'cashless payments'. From December 10, BEST will launch a mobile ticketing service, two mobile apps, credit card payment facilities at some of its outlets across the city. BEST Chairman said present system of cash transactions will continue however 'cashless payments' will be emphasized.
People at an ATM queue in a suburban Mumbai hotel were in for a surprise when Bollywood actor Anil Kapoor joined the queue. The girls in the queue were delighted and he obliged them by taking a few pictures with them. Kapoor needed to buy books at the hotel-bookshop but instead of paying by card, wanted to experience "waiting in line for money".
Over 21,000 agricultural credit societies (ACS) with a cumulative working capital of Rs.40,000 crore are paralyzed due to demonetization. RBI barred ACS and co-operative societies from exchanging or depositing demonetized currency dealing a blow to their farmer account-holders. Despite repeated requests, FM Arun Jaitley has refused to reconsider the prohibition. Banks are unable to provide money to farmers adversely impacting them during sowing season.
A massive fire blazed through the JK Somani building last night. The fire gutted offices where a dozen young lawyers had recently rented space in the three storey building in Fort area to start their own practice. The lawyers had moved in a few months ago and were despondent to lose their workplace and case-papers. One of them said, "Our dreams have been gutted".
