Churchgate Station turns 50 years this month. The station is the rail head for the Western Railway commuter line and has many firsts to its credits.

• It was the country’s first local network to run on AC-DC currents;
• It had the first pedestrian subway
• The world’s first ladies special was operated from here.

Churchgate station, which caters to lakhs of people daily, is set to celebrate its Golden Jubilee. An exhibition of old photographs, postcards and literature depicting history and heritage of the station will be held from June 4 to 9. [link]

Other interesting facts about the station

• The building was inaugurated in 1957 by then union Railway Minister Jagjivan Ram;
• There were 152 up and 144 down locals from Churchgate in 1957. Today there are 427 and 420 respectively
• The building came up after well-known architect firm Gregson, Baitley and King proposed a new station building in 1925. It was completed in 1957.

Image Copyrights

UPDATE: Thanks Dini for the correction. I have uploaded the correct photograph.

The consumer court for the island part of Mumbai has shifted from its regular lcoale at Arun Chambers, at AC Market to a new building near MD College in Parel. The court shifted there on May 08, and will function after a 15 day hiatus.

The reasons for moving the court include lack of space to conduct business. Even as it means a longer hike to Parel which is not as centrally located as Tardeo, the better facilities means faster times in conducting business.

Anyone living in the city knows that prices of everything are going through the roof. Rents are astronomically high, so are property prices. Driving, taking a cab, eating out, going to the movies, buying groceries, and every other activity today is expensive. And if you think you are the only one who feels the pinch, then this study confirms your worst fears.

Mumbai, which is ranked seventh, is followed by Shanghai, on whose lines the government is planning to develop the Indian financial hub.

The list comprises Hong Kong, Tokyo, New York, Moscow, Seoul, London, Mumbai, Shanghai, Caracas (Venezuela) and Paris (in order of their position), according to a study by International Human Resource organisation ECA International.

“High rentals in Tokyo, New York, Seoul, Moscow, London and Paris largely reflect high living costs in these locations, while Mumbai, Shanghai and Beijing suffer from a shortage of modern and well equipped properties, pushing prices up for those properties that do,” ECA International Hong Kong General Manager Lee Quane said.

Find anything wrong in this advertisement ?? It’s stupid of them to show a man walking on the railway tracks. Hundreds of people die every year trying to do so, and this advertisement just shows that its cool to do so. How about some social responsibility DNA??

Click here for the actual article in print

Guess you never heard of Haresh Parekh. Well take heed. He is one of the 5 students making up the India team to the Physics Olympiad. The event will be in mid July.

He is only 18, but is already in possession of accolades that include being awarded Wonder Child of The Year. Today as a student of Sathye College, Harsh Pareek, is awaiting his Standard XII Board exam results. However, what he is more eager is about his inclusion in the International Physics Olympiads being held in Iran. [link]

We wish the young lads the best of luck. Traditionally India has done reasonably well at these Olympiads.

Unofficially India holds 7th rank in the International Physics Olympiads India will be participating for the10th time this year.So far, India has bagged 13 gold medals, 15 silver medals and 11 bronze medals.

Its that time of the year when the heat is oppressive but the hope of the monsoons and the cooling of temperates is awaited with bated breath. Its also the time of the year when the trees will flower, as per this article by DNA

By the end of this month, Mumbai should be in full monsoon mode. The dust of summer will be washed away from the trees and the areas around the city will soon be covered in that particular shade of green, whose purity is sometimes painful to the eyes. [link]

Continue reading about the flowers of mumbai

The Gateway of India, is Bombay, and arguably India’s photographic icon. It is on postcards what the Statue of Liberty is to the USA and the Sydney Opera House to Australia. However this magnificient structure has been in the news from time to time because of all the wrong reasons. The latest controversey is about the proposed plans to redesign the public space outside the Gateway.

Meanwhile, the Indian National Trust for Arts and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) has insisted that it was not a mere “tree-cutting” organisation and would go all out to protect as much green cover as possible in the Grade I heritage precinct.[link]

The INTACH team is headed by Ar. P. K. Das and they propose to re-landscape the area and create a more cohesive ambience befitting the structure. However this means the removal of 115 trees. And the Green brigade is up in arms.

Meanwhile, the Indian National Trust for Arts and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) has insisted that it was not a mere “tree-cutting” organisation and would go all out to protect as much green cover as possible in the Grade I heritage precinct.

(more…)

Cajetan D’Souza, a Mumbai resident writes in to DNA about seeing a kids at a bar. The kids were sent there to pick up booze for their mom who is a ragpicker.

There are many bars that hire these minors as helpers, waiters and table boys. Even after the High Court banned the entry of children in liquor shops and bars, this bar gives liquor to children. How can we see the end of this evil without going to the police?

This really sucks. As much as this is part of the desperate situation the kids and the mother find themselves, this needs to stop.

What would you do if you were in a bar and a kid came in to buy booze ?

Mumbai’s contribution to global warming and ozone depletion just got a little easier to monitor. In a first of a kind for the country, an ozone monitoring station was set up in Bandra.

Housed in a room that is at least 10 degrees cooler than the temperature outside, the board has shortlisted Aarey Milk Colony at Goregaon as a possible site to install the monitor. The station will flash 19 parameters on a public display monitor on the Western Express Highway. “The data derived from the station would be used to evolve an action plan for the control of air pollution in the city,” added officials. [link]

Panvel city is gearing up to make all its records available in electronic format. And this involves using GIS systems to give the city officials faster and more reliabel access to local conditions. [via]

To avoid wastage of time and to ensure that data on city related projects is made easily accessible, Panvel Municipal Council gears up to install an electronic version of all its filed records.

With an aim to provide a better administration, the Panvel Municipal Council (PMC) has initiated measures to implement Geographic Information System (GIS). The GIS, if implemented, will give the administration fast access on each and every aspect regarding city planning. [link]

The possibilities that GIS information systems bring is limitless. The entire USA has been documented in various layers of information to the point that you can pull up “all the fire hydrants in NYC that are within 50 feet of a subway entrance”. This kind of possibility helps city planners, police, fire brigade, and other essential services in times of disaster. They also help commerce and industry in ways, too long to describe here.

If the experiment succeds in Panvel, it would be great to see the whole of the Greater Bombay region and infact the whole country get on the GIS bandwagon.