Navi Mumbai international airport will be named after late D B Patil, says Fadnavis
Mumbai (PTI): The Navi Mumbai International Airport will be named after the people's leader, late D B Patil, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, asserting that the facility will play a key role in the region's economic expansion.
Addressing a public meeting in Airoli during the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation election campaign, Fadnavis said, "The international airport started in Navi Mumbai will be named after the people's leader late D B Patil," and added that the project would strengthen growth in multiple sectors.
Fadnavis said Navi Mumbai is an extension of Mumbai and will emerge as the next engine of economic growth.
He said the airport would support sectors such as pharmaceuticals, innovation, food processing, services, and import-export, enabling the city to expand its economic base.
"Various infrastructure projects are underway to address traffic congestion, including a new junction at Kalamboli and the Kharghar-Turbhe tunnel. A metro network was being developed through CIDCO to improve connectivity across the city," he said.
Fadnavis added that the Shilar and Poshir projects would address the drinking water needs of Navi Mumbai residents in the coming days.
"An EduCity would be developed in Navi Mumbai, which would attract leading universities from across the world and provide education and employment opportunities to students locally," the chief minister said.
Addressing housing concerns, he said redevelopment of houses at the Ghansoli simplex would be undertaken, while the APMC market would be developed at the same location.
He added that tenders had been floated for a multi-speciality hospital in Belapur and work on a central library at Manpada had also begun.
Fadnavis said the government would introduce schemes for the fishermen community and locals.
He appealed to voters to elect BJP candidates with a large majority on January 15, stating that the government would take responsibility for the city's development over the next five years.
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SC asks states to treat rising child trafficking cases as grave; seeks coordinated action
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court has voiced grave concern over rising cases of child trafficking, saying gangs are operating across the country and if States and Union territories do not take immediate action, thing will go beyond control.
The court said only the state government and its home department can act vigilantly in this regard.
“As a court we can monitor, but ultimately the action has to be on the part of the state government, the police, and other agencies. Therefore, this is our humble request”, a bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and K V Viswanathan said during the hearing of a plea on Wednesday.
The bench was irked over the "lackadaisical" approach of several states and UTs in implementing a 2025 judgment aimed at dismantling organised trafficking networks.
Justice Viswanathan said the retrieval of children in some cases proves the problem can be tackled, but it requires a level of political and administrative will which is lacking at present.
The verdict, delivered on April 15, 2025, had mandated several institutional reforms, including completion of trials in trafficking cases within six months on a day-to-day basis.
It had also directed strengthening of Anti-Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs) and improving investigation standards.
Besides asking for setting up of state-level committees to monitor vulnerable trafficking hotspots, it had asked the authorities to treat missing children cases as trafficking unless proven otherwise.
Earlier, the bench had termed the compliance reports filed by a few states as "nothing but an eye wash."
On Wednesday, the bench noted that Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Haryana, Lakshadweep, Mizoram, Odisha, and Punjab had still failed to file reports in the prescribed format.
When the home secretary of Madhya Pradesh offered an apology for the lapse, the bench granted a "final opportunity" but warned that continued failure would lead to states being officially branded as "defaulting".
The bench noted that at least 15 states are yet to constitute review committees mandated to identify and monitor trafficking-prone areas.
The matter will now be heard on April 29.
