15 hospitals in Thane sealed for flouting fire safety norms
Thane: As many as 15 hospitals have been sealed by the Thane civic body in Maharashtra for flouting fire safety norms, an official has said.
The action came after the Bombay High Court last month directed the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) to seal all private hospitals and nursing homes operating without a no- objection certificate (NOC) from the fire department.
The court issued the directive while hearing plea claiming that according to a survey conducted by the Thane fire department earlier this year, more than 50 per cent of the private hospitals and nursing homes here were ill-equipped to deal with fire incidents.
TMC's chief fire officer Sashikant Kale on Wednesday said following the court's directive, they sealed 15 hospitals in the city in the last couple of days.
"These hospitals were first issued notices. When they failed to produce the NOC, we had no option but to seal these health care centres while allowing them to shift patients to other hospitals," he said.
He said licences of these hospitals were likely to be suspended or cancelled. Following the high court's directive, a four-member committee of civic officials was formed which inspected various hospitals earlier this month and identified 15 of them for flouting fire safety rules, he said.
Among the sealed hospitals, five were located in the city's Wagle Estate area, four in Mumbra, and three each in Balkum and Naupada localities, he mentioned.
Kale said in April last year, around 200 hospitals in Thane applied for NOC from the fire department. Of these, 188 hospitals were at that time found to have complied with the fire safety regulations and hence, were given the NOC.
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Rupee falls 28 paise to 94.77 against US dollar in early trade
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee depreciated 28 paise to 94.77 against the US dollar in early trade on Thursday as market sentiment took a dramatic turn after reports emerged that the US and Iran are discussing a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at reducing tensions and reopening negotiations.
Forex traders said Brent oil prices, which had fallen to USD 98 on the US-Iran peace deal, edged slightly higher to USD 101 per barrel after investors weighed the prospects for a Middle East peace deal.
Moreover, factors such as unabated foreign capital outflows amid rising geopolitical uncertainties further dented investor sentiment.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 94.77 against the US dollar, registering a fall of 28 paise over its previous close.
On Wednesday, the rupee appreciated 69 paise to close at 94.49 against the US dollar.
"Markets are currently focused on the critical 48-hour window during which the US expects Tehran’s formal response through Pakistani mediators," said CR Forex Advisors MD Amit Pabari.
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened Iran with more bombing if it doesn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz, amid a report that the warring sides were nearing an agreement to end the war.
US media outlet Axios reported, quoting US officials and two other sources, that the US and Iran were getting close to a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war and set a framework for more detailed nuclear negotiations.
The US expects Iranian responses on several key points over the next 48 hours, Axios reported, adding that nothing has been agreed yet. This was the closest the parties had been to an agreement since the war began.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 98.01, down 0.01 per cent.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading higher by 0.65 per cent at USD 101.83 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex declined 160.24 points to 77,798.28 in early trade, while the Nifty was down 30.25 points to 24,300.70.
Foreign Institutional Investors offloaded equities worth Rs 5,834.90 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
On the domestic macroeconomic front, the country's goods and services exports rose 4.6 per cent to an all-time high of USD 863.11 billion during 2025-26, up from USD 825.26 billion in 2024-25, despite global economic uncertainties, according to revised commerce ministry data.
Merchandise exports grew 0.93 per cent to USD 441.78 billion in the last fiscal year from USD 437.70 billion in 2024-25, the data showed.
