Seven held, over 100 kg of smuggled gold seized
Mumbai:The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has claimed to have busted a massive gold smuggling racket with seizure of 106.9 kg of gold and arrest of seven persons here.
Acting on a tip-off, its sleuths seized 75 kg of smuggled gold concealed in two vehicles in Mumbai's Dongri area recently, and detained Abdul Ahad Zarodarwala, Shaikh Abdul Ahad and Shoeb Zarodarwala.
Shoeb Zarodarwala and Abdul Ahad Zarodarwala allegedly admitted that they had received a total of over 200 kg of smuggled gold from one Nisar Aliyar.
They sold smuggled gold in the wholesale market for a commission and one of their customers was Raju alias Manoj Jain who had bought around 100 kg of smuggled gold from them in the past, the two told DRI sleuths.
The sale proceeds were sent through "non-banking channels" (hawala) and they had sent Rs 12 crore through one Aaquil Fruitwala to Dubai, they allegedly revealed.
Nisar Aliyar, when summoned by the DRI, allegedly confessed that he had smuggled more than 200 kg of gold into India from Dubai by concealing it in containers of brass scrap.
Apart from Zarodarwalas, he had also sold around 30 kg of smuggled goods to one Happy Dhakad, he said.
A total of 106.9 kg of gold and Rs 1.81 crore in cash have been seized during the probe so far, the DRI said.
Aliyar, Shoeb Zarodarwala, Abdul Ahad Zarodarwala, Shaikh Abdul Ahad, Dhakad, Jain and Fruitwala were arrested and remanded in judicial custody while further probe is on, it said.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
