Mumbai: The Bombay high court has ordered two senior BMC officers to pay Rs 11 each as costs for delay in initiating action against a ward officer who had not demolished an unauthorised construction in a building in Fort.“In order to ensure that the message goes out loud and clear to the corporation that the orders of every court should be acted upon with promptitude, we are imposing costs of Rs 11 to be paid by Chanda Jadhav, deputy municipal commissioner (zone-I), and by Ashwini Joshi, additional municipal commissioner (city), from their respective salary accounts,” said Justices Ravindra Ghuge and Abhay Mantri on February 9, directing the amounts to deposited within two days with Kirtikar Law Library in the high court.The suit filed by Green Twig Estate Management Pvt Ltd — landlord of Kirti Chambers — seeking demolition of a tenant’s illegal mezzanine floor was dismissed as statutory notice was not issued to BMC. The landlord appealed before HC. On August 5, 2024, after HC recorded that BMC had initiated action, the appeal was withdrawn. Since no action was taken, another petition was filed.On December 23, 2025, BMC’s advocate Vaishali Ugale submitted an August 10, 2024 speaking order. The judges said besides passing a “cryptic” order, no further steps were taken to demolish the structure. The order mentioned that if the structure is not razed by the tenant, it will be demolished by the office of the assistant municipal commissioner of A ward. Therefore, HC directed assistant municipal commissioner Jaydeep More to remain present the next day.On December 24, 2025, Ugale said “inadvertently the order could not be complied with”. The judges directed BMC to initiate action against More, who was present, “for having failed in performance of his duty”. The petition was disposed of and kept for compliance on January 30, 2025, but could not be heard. BMC issued More a show-cause notice the same day.Questioned about the delay on February 9, Ugale submitted the original file. The judges noted she had prepared a report for transmission of the December 24 order on December 26. On December 30, the file was dispatched to Jadhav who signed the order “9 days later” on January 8. Thereafter, it reached Joshi who signed it “19 days later” on January 27. BMC municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani on January 28 “promptly” directed the issue of show-cause notice to More. The judges found “the matter was delayed on account of delayed action at the desks” of Jadhav and Joshi. Show-cause notice to More was issued on January 30, when the matter was listed.

MUMBAI: Mulund police have arrested five persons – project director Harish Chauhan, project manager Kuldeep Sapkal, deputy manager Saurab Singh, and supervisor Prashant Bhoir from RAJV-Milan Infra, and project manager Avdhoot Inamdar from DB-Hill-LBG consortium – following the collapse of a parapet segment of the underconstruction Metro Line 4 on LBS Marg in Mulund West on Saturday afternoon, which left one person dead and three injured. Fire brigade teams, police, Metro staff and civic officials secured the site, and traffic on the arterial road was affected for several hours. Police said a nearly 150m stretch in the Sion-bound direction will remain closed until safety clearance is given after inspection by the MMRDA team, and diversions have been put in place to manage congestion in the Mulund-Bhandup belt.

MMRDA imposed a penalty of Rs 5 crore on the contractor RAJV-Milan, and Rs 1 crore on the project management consultant, DB-Hill-LBG consortium even as politicians called out the previous violations by the contractor and the lack of safety standards at infrastructure sites across the city.

Mulund MLA Mihir Kotecha said the parapet segment was installed on Friday and alleged labourers attended to it without a supervisor present. He claimed workers disturbed the temporary fastening of the segment, causing it to dislodge, and added that 54 violations by the contractor in Mulund were previously flagged, but ignored.Mayor Ritu Tawde said the recently installed stretch should have been barricaded, indicating negligence and a lack of adequate on-ground safety measures.Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, in a social media post, criticised safety standards at infrastructure sites and questioned whether the contractor would be blacklisted, alleging repeated lapses and inadequate barricading at project locations.MMRDA said it will bear the medical expenses of the injured and provide financial assistance to the affected family as per policy, assuring priority disbursal of compensation. The authority halted work at the stretch and began a structural safety assessment in coordination with BMC, disaster management authorities, police and fire brigade. The work falls under Package CA-10 of Metro Line 4.Additional metropolitan commissioner Ashwin Mudgal and senior officials inspected the site and reviewed safety measures, while doctors from Fortis Hospital were asked to independently assess the injured patients’ condition and suggest advanced intervention if required.A high-level inquiry committee, headed by Basavraj M Bhadragond, director (projects), was formed to examine construction methodology, quality control systems and supervision mechanisms. Further action, including blacklisting and contractual remedies, will be decided after the inquiry based on accountability.MMRDA clarified that viral visuals circulating online relate to a different location and not Pier .– Inputs by Mateen Hafeez

South Africa captain Aiden Markram led his team from the front in the recently-concluded game against New Zealand in the ongoing T20 World Cup. He smashed a 19-ball fifty as the Proteas crushed the Black Caps.

Aiden Markram, 31, looked troubled to maintain his form. As he is among the most experienced and proven talents for the team, expectations on him also remain on the higher side. To make a solid statement in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026, the match against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad turned into a must-win match for the Proteas.

Aiden Markram helped South Africa to overcome tough challenge leading from the front

South Africa started their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign with back-to-back wins against Canada and Afghanistan, respectively. The third consecutive win will seal their spot in the round of eight. In-form batter Quinton de Kock’s early departure made the task more challenging for them.

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While Quinton de Kock went for only 20 off 14, Markram remained tall on the track. He endured only 19 balls to touch the half-century mark, chasing a target of 176. Markram remained unbeaten for 86 off 44, confirming the much-needed win over the strong New Zealand team. The right-handed batter decorated his innings with eight 4s and four 6s.

Topping the captain, the middle-order batters supported their innings with brief but effective knocks. Another experienced batter, David Miller, remained unbeaten for 24 at the end of the match. South Africa eventually won the match by 7 wickets, with 17 balls to spare. On the other side, New Zealand sustained their first defeat in the tournament.

Markram equals Rohit Sharma’s T20 World Cup record

With the 18-ball half century, Aiden Markram levels Rohit Sharma‘s record in the T20 World Cup as a captain. Sharma also needed 19 balls to complete his half-century. During the 2024 T20 World Cup, Rohit faced only 19 balls to secure a half-century in the tournament against Australia at Gros Islet on June 24.

Two years later, in the ongoing T20 WC, so far two batters equal ‘Hitman’s record for smashing the fastest fifty in the history of the tournament. Sri Lanka’s Dasun Shanak also did the same against Oman on February 12, 2026. Within a couple of days, South Africa’s Aiden Markram also joined the elite list. In the effort, he surpassed some of the legends like Mohammad Ashraful and Mahela Jayawardane, who also smashed blistering half-centuries in the T20 World Cup as skippers for the respective national team’s.

List of fastest half-century scored by a captain in the history of T20 World Cup

Read More: Watch: Bowling like Usman Tariq: Suryakumar Yadav trains his teammates with Tariq-like bowling action

Suryakumar Yadav and Usman Tariq (Agency Image)

India skipper Suryakumar Yadav admitted that the team’s batting has looked a little shaky in the first two matches of the T20 World Cup but expressed confidence in handling Pakistan’s tricky spinner Usman Tariq, describing him as “an out of syllabus question” in an exam. “See, sometimes there is a question in the exam as well which is out of syllabus. So, we can’t leave that question. To tackle that, you have to adopt your own way. Yes, he is a different character when he comes to bowl,” Surya said at the pre-match press conference.

He added, “But at the same time, we can’t just surrender. We practise with similar types of bowlers and similar actions. We will try to execute what we are practising in the net sessions.” India’s earlier matches exposed some vulnerabilities, with the team reduced to 77 for six against the USA and then losing five wickets for just four runs in the death overs against Namibia. Looking ahead to Sunday’s clash on the slow Premadasa wicket, Surya acknowledged the challenge posed by Tariq’s unusual bowling action, which has sparked debates about legality. “We had a scratchy start. You can’t run away from the fact that it was not a proper T20 wicket. But I said earlier too that you can’t actually brush everything under the carpet. There is no excuse,” he said. He remained positive about the team’s recovery, noting, “But we came back strongly. So, that’s the beauty of T20 cricket. One or two batters I think taking that responsibility makes us cross the line.” Surya also highlighted the mental challenge of facing Pakistan, saying the key is handling pressure and big moments. “Yes, there will be pressure. There will be nerves, butterflies in the stomach when we start the game tomorrow. But yeah, at the same time, if there’s no pressure, no nerves, then there’s no fun to play cricket. And yeah, it’s a big occasion. But yeah, I mean, every time I say the same thing, at the end of the day, it’s just another game. You have to pack your skills, play some good cricket, focus on what you want to do better, and we’ll see what happens.” Despite Pakistan being in Sri Lanka for the past fortnight, Surya remained confident. “They might have some edge. But as I said, we have come here before, we have played in these conditions, we know how the pitch plays, similar conditions to India. It’s like the same situation for both the teams. See, it’s definitely challenging when you come to Sri Lanka. But then at the end of the day, you have to challenge yourself, somehow find a solution and come out good,” he said.

NEW DELHI: More than 75% of state real estate regulators, Reras, have either never published annual reports, discontinued their publication or not updated them despite statutory obligation and directions from the housing and urban affairs ministry, claimed homebuyers’ body FPCE on Friday. It released status report of 21 Reras as of Feb 13.The availability of updated annual reports is crucial as these contain details of data on performance of Reras, including project completion status categorised by timely completion, completion with extensions, and incomplete projects. The ministry’s format for publishing these reports also specifies providing details such as actual execution status of refund, possession and compensation orders as well as recovery warrant execution details with values and list of defaulting builders.FPCE said annual report data is not only vital for homebuyers to assess system credibility, but is equally necessary for both state and central govts to frame effective policies, design incentivisation schemes, and develop tax policy frameworks.“Unless we have credible data proving that after Rera the real estate sector has improved in terms of delivery, fairness, and keeping its promises, we are merely firing in the air,” said FPCE president Abhay Upadhyay, who is also a member of the govt’s Central Advisory Council on Rera.As per details shared by the entity, seven states – Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Goa – have never published a single annual report since Rera’s implementation, and nine states, including Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Telangana, which initially published reports, have discontinued the practice.Upadhyay said when regulators themselves don’t follow the law, they lose the legal right to demand compliance from other stakeholders. “Their failure emboldens builders and weakens the very system they are meant to safeguard,” he said.