A rural water crisis could become an urban challenge as migration, pressure on housing and demand for water converge on an already crowded Pune. Pune: As more than half the state faces drought conditions, Pune is turning into a principal destination for people leaving villages across Maharashtra search of work and a more secure livelihood. While the city has absorbed such waves before, the difference this time is that Pune is already struggling under the weight of its own suc

Mumbai: ​The top administrative brass of Pune—the Municipal Commissioner and the Police Commissioner—are likely to face unprecedented legal and regulatory action from the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) over their persistent failure to rein in illegal, deafening sound systems. With civic and police authorities displaying chronic inertia in enforcing mandatory sound limits during recent festivities, the statutory human rights watchdog is poised to hold both top officia

The assault of a Pune resident and anti-noise activist vocal about excessive noise during festivals is a disturbing reminder of what happens when religious enthusiasm becomes a licence for civic lawlessness. A disagreement over loudspeakers and DJs should be settled by argument. It should never end with one citizen hitting another. The attacker has reportedly been arrested and charged with serious offences. But the incident exposes a growing intolerance towards anyone who que

Mumbai: They came carrying more than placards and flags, but with hope and faith writ on their faces. Thousands of young women from Pune city, the district and adjoining regions converged on Saturday evening to hear Congress Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi at the fourth edition of his Chhatron Ki Goonj – and a maiden one dedicated exclusively to girls. The mood was palpable even before Rahul Gandhi reached the AISSMS College ground. Groups of girls arrived

Mumbai: An innocuous video of bad quality food items posted by an Anganwadi worker in Pune sparked off a major political spat with the ruling Mahayuti and Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi trading charges. Three days ago, an Anganwadi worker, Reshma alias Devyani Pardhi - who also doubles as a teacher - at the Thakurwadi-Chass Gram Panchayat in Ambegaon taluka of Pune, posted a video of inferior and uncookable dried yellow peas served as lunch to the tiny tots there. She claimed t

Landmark verdict in 60 days as pune court terms crime ‘rarest of rare’; calls ‘brutal’, ‘inhuman’ and ‘barbaric’ Mumbai: In a milestone verdict, a Pune Special Fast Track Court handed triple death and triple life sentences to a 65-year old man for the rape-cum-murder of a three-years and two-months old girl, within barely 60 days of the crime, terming the case as falling in the ‘rarest of rare’ category, on Monday. Special Judge S. R. Salunkhe slapped the verdicts “to be hang

Pune has long cultivated an image of itself as Maharashtra’s cultural and educational capital. Yet, the alleged murder of a young businessman by his fiancée and her lover at Lohagad Fort reveals a darker reality that beneath the city’s polished image lies a growing culture of selfishness, emotional emptiness and moral decay. According to police investigations, what initially appeared to be a tragic trekking accident has been revealed as a carefully planned killing. The victim

AI generated image Pune: Facing the prospect of a weak monsoon and rapidly dwindling water reserves, the Pune Municipal Corporation will begin imposing its proposed water cuts across the city, with residents set to receive water on alternate days from today. As part of the restrictions, vehicle washing centers and swimming pools across the city will be closed, while concerns are mounting over the impact the curbs could have on Pune’s booming construction sector. The move come

The unopposed election of Vikram Kakade to the Legislative Council has triggered fresh recriminations within the opposition coalition. Vikram Kakade Pune: As expected, Vikram Kakade of the Mahayuti was elected unopposed from the Pune Local Authorities’ constituency of the Legislative Council. While celebrations broke out within the Mahayuti following the election, the chaos within the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) emerged as a major talking point. Former MP Sanjay Kakade

A contentious candidate selection in the Legislative Council election suggests a decisive shift in NCP’s internal balance of power Pune: Ahead of the Legislative Council elections for the Local Self-Government Constituencies, MP and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) General Secretary Parth Pawar now appears to wield decisive influence over the party’s internal decision-making. The NCP had staked its claim to the Pune Local Self-Government Constituency seat in the Legislative C

Representational image Now that the hype around Mother’s Day has come and gone by (wrapped in predictable imagery - flowers, gratitude posts, and carefully worded tributes) it is time to appreciate the role mothers especially those from underprivileged backgrounds playing in reshaping the future through education. This is not a symbolic contribution but a quiet revolution happening, unseen. Consider Prabhas’ mother. Her reality was unforgiving. She sells balloons at the busy

The NEET scandal exposes the commercial ruin of Pune’s academic legacy. For generations, Pune wore its scholarly reputation with great pride. It was known by its famous sobriquets - Vidyeche Maherghar (“abode of learning”) and ‘Oxford of the East’. Students from across the country flocked to its colleges and libraries. Reformers built schools there not for profit but for social transformation. Teachers once commanded the sort of reverence now reserved for celebrities and poli

The state’s electric vehicle boom promises cleaner cities and industrial renewal, but the transition is exposing the deep social and energy vulnerabilities of India’s urban future. India’s electric vehicle revolution is picking up pace, and Maharashtra is one of the most ambitious drivers. The state is emerging as a leader in clean mobility with Mumbai’s growing fleet of electric buses and Pune’s booming EV startup ecosystem. Government incentives, rising petrol prices, envir

The rape and murder of a four-year-old child is not merely a crime but the collapse of the most basic covenant that binds a society together. When such brutality is inflicted upon someone so young, so defenceless, the usual language of law and order feels woefully inadequate. The shocking rape and murder of a four-year-old Pune has rattled Maharashtra. Such was the grief and anger that hundreds of protestors blocked the Mumbai–Bengaluru highway for hours. The child’s body, pl

Mumbai : In what is suspected to be a breach of aviation protocols, a chartered helicopter ferrying Food & Civil Supplies Minister Chhagan Bhujbal from Mumbai to Pune skipped a designated helipad and landed in a vehicle parking lot almost a km away. The shocker happened in Purandar taluka, where Bhujbal was slated to attend a function marking the 200 th birth anniversary of the social reformer Mahatma Jyotirao Phule in his home village Khanwadi. As crowds of bewildered p

As a gas shortage ripples through the city, its vast informal food economy has begun to unravel AI generated image Pune: The global energy shock triggered by disruptions to gas supplies from West Asia has begun to empty commercial LPG cylinders across India. But its effects are being felt most starkly in Pune, known for its student bustle and middle-class industriousness. The crisis has begun to choke Pune’s famed informal food industry as the severe shortage of commercial ga