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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Mumbai local train murder stuns commuters

Mumbai: A routine commute to home on a dark rain-soaked night in a Mumbai local turned into a nightmare when a 22-year-old commuter was allegedly stabbed to death inside a first-class compartment following a heated argument over shutting the train door, late on Tuesday. The victim, identified as Mayank Lohar, 22, worked as a salesman with a private company in Andheri and lived in Virar, nearly 60 km from Churchgate. According to Western Railway (WR) and Government Railway Police (GRP)...

Mumbai local train murder stuns commuters

Mumbai: A routine commute to home on a dark rain-soaked night in a Mumbai local turned into a nightmare when a 22-year-old commuter was allegedly stabbed to death inside a first-class compartment following a heated argument over shutting the train door, late on Tuesday. The victim, identified as Mayank Lohar, 22, worked as a salesman with a private company in Andheri and lived in Virar, nearly 60 km from Churchgate. According to Western Railway (WR) and Government Railway Police (GRP) officials, the shocking incident took place aboard the Churchgate-Nalasopara Fast Local (Train No. 90663), which left Churchgate at 10.05 pm and reached Andheri at 10.42 pm. As the train pulled out of Andheri, heavy rains started lashing the city. Lohar reportedly requested a fellow commuter standing near the doorway to shut the door, as rainwater was blowing into the compartment and inconveniencing those seated inside. The other commuter, wearing a dark shirt and trousers, allegedly refused and it started a heated verbal exchange which quickly escalated into a raging argument as the train raced through Goregaon and Malad. Then, in a horrifying burst of violence, the suspect allegedly pulled out a knife and repeatedly stabbed Lohar in the abdomen and chest as the train zoomed past Kandivali. Stunned Silence The other terrified commuters watched in stunned silence as the attack unfolded and ended within a matter of minutes claiming the young boy. Writhing in pain and bleeding profusely, Lohar collapsed onto the compartment floor as panic gripped the passengers and they scrambled away from the attacker, who reportedly continued to pace about menacingly. Eyewitnesses later said that as the train slowed while entering Borivali station’s Platform No. 6, the suspect calmly jumped off, ran up the staircase and vanished into the wet darkness. When the train halted at Borivali at 11.04 pm, the other commuters immediately alerted railway authorities. WR, GRP and medical personnel rushed to the platform within minutes with emergency equipment, medicos, porters and a stretcher. Lohar was first rushed to the station’s Emergency Medical Room, where a doctor examined him and declared him dead. His body was later shifted to Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Shatabdi Hospital in Kandivali for post-mortem and other legal formalities. Special Teams The brutal killing sent shockwaves across Mumbai’s suburban rail network. In the morning, Borivali GRP Senior Police Inspector Datta Khuperkar said seven special teams were formed and nearly 400 CCTV camera feeds were scrutinised to trace the suspect. The attacker was captured on multiple surveillance cameras, cool and casual, without a hint of remorse, walking out of Borivali station after the attack. Following an intensive 14-hour manhunt, he was tracked down and arrested at Panvel in Raigad. The Borivali GRP has registered a murder case and launched a detailed investigation. As news of the shocking crime spread amid Wednesday’s torrential rains, commuters expressed outrage and disbelief that a trivial dispute over closing a train door could culminate in such a savage killing. Pall of gloom in Virar Early Wednesday morning, the Lohar family of Virar was devastated on learning about the horrifying killing of their favourite child, Mayank in a train altercation. His parents, three brothers and a sister could barely speak, with his wailing mother demanding “he must be hanged”. Consoling each other, one sister lamented how he was a quiet boy, rarely stepped out of the house without any reason and had his entire life before him that was snuffed out. Venting their ire, they asked “where was the police, why the other commuters didn’t help him” and warned that today it was their son, “next it can be anybody’s son”. The massive dragnet Barely hours after the brutal killing of Mayank Lohar, the Borivali GRP launched one of the biggest manhunts to track and apprehend the suspected killer from Panvel in Raigad district. He was later identified as one Roshan Suvarna, 30, of Mira Road, running a barcode business, informed Borivali GRP Senior Police Inspector Datta Khuperkar. “We formed seven teams with around 10 police personnel supervised by 15 officers. They scanned footage from over 400 CCTVs to trace the regular movements of the accused. The GRP stations of Borivali, Andheri, Mira Road and Nalasopara were involved in the search. We deployed tech-intel to scour his mobile and with help of our network of informers, finally caught him in Panvel,” a weary but victorious Khuperkar told ‘The Perfect Voice’. He added that after completing the legal and medical formalities, he will be produced before a Borivali Court for remand.

Zero Food Waste Starts at Home

Planning your meals and shopping smart can drastically cut down food waste. Stock take first, buy only what you need, and store perishables properly.

Food waste drastically affects the environmental, economic, and social dimensions of sustainability. Therefore, it is important to adopt different strategies not only to minimise or reduce the wastage of food but also to achieve the ‘Zero Food Waste’ goal. There are many ways to do this. Let us explore them.


As we have learnt before, a lot of food is wasted in households. The following pointers will help in reducing food waste.


• Plan your grocery and vegetable shopping. Buy what you need and buy to the extent you can eat. For this, conduct a stocktaking before you go shopping to know what is already there in your refrigerator or your kitchen cabinet. There is no point in buying vegetables and similar perishable items, for example, if you know beforehand that you won’t be able to use them for a week for some reason.


• Many people discard food prematurely because they misinterpret expiration dates. Familiarise yourself with date labels such as ‘‘sell by’, ‘use by’, and ‘best before’. Often, these dates indicate peak quality rather than safety. By understanding these labels, you can make more informed decisions about when to consume or discard food.


• Storing food properly can significantly extend its shelf life. For example, keeping fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator, using airtight containers, and storing leftovers in clear containers for better visibility can help prevent spoilage. Understanding the unique storage requirements of different foods is crucial in minimising waste.


• When preparing meals, portion sizes should be appropriate for the number of people that need to be served. Avoid over-preparing, as this can lead to leftovers that are eventually wasted.


• Be creative and transform the leftover vegetables into soups, stews, or other dishes. Leftover rice can be used to make fried rice or other dishes. Leftover chapatis can be used to make fried chapatis.


• Convert all your waste food into nutrient-rich soil by subjecting it to composting.


• Donate the surplus food to appropriate organisations that operate ‘food banks’. Several NGOs in India focus on collecting and donating food. Some prominent ones include the Akshaya Patra Foundation, Feeding India, and Rise Against Hunger India. These organisations, along with others like Annamrita Foundation and Robin Hood Army, play a crucial role in addressing hunger and malnutrition in the country. These and a few other organisations focus on redistributing excess food not only from homes but also from various events like weddings, hotels, and restaurants to those who are hungry.


Restaurants and food service establishments must create a culture of continuous improvement by regularly evaluating and adapting their waste management practices. Innovative food waste management practices are essential for restaurants and restaurateurs to reduce their environmental impact, support local communities, and increase profits. By implementing a comprehensive strategy, from source reduction to customer engagement, companies can choose how they deal with food waste and contribute to a more sustainable future.


Dear readers, I have tried to present this very important topic of food waste to you through a few articles. The strategies for reducing and minimising food waste discussed in this article are just a few representative guidelines. You can keep on making value additions to these and come up with more innovative solutions to this problem. Please stop wasting food and let your children follow in your footsteps to prevent wasting food in your homes. It is their right to live in an environment that is healthy and sustainable.


(The writer is an environmentalist.)

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