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Elements of the Disaster Management Act to restrict Covid-19 have been overturned after two years

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The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) declared on Tuesday that the Disaster Management Act of 2005 would be repealed to implement COVID containment measures. This comes exactly two years after the central government imposed the ‘Janta Curfew’ as the start of a long-running campaign to prevent a coronavirus breakout by 2020.

Taking note of the NDMA’s proposal, the Union Home Secretary wrote to the Chief Secretaries of all States and Union Territories yesterday, instructing them to stop issuing COVID containment orders and recommendations under the Disaster Management Act. In a letter dated March 22, the Home Secretary stated, “I would ask all States/UTs to consider appropriately suspending issue of orders and instructions under the DM Act, 2005 for COVID containment measures.”

According to the letter, significant capacities for various aspects of pandemic management, such as diagnostics, surveillance, contact tracing, treatment and vaccination, hospital infrastructure, and general public awareness of CO VID appropriate behavior, have been developed over the last 24 months. States and UTs have also built their capacities and systems, as well as established thorough State/UT-specific pandemic strategies.

According to the letter, the country’s overall COVID caseload was only 23,913 cases, with a daily positive rate of 0.28 percent. A total of 181.56 crore vaccination doses were administered, according to the report. “In light of the overall improvement in the situation and the government’s preparation to cope with the epidemic,” Bhalla wrote, “NDMA has determined that the DM Act would not be used for Covid containment after March 31.”

“After considering the overall improvement in the situation and the Government’s preparedness to cope with the pandemic, NDMA has decided that there may be no longer need to invoke the provisions of the DM Act for COVID containment measures,” it says.

As per the NDMA, MHA may not issue any more orders when the existing MHA directive dated February 25 expires. COVID containment measures, such as face masks and hand hygiene, will, however, be maintained, according to the statement. The NDMA further noted that if a spike in active coronavirus cases is detected, states and UTs may take action at the local level.

In the last 24 hours, India has reported 1,778 new COVID cases and 62 linked deaths, according to reports. With this, India’s overall number of COVID cases has risen to 4,30,12,749, with a death toll of 5,16,605. According to the figures released by the Union health ministry, active cases have decreased to 23,913, with a recovery rate of 98.75 percent.

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Woman Found Murdered at Ulwe Lodge, Boyfriend Dies by Suicide

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23-year-old woman allegedly strangled by her boyfriend at a Sector 9 lodge; police launch investigation into the incident.

The Murder

A shocking incident was reported at Happy Residency Lodge in Sector 9, Ulwe, where a 24-year-old man allegedly murdered his 23-year-old girlfriend before dying by suicide.

According to the police, the incident came to light around midnight on Wednesday. The preliminary investigation suggests that the crime may have been linked to complications in their relationship. However, the exact motive is yet to be established. The woman’s father, Satyaveer Singh Chaudhary, a resident of Sankeshwar Plaza in Ulwe, approached the police after his daughter went missing on Tuesday. The family was scheduled to travel outside the state by flight, but the woman failed to return home.

Following the complaint, Ulwe police began searching for her. A technical investigation helped them trace her location to Happy Residency Lodge in Sector 9. When police reached the lodge at around 1 am on Wednesday, they found the woman’s body inside a room. Her boyfriend, identified as Bharat Pankaj Bhardwaj, alias Gaurav, was also found dead after allegedly hanging himself.

According to the post-mortem findings, the woman was strangled to death before the man died by suicide at around 4.45 am. Police have registered a murder case against the deceased man under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Further investigation is being conducted by the Ulwe police.

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Fake Journalist Arrested for Allegedly Cheating Four People of Rs 19 Lakh in Ulwe Flat Deal

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Navi Mumbai Police arrest accused from a Lonavala hotel, he allegedly promised affordable flats in Ulwe but failed to deliver.

Cheating

Navi Mumbai Police have arrested a man accused of cheating four people of approximately Rs 19 lakh by promising to provide flats at below-market prices in Ulwe. The accused, identified as Shailendra Devprabhakar Dwivedi, was arrested from a hotel in Lonavala.

According to the police, Dwivedi allegedly posed as a journalist and claimed to be associated with a real estate development firm, Shri Guru Builders and Developers. He reportedly promised affordable flats in a building being developed at Plot No. 453 in Sector 24, Ulwe.

Using these assurances, he allegedly collected a total of Rs 19 lakh from four people but failed to provide the promised flats. Vijay Jha (42), an incense-stick businessman, lodged a complaint at the Ulwe police station on October 7. After the complaint was registered, the accused allegedly went into hiding and frequently changed locations to avoid arrest. He also reportedly circulated misleading social media posts about Navi Mumbai police personnel.

Following a technical investigation, the police traced him to a hotel in Lonavala and arrested him around midnight on Thursday. Deputy Commissioner of Police Amit Kale stated that several other serious cases, including extortion, illegal possession of weapons, assault and obstructing government officials, had previously been registered against the accused at various police stations in Navi Mumbai and Thane. Further investigation is underway.

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Cyberattack at SBI’s Navi Mumbai IT Centre, 3.75 Lakh Records Allegedly Stolen

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Hackers reportedly accessed servers at the CBD Belapur facility and stole data linked to YONO 2.0 and RAAS applications; police launch investigation.

The IT Centre

A major cybersecurity breach has been reported at the State Bank of India’s (SBI) Global IT Centre in CBD Belapur, Navi Mumbai, where hackers allegedly gained unauthorised access to the bank’s servers and stole around 3.75 lakh records.

According to a police complaint, the incident took place between October 9 and October 15, 2026. The stolen data reportedly included 32 CSV files containing approximately 3.75 lakh records linked to SBI’s YONO 2.0 and RAAS applications. Additionally, two JSON files and 2,721 PDF files were allegedly accessed.

The complaint suspects the involvement of an individual or hacking group operating under the name ‘Siriusim’, along with another unidentified person. It has also been alleged that the stolen information was circulated on the dark web. SBI official Bhavesh Nehru Nikam filed a complaint at the CBD police station. Police have registered a case against unidentified persons under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Information Technology Act.

The police are investigating how the hackers accessed the servers, who was responsible for the breach and whether the stolen information was misused. However, the exact nature of the compromised customer data remains unclear. There is no official confirmation yet regarding the theft of bank account numbers, passwords or financial transaction details.

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