Visiting the historic Sinhagad, one of the most favoured hangout of Puneites, will now come with a price, if you carry plastic items along. As an effort to curb the environmental pollution caused by plastic, visitors will be made to pay a penalty in the range of Rs 50 to Rs 100, if he or she is seen carrying plastic bags or bottles. "If the visitor, on his return from the fort, is found carrying less plastic than what he took along, the deposit amount will be kept as penalty,' said State Forest Minister Babanrao Pachpute, who was in the city for a hearing at Council Hall, on Monday.

This time when heavy rainfall plays havoc in the city breaking all communication channels, the newly installed HAM radio stations would act as a saviour during the disaster.

According to a two-year study conducted by doctors of King Edward Memorial (KEM) Hospital and Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, both during the monsoons and the non-monsoon period, men between 15-40 years of age were found to be more prone to malaria.

Industry calls for "flexible transparent" allotment policy WAR AGAINST LAND RIGHTS: Anti-POSCO activists demonstrating in front of the company's office in Bhubaneswar in Orissa.

P. Sainath All transactions in the police yard occur under intense public scrutiny. In the marketplace, dealings are more opaque.

The Agri Horticultural Society of Western India, a non-governmental organisation taking care of the Empress Garden has decided to form a committee to protect the greenery in Pune. The committee will be named as - Harit Pune Sanrakshan Samiti, said Suresh Pingle, secretary of the organisation. "It has been observed that prominent politicos, bureaucrats and land mafias are interested in acquiring the green patches in the city. Our committee, comprising of leading personalities in various sectors would see that the greenery remains safe," said Pingle.

70 persons suffer snakebites in four months in Narayangaon area Ten-year-old Hrishikesh Wable from Junnar taluka in Pune district did not realise he was bitten by a snake till he was gasping for breath and could not walk. Villagers who wasted precious time thinking it was a "scorpion" bite instead took him to a "tantrik" to cure him. However. when he turned unconscious, the relatives rushed him to Narayangaon, 20 km away from the Wadgaon Sahane village where he was put on the sole ventilator at the Dr Jal Mehta Rural Critical Care Centre.

City accounts for 34 of 90 locational clearance applications received and 7 of 8 projects sanctioned

Citizens and developers can soon look forward to earning property tax rebates by constructing eco-friendly buildings. The joint-select committee of the state government has approved the BMC's plan to offer incentives and tax rebates upto 50 percent on eco-friendly construction to achieve the goal of sustainable development.

Kounteya Sinha | TNN India has finally woken up to the plight of AIDS orphans