Bhatkal man held for smuggling Rs 19 lakh watch from Dubai

September 29, 2012

Bhatkal, September 29: A Bhatkal based man was arrested by customs officials at Mumbai International Airport for allegedly smuggling in a Rs 19 lakh Romain Jerome wrist watch from Dubai.

A team of Custom officials led by Deputy Commissioner Sameer Wankhede, who received a tip-off that Ansar Damda (52) was arriving from Dubai, nabbed him when he attempted to pass through the green channel at the Airport in the wee hours of Friday.

Officials said that Damda had hidden the watch in his trousers' pocket. The high-end watch is made by integrating real steel from the Titanic and the Harland and Wolff shipyard where it was built, a Google search showed.

Sameer Wankhede said that Damda has a monthly income of Rs 1 lakh and could not have afforded the watch. "He has two wives and five children and claimed to be running a garment retail business,'' he said.

“Damda said he had purchased the watch for Rs 60,000. He was probably carrying it for someone else,” Wankhede said.

"If Damda was using the watch, he should have been able to explain the source of the funds. He has not filed I-T returns for the last two years. This proves he could not have afforded the watch and it was a case of smuggling,'' Wankhede said. However Damda was later granted bail.

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Mangaluru’s ₹1,200 crore fix: Massive sewage overhaul to end city’s drainage woes

News Network

December 19,2025

Mangaluru: In a decisive move to tackle the city’s deteriorating sanitation infrastructure, the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) has announced a massive ₹1,200 crore action plan to overhaul its underground drainage (UGD) network.

The initiative, spearheaded by Deputy Commissioner and MCC Administrator Darshan HV, aims to bridge "missing links" in the current system that have left residents grappling with overflowing sewage and environmental hazards.

The Breaking Point

The announcement follows a high-intensity phone-in session on Thursday, where the DC was flooded with grievances from frustrated citizens. Residents, including Savithri from Yekkur, described a harrowing reality: raw sewage from apartments leaking into stormwater drains, creating a "permanent stink" and turning residential zones into mosquito breeding grounds.

"We are facing immense difficulties due to the stench and the health risks. Local officials have remained silent until now," one resident reported during the session.

The Strategy: A Six-Year Vision

DC Darshan HV confirmed that the proposed plan is not a temporary patch but a comprehensive six-year roadmap designed to accommodate Mangaluru’s projected population growth. Key highlights of the plan include:

• Infrastructure Expansion: Laying additional pipelines to connect older neighborhoods to the main grid.

• STP Crackdown: Stricter enforcement of Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) regulations. While new apartments are required to have functional STPs, many older buildings lack them entirely, and several newer units are reportedly non-functional.

• Budgetary Push: The plan has already been discussed with the district in-charge minister and the Secretary of the Urban Development Department. It is slated for formal presentation in the upcoming state budget.

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