2 stone-throwers make 3 Women8217;s Day

MUMBAI, MARCH 9: Namrata Mhatre is your everyday lower middle-class housewife living in the Indira Nagar slums adjoining the railway trac...

MUMBAI, MARCH 9: Namrata Mhatre is your everyday lower middle-class housewife living in the Indira Nagar slums adjoining the railway tracks at Mankhurd. She cooks, cares for the children and watches India8217;s Most Wanted8217;. Perhaps it was the do-it-yourself appeal of this serial that gave her and her friends the inspiration for their act on Monday afternoon.

This 30-year-old was sitting with her friends Rupali Dalvi and Kunda Kini near the railway tracks adjoining her house when she saw two boys aiming stones at a Belapur-bound harbour line train between Mankhurd and Govandi. One of the stones smashed the driver8217;s windscreen. The driver immediately slammed the brakes and the train screeched to a halt. Namrata saw the two boys, 11-year-old Prakash Chavan and 17-year-old Mohammed Shaikh laughing and gesticulating at the train.

8220;The first thought that crossed my mind was that the police may round up children from our slum for the crime,8221; said Namrata animatedly. In a flash, she was up on her feet chasingafter the fleet-footed youngsters all around the stationery train. She was joined by the dimunitive Rupali who left her handicapped six-year-old child to leap over stones and gutters to take part in the breath-taking chase.

Soon, Namrata had gained on the youths, pinning them down. Rupali and Kunda joined her and they handed the kicking and screaming Abdul and Prakash, residents of the nearby Gautam Nagar, over to the railway police. Significantly, none of the male members of their slum even proffered help. The boys were hauled away by the GRP and detained at the Dongri remand home.

Appreciation for the women8217;s action was swift. The GRP, which has already been hounded into a corner over the increasing incidents of stone throwing on suburban trains, presented the three women before the Minister of State for Home Ramdas Kadam in his chamber on Tuesday afternoon.

Their entry was timely. Kadam was presiding over a brainstorming session over measures to tackle the rising stone throwing graph. Present werepolice commissioner Ronnie Mendonca, Joint CP crime D Shivanandan, Special IGP GRP Sudhakar Suradkar, SP Ramachandran and senior GRP officials.

8220;The police can8217;t be present everywhere, they need the help of conscious citizens like you,8221; Kadam said before presenting bouquets to the beaming trio.

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The three women have all read newspapers, regularly watch TV and shared concern over the horrific stone attack which left journalist Ramesh Dave blind in his left eye last week. So what do they have to say about their achievement, possibly the first of its kind? 8220;Well, we now feel we8217;ve done something good,8221; says Namrata.

The GRP, which has already conducted over 200 meetings with slum dwellers, is pleased with their act. 8220;This is a welcome incident and shows that slum dwellers are helping the police. If this trend continues we can attribute it to our regular meetings,8221; said SP Ramachandran.

GRP to enforce trespass act

The Government Railway Police will now begin to enforce Section 447 ofthe Indian Penal Code from Wednesday to deal with encroachments within the boundary walls of railway property.

Faced with the exhaustion of all other measures to curb stone throwing from hutments, the GRP has now decided to enforce this section which provides for a maximum three-month imprisonment and a fine of Rs 500.

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Earlier in the day, minister of state for home Ramdas Kadam accompanied the GRP8217;s Special IGP Sudhakar Suradkar and SP Ramachandran on a rail journey from Churchgate to Dahisar to apprise himself of the causes of stone throwing.