Hit & Run Cases on the Rise: Kiran Bedi, Piyush Tiwari, Pratiksha Das

The Food and Drug Administration, led by Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe, has launched a major food safety crackdown across Mumbai during Ganesh Chaturthi. Over 4,100 kilograms of sweets and 30 litres of milk have been seized during enforcement drives. The FDA also suspended the licences of four outlets, including Colaba's iconic Café Mondegar, after discovering critical safety breaches such as improper thawing, inadequate rapid cooling, sanitation issues, and failure to maintain mandatory hot and cold holding temperatures. Alongside enforcement, the FDA is conducting awareness workshops with mandals to ensure hygienic preparation and packaging of prasad and modaks distributed during festivities.

In an interview with India Today, biker Shivani Chauhan, also known as Siya, and her father Roshan Chauhan spoke about the viral Gurugram hit-and-run incident on Golf Course Road. Chauhan detailed how a speeding car chased and collided with her motorcycle, stating, "It was intentional." Describing her physical injuries and trauma, she rejected claims made by the accused driver's legal counsel alleging rash driving on her part. Chauhan emphasized that the driver's arrest was merely an initial measure, stating, "Arrest is just the first step," and called for strict punishment for everyone involved in the vehicle. Her father asserted that ramming a two-ton vehicle at high speed amounts to an attempt to murder and raised concerns regarding women's safety on public roads.

Gurugram Police have arrested car driver Kalyan Baisla from Dausa in Rajasthan after a hit-and-run video involving biker Shivani Chauhan went viral. Authorities have booked Baisla under charges of attempt to murder, stalking, and outraging the modesty of a woman. Chauhan stated that the accused intentionally hit her two-wheeler after passing comments and engaging in an argument. While Baisla claimed he tried to avert the collision and blamed the biker's riding, the victim called it a deliberate attempt on her life, urging strict action.

A merchant fee of 0.4% has been announced on UPI transactions above 2,000 rupees, with the charge on high-value transactions capped at 300 rupees. A flat fee of 5 rupees applies to transactions above 2,000 rupees in categories such as railways and fuel, while small merchants earning 1 lakh rupees a month remain exempt. The Merchant Discount Rate is payable by merchants to banks rather than ordinary consumers making person-to-person or retail payments. The move aims to make the UPI system financially sustainable and ease costs for banks and payment aggregators following a surge to 24 billion monthly transactions. Addressing concerns over merchants potentially passing charges to consumers, the report highlights the need for official grievance mechanisms and awareness.