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To advertise call Sadique Shaikh: 9967664001, Rajesh Vishwakarma: 9833411823

THANEMULUNDTHANE-KALWA-MUMBRA-BHANDUP-MULUND

Megha Pol■ megha.pol@hindustantimes.com

THANE: Residents ofKanhaiyanagar society behindthe Thane MunicipalCorporation’s sewage treatmentplant in Thane (E) are a trou-bled lot since the onset ofmon-soon. The reason being theunbearable stench emanatingfrom the sewage plant and theHariOmNagardumpinggroundin Mulund (E).Mostpeoplehavecomplained

of throat irritation, breath-lessness andnauseadue to thisfoul smell and gases enteringtheir houses since the start ofmonsoon.Shobha Nambiyaar, whose

pregnant daughter is visitingher forher first delivery ishelp-lessasshecannotopenherdoorsand windows to allow fresh airto come in. This resident ofKanhaiyanagarsaid:“Thestenchis so much that my daughter’ssickness becomes serious if Iopen the window. It makes herseverely nauseous. We have toclose the doors and windowsthe entire day and night.”Sundersan Iyer, another res-

ident, said: “My granddaugh-teralsovomitedacoupleofdaysagodue to the smell andwehadto take her out of this area forsome fresh air. We are alreadytroubleddue to the stench fromthe Hari Om Nagar dumpingground and this added smellfromthesewageplanthasmadeour life difficult.We senior cit-izens cannot take a stroll out-side as we become breathlessand get a headache due to thesmell. We have complained tothe authorities several timesbut they haven’t done anythingabout them yet.”The residents claimed that

thoughthesmell fromthedump-ing ground is a regular issue, it

has become severe since mon-soon.“Both the sewage plant and

thedumpinggroundhavebeenemitting foul smell all the timesince the start of monsoon,”said Ambujam Subramanium,another resident. “It also leadsto breeding of mosquitoes andinsects.Wecanseesmall insectscrawling in our house.We fearthis situation will give rise todiseases likemalaria or denguein the area.”Another resident Rekha

Sachnaniadded: “Weareunableto stay in this house now. Thedoors and windows are per-

manently closeddue to the fearof this smell as after few hoursof inhaling this airwe feel giddy.There is no fresh air left for usto breath.”ManishaPradhan,TMC’spol-

lution control officer said: “Ihave received their complaints.We will start monitoring theplant, the level of air pollutionin the area shortly. After thesampling, we will decide whatcan be done to solve the prob-lem. Meanwhile, Iwill alsodrafta letter to the BMC as its HariOmNagardumpingground toois causing problems for theThane (E) residents.”

Megha Pol■ megha.pol@hindustantimes.com

MULUND: The residents of HariOmNagar, too,havecomplainedof increased menace of thedumpinggroundsincethisyear’smonsoonbegan.Ayearago, theBMC had promised scientificclosure of the dumping groundand proposed a biomethana-tionwaste disposal plant in thearea. However, residents fearthat it would just remain onpaper seems to have come trueas a year later nothing seemsto have been done there.Subhash Jagtap, a resident

who has been fighting for theclosure of the dumping groundfor years, said: “I have filed anRTIapplicationwhich revealedthat theground isn’t authorisedand moreover the BMC doesnot follow any of theMunicipalSolidWaste (MSW)2000 rulesof dumping stipulated by theSupremeCourt. Sowhy aren’tthey closing the ground. Wehave been harassed for yearsbecause of the smell.”Anjali Nazare, another resi-

dent, said: “Witheverymonsoonseason, thestench increasesandsodoes thepopulationof insectsenteringourhomes.There isanincrease inbreedingof flies andmosquitoes.Wehavecomplainedmany times but no one has lis-tened to any of our complaints.Whycan’t theyclose thisdump-inggroundas theydid inGorai?The residents of Thane (E) aremore harassed than us as they

have to bear the smell for 24hours a day.”TheBMCofficials, however,

said that they have carried outcertain processes to keep thesmell in control. A BMC chiefengineer requesting anonymi-ty said: “We have been addingherbodust powder anddeodor-ant regularly sincemonsoononthis dumping ground.“In monsoon due to damp-

ness in the air, the smell lingersand gets carried away by thewind, thuswe increase the con-centration of the deodorantwhichgivesapleasurablearomain the area.”Whenaskedwhenwould the

scientific closure of the dump-ing ground take place, the offi-cial said: “Unless the dumpinggroundatKanjurMarg is ready,we cannot close the Mulunddumping ground. There areonly twodumpinggrounds, onein Deonar and another inMulund.“Unlesswegeta thirdground,

we cannot afford to close theMulund ground. Once theKanjur ground is readywe canshift most of the garbage toKanjur and only bio-degrad-able waste will be scientifical-ly processed in Mulund.”

Themonsoon effectSICK AND TIRED Thane (E) and Mulund (E) residents complain of health hazards due to foul smell from sewage plant and dumping ground

Megha Pol■ megha.pol@hindustantimes.com

THANE: Twenty five lakh seedshave been sown along theNationalHighway3 fromThaneto Dhule by Hariyali, a Thane-based environmental NGO onJune 25, 26 and 27.Thiswas the first stageof the

“Mahabijaropan”projectunder-taken by theNGO inwhich onecrore seeds of assorted speciesof plantswill be sownalong the350 km stretch of the highwayand the barren hills surround-ing them.“ThisHighway that connects

MumbaiwithAgra is undergo-ingroad-widening,due towhichmany ancient trees have beenuprooted,” saidPunamSingavi,founder president of Hariyali.“Thus, we thought of compen-sating this loss to the environ-mentby sowing seedswithpar-ticipationof thepeople. Sowingseed was carried out with the

participation of several NGOs,school and college students,scouts, NCC and NSS volun-teers, forest personnel and sev-eral socially-conscious citizensatLaling toZodge inDhule dis-trict,Chandwad,Mangrul-Peer,Raigad Parisar near Nashik,Igatpuri, Kasara, Khardi,Shahapur, Vadapa, etc. About25 lakh seeds are reported tohave been either directly sownor distributed for that purposeduring these three days.”Thespeciesof trees theseeds

of which have been sown dur-

ing this phase included karanj,beheda, bamboo, khair, jamun,chinch, vilayati chinch, babool,neem, shiras and gulmohar.For thosewhoparticipated in

this drive, it was an affair toremember!Mangala Sonawne,a resident of Thane, said: “Thishas to be one of the best deci-sions of my life as I still cannotexpress in words the feeling ofplanting so many trees. Therearemanywhodebateordiscussaboutglobalwarming.However,there is hardly any who doessomethingconstructivetowards

it. Through Hariyali’s drive, Ifeel I have taken the first step.”Another participant

DigambarAmrutkarexpressedthat this was like paying hisdues to thenature. “Naturehasgiven us so many things. Weowe everything in our life tonature. However, in return wesimply destroy it. If we contin-ue this destruction, our futuregeneration will never forgiveus. This drive has made merealise thateachoneofusshouldplant tresswhereverandwhen-ever possible,” he said.

■ Time for chai, come rain or shine

■ A school girl (right) selling vegetables enjoys her cutting chai along with other vendors at a market in Thane on a rainy day. PRAFUL GANGURDE

Giving back to Mother Nature in kind

■ The TMC’s sewage treatment plant in Thane (E) has affected the Kanhaiyanagar society badly. PRAFUL GANGURDE

■ School children sow seeds on NH3. HARIYALI

Megha Pol■ megha.pol@hindustantimes.com

THANE:Foraweeknow, theThanerailwaystationhasbeenapleas-ant sight.Most of the residentsbelieved that the station areawould never be free of hawk-erspost theStationAreaTrafficImprovementScheme (SATIS)project.On thecontrary, to theirpleasant surprise, the corpo-rationhas successfully removedall the hawkers from the area.The station area, up to the

GaodeviMarket, is now free forcommuters and pedestrians.The corporation officialsinformed that theworkof clear-ing and cleaning the stationarea has been done in threeshifts by employing additionalmanpower for the same.B. G. Pawar, deputy munici-

pal commissioner, said: “Wehavebeenkeepinga round-the-clock vigil in this area. Themoment a hawker enters thezone, he is removed from thearea. We had employed addi-tional squad of ten peoplewiththe help of the police depart-ment for this purpose. Morethan thirty employees work intwo shifts near the station.”Talking to HT Live, civic

commissioner R. A. Rajeevexpressed that there should bethe administrative will to doandsustain it.Whenaskedwhatif the hawkers come back in afew days, he said: “I know sus-tainability is important, themomentweturnourbacks, theywill return. However, we havedevised a system wherein thiswould probably not happen.Theprime thing involved is thatthere should be fear amongthem that they would be pros-

ecuted if they hawk illegally inthe area. Moreover, we havealso organised surprise checks,especiallyat thehours they leastexpect us.”Rajeev added that SATIS is

not only free of hawkers but isalso sporting a clean look. “Wehave installed extra dustbinsin the area. More than threelakh people use the place dailyandtheyshould feelproudabout

it, thus we have taken care ofboth these aspects of hawkersand cleanliness. I’d also appealto the people to maintain itclean.”The corporation does have a

certain alternate arrangementfor the hawkers. “Wehave ear-marked a fewhawking zones inthe city. However, the list is yetto be finalised,” said Pawar.Rajeev added: “There is not

much space near the station toearmark these zones.However,wewill implement themas pertheNational street vendor’spol-icy in future.“Moreover,we are also plan-

ning to start a few pedestrianplazas in Thane and also givesomeplace for hawkers here sothat people can hang out herein their free time and also dosome light shopping.”

TMC keeps its word, giveshawker-free and clean SATIS

■ The area outside Thane station that was full of hawkers (top) until recently has now been cleared of them andalso maintained clean (above). PHOTOS: PRAFUL GANGURDE

‘Stench increaseswith every season’

■ The Hari Om Nagar residents have been crying for the closure of thisdumping ground in Mulund (E). PRAFUL GANGURDE

WHAT THEDOCTOR SAYSDr. Jayant Shinde, GeneralPractitioner, Thane (E): “Ihave been getting manycases of upper respiratoryinfections over the years. Thefumes and gases from thedumping ground or sewagecauses recurring irritation ofthroat and eyes, cough andother respiratory ailments. Attimes, it also leads to severalallergic reactions and nausea.

( )There is an increase inbreeding of flies andmosquitoes. We havecomplained many timesbut no one has listenedto any of our complaints.

AN JA L I N A Z AR E ,Hari Om Nagar resident

THE HARIYALI PROJECT■ 25 LAKH, the number ofseeds sowed on June 25, 26,27.■ 1 CRORE, the number of plantsthat Hariyali expects to growalong the 350 km stretch onNational Highway 3.

Thane writer’sfirst fictionsells over

10,000 copies,makes it to

best-seller’s list.Page 2

The issue offoul smell ema-nating fromdump-ing ground in Hari OmNagar is aknown fact. So,thinking the plight of theKanhaiyalal residents tobe another routine mat-ter, I entered the societyinThane (E). Being a vic-tim of common cold, Ibelieved myself to beimmune to any kind ofodour. I first went to theIyers housewhowere theones to inform about theproblem. My belief heldground for about ten sec-onds before I got the firstwhiff of the stink comingfrom the backwindow ofthe Iyer’s living room fac-ing the TMC’s sewageplant.Fiveminutes in theirhouse and I felt as if I hadentered a drainage pipe.One by one, all the near-by residents came to talkabout theirplight.Though,without even saying aword, their claimswouldhave got through since anagging headache chew-ing my brains was proofenough for me.

- Megha Pol

reporter’sdiary

( )There should be fearamong the hawkers

that they’d be prosecuted.We’ll also have surprisechecks, especially whenthey least expect us.

R . A . R AJ E E V ,TMC commissioner

YOURNEIGHBOURHOOD 03HHTT LL ii vvee TThhaannee--MMuu lluunndd ,, SSaattuu rrddaayy ,, JJuu ll yy 0033,, 22001100wwwwww..hh iinndduuss ttaanntt iimmeess ..ccoomm

WE TAX PAYERS ARE ALWAYS AT THE RECEIVING END FOR FAULTYPOLICY AND PROGRAMMES IN THE SYSTEM.

NAV I N PAT E L , COMMUTER USING THE CONGESTED VITAWA UNDERPASS

■ megha.pol@hindustantimes.com

MULUND:TrafficsnarlhasbecomesynonymouswithMumbai.Withthe recent onslaught of rainsand the huge tankers and lor-ries once again plying at peakhours insideMumbai, June 25,2010 was yet another day ofmajor traffic jams.I started formy routine jour-

ney to office from Mulundtowards Mumbai at around 9am.Thetrafficwaschoc-o-blocknear theGhatkoparEast-Westbridge.Therewas no traffic consta-

ble in sight. This only aggra-vated the situation. It seemedlike we would be stuck in thisjamforhours.Aftersitting insidemy car for more than 45 min-utes, it was too much to takeand thus I coaxed a BEST busconductor to use his uniformandwhistle to full advantage tohelp the hundreds of vehiclesthat were stuck.Surprisingly, he swung into

action immediately. It took agood one hour to get the traf-fic organisedandmoving.Therewere a few heavy vehicles whosimply refused to listen to us.In spite of the opposition fromsome, the bus conductor kept

divertingandcontrolled the sit-uation admirably.This effort by the conductor

surely saved theday forus.Thisgreat Samaritan was still atwork when I passed that placein themorning. I am sure hun-dreds of the benefited passen-gers would want to thank thishumanbeingwhosenameI inad-vertently missed to note.I feel he set an example for

other people, be it a bus driv-er, an auto rickshaw driver, abusconductororanyothercom-muter, who can be of serviceand help in case of an emer-gency.

(As told to Megha Pol)

Chirag H. Thakkar■ htlives@hindustantimes.com

BHANDUP:The Central Railway(CR) has failed to attract anycontractor to runandmaintainthe railway toilets of stationslike Bhandup and Nahur on a‘pay-and-use’ basis. HT Livechecked the status of the toi-lets at both these stations andfound them to be shut and inbad conditions.The Bhandup station got a

new public toilet building earlythis year. But it remainsunchecked and ignored. Thesparklingtoiletonplatformnum-ber one towards the South endhas already entered the stink-ing mode. “I can’t use this toi-let at all. It is unhygienic,” saidVinayPatil, abusinessman.Theold toilet on platform numbertwo atNorth end remains darkwithno lighting, nowater andastinkasbadasadumpingground.The picture at Nahur is no

different. The station that hasone toilet adjoining platformsnumbers 1 and 2, has perenni-ally remainedshut.Commutersface problems as the shuttersof theonlytoiletbuildingremainslocked and the women’s toilethasprobablyneverbeenopenedat all. RenukaAmbre,who justshifted to Nahur a fewmonthsago, said: “This is laughable.Whydo they build toilets in thefirst place if they keep themshut? Why waste resources?”Srinivas Mudgerikar, the

CentralRailwayPublicRelationsOfficer, explained why the rail-way has failed to attract con-tractors for themaintenanceofthese toilets. “We did float ten-

ders for these toilets but havegot no response. Instead, mostcontractors bid for major sta-tions likeCST,Kurla andDadarbecause of highmovement andthus higher profitability.“Wehavenowdecided toclub

minor stations like BhandupandNahurwithmajor stationsfor the tenders. So if a con-tractor gets the tender, he willhave to cater to both themajorand minor stations.”But this, Mudgerikar said,

could take any amount of timesince it all dependedon thequo-tationsand theoverall response.Though the railway has not yetfound a contractor for thesestations, it is inescapableof run-ning them departmentally tillthey findone.Thestationsuper-

intendent is given a monthlyallowance of Rs 5,000 to cleanand manage the toilets.Mudgerikar assured that thestation chiefswouldbeorderedto takeproper care of the same.The railway official also said

that keeping the toilets openduring late hours is knotty andriskyat thesametime.AtNahurstation, the authorities havefound that illegal activities likeadultery take place during latenight hours, forcing them tokeep the toilets closed.“If someonewants to use the

toilet,heorshecangoto thesta-tionmasterandaskforthekeys,”added Mudgerikar. But com-muters object. “This is ridicu-lous. Why would I want to doit?”saidcollegianSujaySawant.

Megha Pol■ megha.pol@hindustantimes.com

THANE: Barely a month intothis year’smonsoon, 44 birdswere rescued by the PAWS,Thane NGO all over the city.These includeboth thenativeand the migratory birds.Themonth of June is basi-

cally the breeding season forbirds, animals and reptiles,said Nilesh Banage, founderof Plant and Animal WelfareSociety (PAWS), Thane.“With rapid destruction of

their natural habitat, mostbirds venture into the city tobreed.Most of thebirds buildtheir nests on the top of treesat the beginning of June.However, inmonsoon,maybedue to wind or rain, most oftheyoungones fall off thenest.These are the birds that wehaverescuedalmosteverydayof the month,” Banage said.Those rescued include

common Mumbai birds likecattle egret, common Indiancrow, Indian myna, Indianpond heron, Indian cuckooand common hawk cuckoo,commonkingfisher,barnowls,parakeets, black-headednightheron and rock pigeon.Migratorybirds includingori-ental dwarf kingfisher thatgenerally comes toMumbai’ssurrounding areas for breed-ing purpose this season wasalso among those rescued.Banageexplained: “Mostof

these birds go unnoticed andeventually die as passers-bychoose to ignore them. Lastyear,wehadsavedmanybirdsduring this time of the yearand so this year before mon-soon we hired extra staff,trained and educated him asto the type of birds and howtorescue them, so thatwecan

savemostof thesebirds.Whenwe rescue a bird, it is usuallytraumatised as it is handledby many locals who call usbefore we reach the spot. So,we keep it in a box for a cou-pleofhours tocalmhimdown,then we give it basic medica-tion and take it to the near-est vet.After treatment,with-in 12 hours we register withthe forest officials about ourrescueandthebird isreleased.”Someof thebirdshavebeen

given first aid for their winginjurieswhile someof thebirdswere treated by the vet forfractured wings and legs.All the birds were rescued

from towns like Thane,Dombivli, Thakurli, Kalyan,Ambernath and Badlapur.Those who spot injured

birds in Thane district cancall PAWS at 9820161114 forrescue.

Best conductorturns traffic cop

reader’scorner

S. Subramanian

Shubham B.■ htlives@hindustantimes.com

KALWA: The age-old underpassbeneath the busy CentralRailway line at Vitawa hasbecome a nightmare formotorists anddaily commutersduring monsoon. The stretchbelow the railway track on theThane-Belapur roadhas devel-oped cracks andwater loggingslows down the vehicles lead-ing to a major traffic snarl.The movement of vehicular

traffic gets crippled many atime, especially during peakhours, that the commuters takemore than an hour to cross thehurdle. The fully-concretised

four-lane roadonboth the sidesof the subway witnesses traf-fic congestion due to the bot-tleneck below the bridge. Thefour-lane road is reduced tohalfunder the railway line.“The Thane civic body has

commissioned four-lane con-

crete road but has remainedoblivious to expand the two-lane patch under the tunnelwhich causes consistent traf-fic jam,” Anil Bhujbal, a regu-larcommuter, said. “Theadmin-istrationhas to takenote of thisgrave situation and pave theway for an easy ride.”MotoristNavinPatel isunhap-

py that the civic authoritieshave not paid heed to a long-pendingdemand for expansionof the road under the bridge.“We tax payers are always atthe receiving end for faulty pol-icy andprogrammes in the sys-tem,” said Patel.Serpentine queues for a

stretch of more than one kilo-

metre on either side of the tun-nel is a common sight.“Work is on in full swing on

the additional road close to theexisting lane. This will surelydecongest the traffic volume,”said a TMC official.If Thane Member of

Parliament Sanjeev Naik is tobe believed, he had convened aseries of meetings among theconcerned agencies like TMCand Railways to sort out thematter permanently. “Wehavesuggested an ambitious plan tomake a flyover above the rail-way track as the viable alter-native to do awaywith the per-sistent traffic congestion forbetter commute,” said Naik.

Same old problem: Traffic jam atVitawa

people’spulsometer

people believe that railways should provide hygienicconditions at toilets and should be maintained well.

isay

‘Can’t they at least provide thebasic facilities at stations?’

100%

The condition of the toilets has alwaysbeen pathetic. The ventilators are broken,the stink is unbearable. If there are taps,there is no water; if there is water, it flowson all sides. I will not embarrass myself bycollecting the keys from station master.

Revathi Iyengar, Bhandup

I hardly step inside these dirty placesthey call ‘toilets’. Forget hygiene, at timesthere is no lighting at all inside. To tellthem anything is of no use because theynever listen. We move on with the chaltahain attitude.

M. R Yadav, Nahur

The authorities should be taught a lesson.We should penalise them for not perform-ing their duties in the same way as theypenalise us for ticketless travelling. Allrailway station toilets have foul smell. Igenerally choose not to use the stationtoilets.

Shreyas Manjrekar, Ghatkopar

There is no one to take care of the newtoilet. There is no one at the entrance totake care of security. You don’t really feelsafe to enter, forget the hygiene. Even ifthere is a need to use it, I will never go upto the station master for the toilet keys.

Ramya Srinivasan, Bhandup

Mumbai railways is one of the largest net-works in Asia. Can’t they at least providethe basic facilities? The authorities can-not choose to ignore them just becausethe stations are small. They forget theyare public servants and create nuisance.

Ganesh Kadam, Bhandup

The station master has a hundred otherthings to do. You cannot expect him totake care of the toilet keys and be avail-able whenever a commuter wants to useit. The railways should hire a care-takingagency like Sulabh to keep the toiletsclean.

M. K Salvi, MulundPHOTOS: CHIRAG H. THAKKAR

The Central Railway has failed to hireany contractor to maintain the pay-and-use toilets at Bhandup station.The Nahur station toilet has beenshut for a long time. Unhygienic con-ditions and no water are some of thewoes that irritate commuters.Chirag H. Thakkar checks out.

None to clean toiletsat ‘minor’ stations

CARE FOR BIRDS, THEY ALSONEED HELP DURING MONSOON

CR fails to rope in contractors to maintain Nahur, Bhandup station toilets

■ The wash basins and toilet at Bhandup station are in pathetic condition. PHOTOS: PRAFUL GANGURDE

■ An injured cattle egret.

■ Indian pond heron. PHOTOS: PAWS

■ Cattle egret with bandaged leg.

■ The traffic congestion at the Vitawa underpass connecting Belapur andThane during monsoon. PRAFUL GANGURDE

■ The BEST conductor turned a good Samaritan at Thane to restore orderduring peak-hour traffic in the absence of a policeman. S. SUBRAMANIAN

( )We’ve suggested an

ambitious plan to make aflyover above the railwaytrack as an alternative todo away with persistenttraffic congestion.SAN J E E V NA I K ,

MP, Thane

Advertise with usTo advertise in Live, contact Sadique Shaikh on 9967664001 or RajeshVishwakarma on 9833411823. You can also e-mail feedback tohtlives@hindustantimes.com.

■ Lohagad. PHOTOS: DURGASAKHA GROUP■ Naneghat Pass.

Nishikant Karlikar■ htlives@hindustantimes.com

THANE:With the arrival ofmon-soon, the lush green nature isattracting adventure lovers.Trekking is a favourite amongpeople. Here are the popularfive near Thane:

PETHFORTAlsoknownasKotligad,Peth

Fort isasmallsubmarine-shapedfort around20kilometres fromKarjat near Mumbai. The fortbelonged toSambhaji's empire.At 1,550 ft, it is a small fortwitha largecavethathasbeencarvedout of a stone and has severalrooms, doors and pillars.How to get there: On cen-

tral line, any local towardsKasara. Get down at Ambivlistation and start walkingtowards Peth village.

HARISHCHANDRAGAD:Commonly known as the

Queenof theSahyadri forts, themain attraction here isKonkanKada, a 3,000-foot cliff with acrescent-shaped hill and a ver-tical wall that drops into theplains. Also, an ancient Shivatemple on the hilltop is a her-

itage structure.The point to start would be

Malshej Ghat on the Kalyan-Murbad Road.Howtogetthere:Get a local

from Thane to Kalyan. ReachKhireshwar after a two-and-a-halfhourbusride fromKalyanbusdepot. Board anybus goingtowards Malshej ghat and getdown at Khubi phata. A four-kmplainwalkover thedamwallfrom Khubi phata brings us tothe Khireshwar hamlet.

NANEGHATPASSSituated at a height of 2,724

ft above sea level, this cliff isclearly visible from Konkanregion as you go from Kalyantowards Malshej. The uniquething about the cliff is one canviewallmajorpeaksofSahyadrislikeHarishchandragad,Kalsubai,Siddhagad, Jivdhan, etc.Howtoget there:Get down

atKalyan, takeabus toMurbadbus stand and from the high-way, reachVaishakhareenrouteto Naneghat.

KORIGADKorigad is famous for its for-

tified structure and the view itoffers from the top of the dense

forest that surrounds this fort.The topof the fort is about3,049feet above sea level and ismoreof a flat topography.The villagelocated at the foothills of thefort is called Peth-Shahpurwhich is situated close to theAmby Valley.How to get there: Reach

Lonavala by rail / roadand takea local transport to reachShahpur Village.

LOHAGADThis fort canbe tracked from

the railway. This can be touredin a day from Pune. Lohagadis 3,400 ft high. There are 4doors toLohagad fromthenear-by village — Lohgadwadi. i.e.Ganesh Darwaja, NarayanDarwaja , Hanuman DarwajaandMahaDarwaja.Somesculp-tures can also be seen onMahaDarwaja. The famous spot onLohagad is 'Vinchu Kata' - arange of hills that looks likeCapricorn.Howto get there: Lohagad

is about5kmfromMalavali sta-tion. From Lonavala, catch alocal train from to Malavali.Catch a rickshaw to Bhaje vil-lage and then walk for nearlytwo hours from to the hilltop.

Hot trekking places in monsoon

■ Peth Fort.