Panvel police have caught a gang of six persons who have been looting petrol pumps in the Navi Mumbai-Panvel belt. The accused who have connections with the Katta Sheikh gang were caught red-handed as they arrived to loot a petrol pump off Kolkha in Kalyan.

Police said they had been tipped off that the gang was preparing to strike on Wednesday night at the Vaibhav petrol pump. A team of Panvel police led by Senior Police Inspector Ramesh Shivdas laid a trap and arrested the six accused when they arrived in a white car. All of them have confessed to being aides of Sheikh, who was shot dead by the Mumbai police in an encounter last year. They have also confessed to looting petrol pumps at Jasai, Taloja, CBD Belapur and Borivli. The accused have been remanded to police custody till August 16.

No bar on NMMC works n Despite the model code of conduct, the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) has been granted permission by the Thane district collector to continueits civic works in view of the difficulties that residents are facing.

According to Municipal Secretary Sudam Hiwarkar, the NMMC had approached the collector with a request to this effect.

``We have been told to continue with public health works within the purview of the model code of conduct without benefits accruing to any particular party,'' he told Standing Committee members, who welcomed the decision.-- Newsline reports