log on to thegoan.net @thegoaneveryday THURSDAY MARCH 4, 2021 Facebook.com/thegoaneveryday The Goan (Playstore) 10 pages PRICE ` 6 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME VI, NO. 253 OBESITY: A TICKING TIME BOMB 2 GOA 8 Differences in camp over civic polls will be sorted: BJP chief Instagram.com/thegoaneveryday RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 GOA Goa-based green, Subham Chaudhuri, gets transit bail in Toolkit case CM happy with vaccination, rules out tests for tourists SAYS ADHERENCE TO SOPS ENOUGH, JUNKS POSSIBILITY OF ANOTHER LOCKDOWN THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday ruled out the possibility of enforcing a mandatory Covid negative certificate or Covid testing for tourists entering Goa. Ironically, the statement comes on a day when neighbouring Maharashtra has recorded 9,855 new cases of the viral infection showing a spurt in its chart. Sawant, who received his first dose of the Covid vaccine on Wednesday, opined that following Covid safety guidelines by all tourists visiting Goa should prove to be enough protection from a spike in cases. CM Sawant has also categorically ruled out the possibility of another lockdown in the state in consideration of the sudden rise in new cases IN SHORT >> Income-Tax raids on B-Town stars CM takes first Covid jab, says he is fine Chief Minister Pramod Sawant takes his first Covid-19 vaccination jab at the Sakhali PHC on Wednesday.  across the country even as Goa continues to figure among the top six states and Union Territories with a weekly positivity rate higher than the national average of two per cent. Goa’s positivity rate has been consistently above three per cent in the last week and had touched 5.5 per cent once during the last week, an in- BICHOLI: Chief Minister Pramod Sawant received the first dose of Covid vaccine on Wednesday at the Sakhali PHC at around 10 am. Nurse Vimal Sinari administered the dose in the presence of Health Officer Dr Uttam Dessai. CM Sawant stated, “I took PTI stance that was dismissed quickly by CM Sawant as nothing more than a cause for concern. “Cases are fluctuating. The numbers touched 100 once last week and were down to 45 again thereafter. Even after completing vaccination, >Continued on P5 >Continued on P5 No Covid deaths No Covid-related deaths were reported in Goa on Wednesday. The death toll remains steady at 796. A total of 70 new cases were detected from among the 1,717 samples in the last 24 hours. Registration hiccups at pvt hospitals remain PANAJI: The doors of paid Covid vaccination centres at private hospitals remained closed for the second day in a row on Wednesday owing to delays in fixing the hiccups in offline registration of beneficiaries at these centres. >Continued on P5 Now, Covid jabs can be taken 24X7 NEW DELHI: The govt has lifted the time restriction on receiving Covid-19 vaccine jabs so as to increase the pace of immunisation, Union health minister Harsh Vardhan said.  >> See pg 6 BICHOLIM: Scrap material worth an estimated Rs 15 lakh was damaged in a fire at a godown in Karapur Tisk in Vithalapur-Sankhali in the wee hours of Wednesday. No one was injured in the fire mishap. >> See pg 5 WEATHER >> Max: 34 C Min: 24 C Humidity: 92% TIDES Low: High: 8.19 1.44 20.26 14.59 Naga sadhus participate in a procession ahead of Kumbh Mela 2021, amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic in Haridwar on Wednesday.  PTI AAP sweeps MCD bypolls in Delhi WINS 4 OUT OF 5 SEATS, CONGRESS SECURES 1, BJP DRAWS BLANK THE GOAN I NETWORK Seat NEW DELHI Bypolls to five municipal wards in the national capital gave a boost to the AAP on Wednesday as it bagged four and Congress one while leaving the BJP red-faced with just one year to go for the civic body elections. AAP also has won the seat of Shalimar Bagh which was Trilokpuri Rohini-C Shalimar Bagh Kalyan Puri AAP winning Candidates Vijay Kumar Ram Chander Sunita Mishra Dhirendra Kumarl with the BJP earlier. AAP national convenor and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said that the people of Delhi once again AAP candidate Matilda D’Silva files her nomination for Navelim ZP seat  >> See pg 2 voted for the party’s works. Deputy Chief Minister Shri Manish Sisodia said that Wednesday’s result has shown that the people of Delhi have immense faith in the Karnataka minister resigns after a sex video and tape goes viral HAD PLAYED KEY ROLE IN PURSUING MHADEI WATER DIVERSION ISSUE WITH GOA THE GOAN I NETWORK BELAGAVI owing to pressure from the ruling and opposition after he was accused of being seen in a sex video and tape which went viral on Tuesday, Karnataka Minister for Water Resources Ramesh Jarkiholi has resigned on moral grounds. Sending his resignation to Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Wednesday afternoon, Jarkiholi said he was resigning on moral grounds and that the party and the government should not be put to embar- B 10 HC raps DMA for exclusion of 3 houses from CCP limits FORMER COUNCILLOR CABRAL GETS BACK HIS VOTING RIGHT THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Bombay High Court at Goa has quashed a notification issued by the Director of Municipal Administration who had excluded houses belonging to former Corporator Nelson Cabral and his family from the limits of the Corporation of the City of Panaji and instead had them included in the Taleigao Village Panchayat. The High Court ruled that the Director of Municipal Administration had no authority to change the notified limits of the Corporation of the City of Panaji, a power that was vested with the legislature. “The exclusion of house Nos. 474, 474A,475, 475-B is set aside and the said houses to stand included in Ward No 1 of Corporation of the City of Panaji in the impugned notification dated 4th February 2021. Necessary steps to be taken in accordance with our directions forthwith so that THE GOAN I NETWORK PF interest rate may be slashed `15 lakh scrap goes up in flames Skipper Kohli bats for rotation policy in age of bio-bubbles HIGH COURT RULES „„Director of Municipal Administration had no authority to change the notified limits of the Corporation of the City of Panaji, a power that was vested with the legislature „„The exclusion of house Nos. 474, 474A,475, 475-B is set aside and the said houses to stand included in Ward No 1 of Corporation of the City of Panaji in the impugned notification dated 4th February 2021 „„Include the Cabrals in the Corporation area as well as allow them to vote in the upcoming elections the rights of the petitioners are not defeated in any manner. In particular, should any of the petitioners file their nominations within the prescribed period, then such nominations will not be refused only on the ground that the said houses in which they live had been excluded from the Corporation area vide the impugned notification,” the High Court bench of Justices M S Sonak and Bharati Dangre ruled. Cabral approached the High Court contesting the abrupt exclusion of their houses on the eve of the elections for which the polling is scheduled on 20th March 2021. Cabral told the court that he not only lived within the areas which earlier constituted the Panaji Municipal Council but further he was elected as a councillor in the year 1995 and after the establishment of the Corporation in the year 2002 his wife was also elected as a corporator. Subsequently, he contested elections in 2006 and 2011 but lost. However, his brother contested the election and won in 2006 and 2011. >Continued on P5 Chandor residents heave sigh of relief as SH-8 denotified COVID-PROOF? MUMBAI: The residence of Bollywood filmmakers Anurag Kashyap, Vikas Bahl and actress Taapsee Pannu were raided by the Income Tax department in Mumbai. According to the IT Department, the raids were conducted in a case of tax evasion. The office of Phantom Films and other 22 places were also raided. NEW DELHI: There is a likelihood of lowering of interest rates on provident fund deposits for the fiscal 2020-21.The interest rates are likely to be announced by the EPFO today (March 4).  >> See pg 6 3 SPORTS CAUGHT ON THE WRONG FOOT „„Jarkiholi said he was resigning on moral grounds and that the party and the government should not be put to embarrassment „„Jarkiholi was allegedly seen in a compromising position with an unidentified woman, after which a video went viral in a section of the media in Karnataka and across India „„He, however, said he will come clean and prove his detractors wrong rassment. In a tape that went viral, Jarkiholi was allegedly seen in a compromising position with an unidentified woman, after which a video went viral in a section of the media in Karnataka and across India. “I will come clean and prove my detractors wrong against the conspiracy,” said Jarkiholi, adding that he would also meet the party high command in Delhi. Initially, when the alleged video was leaked to television news channels allegedly showing Jarkiholi in a compromising position with a woman, he had claimed the video was “fake” and that he would quit politics if proven guilty. Jarkiholi was instrumental in following up the Mhadei water diversion issue with Goa and had taken up the matter on priority pressing the union government in facilitating Karnataka for the implementation of the Kalsa-Bhandura water diversion project. Aam Aadmi Party. Kejriwal said, “The people of Delhi have chosen AAP with 4 seats, and have defeated BJP with 0 seats. I want to congratulate the people of Delhi and AAP volunteers who worked hard for this victory. The results show that the people of Delhi have shown faith and trust in the works >Continued on P5 MARGAO There’s finally good news for the residents of Chandor agitating against the State Highway SH-8 passing through the heritage village. After a sustained movement by the villagers for over two years now, the government has finally de-notified the Margao-Sao Jose de Areal-Chandor-Curchorem as SH-8 highway. The Goa government has finally amended the notification dated February 8, 1977, published in the Official Gazette, Series IINO 47 dated 17-02-1977 by omitting the existing entry against serial number 8 in the Principal Notification. Cuncolim MLA Clafacio Dias told the media that the long-pending demand of the people of Chandor has been met with the government de-notifying the SH8 passing through the heritage village. “When I had a meeting with the Chandor villagers last time in the presence of PWD officials, they were assured that the government has set in motion the process to de-notify the SH-8 highway,” he said. Chandor villagers had been opposing the highway on grounds that it was passing through the densely populated area with residential, commercial and residential structures situated very close and AND FINALLY.... The Goa government has finally amended the notification dated February 8, 1977, published in the Official Gazette, Series IINO 47 dated 17-02-1977 by omitting the existing entry against serial number 8 in the Principal Notification After a sustained movement by the villagers for over two years now, the government has finally de-notified the MargaoSao Jose de Areal-ChandorCurchorem as SH-8 highway along the road length, including heritage structures dating back to the Kadamba dynasty in the 11th century. Even TCP and PWD officials had later opined that the widening of the SH-8 will be very difficult due to the location of the structures, especially those in the protected category of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), maintaining that it would be difficult to meet the specifications and standards of state highway. The issue had figured at the 163rd meeting of the Town and Country Planning Board on October 15, 2010, after the Board received a petition from the Chandor-Cavorim village Panchayat. The Board had then recommended de-notification of the SH-8. In the representation, the local panchayat had contended that the residents had apprehensions that if the SH8 passes through the village by allowing a width of 30 mts, then all the old monuments and heritage structures would get affected by the road widening. It contended that the 30-meter wide road was not feasible through the built-up area of Chandor village at certain stretches.