log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline MONDAY AUGUST 18, 2025 Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 12 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME XI, NO. 61 Goa's Biggest Media Brand with Highest Viewership which makes us >> pg 6 GST changes & FII activity among 9 factors set to move markets this week IN SHORT >> Registrations for Pvt shacks open PANAJI: Ahead of the tourism season, the tourism department has invited applications from owners of shacks, huts and cottages located on private properties for registration and renewal of permission for the season 2025-26. Depending upon the size of the structure, the registration fee varies from 25,000 to 50,000 for the coming season.  >> See pg 3 GSCB elections held, counting tomorrow PANAJI: Voting to elect a new Board of Directors for the State's apex cooperative bank -- Goa State Co-operative Bank Ltd -- was held at the Bank's headquarters in the capital on Sunday. Counting is scheduled to be held on Tuesday.  >> See pg 2 Four held for assault on police at Betul MARGAO: Cuncolim Police on Sunday arrested four men from Jharkhand for allegedly forming an unlawful assembly and assaulting two constables on duty at Canaginium-Betul. The accused, all residents of Betul, along with two others pelted stones, punched and kicked constables Sairaj Naik and Anup Kavrekar.  >> See pg 2 ‘Digital arrest’ scam mastermind held PANAJI: Goa Cyber Crime Police arrested Singapore resident Anil Tripathi, mastermind of the December 2024 ‘digital arrest’ scam, at Delhi Airport on August 15. He allegedly duped a Siolim victim of Rs 1 crore while posing as a crime branch officer. Tripathi, a repeat offender, earlier faced fraud charges in Singapore. WEATHER >> Max: Min: Humidity: 30 C 25.3 C 92% TIDES Low: 12.08 High: 07.24 ---17.10 Instagram.com/thegoanonline INFO Come join us Contact: 9011043385 / 9850755549 / 9130004704 / 9689923150 Email: marketing@prudentmedia.in Govt seeks nod to divert forest land to build road MOVES PROPOSAL TO NBWL FOR COTIGAO PROJECT THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Goa government has approached National Board of Wildlife (NBWL) seeking permission for diversion of 1.43 ha of forest land from Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary for reconstruction of existing kuccha road at Nadkem and Sakal Tirwal villages. The proposal, which was approved by the State Board of Wildlife (SBW), will come up for discussion before the NBWL’s Standing Committee meeting on August 19. The Public Works Department (PWD) Margao division has moved two separate proposals for use of 0.999 ha of forest land from the Sanctuary for reconstruction of existing kuccha road at Nadkem village and another 0.44 ha for kuccha road in Sakal Tirwal village. As per the proposals, the PAVING THE WILD WAY shown on cadastral plan since 1971 „„Emergency services like ambulance, fire vehicle, gas cylinder vehicle are affected PWD will take up reconstruction of 3123 mts of existing kuccha road at Nadkem village and another 1275 mts length of road in Sakal Tirwal. The project proponent said that both the roads existed before Goa Liberation i.e. 1961 and was shown on cadastral survey plan since 1971. However the roads are now in di- lapidated conditions and due to non-availability of proper road the emergency services like Ambulance, fire vehicle, gas cylinder vehicle and any other transport vehicle cannot reach their houses/village. The situation worsens during the monsoon season, the PWD said. About 180 residents of Na- Educational projects above 20,000 sq mts to need EC Proposed MIT World Peace University among those that will need clearance THE GOAN I NETWORK PWD moves two proposals for reconstruction of existing kuccha road at Nadkem and in Sakal Tirwal „„3123 meters of existing kuccha road at Nadkem and 1275 meters road in Sakal Tirwal to be reconstructed „„Both roads existed before Goa Liberation and are ARSENAL BEATS MAN UTD 1-0 IN EPL CAMPAIGN OPENER >>12 RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 About 180 residents of Nadkem and 245 villagers from Sakal Tirwal will benefit dkem village and another 245 villagers from Sakal Tirwal will benefit after completion of road works. PWD informed that no trees exist along alignment of existing roads. The project proponent claimed that a need has been felt to connect this existing >Continued on P7 PANAJI All the proposed educational institutions, including private universities such as MIT World Peace University planned at Tivim -- with a built-up area of more than 20,000 sq mts but less than 1.5 lakh sq mts -- will now be required to obtain prior Environmental Clearance. Taking a note of the fact that nowadays education has become a “flourishing industry”, the Supreme Court struck down the contentious clause 8 of the January 29 notification, issued by the Union Ministry for Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) which granted exemptions to industrial sheds, schools, colleges, and hostels with built-up areas up to 150,000 square meters from obtain- SC PULLS PLUG ON EC EXEMPTIONS SC strikes down clause granting exemptions to industrial sheds, schools, colleges, and hostels with built-up areas up to 150,000 square meters from obtaining prior EC „„SC empowers SEAC to decide on the matter „„If any construction activity in any area more than 20,000 sq mts is ing prior EC under the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) notification 2006.   A follow-up office memorandum on January 30 expanded the scope of exemptions to include private universities, warehouses, and industrial sheds housing machinery or raw mate- Report reveals human error, safety gaps at Mopa airport PANAJI The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has said that human error and the lack of adequate infrastructure at Goa’s Manohar International Airport led to the aborted take-off of an Air India flight AI’S ABORTED TAKE-OFF to Hyderabad last December, which according to them was a “serious incident”. AAIB released its 16-page final report last week pertaining to the incident. The investigating authority noted that MIA airport did not have an Advanced Surface Movement Guidance and Control System (A-SMGCS), at the time of the incident, which could have improved crew awareness. Interestingly, according to the sources, MIA installed A-SMGCS, in January, earlier this year, a month after the KEY FINDINGS THE INCIDENT: WHAT HAPPENED A-SMGCS which could have improved awareness „„Co-pilot was trying to restore EFB display to ON mode to initiate the LINEUP checklist „„On Dec 5, 2024 AI flight was carrying 151 passengers and 7 crew members „„Had mistakenly entered Taxiway ‘A’ instead of Taxiway ‘A5’ which had been assigned for take-off on Runway 28 „„Aircraft was immediately ordered to abort take-off incident took place -- one of the key recommendations made by AAIB in its report -the copy of which is with The Goan. The incident involving Air India flight AIC 2592, carrying 151 passengers and 7 crew >Continued on P7 THE GOAN I NETWORK AAIB PROBE „„There was "situational awareness deficit" on part of crew „„Crew did not fully comply with ATC’s taxi instructions „„Airport did not have an rial. The Apex Court bench headed by Chief Justice B R Gavai, while maintaining that no Central government nod will be required, empowered State Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC) to Govt introduces single-window system for film clearances AIRPORT DID NOT HAVE A-SMGCS: AAIB THE GOAN I NETWORK carried out it will have environmental impact „„No exemption can be granted to the education sector in this regard members, occurred on the night of December 5, 2024. The fight was stopped mid-roll just as it was accelerating for take-off. The flight had mistakenly entered Taxiway ‘A’ >Continued on P7 OBSTACLE COURSE: A stretch of road at Verem has turned into a nightmare for motorists, riddled with deep potholes and uneven surfaces. The relentless downpour has only worsened the condition of roads across the State.  Narayan Pissurlenkar Body of BITS Pilani student handed over to his family CAUSE OF DEATH YET TO BE DETERMINED THE GOAN I NETWORK VASCO The Verna police on Sunday handed over the body of 20-year-old BITS Pilani student Kushagra Jain to his family, who have taken it to Lucknow for the final rites. Jain, a third-year Computer Science student from Lucknow, was found dead in his hostel room at the BITS Pilani, Goa campus on Saturday afternoon. His sudden demise has sparked concern on campus, as this is the fourth student death in the hostels with- in the past nine months. Police sources said officers rushed to the institute after receiving the alert. “The student was declared dead by the institution’s Deputy CMO. Verna Police carried out the >Continued on P7 PANAJI The Goa government on Sunday launched the Film Facilitation Portal, which will serve as a single-window facilitation point to ease filming in Goa. The system will be applicable from September 1 onwards. Speaking at the Closing Ceremony of Goa State Film Festival 2025, Vice Chairman of Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG) Delilah Lobo announced the launch of the facilitation portal. She said that the portal will provide a single-window clearance facility for film shootings in the State from September 1. She said that the filmmakers will not have to make multiple applications to different agencies for permissions but one application through the portal.   The portal will also assist them to get disseminating information on shooting locations and facilities available. Lobo also said that the government will expedite execution of the film finance scheme. Submit affidavit or apologise, 2 comunidades align with govt on Regularisation Bill SH OT I N T H E A RM FO R GOV E R N MEN T CEC to Rahul on ‘vote theft’ THE GOAN I NETWORK AGENCIES NEW DELHI On the day Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched the “Voter Adhikar Yatra” in Bihar, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar asked him to either back his allegations of “vote theft” with a affidavit within seven days or apologise to the nation. Addressing his first press conference since taking charge in February, Kumar responded to Opposition claims of discrepancies in electoral rolls, particularly Gandhi’s statement on August 7. Gandhi had cited findings from a six-month Congress study of the Mahadevapura Assembly in Bangalore, alleging the presence of nearly one lakh fake voters. The party claimed similar irregularities — duplicate entries, bogus addresses, and manipulated records — existed nationwide. Without naming Gandhi or the Congress, Kumar referred to those who made a “PPT”, hinting at Gandhi. He clarified that there was no legal basis or evidence to issue notices to the alleged fake electors. He also drew a clear line between names repeated on the rolls and the actual act of voting. To suggest multiple votes were cast, Kumar said, was equivalent to branding electors as “criminals”. He assured that no genuine voter would be removed without proof and stressed that the Election Commission “stood like a rock” with every elector. “Halafnama dena hoga ya desh se maafi maangni hogi, koi teesra vikalp nahi hai… Agar saath din mein halafnama nahi mila to iska arth hai ki yeh saare aarop niradhar hain (Either file an affidavit or apologise to the nation, there is no third option. If the affidavit is not received within 7 days, it would mean the allegations are baseless),” he said. VASCO n a significant development in Goa’s ongoing row over the regularisation of unauthorised constructions, the Chicalim and Chicolna comunidades on Sunday became the first to publicly extend support to the Goa Regularisation of Unauthorised Construction (Amendment) Bill, 2025 (ROUCAB). The legislation seeks to regularise dwelling houses built on comunidade land before February 28, 2014. While most comunidades across Goa have opposed the bill and are preparing to challenge it before the Supreme Court, the two South Goa comunidades said I „„Chicalim & Chicolna comunidades first to back Regularisation Bill „„Leaders argue that regularisation will generate steady revenue, enable return of land to comunidade control, and enhance dividends „„Both comunidades had previously passed resolutions in favour of regularisation after decades of demolitions, court battles „„Data shows Chicalim has about 700–800 houses and Chicolna about 30 „„Statewide an estimated 1.5 lakh homes built before 2014 could qualify for regularization „„Comunidade leaders urge govt to empower managing committees with direct powers to stop fresh illegal constructions the measure would provide much-needed relief to Goans who built homes on comunidade property and also ensure steady revenue for comunidade coffers. At a joint press conference, Chicolna comunidade presi- dent Esther Sankhwalkar said the notification was timely. “There will be a lot of revenue for comunidades, and land reverted back after implementation will only add to our coffers. We will have more funds, more land, and better dividends for members,” she said. Sankhwalkar reminded that both Chicalim and Chicolna comunidades had already resolved to regularise such houses even before the government brought the amendment. “In the past, our general bodies passed resolutions to regularise these houses. We fought hard through demolitions and court cases to remove illegal houses, but in the long run, it did not work. The land remained encroached and yielded no revenue. Nearly 80% of the encroachers are fellow Goans, and the regularisation aligns perfectly with the government’s notification. We welcome it,” she added. Chicalim comunidade attorney Manuel Dias pointed out that most of the houses were not recent encroachments. “In Chicalim, many houses have existed for 40-45 years. >Continued on P7