log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 22, 2025 Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 12 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME XI, NO. 124 Instagram.com/thegoanonline SOUTH AFRICA CRUSHES PAKISTAN BY 150 RUNS IN RAIN-HIT CLASH>>11 RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 FESTIVAL OF SAVINGS, SEASON OF JOY Utsav CBC 15502/13/0038/2526 Bachat TRACTORS ARE NOW CHEAPER My farming now comes with savings BY NEARLY ₹40,000 Valpoi police step in after 12 structures on govt land in Siolim to face the axe violent Diwali eve clash DIWALI MAGAZINE Now on stands Available at major newspaper vendors CONTACT North Goa: 9075760380 South Goa: 9922582700 >> pg 6 The Goan Laddoo: Serving authentic Goan cuisine IN SHORT >> Biharis booked for touting at Colva MARGAO: Visitors to the world-famous Colva beach may be surprised to learn that a group of guides and touts operating there are natives of Bihar. In a crackdown, the Colva police caught several individuals red-handed for engaging in touting and guiding activities and subsequently booked them.  >> See pg 2 Ravindra Bhavan play choice slammed MARGAO: The decision Ravindra bhavan, Margao to stage the play produced by a Pune-based troupe on the day of the inauguration on November 5 has received flak from artists and former member of Goa State Cultural Development Committee Vishal Pai Cacode.  > See pg 2 > Japan Parl elects 1st woman as PM TOKYO: Japan's parliament elected ultraconservative Sanae Takaichi as the country's first female prime minister Tuesday, a day after her struggling party struck a coalition deal with a new partner expected to pull her governing bloc further to the right.  >> See pg 7 WEATHER >> Max: Min: Humidity: 33.0 C 24.3 C 93% TIDES Low: 05.02 17.09 High: 10.35 23.52  EIGHT ARRESTED  SARPANCH, PANCH AMONG 10 BOOKED  PROTESTORS HAD TORCHED CAR THE GOAN I NETWORK VALPOI Valpoi police on Tuesday arrested eight persons and also booked 10 others, including Honda Sarpanch Shivdas Madkar and Panch Krishna Gaonkar, and 400 unknown persons, in connection with violence outside the Honda police outpost late Sunday night, which led to protestors torching a car carrying fireworks outside the police outpost. Valpoi police acted on a complaint filed by Rupesh Poke of Honda-Sattari, who accused Shivdas Madkar, Krishna Gaonkar, Gautam Parsekar, 7 other known persons and 400 others unknown persons of forming unlawful assembly and criminally trespassing the premises of the 18 booked for ruckus at Mala Narkasur PANAJI: A group of 18 persons were booked by Panaji police for allegedly forming an unlawful assembly and obstructing police personnel from discharging their duties during Narkasur night celebrations at Mala, on Sunday. According to the complaint lodged by the police on behalf of the State, the accused, identified as organisers of Narkasur effigies, allegedly pushed police personnel and restrained them from carrying out their lawful duties. The incident occurred when the staff responded to a PCR call over loud music in the area. An FIR has been registered under Sections 189(3), 189(5), 191(2), 132, and 126(2) read with 190 of BNS. Honda police outpost. Poke claimed that he was criminally intimidated and assaulted, while his car was damaged over the issue of playing music on the eve of Diwali and due to previous enmity. In this connection, Valpoi police registered offences under 189(2), 191(2), 115(2), (4)324, 329 (3), 352, 351, 109 BNS r/w 190 BNS. Police said eight persons have been arrested so far and are in police custody, while efforts are on to arrest the remaining accused persons, as investigations are in progress. Tension had erupted on the eve of Diwali festivities in Honda, as loud music was being played near the residence of Rupesh Poke at Honda. After Poke contacted the police stating that loud music was being played outside his house, a police team had gone to the site and had stopped the music. However, after the police team left, loud music resumed at the site after 10.30 pm. Poke then filed a written complaint at the Honda police outpost. Angered by his complaint, an estimated 400 people rushed to the Honda police outpost and caused tension in the area. >Continued on P5 GCZMA probe finds structures were illegally constructed within the NDZ THE GOAN I NETWORK MAPUSA In a significant action against illegal coastal constructions, the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) has ordered the demolition of 12 structures, including several houses and compound walls, built on government land at Udo in coastal Siolim. The action follows a detailed investigation by the GCZMA in coordination with officials from the Revenue Department. The inquiry revealed that all 12 structures were illegally constructed within a no-development zone on Survey No 119/1, located on the banks of the River Chapora at Bhailo Udo, Siolim. Out of 16 cases examined by the coastal authority, only four structures were found to have existed before 1991, with their owners providing docu- An alleged illegal structure at Udo in Siolim marked for demolition by GCZMA. mentary evidence to substantiate their claims. The remaining 12 failed to prove the legality of their construction. In its order, the GCZMA noted that the violators had failed to establish that their houses existed before 1991, as required under the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification. GenX politicians brace for intense contest in Ponda PANAJI The passing of former chief minister Ravi Naik and the expected bye-election for the Ponda assembly constituency left vacant has seemingly set the stage for a fierce political contest among next generation politicians. In the days following his death, while Naik's family and supporters were still be in deep mourning, his son Ritesh's name was already doing the rounds as a potential successor, the cue surprisingly coming from an unlikely quarter -- the Dhavalikar brothers -- who lead the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) with an iron-clad grip. The public statement of Deepak Dhavalikar, who is MGP president, suggesting that if possible the bye-poll in Ponda be skipped citing the limited time left in the current assembly’s term. Instead, he appealed for a consensus candidate — specifically Ravi Naik’s son, Ritesh Naik— to be elected unanimously leav- PTI Verenkar: The third contender PANAJI: Yet another GenX politician in contention for the Ponda seat at the bye-poll will be Rajesh Verenkar, who in the 2022 poll fought on the Congress ticket and wasn't too far behind the late Naik and Bhatikar in terms of margin of votes -- approximately 600 votes separating him from them.  While Naik had polled 7,514 votes and Bhatikar got 7,437, Rajesh's tally was an impressive 6,839 votes. Five years earlier in 2017 too he had contested as an Independent and again polled a respectable 4,500-odd votes. In that 2017 election, Naik had won comfortably polling 9,502 votes.       Interestingly, Rajesh too has a political legacy in Ponda to regain. His father Shivdas Verenkar, a former minister had won the seat two successive times on an MGP ticket in 1989 (when Ravi had been moved to the neighbouring Marcaim seat) and in 1994. ing  Ketan Bhatikar, his own party's leader who missed upsetting Ravi's applecart in the 2022  assembly election by a whisker. Bhatikar was the runner-up at the 2022 election in Ponda and only 77 votes separated him from Naik who won. Bhatikar has remained politically active since then and was widely expected to be a strong contender in the upcoming bye-election but his party leadership's public statements has left him in the lurch so to say.  Ravi Naik’s political legacy in Ponda is formidable. A veteran leader with deep roots in the constituency, he held the seat multiple times, often >Continued on P5 >Continued on P5 Delhi tops world pollution chart after spike in Diwali fireworks KETAN BHATIKAR IN THE LURCH AS DHAVALIKAR BROS THROW THEIR WEIGHT BEHIND RAVI’S SON THE GOAN I NETWORK “The documents submitted by the respondents do not establish that the house existed prior to 1991; rather, the records contradict their claims. The survey plans and Form I & XIV do not reflect any such structures, confirming that the constructions are illegal and liable for demolition,” the LIGHT OF ABUNDANCE: A devotee offers prayers to Goddess Lakshmi during Lakshmi Pujan celebrations in Panaji on Tuesday. The State reverberated with chants of sacred mantras as devotees sought blessings for abundance, happiness, and good fortune.   Narayan Pissurlenkar Ronaldo’s absence steals spotlight at FC Goa-Al Nassr media event THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI At the eve of the high-profile AFC Champions League Two clash between FC Goa and Al-Nassr, the joint press conference held on Tuesday was marked by anticipation, tactical insights, and one glaring Stage set for key clash at Fatorda today >> See pg 12 omission -- Cristiano Ronaldo. Al-Nassr head coach Jorge Jesus addressed the elephant in the room early on. “Cris- tiano has stayed back in Riyadh to rest and prepare for our next Saudi Pro League fixture,” he confirmed. “We’ve taken a decision to manage his game time carefully, especially for matches outside Riyadh. >Continued on P5 NEW DELHI Air quality in New Delhi deteriorated to hazardous levels on Tuesday, ranking as the most polluted city globally, according to Swiss air monitoring group IQAir. The spike in pollution followed widespread use of firecrackers during Diwali. Last week, the Supreme Court of India relaxed a ban on firecrackers in the capital, allowing ‘green crackers’ to be used for three hours on Sunday and Monday. However, witnesses reported that fireworks continued well beyond the permitted hours. IQAir recorded an air quality index (AQI) of 442 for New Delhi, with PM2.5 concentrations exceeding the World Health Organisation’s annual guideline by over 59 times. PM2.5 particles, which are smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter, can penetrate into the lungs and are linked to respiratory and cardiac diseases. Central Pollution Control Board classified the city’s air quality as ‘very poor’, with an AQI reading of 350. The CPCB considers an AQI of 0-50 as good. Relief for H-1B applicants: New Festive spirit powers Goa’s auto boom in October guidelines clarify exemptions Vehicle sales fuel `29.79 cr revenue VIBHA VERMA THE GOAN I PANAJI PTI WASHINGTON The USD 100,000 fee imposed by the Trump administration on new H-1B visa petitions will not apply to applicants seeking a “change of status” or “extension of stay”, according to fresh guidelines. Issued by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the guidelines clarified the exemptions to President Donald Trump's September 19 proclamation, ''Restriction on entry of cer- tain nonimmigrant workers'', which will raise the fee for new H1-B visas to a steep USD 100,000 (approx INR 88 lakhs). “The Proclamation does not apply to any previously issued and currently valid H-1B visas, or any petitions submitted prior to 12:01 am eastern daylight time on September 21, 2025,” the USCIS said. It added that the proclamation also does not prevent any current H1-B holder from travelling in and out of the US. The USCIS clarified that the fee does not apply to “change of status” cases where individuals switch categories without leaving the country, such as moving from F-1 student status to H-1B status. It says the new fee structure only applies to cases filed for people who are outside the United States, so they can come in, Dan Berger of Green & Spiegel told Forbes in an interview. Employers were nervous about doing change of status because the $100k might apply if they travel, he added. T he month of October has brought festive cheer not just to Goan households but also to the automobile industry, which witnessed a significant surge in vehicle sales. With festivals such as Dussehra and Dhanteras -- traditionally considered auspicious for new purchases -- falling in this month, sales zoomed to 7,384 units, making October the third-best performing month of 2025 so far. The only months to outperform October were August, which saw sales of 8,145 units, and January, which recorded 8,084 units. With a few days still left in the month, it is believed October’s numbers SALES THIS YEAR JAN: 8,084 FEB: 6,199 MAR: 7,790 APR: 6,138 MAY: 4,926 JUNE: 5,275 JULY: 5,482 AUG: 8,145 SEPT: 7,281 OCT: 7,384 could inch even higher. The strong sales this month also come on the back of reduced GST rates on automobiles -- implemented on September 22 -- which played PANAJI: The revenue collection has also seen a boost as the total collection from vehicle sales for this month, so far, stood at a notable Rs 29.79 crore (Rs 29,79,74,304). While this figure is slightly lower compared to the peak months of January (Rs 43.22 crore) and March (Rs 42.15 crore), it indicates a robust contribution to the State. The year-to-date revenue collection has now reached an impressive Rs 354.25 crore. a pivotal role in boosting consumer sentiment.   In terms of fuel preference, conventional fuel vehicles continued to dominate the market this month too with petrol variants leading by a massive margin. These vehicles alone clocked 40,046 units, followed by Petrol/Ethanol hybrids (11,495 units) and Diesel vehicles (4,063 units). The demand for CNG and Hybrid models remained moderate. On the other hand, electric vehicles (EVs) are still lagging behind their fuel-based counterparts as this month witnessed a total of 7,687 electric and hybrid units sold — including 5,128 Pure EVs, 2,559 Battery Operated Vehicles (BOVs), and 414 Strong Hybrid EVs.   So far in 2025, a total of 66,704 vehicles have been sold across Goa. Month-wise, August (8,145) stands at the top, closely >Continued on P5