log on to thegoan.net @thegoaneveryday MONDAY AUGUST 29, 2022 GOA 12 pages PRICE ` 8 A day after, Saxttikars look forward to Guv to resolve issues IN SHORT >> Green activist Dr Joe D’Souza no more PANAJI: Former Goa University Professor Dr Joe D’Souza passed away on Sunday morning. He was 76. D’Souza was a staunch pro-environment activist and a longtime opponent of government promoted projects which violated green laws and other regulations. A microbiologist of note, Dr D’Souza was co-opted on government committees as an expert on several occasions in the past. His funeral will be held on Monday at Panaji Church at 3 pm. 17-yr-old youth dies of electrocution MAPUSA: In a tragic incident, a teenager was killed due to electric shock while erecting the mandap for the Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations at his residence in Pomburpa late Saturday night. The deceased, Yashmit Chari (17) was a class XI student.   >> See pg 5 One more succumbs to Covid in State Facebook.com/thegoaneveryday 2 The Goan (Playstore) PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME VIII, NO. 72 GOA Sanguem farmers step up opposition to IIT 3 Instagram.com/thegoaneveryday RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO Health and beauty benefits of hydrogen peroxide 10 SPORTS Jadeja, Hardik heroics help India beat Pakistan in Asia Cup nail-biter 12 Pressure mounts in Phogat case; Cong election for party prez post Focus now on CBI investigation set for October 17 SAWANT SAYS NO OBJECTION AFTER HARYANA CM PRODS THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Sunday indicated that the probe in the murder case of TV personality and BJP leader Sonali Phogat will be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) if required at the request of his Haryana counterpart Manohar Lal Khattar. Sawant said the Haryana Chief Minister spoke to him and urged him to hand over the Phogat case to the CBI. He added that he has conveyed to him (Haryana CM) that there was no objection and it will be done. “After following all formalities, if required, we will give this case to the CBI,” the Chief Minister said, adding that he commends the efforts of Goa police who are conducting a thorough investigation. “But if Haryana CM and the family members want the case to be given to CBI, we don’t have any problem,” Sawant added. Phogat was declared dead on admission at a local hospital in Anjuna on Tuesday morning a day after a night out at Curlies, a famous club in the tourist hub. Two of her associates -- Sudhir Sangwan and Sukhwinder Singh -have been arrested on murder charges after a post-mortem examination found injuries on her body. Goa police have also said that Phogat was administered ‘obnoxious chemicals’ by spiking her drink at the club. The police reviewed the security camera footage taken from the Curlies and they saw Phogat’s manager Sudhir Sangwan and his associate Sukhwinder Singh forcibly administering an “obnoxious chemical” that was mixed in a drink, leading to the arrest of the duo. Phogat, a former TikTok star and her team was in Goa to reportedly produce a video and were to be joined by another group from Mumbai the next day. It was earlier suspected that she died of a heart attack. However, on Thursday, a murder case was registered based on the complaint lodged by Phogat’s brother. PANAJI: One more person died of Covid in the State on Sunday even as 71 of the 833 samples tested positive. With 115 recoveries, the active caseload is at 901 while the positivity rate stands at 8.5%. MPA concedes huge tariff discount to Adani coal Op HC: No ban on ‘bhang’ under Drugs Act THE GOAN I NETWORK MONEY FOR NOTHING? PANAJI An order passed by the Mormugao Port Authority (MPA) granting Adani Mormugao Port Terminal Private Limited (AMPTPL) a big relief with downward revision of tariffs for handling, storage of coal. One of the reasons cited in the order by the MPA chairperson is the company’s claim that the planned 4-lane port connectivity highway is not yet operational which impedes faster evacuation of coal cargo from the port by onward road transportation. The concessions granted include an increase of the free period (when no charges for storage are applicable) from earlier 15 days to 25 days, from the day coal cargo is fully unloaded. The charges are nil for this ‘free period’. For the next five days from 26th to 30th day, charges will be Rs 2.94 per tonne per day, Rs 4.41 per tonne per day for the next five days from the 31st to the 35th day and Rs 5.89 per tonne per day from the 36th day onwards. According to previous tariff rates, it was Rs 68 per tonne per day from 26th day. The MPA chairperson passed the order in March this year and it raises serious questions over the State gov- „„A top MPA official says concessions granted in tariffs could add up to crores of rupees „„The revised rates of tariff will take effect from April 1, 2020 „„MPA will be required to reimburse excess money paid „„Concessions granted include an increase of the free period from earlier 15 days to 25 days, from the day coal cargo is fully North Karnataka by onward rail and road transport. Those agitating against the three linear projects argue that the projects are solely aimed at facilitating coal transportation. Meanwhile, a top official of the MPA said the concessions granted in the tariffs could add up to several crores of rupees annually. The revised rates of tariff, according to the order, take effect retrospectively from April 1, 2020 and MPA will be required to reimburse the excess money paid over the last two financial years, said the official who did not want to be identified. PANAJI: The JMFC’s court at Panaji on Sunday rejected the bail application of Edwin Nunes of Curlies, who has been arrested by the police in connection with the narco trail of Phogat’s murder case when banned substance was found and recovered from the washroom of the outlet. Nunes was remanded to five-day police custody as were two others --Dattaprasad Gaonkar and Ramdas Mandrekar -- who were arrested. Meanwhile Nunes was denied bail by the JMFC’s court as it was not competent to adjudicate and the plea will have to be moved before the NDPS Court in Mapusa. Advocate Kamalakant Poulekar representing Nunes, who spoke to media after the court proceedings said, that one of the grounds cited for his bail was that he (Nunes) was not the owner of Curlies restaurant. “My client doesn’t own Curlies restaurant located on the Anjuna beach and it is for the prosecution to find and prove who owns the place”, he said. NEW DELHI Facing internal upheaval, the Congress on Sunday announced that the election for its president would be held on October 17, asserting that it is the only party in the country which follows such a democratic exercise. The result will be declared on October 19. If only one candidate is left in the fray after the withdrawal of nominations, the name of the president will be declared on October 8 itself, the party’s Central Election Authority chairman Madhusudan Mistry said after a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC). The party last saw a contest for the post in November 2000. The BJP, which has often criticised the Congress over dynastic politics due to the control of the Gandhi family over it, mocked it as “Mughalstyle coronation’’. Rahul is the best choice: Khurshid NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi remains the ‘number one’ and the ‘only’ choice of the Congress rank and file for the party chief’s post, senior leader Salman Khurshid said on Sunday. Khurshid also said efforts will be made to persuade Gandhi to take over the presidency of the party once he returns from abroad. Sonia Gandhi is the longest-serving party president and has been at the helm since 1998, barring the two years between 2017-19 when Rahul Gandhi took over. Jitendra Prasada had lost to Sonia Gandhi in 2000 and prior to that Sitaram Kesri had defeated Sharad Pawar and Rajesh Pilot in 1997. >Continued on P5 unloaded. The charges are nil for this ‘free period’ „„For next five days -- 26th to 30th day -- charges will be Rs 2.94 per tonne per day, Rs 4.41 per tonne per day for the next five days from the 31st to the 35th day and Rs 5.89 per tonne per day from the 36th day onwards „„According to the previous tariff rates, it was Rs 68 per tonne per day from the 26th day onwards ernment’s oft repeated assurances that quantum of coal handled at the port will not be permitted to be increased. In response to the sustained agitation against the three linear projects, Chief Minister Sawant had on multiple occasions assured that the State will not permit any increase from current levels in coal handling at Mormugao. The most recent assurance was on the floor of the Goa legislative assembly during the monsoon session. The Adani-owned AMPTPL imports coal through the Mormugao port and supplies it to power and steel plants in No bail for Curlies’ Nunes, 2 more sent to police custody for 5 days PTI BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court has ruled that ‘bhang’ is not declared as a prohibited drug or drink under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, and granted bail to a man who was arrested in the city. Akasa Air suffers data breach NEW DELHI: Akasa Air, which started operations less than a month ago, has suffered data breach resulting in certain customer information being accessed by unauthorised individuals. The airline apologised for the data breach and said the incident has been “self-reported”. Lanka arrests six Indian fishermen COLOMBO: Sri Lankan Navy arrested six Indian fishermen and seized their trawlers for poaching in their waters. WEATHER >> Max: Min: Humidity: TIDES Low: High: 31 C 24 C 91% 05.41 12.10 18.18 ---- ‘NO HIGHWAY LINK’ FOR ROAD TRANSPORTATION KEY REASON GONE IN SECONDS! Supertech’s twin towers in Noida collapse on Sunday after over 3,700 kg explosives were used to bring down the structures that were constructed in violation of norms. Noida’s twin towers turn to dust in seconds PTI NOIDA Nine years after a residents association went to court over the illegally built Supertech twin towers, a series of controlled explosions reduced the 100-metre tall structures to a mountain of rubble watched by thousands from surrounding rooftops and lakhs on live television. Apex (32 storeys) and Ceyane (29 storeys) were gone in 12 Centre set to tighten screws on conviction rate AIMS TO MAKE FORENSIC PROBE MUST FOR OFFENCES WITH PUNISHMENT OF OVER 6 YRS PTI GANDHINAGAR nion Home Minister Amit Shah said on Sunday that the Centre has set a target of taking India’s conviction rate higher than even the developed countries and integrating the criminal justice system with forensic science investigation. The government aims to make forensic investigation “compulsory and legal” for offences attracting punishment of more than six years, Shah said addressing the graduating students of the National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU), Gandhinagar, at its first convocation. U ‘Made in India’ forensic mobile laboratories in every district GANDHINAGAR: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday launched a ‘’Made in India’’ forensic mobile laboratory and said such labs will be made available in every district. He also assured that the government would provide a forensic mobile investigation facility to each district of the country and create a legal structure to ensure that independence and partiality of investigation is maintained. The government will provide a forensic mobile investigation facility in each district of the country and create a legal structure to ensure that independence and partiality of investigation is maintained, he said. “Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, the central government is going to make changes in the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and the Evidence Act, because nobody saw these laws from an Indian perspective after independence,” he said. “These laws need to be reframed from the perspective of independent India. Therefore, we have been consulting a lot of people to change the IPC, CrPC and the Evidence Act,” Shah said while delivering the convocation address as its chief guest. For this, the government is going to make provision of forensic evidence compulsory and legal for offences with more than six years of punishment, the Union minister said. This will require a large number of forensic science experts, he said, adding that none of the graduating students from the NFSU will remain without placement. Shah said the country’s conviction rate would increase only when the forensic science evidence is made legal for serious crimes. He said that the government has worked to strengthen the forensic infrastructure, create forensic manpower, provide forensic technology and promote forensic research to take the country to the top position globally in the field of forensic science. “We want to strengthen the forensic science sphere of the country on the basis of these >Continued on P5 seconds, in the carefully choreographed and meticulously executed demolition, the biggest such exercise in the country so far. Local people watched from vantage points picked days in advance. Many others had travelled to Noida for what could be a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle, as 3,700 kilos of explosives bored into the pillars and walls of the two residential buildings went off in quick succession. “It felt like structures of corruption were coming down,” said Purshotam Mishra, who watched the demolition ordered last year by the Supreme Court. The apex court had pointed at the collusion between the builders and Noida Authority officials who let Supertech Ltd construct in the area where no buildings were to come up according to the original plans. Just after 2.30 pm, the floors of the twin towers collapsed onto each other in a stack, which sat amid other complexes in sector 93A in Noida, an Uttar Pradesh city that adjoins New Delhi. As the buildings went down, a cloud of dust rose obscuring their very final moments. About 5,000 people from the adjoining Emerald Court and ATS Village societies had left their homes, hours before >Continued on P5 Cardinal Ferrão celebrates his first Mass in Rome THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrão celebrated his first Mass in Rome, after being made cardinal by Pope Francis on Saturday. The Mass was celebrated on Sunday in the Chapel of the Collegio Urbano, with the attendance of four other cardinals from India, Archbishop of Bombay Oswald Cardinal Gracias, His Beatitude George Cardinal Alencherry (Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malabar Church), His Beatitude Baselios Cardinal Cleemis (Major Archbishop of the Syro- A group of priests from Goa greet the new Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrão in Rome, on behalf of priests and laity from the Archdiocese of Goan and Daman. Malankara Church) and Cardinal Anthony Poola from Hyderabad, as well as two bishops, Apostolic Nuncio Emeritus to South Africa Archbishop Blasco Collaço and Archbishop of Bangalore Peter Machado. >Continued on P5