log on to thegoan.net @thegoaneveryday FRIDAY MAY 19, 2023 GOA 14 pages 15 years on, Chinchinim panchayat ghar project still in limbo SSCE results on May 20 PANAJI: The Goa Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education will declare Class 10 results on May 20 at 4:30 pm. The result booklet will be available on official website of GBSHSE Board while the consolidated result sheets will be available for downloading from the school login on May 22. As per records, 20476 students including repeaters answered the exams, of whom 10074 were girls and 10402 were boy candidates while 425 were specially-abled students and 3195 candidates registered for NSQF (National Skills Qualification Framework) subjects. A total of 23 ITI candidates were also among the candidates who registered for equivalency in the SSC exam. A total of 106 secondary schools offered NSQF subjects. IN SHORT >> No water supply to 3 talukas on May 21 PANAJI: Sanguem, Quepem, Salcete and Mormugao talukas will have to go without water on May 21 due to the annual planned maintenance related power shutdown in South Goa (except Ponda) as well as annual maintenance work on trunk main of 160 MLD Water Treatment Plant at Cotarli, Sanguem. DDSSY health card renewal up to June 30 PANAJI: The Health Department has announced that it has recommenced renewals for its health insurance scheme Deen Dayal Swasthya Seva Yojana (DDSSY) from May 18. The renewal will be for the policy period April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024. Goa Dairy work being streamlined: Sawant PANAJI: Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has said that three administrators have been appointed to streamline the Goa Dairy work in order to reduce the losses and that the loss-making unit will soon turnaround and be in profit. Banastarim bridge closed for 2 hours PANAJI: Banastarim Bridge on NH-4A will remain closed for all the vehicular traffic on May 28 from 6.30 am to 8.30 am for inspection and recording of deck levels, the office of the Executive Engineer, PWD Ponda has informed. WEATHER >> Max: Min: Humidity: TIDES 36 C 26 C 82% Low: 04.17 16.49 High: 11.19 22.09 Facebook.com/thegoaneveryday The Goan (Playstore) PRICE ` 8 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME VIII, NO.331 2 3 GOA Suspect sopo system practiced for 10-15 years, probe on: CCP Commissioner Instagram.com/thegoaneveryday RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO Easiest acne routine for everyone who can’t do a 12-step routine 9 IPL: Kohli ton helps RCB beat Sunrisers by 8 wickets K’taka leadership war ends, Siddaramaiah named CM  SHIVAKUMAR TO BE THE ONLY DY CM  OATH CEREMONY ON MAY 20 PTI BENGALURU The Congress on Thursday named Siddaramaiah as the next chief minister of Karnataka and state PCC chief D K Shivakumar, a strong contender for the top post, as his only deputy, ending the tense deadlock after prolonged parleys involving its central leadership. Siddaramaiah met Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot to stake claim to form the government shortly after the nine-time MLA was formally elected the leader of the Congress Legislature Party(CLP) in Karnataka at a meeting of the newly elected party MLAs at Indira Gandhi Bhavan in Bengaluru on Thursday night. He will become the chief minister for the second time after his earlier five-year stint from 2013. Siddaramaiah, 75, and Shi- HOW THE DEADLOCK WAS BROKEN „„After hectic discussions, all parties agree to accommodate confidantes of both leaders „„Shivakumar asked to continue on the post of State Cong chief till next year’s parliamentary elections „„To maintain his number 2 position in Karnataka govt, Shivakumar was told he would be made the only Dy CM „„There is also a rough understanding of a 50:50 power sharing, under which Shivakumar can succeed Siddaramaiah in the top post halfway through the term vakumar, 61, will take oath of office on May 20, according to party General Secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal, even as Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge invited leaders of several like-minded parties for the swearing-in ceremony in Bengaluru. The event may turn out to be a show of strength for opposition parties amid unity efforts to take on the ruling BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Senior party leader and incharge for Karnataka Randeep Surjewala said Shivakumar CM sets June 15 deadline to end ‘smart city’ works moved a resolution to elect Siddaramaiah as the new CLP leader. All the members of the CLP endorsed the resolution unanimously, he added. After four days of intense wrangling for the top post, a solution was hammered out at a fresh round of discussions in Delhi that went on till the early hours of Thursday. Announcing the decision taken by Kharge, Venugopal said all leaders, including the top leadership, worked very hard to make the Karnataka victory a reality. “We have decided on Siddaramaiah as the chief minister of Karnataka. D K Shivakumar will be the only Deputy CM,” he told reporters, as the two leaders, who were frontrunners for the CM’s post, presented their cases vigorously before the top brass after the Congress’’ stunning comeback to oust BJP from its lone southern citadel on May 13. Fresh row over Dy CM’s post BENGALURU: Senior Congress leader G Parameshwara on Thursday cautioned the party’s central leadership that if a deputy chief minister post is not given to a Dalit, there would be adverse reaction and it would spell trouble for the party. The 71-year-old Parameshwara, a Dalit, was deputy chief minister during Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) coalition government led by H D Kumaraswamy. His veiled warning came hours after the Congress announced that Siddaramaiah would be chief minister and D K Shivakumar would be his only deputy. Hopes rise for dhirio in State after SC’s ‘Jallikattu’ decision THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the validity of Amendment Acts allowing bull-taming sport ‘Jallikattu’ has given hope for legalising Goa’s traditional bullfighting sport ‘dhiro’. ‘Dhirios’, have been banned in Goa for the violation of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. Reacting to the SC decision, Venzy Viegas Aam Aadmi Party MLA from Benaulim -- known to be a hub of bullfighting -- said “it’s a window of hope to legalise Goa’s traditional bullfighting sport”. Viegas said if the cruelty element is minimised by a Goa specific statute, it will pass the test of law. The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the validity of amendment acts of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Karnataka which allowed bull-taming sport ‘Jallikattu’, bullock-cart races and buffalo racing sport ‘Kambala’, saying PANAJI Hardpressed to resolve ahead of a looming monsoon the quagmire Panaji has sunk into following months of uncoordinated execution of multiple smart city projects by different agencies, the State government appointed its Secretary Sanjit Rodrigues, IAS, the CEO of the Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Limited (IPSCDL) and simultaneously instructed all contractors to work in three shifts to finish the work before June 15. The decisions were taken at a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday with IPSCDL officials, heads of departments involved and the contractors. Revenue Minister Atanasio (Babush) Monserrate, his CCP mayor-son Rohit Monserrate, CCP Commissioner Clen Madeira, who are all on the IPSCDL Board also attended the meeting. Sawant told the media that a June 15 deadline has been set to complete all the works, even as he admitted that execution of the smart city related work which had begun in mid-December last year and through life for residents and SAWANT CRACKS THE WHIP „„All Panaji roads to be hot-mixed by June 8-10 „„Precautions taken to ensure that flooding does not occur in the city „„New high capacity pumping station and gate installed at Mala area „„Rains are expected by June 8 but before that all major work and connections will be put in place „„Sanjit to be single point of contact for all smart city work commuters in the capital in disarray, “did not go as were planned”. “Contractors will work 24x7 now. Work will be done in three shifts daily, to complete the works,” Sawant said, adding that with Rodrigues who has vast experience working in Panaji as managing director and CEO of IPSCDL, he will be the single point of contact for all smart city work. “He (Rodrigues) has worked with CCP, Amrut mission and other projects. He is well versed with works in Panaji,” he added Nearly a dozen different agencies, including IPSCDL, Sewerage and Infrastructural Development Corporation of Goa Limited (SIDCGL), Goa State Urban Development Agency (GSUDA), Public Works Department and Water Resources Department among others had been simultaneously working at different sites in the capital over the last six months and more. Despite Thursday’s decisions and the administration cracking the whip at the contractors to improve the pace of work, fear that the chaos in the city will not be undone before the onset of the monsoon, persist. The Indian Meteorological Department has forecast that the Southwest monsoons are likely to hit Kerala on June 4 and it usually takes about a week more to hit Goa. Thus the June 15 deadline set to bring order in the capital many feel may be too little too late with Panaji perennially susceptible to flooding during the rains. >Continued on P5 Supreme Court upheld the validity of amendment acts of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Karnataka which allowed bull-taming sport ‘Jallikattu’, bullockcart races and buffalo racing sport ‘Kambala’, saying they are “valid legislations” they are “valid legislations”. In a unanimous verdict, a five-judge constitution bench headed by Justice K M Joseph noted that The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act, 2017, The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Maharashtra Amendment) Act, 2017 and The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Karnataka Second Amendment) Act, 2017 were enacted by the respective >Continued on P5 Kiren Rijiju shunted out of law ministry KTC GETS 20 NEW E-BUSES PTI  CONTRACTORS TO WORK 24X7  WORK TO BE DONE IN 3 SHIFTS  SANJIT NAMED IPSCDL BOSS THE GOAN I NETWORK 14 SPORTS The fleet of 20 new electric buses handed over to KTC at Bambolim on Thursday.   Narayan Pissurlenkar Soon, subsidy for EV buyers as govt moots new policy THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has announced that his government will come up with a new policy to provide subsidies to e-vehicle buyers. Last year, his government had abruptly discontinued the EV subsidy scheme. “The policy will be for two, three and four-wheeler e-vehicles. While 30 per cent subsidy  will be for two- wheelers, it will be 40% for three-wheelers and for fourwheelers it will be up to Rs 3 lakh,” Sawant said. The chief minister also spoke of EV-charging infra at every 25 kilometer location along highways. In cities, charging stations will be set up at shorter distances, he said. Sawant also urged people to opt for electric vehicles even as he promised  that in the coming months petrol stations across the State will have EV charging points. Meanwhile, 20 more air-conditioned EV buses were added to the fleet of the Kadamba Transport Corporation Limited (KTCL) at an event held in Bambolim where Sawant said his government aims to eventually make the State-owned public transport behemoth a “100% EV bus operator”. >Continued on P5 NEW DELHI In a sudden development, Kiren Rijiju was moved out of the law ministry and replaced by Arjun Ram Meghwal on Thursday. As law minister, Rijiju had been the most vocal in the government in criticising the collegium system of appointing Supreme Court and high court judges and described it as being “alien” to the Constitution. His recent remarks on some retired judges being part of an anti-India gang had evoked strong reactions. He had claimed that a few retired judges and some activists who are part of the “anti-India gang” were trying to make the Indian judiciary play the role of opposition party. The Sports Minister and the Minister of State for Minority Affairs at that time, Rijiju got the coveted portfolio following the resignation of senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad. A brief communique of Rashtrapati Bhavan said President Droupadi Murmu, as advised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has reallocated portfolios among ministers in the Union Council of Ministers. ‘Tech glitch’: HC orders GMC to hold proctored exam Wildlife toll for vehicles from THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI he Bombay High Court at Goa has directed the Goa Medical College to organise a proctored examination -- in order to ensure that a student, and several other similarly placed students do not miss a year, owing to the ‘technical snag’ in the Goa Medical College website that didn’t allow her to log in to register for the examination despite one day left for registration.  The petitioner Rashmi Vijaykumar, is a postgraduate student of Otorhinolaryngology (ENT -- Ear, Nose and Throat) who was due to appear in the final examination of the post-graduation course sched- T KEY HIGH COURT OBSERVATIONS THE CASE „„If the website did display the message “the registration has closed” on March 20, 2023, the petitioner was obviously prevented from registering online due to technical snag „„A delay of about a year has serious consequences for a post graduate medical student  „„Let the proctored examination be conducted by the respondents on or before 31.05.2023 and result declared on or before 07.06.2023 Vijaykumar approached HC alleging when she attempted to register for the April 2023 examination scheduled on April 29/30, notwithstanding her persistent attempts to log in, the website displayed the message “you have not enrolled in any courses” or that “the registration has closed”. uled on 12.06.2023.  However, in order to appear for the final examination one of the conditions which the postgraduate student has to fulfil is clearing of the Basic Course in BioMedical Research (BCBR).  Vijaykumar approached the High Court alleging that when she attempted to register herself for the April 2023 ex- amination scheduled on April 29/30, 2023, notwithstanding her persistent attempts to log in, the website displayed the message “you have not enrolled in any courses” or that “the registration has closed”. The advocate for the respondent conceded that despite the last date to enrol for the examination being March 21, the message reading that the registration was closed, was displayed on March 20 itself.  “If the website did display the message “the registration has closed” on March 20, 2023, the petitioner was obviously prevented from registering herself online due to the technical snag,” the Court observed, pointing out that previously the Court had observed that “a delay of about a year has serious consequences for a post graduate medical student.”  >Continued on P5 Goa to Karnataka via Anmod TOLL ON VEHICLES VIA CHORLA ALSO ON CARDS THE GOAN I NETWORK BELAGAVI Travellers passing through the wildlife sanctuaries in Karnataka including the Kali Tiger Reserve via Anmod will have to shell out extra money to reach their destination. According to a government order that was issued earlier this month light vehicles will have to pay Rs 20 whereas the heavy vehicles will have to pay Rs 50 while passing through Kali Tiger Reserve. In December 2015, Dandeli Anshi Tiger reserve was re- According to a government order Light vehicles will have to pay Rs 20 whereas heavy vehicles will have to pay Rs 50 while passing through Kali Tiger Reserve named Kali Tiger Reserve. The river Kali which is the lifeline of the people of Uttara Kannada also integrates Kali Tiger Reserve which is spread across over 400 sq kms. Uttar Kannada forest officials have already commenced collecting the toll at the forest check post near Anmod and a receipt is being issued accordingly. “While half the amount goes to the conservation of the tiger reserve other half goes to wildlife fund,” an officer said. Meanwhile, Belagavi forest officials too are contemplating to impose these fees on the vehicles travelling via Chorla. “As this route passes through the vicinity of Bhimgarh Wildlife Sanctuary we are studying the order after which the toll is likely to be imposed,” a senior forest official told The Goan.