log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline TUESDAY JANUARY 9, 2024 Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 14 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME IX, NO. 202 German football legend Franz Beckenbauer dies at 78PG 12 RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 Modi Sarkar ki Guarantee CBC 22201/13/0106/2324 Government of India Scan for more information Benefits of schemes reaching directly to beneficiaries Hamara sankalp Viksit Bharat IN SHORT >> Gold, cash worth `  .6 L stolen from 1 Telangana tourist MAPUSA: Gold and cash worth Rs 1.6 lakh were stolen from a Telangana tourist at a resort in Anjuna. The incident took place when the tourist and his family were asleep in the resort. A person entered the room from the balcony and stole two bracelets worth Rs 1.10 lakh and cash of Rs 50,000. Garbage dump on fire at Zuarinagar VASCO: Three scrap vehicles were damaged when a garbage dump in an open space caught fire at Birla in Zuarinagar on Monday. The fire that began as a small flame but soon grew into an inferno and began spreading to nearby areas.   >> See pg 3 Woman stabbed to death at Areal MARGAO: A 55-year old woman from Padribhat in Sao Jose de Areal was stabbed to death allegedly by her nephew late last night over a property dispute. In a swift action, the accused Mario Oliveira was nabbed by the Maina Curtorim police.   >> See pg 2 Car rams into tree, inmates safe PONDA: The driver and passengers had a lucky escape when a brand new car rammed into a roadside tree at Usgao on Monday. The incident took place at about 7.30 am when the car was travelling from Panaji to Karnataka. One of the tyres is reported to have burst and the driver lost control of the car, which rammed into a roadside tree near the Nestle company at Usgao. Opposition threatens Assembly boycott PANAJI: Gearing up to put up a united fight against the State government on the Floor of the House on issues concerning Goa, Opposition parties on Monday warned to boycott the upcoming legislative assembly session, if the Speaker does not follow the convention of allowing one question from ruling and another from opposition each. The Winter Session is scheduled from February 2-9.  >> See pg 3 WEATHER >> Max: 33 C Min: 24 C Humidity: 87% TIDES Low: High: Instagram.com/thegoanonline 03.05/15.02 07.44/22.29 ₹32 lakh crore transferred to the bank accounts of the poor through Director Benefit Transfer People object to proposed power tariff hike at hearing n CEE EXPLAINS BREAK-UP n 2ND MEET IN SOUTH GOA TODAY THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Even as the Electricity Department attempted to justify a proposed 3.48 per cent hike in power tariffs, consumers and political opponents voiced their strong objections during a Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission’s (JERC) hearing held in Panaji on Monday.  If approved, the tariff hike will be effective from April 1, 2024, and it will be the third such increase in the past three years. All eyes are now on the JERC’s second meeting in South Goa on Tuesday.  The first hearing at the Institute Menezes Braganza saw Chief Electricity Engineer Stephen Fernandes detailing a 6 percent tariff hike for domestic consumers in the first two consumption slabs -- 0-100 and 101-200 units. An over- THE PROPOSED HIKE IN TARIFF „„From Rs 1.75/kWh to Rs 1.88/kWh for 0-100 units (13 paise hike) „„From Rs 2.6 to Rs 2.79/kWh (19 paise rise) for consumption between 101-200 units „„From Rs 3.3/kWh to Rs 3.7/kWh for consumption between 201-300 units (40 paise hike) „„From Rs 4.4/kWh to Rs 4.9/kWh between 301-400 units (50 paise hike) „„From Rs 5.1/kWh to Rs 5.8/kWh per unit for consumption above 400 units (70 paise hike) all hike of 3.48 percent has been proposed as he claimed that around 4 lakh consumers in the State fall within the 0-200 units bracket.  The proposal includes a hike in energy charges for various consumption categories, ranging from 0-100 to consumption above 400 units, along with increas- es for commercial, industrial, hotel, and agricultural consumers, public lighting, hoardings, signboards, and electricvehiclechargingstations.  “The department has proposed a hike in energy charges of low tension domestic consumers from Rs 1.75/kWh to Rs 1.88/kWh for 0-100 units (12 paise hike), from Rs 2.6 to Traffic diversion trial plan kicks off from Patradevi Week-long plan is to divert traffic from Banda to Dodamarg via Sanquelim-Ponda THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Traffic Department has begun a week-long traffic diversion experiment for heavy vehicles entering Goa from Patradevi, in view of the upcoming construction of an elevated corridor in Porvorim. The changes are enforced from Monday.   PORVORIM FLYOVER Speaking to media on Monday, Superintendent of Police (Traffic) Akshat Kaushal said the diversion route from Banda to Dodamarg-Sanquelim-Ponda road will aim at minimising inconvenience to other commuters during the construction of the flyover. “There’s anticipation of possible traffic flow disruption, and as a result, we are working on multiple alternatives… Porvorim is an important stretch as it connects North to South Goa and this highway is one of the main ar- TESTING TIMES AHEAD „„Diversion route planned is from from Banda to Dodamarg-Sanquelim-Ponda „„Heavy vehicles not carrying essential items, and entering Goa or traveling through to another State will be diverted from Banda „„Goa police coordinating with counterparts in Sindhudurg to facilitate diversion from Banda „„Impact of diversion to be assessed at the end of the week based on which a decision will later be taken „„Dept also exploring options for alternate roads and road diversions teries… We had thus requested Collector North to issue instructions,” he said while explaining the diversion plan. During this experimental week, heavy vehicles not carrying essential items, and entering Goa or traveling through to another State will be diverted from Banda. Kaushal revealed that Goa police is coordinating with its counterparts in Sindhudurg to facilitate the diversion from Banda. “Our aim is to ease traffic pressure on Porvorim streets and minimise inconvenience to the people of Goa and the tourists,” he said adding that the impact of the diversion will be assessed at the end of the week based on which a decision will be taken whether the current arrangement is sufficient or there’s a need for alternative arrangements. The department is also exploring options for alternate roads and road diversions in the plan. Rs 2.79/kWh (19 paise rise) for consumption between 101200 units, from Rs 3.3/kWh to Rs 3.7/kWh for consumption between 201-300 units (40 paise hike), from Rs 4.4/ kWh to Rs 4.9/kWh between 301-400 units (50 paise hike) RECOVER DUES TO PLUG REVENUE GAP: OPPOSITION >> See pg 5 and from Rs 5.1/kWh to Rs 5.8/ kWh per unit for consumption above 400 units (70 paise hike),” the proposal states.    In a petition to the JERC, the Electricity Department’s Net Annual Recurring Revenue for 2024-25 is estimated at Rs 3,057.5 crore, with >Continued on P5 Mhadei: Goa’s plea likely to be heard by SC on Wednesday THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by the Goa government challenging the verdict of the Mhadei Water Disputes Tribunal is likely to come up for hearing before the Supreme Court on Wednesday, January 10. The matter was supposed to be listed before Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice SVN Bhatti on December 6, 2023; however the same was not heard.    The SLP filed by the State government in July 2019 was last heard on July 10, last year, wherein the Apex Court admitted Goa’s plea challenging the Mhadei Tribunal’s award. Goa’s SLP has challenged the  decision of the  Mhadei  Water Dispute Tribunal (MWDT) to grant 13.42 tmc (thousand million cubic feet) of water to Karnataka for its Kalasa-Bhandura drinking water cum irrigation project.  On that day, the Court will hear a total five cases filed on  Mhadei  including those from Karnataka and Maharashtra challenging the award. On the day of hearing now, >Continued on P5 Claude: Dept wants to recover deficit by hiking tariff PANAJI: Slamming the move, activist Claude Alvares said the arrears of the Electricity Department is up to Rs 160 crore and it wants to recover the deficit of Rs 84 crore by hiking the tariff. The department wants to penalise the consumers who are paying in time rather than cracking down on those who do not pay in time. There are also commercial enterprises like AirBNB or private places given for rent (not hotels) which pay domestic rates instead of commercial rates. Tourist murders 4-year-old boy at Sinquerim hotel Woman held in K’taka with body in bag THE GOAN I NETWORK MAPUSA A female tourist was nabbed in a dramatic manner in Karnataka on Monday after a four-year-old boy who was staying along with her was murdered in a hotel at Sinquerim-Candolim. It is unclear if the murdered boy was her son or had been abducted by her, but alert action by the hotel staff helped Goa police trace the taxi taking the woman to Bengaluru and with the help of the Karnataka police, nab the woman in Chitradurga. The body of the boy was found in one bag in the taxi. According to police, woman along with the boy had arrived in Goa on January 6 and they were staying in a hotel at Sinquerim-Candolim. When the woman checked out of the hotel on Monday and hired a taxi to take her HOW SHE WAS CAUGHT „„Woman along with the boy had arrived on Jan 6 „„Were staying in a hotel at Sinquerim-Candolim „„She checks out on Monday, hires taxi to Bengaluru „„Hotel staff become suspicious as boy not with her; alert police „„Cops find blood stains in room, contact driver „„Cops in Chitradurga alerted „„They find body of the boy in one of the bags to Bengaluru, the boy was not with her. The hotel staff became suspicious about the boy’s absence and notified >Continued on P5 Sugarcane farmers detained on way to CM’s residence Threaten to continue protest at Azad Maidan THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The State government’s failure to take a call over restarting the Sanjivani Sugar factory by setting up a proposed Ethanol Plant triggered the protesting sugarcane farmers to march to Azad Maidan in Panaji demanding clarity on the subject. The farmers, who have been on indefinite hunger strike since last week, on Monday held a protest in the capital city seeking justice. The protesting farmers, a large number of whom were women, were detained by the police on their way to the Chief Minister’s Official residence at Altinho. They were released later in the evening. Pointing out to the government’s failure to fulfill its promise to set up Ethanol Plan at the factory, the farmers have threatened not to move from Azad Maidan till the time the government provides  clarity regarding the future of Sanjivani. “The Chief Minister has assured support to start the ethanol plant, but we don’t know Sugarcane farmers protesting at Azad Maidan on Monday.  Narayan Pissurlenkar TENDER FOR SUGAR FACTORY WITHIN 2-3 DAYS, ASSURES SAWANT >> See pg 3 if it will start or not. We want the government to come clear on the issue. They just cannot keep fooling the farmers,” said Sugarcane Farmers’ Association president Rajendra Desai.  The agitating farmers on Friday, last week, offered prayers at Datta Mandir at Darbandora for better sense to prevail with the government. The farmers  have now raised doubt over the commencement of the proposed ethanol plant and accused the government of trying to keep the issue on the backburner.  “We were compensated for four years and from next year onwards, as per the government policy, no compensation will be provided. So now the question is what is next?” the farmers said. The farmers said that their main demand is that the government must start an ethanol plant and claimed that a contractor is ready to operate the plant at the Sanjivani factory. SC quashes Guj remission Docs in Goa at greater risk of dying by suicide: Study order in Bilkis Bano case Wants all convicts in jail within 2 weeks A PTI PTI NEW DELHI In a massive setback to the Gujarat government, Supreme Court on Monday quashed the remission it had granted to 11 convicts in the high-profile gang-rape case of Bilkis Bano and the killing of her seven family members, while slamming the State for being “complicit” with an accused. It ordered all convicts, who were released prematurely on Independence Day in 2022, back to jail within two weeks. Excoriating the Gujarat govt, SC said it “usurped” the power of the Maharashtra government to grant remission to the convicts. It held as nullity the May 13, 2022 judgement of another bench of the apex court, which had directed the Gujarat government to consider the remission applications of the 11 convicts in the case, saying it was obtained by “playing fraud on court”. “This is a classic case where the order of this court dated May 13, 2022, has been used for violating the rule of law while passing orders of remission in favour of convicts. Therefore, without going into the manner in which the power of remission has been exercised, we strike down the orders of remission on the ground of usurpation of powers by Gujarat,” a bench of Justices said. PANAJI study conducted by the Indian Medical Association’s Goa unit has claimed that doctors are at a greater risk of dying by suicide compared to the general population. Also, 42 per cent of the physicians in the State exhibit symptoms of burnout, with depression and anxiety being the common mental health struggles faced by doctors. Work-related stress, worklife imbalance due to long working hours, constant oncall availability, administrative burdens, emotional burden from witnessing suffering and KEY FINDINGS OF THE STUDY „„42% of physicians exhibit symptoms of burnout characterised by emotional exhaustion, cynicism and reduced sense of accomplishment „„Depression was found among 28% of the respondents while 15 per cent reported anxiety „„Work-related stress, work-life imbalance due to long working hours also take toll on them „„Other factors include constant on-call availabili- death from close quarters, and limited control over complex systems such as insurance are the factors which contribute to this situation, it said. “Furthermore, 12-15 per cent of doctors engage in risky alcohol consumption, with 20 per cent of the doctors (among them) drinking to cope with ty, administrative burdens, emotional burden from witnessing suffering and death from close quarters „„12-15% of doctors engage in risky alcohol consumption with 20% (among them) drinking to cope with stress „„Respondents comprised 315 doctors registered with IMA stress,” said the study. When contacted, a senior official of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) said risky consumption of alcohol means it could affect their physical or mental well-being. The study, ‘’State Of Our Health: The Wellness of Doctors in Goa, was conducted by the IMA state unit in association with NGO Sangath, the Goa Institute of Management and the Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry and its report was released on Sunday. The survey respondents comprised 315 doctors registered with the IMA, it said. The report said the survey, conducted for the first time in Goa, was aimed at examining the well-being of doctors working in the coastal State. >Continued on P5