log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline THURSDAY MAY 23, 2024 GOA What happened to the proposed Sancoale police station? IN SHORT >> Lightning damages Mopa runway lights, 6 flights diverted PANAJI: A lightning strike damaged the runway edge lights at the Manohar International Airport (MIA) on Wednesday evening, causing the diversion of six flights to nearby destinations. According to reports, the lightning strike occurred at about 5.15 pm and the MIA issued a NOTAM till 8 pm, by which time the damaged lights were rectified and replaced to bring airport operations to normalcy. During the NOTAM, six flights were diverted to nearby destinations. Man arrested for attempted murder PANAJI: Mandrem Police has arrested a suspect, Darshan Visaji, on charges of the attempted murder of Gauresh Visaji (42) at Parsem-Pernem. The accused has been remanded in police custody for six days and further investigation is underway.   >> See pg 3 Police nab Alorna man in assault case MAPUSA: Colvale Police have arrested Thomas Fernandes from Alorna-Pernem who was absconding in connection with the assault on Alistair Pulikal (32) at Mazilwado– Revora with a knife.   >> See pg 3 Raigad woman goes missing at Calangute MAPUSA: A 27-year-old woman from Borli-Raigad in Maharashtra who had arrived in Goa with her family and relatives has gone missing from Calangute beach since May 18.  >> See pg 5 UK election on July 4 LONDON: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Wednesday ended frenzied speculation by announcing that the country’s general election will be held on July 4. The 44-year-old leader laid out his record in office in his pitch to the British electorate, who will soon give their verdict at the ballot box.   >> See pg 7 WEATHER >> Max: 31 C Min: 29 C Humidity: 84% TIDES Low: 04:12 High: 11:19 16:51 22:03 2 GOA We ensure vessel safety, no role to oversee operations, says CoP RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO What happens when you wear make-up while exercising? ALLEGATIONS OF ‘GOANS WITH PORTUGUESE NATIONALITY’ VOTING; CEO ASSURES TO ACT IF COMPLAINTS RECEIVED THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Voting for the Lok Sabha elections in Goa concluded on May 7, but concerns have now surfaced about Goans who have registered their births in Portugal and possess either the Cartão de Cidadão or a Portuguese passport. Apprehensions are that some might have participated in the voting process despite the existing Indian law criminalising such voting. Although there are no official complaints filed with the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, the office has expressed its readiness to initiate an inquiry based on any complaints it might receive. Allegations have surfaced that certain Goans with Portuguese nationality voted as their names were not removed from the electoral rolls and neither did they voluntarily initiate the process for deletion. ALLEGATIONS ON SOCIAL MEDIA „„Certain Goans with Portuguese nationality voted as their names were not removed from the electoral rolls and neither did they voluntarily initiate the process for deletion CEO SPEAKS „„Upon receiving complaints, we will instruct our field officers to scrutinise the allegations and submit their findings „„These will then be forwarded to the District Collectors for further verification and inquiry, after which we will take necessary action „„These issues would be taken care of during the upcoming verification drive A concerned citizen, Vladimir De Monte Furtado highlighted specific instances on social media stating that people who registered their births in Lisbon or those holding Portuguese passports without surrendering their Indian passports might have voted. “There are reports of such incidents in Varca, Benaulim, and other areas where names were still not removed from the electoral rolls,” he stated. A government official, who preferred to remain anonymous, conceded the possibility of such incidents, stating that once these votes are cast, they are unfortunately counted. Hue & cry forces pharma firm to cancel out-of-State interviews WALK-IN INTERVIEWS WERE SCHEDULED FOR MULTIPLE VACANCIES AT MUMBAI FOR FACILITY IN VERNA THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Indoco Remedies Limited, a Goan pharma company listed on the country’s Stock Exchanges and having facilities at the Verna industrial estate, cancelled a scheduled recruitment through walk-in interviews at Mumbai after the State’s political establishment raised a hue and cry alleging denial of employment opportunity for locals. The walk-in interview recruitment was purportedly for multiple vacancies at its facility in Verna and the company wrote to the State government that it had cancelled the process. Sources said, the company wrote to Chief Minister Pramod Sawant conveying the decision to cancel the scheduled walk-in interview planned at Mumbai. “Due to some unavoidable circumstances & your personal intervention, we are cancelling the above-mentioned walk-in interview planned at Boisar, Mumbai location,” the company said in a letter to Sawant. Indoco Remedies has been one of the several pharma success stories in Goa and is pro- Company gets show-cause PANAJI: The Labour Commissioner Levinson Martins issued a show-cause notice to the ‘plant manager’ of Indoco Remedies at Verna citing social media posts with the advertisement for posts such as officers for quality assurance and quality control officers besides microbiology officer and other posts like production officers and executives. The notice issued by Martins flags the company’s failure to notify the vacancies in the State Employment Exchange. It also seeks information from the company on whether interviews for these posts were previously held in Goa. Martins has also sought information related to how many Goans had applied for these posts and appeared for the interview and how many were recruited, if any. Due to some unavoidable circumstances & your personal intervention, we are cancelling the walk-in interview planned at Boisar, Mumbai location,” — Indoco Remedies in a letter to CM Sawant moted by the Margao-based Khare family group. Earlier in the day, the Opposition in Goa had raised a GENDER IMBALANCE SPARKS CRITICISM FROM ACTIVISTS NEW DELHI Less than 10 per cent of the candidates contesting in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections are women, according to an analysis of data shared by the poll rights body Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). Of the 8,337 candidates analysed, only 797 are women, representing a mere 9.5 per cent of the total candidates contesting across the seven 3 Instagram.com/thegoanonline Portugal connection haunts days after LS voting in Goa Women make up less than 10% of LS candidates: ADR PTI The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 12 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME IX, NO.336 GCZMA orders Sernabatim beach resort owner to demolish controversial wall >> See PG 3 Facebook.com/thegoan 1,644 candidates have criminal cases: report NEW DELHI: Of the 8,337 candidates contesting in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, as many as 1,644 have criminal cases registered against them, according to an analysis of the data shared by ADR. Among these candidates, 1,188 face serious criminal charges, including allegations related to murder, attempted murder, crimes against women and hate speech. phases of the elections. This is the first election since the passage of the women’s reservation bill to reserve one-third of seats in Lok Sabha and state assemblies for women, reviving a bill pending for 27 years for want of consensus among parties. The bill is yet to come into effect. >Continued on P5 stink over the issue accusing the company of wanting to deny Goans of employment opportunities because of which they said it planned to hold the walk-in interviews outside Goa. The opposition leaders, including Fatorda MLA, Vijai Sardesai, had raised questions over the holding of interviews outside Goa for positions in the facility at Verna. The issue was also raised by the Revolutionary Goans Party (RGP) leaders demanding that the government intervene and take action. In response to these concerns, CEO Ramesh Verma confirmed that no official complaints have yet been received. However, he stated that if any complaints are filed he will direct field officers for an inquiry and prepare reports. “Upon receiving complaints, we will instruct our field officers to scrutinise the allegations and submit their findings. These will then be forwarded to the District Collectors for further verification and inquiry, after which we will take necessary action,” he said speaking to The Goan. Verma also assured that these issues would be taken care of during the upcoming verification drive. Speaking to The Goan, Furtado claimed that some may have been misled by a specific political party to exploit the opportunity. >Continued on P5 9 SPORTS IPL: RR eliminates RCB in tense finish, to play Sunrisers in qualifier 2 12 Two-semester, Board setting papers may drive up credibility in Class IX Schools will have to choose from 3 model time-tables THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI In June later this year when students enter their Std IX classrooms, they will be confronted with a whole new style of teaching-learning and an even stranger scheme of assessment – a credits based two-semester system, papers set by the Goa Board although assessment will be done internally in the school itself and for ‘internal assessment’, a HPC (holistic progressive card) concept. The introduction of the National Education Policy for first (Class IX) of four at the secondary stage this year will therefore be a challenge not just for the faculty and school managements but also for the teenagers making an overnight switch to the new system. According to the scheme to implement NEP charted out collectively by the Directorate of Education, State Council for Education, Research and Training (SCERT), Goa Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (GBSHSE) and the two committees set up for NEP implementation, MODULE FOR CLASS IX „„The entire academic year will have a total of 1200 instructional hours distributed in equal tranches of 600 hours per semester, broken down to 39 hours per week „„There will also be extra institutional hours post lunch, from 2.15 to 4.15 pm, at least twice a week „„There are three model time-tables from which schools will be at liberty to choose, each of which have the same number of instructional hours „„Learning of new topical subjects will be distributed between the two semesters with environmental education carrying two credits in the first semester and Financial Literacy, Road Safety & Electoral Literacy & General Laws carrying one credit in the second „„Students can earn one more credit in the second semester with any one of the old subjects – Scouts & Guides, JRC, NCC or Social Service there will also be extra institutional hours post lunch, from 2.15 to 4.15 pm, at least twice a week. There are three model time-tables from which schools will be at liberty to choose, each of which have the same number of instructional hours. “The overall focus has been to map the existing syllabus with the curricular goals and testing the competency-learning outcomes for languages, mathematics, science and social science,” said, Prasad Lolayekar, IAS, who is secretary to the Government for Education. In keeping with the goal to inculcate life skills and break the learn-by-rote mode of the current academic system, the >Continued on P5 Laser treatment for varicose veins at GMC, discharge after two hours THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI In a big relief to people here suffering from varicose veins, the Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) has introduced an expensive mode of treatment for free which is painless and non-intrusive – Endovenous Laser Technology (EVLT). With varicose veins disease prevalent in every fourth adult, this new facility could benefit many in Goa. GMCH Dean, P Bandekar, who announced the development at a press conference on Wednesday, said, patients can avail this treatment known in medical terminology as ‘laser ablation’ and walk out after two hours of the procedure. “It otherwise costs anything between Rs 70,000 to Rs onelakh but it will be free at the GMCH,” Bandekar said, adding that some two dozen patients have already taken the treatment. The Department of Interventional Radiology at the GMCH is imparting this treatment, Bandekar added. Previously, varicose vein disease used to be treated at the GMCH by invasive surgery which often is painful and post-surgery healing could take several days of hospitalisation. THIS NOT SMART WORK: A bulldozer excavating the tar of the road as part of the Smart City works near Azad Maidan, Panaji, on Wednesday. This stretch of road was hot-mixed some months back. Narayan Pissurlenkar KP1, KP2 variants make way to Goa, but no worries, says expert THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The KP.1 and KP.2 sub-variants said to be the cause of the rise of Covid cases in Singapore have made their way to Goa with samples of as many as 16 patients tracked by the State’s genome sequencing laboratory. However, there is nothing to worry as all the 16 patients have recovered at home, State epidemiologist, Dr A K Prakash Suryawanshi said. Nationally, India has so far recorded 324 people to have been infected with the KP.1 and KP.2 sub-variants of the Coronavirus. Of the 16 documented in Goa, 4 had the KP.1 and 12 were infected with the KP.2 variant, he said. Both these sub-types were responsible for the recent rise in cases reported in Singapore. However, these variants do not have severe symptoms and do not affect the patient’s health seriously, Dr Suryawanshi said, adding that even hospitalisation is not required. Maharashtra has had the highest number of KP.2 cases at 290. According to Suryawanshi, Goa mostly has just one or two cases a day and samples are sent for genome sequencing when 10 to 12 patients are identified. Goa taxi owners protest KRC’s entry into rental biz ASSOCIATION CLAIMS MOVE TO EDGE OUT LOCAL OPERATORS IN FAVOUR OF NON-LOCAL ENTERPRISES THE GOAN I NETWORK MAPUSA The All Goa Taxi Owners Association has expressed strong disapproval of the Konkan Railway Corporation’s (KRC) decision to enter the bike and car rental market, labelling it as a severe blow to the local tourist taxi industry. The association claims that this move is another tactic by the government to undermine a business that has traditionally been the domain of Goan locals. President of the All Goa Taxi Owners Association, Vassudev Arlekar voiced con- Stay away from rental business or face Madgavkars’ wrath: Taxi owners to KRC MARGAO: Beleaguered Yellow and Black Taxi owners eking a living by plying their taxis on both sides of the Margao railway station have a message loud and clear to the KRC Chairman-cum-Managing Director, Santosh Kumar Jha -- stay away from the rental business or face the wrath of Madgavkars surviving on the taxi business. However, they pin their hopes on Margao MLA Digambar Kamat to persuade KRC to drop the bike rental business.  >> See pg 2 cerns of many taxi operators, stating that the new initiative by KRC could devastate the livelihoods of local taxi operators. “The tourist taxi operators run by the locals are already struggling to make ends meet and are burdened with hefty bank loans. Introducing an- ON PAGE 2 Tenders invited to run only bike rentals, pod hotels: KRC Goans should protest, come on roads: Ex-Calangute MLA Ex-Calangute sarpanch slams KRC plan other player in the rental market will only worsen our situation. How will our families survive?” Arlekar questioned. The association highlighted that the local tourist taxi business is one of the few enterprises still managed by Goans. “This new venture by KRC threatens to be the final nail in the coffin for our industry,” he added, stressing that the government appears determined to push the taxi business into the hands of non-locals through various schemes, including app-based taxi services and now rental services by KRC. Vice President of the North Goa Taxi Owners Association, Ravindra Vengurlekar echoed similar sentiments. >Continued on P5