log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline MONDAY JULY 8, 2024 GOA Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 12 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME X, NO. 21 2 ETP to treat effluents discharged by Cuncolim fish units yet to see light of day GOA Sheltering heritage: ‘Pilots’ get a roof with a new elegant shade in Mapusa 5 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO Using salt in your skin care routine 9 SPORTS Abhishek smashes maiden ton as India routs Zimbabwe in 2nd T20I 11 Rain wreaks havoc across Goa, 3 dead  RETAINING WALL COLLAPSE IN KUNDAIM KILLS 3 LABOURERS  80 HIKERS RESCUED AT SATTARI WATERFALL  ENTRY TO ALL WATERFALLS BANNED  WATER-LOGGING, UPROOTING OF TREES CAUSE WIDESPREAD DESTRUCTION  FLOOD-LIKE SITUATION AT SEVERAL PLACES THE GOAN I NETWORK IN SHORT >> Panchayat to inspect Assagao house today MAPUSA: The Assagao panchayat has scheduled an inspection on July 8 of the controversial house that was partly demolished last month. The inspection follows a notice issued under Section 82 of the Goa Panchayat Raj Act 1994 to Pooja Sharma and Pradeep Agarwadekar.  >> See pg 5 Navelim seeks equal status for Romi Konk MARGAO: The Navelim gram sabha unanimously supported the demand to file a petition before the Commissioner, Linguistic Minorities Commission New Delhi to mete out justice for Konkani in Roman Script. Navelim village gram saba has perhaps become the first to support the demand for granting equal status for Konkani in Roman script.  >> See pg 2 Siolim wants ban on bars near schools MAPUSA: In a decisive move, the Siolim-Sodiem gram sabha on Sunday passed a resolution to prohibit the operation of liquor outlets within 100 meters of schools and religious places. This decision comes in response to local opposition against the State government’s recent policy.  >> See pg 5 Delhi cops file FIR against Moitra NEW DELHI: Delhi Police has registered a first information report against Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra for her ‘derogatory’ social media post on National Commission for Women chief Rekha Sharma. The TMC leader commented on a video posted on X that showed Sharma arriving at the site of a stampede in Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras. Mumbai BMW crash: Police arrest two >> See pg 7  WEATHER >> Max: 27 C Min: 25.1 C Humidity: 91% TIDES Low: High: 05.55 13.08 18.57 23.59 terfall while they were there, the water level in the rivulet quickly rose and they could not come back, sending waves of panic among them. According to Girish Bailudkar, Zonal Officer of the Sanctuary, firefighters along with sanctuary staff helped the trapped tourists to cross the river and return to safety. Bailudkar also said that local villagers also supported the rescue work. The incident prompted the government to ban entry of visitors to all waterfalls across Goa for a week including those which were earlier announced as low risk. PANAJI Heavy and incessant rains lampooned Goa the entire Sunday causing havoc and destruction, including the catastrophe of three labourers being killed in a landslide when a retaining wall collapsed at Kundaim. Heavy rains began early Sunday morning following up the overnight pouring. Soon, reports of water-logged roads, trees getting uprooted and causing widespread damage to property trickled in through the day from all parts of the State. KUNDAIM TRAGEDY The three labourers from a larger group living in a nearby hut were crushed when a retaining wall at Kundaim collapsed in the pounding rain. The names of the labourers were provided as Dilip Yadav from Bihar, Mukesh Kumar Singh from Odisha and Trimal Nayak. A fourth Ankit Kumar Yadav, also of Bihar, was injured in the incident. The retaining wall collapsed around 3.30 pm as An excavator clears the area where the retaining wall collapsed in Kundaim on Sunday. heavy rain lashed the area, instantly killing the three workers who lived in a hut near the factory in Kundaim. Fire personnel from Ponda and Kundaim rushed to the spot even as Police Inspector Yogesh Sawant of Mardol Police Station along with a team arrived. The bodies of the workers were removed with the help of an excavator and taken to the sub-district hospital in Pon- da where they were declared dead on arrival. HIKERS RESCUED In Sattari, a waterfall in Pali trapped a group of some 80 hikers, triggering panic. Fire-fighters and the police were rushed there and they worked for several hours on the rescue operation to bring them to safety. The incident occurred when tourists had come hik- Havoc in Pernem; Mopa airport flooded PERNEM: The relentless downpour wreaked havoc across Pernem taluka, causing widespread flooding in villages, numerous landslides, and significant water infiltration at Mopa airport. Several areas including Warkhand, Nigle, Nagjar, Kasarwarni, and Chandel experienced severe flooding, submerging roads and disrupting public life. Mopa airport faced significant flooding, with staff seen clearing water from the premises.  >> See pg 3 ing to the Shivlinga waterfall got trapped with the sudden rise of water. Mhadei Sanctuary officials with the help of personnel from the Valpoi fire station and the police then jointly launched an operation to rescue the trapped people which they eventually succeeded after a few hours. Sources said the trapped group of tourists had crossed the rivulet to get to the wa- THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI After Goa and Maharashtra, the PRAWAH committee for Mhadei will meet in Bengaluru on Monday after the inspections of various locations of the Mahadayi reservoir at Kankumbi and Kalsa since Thursday last. The meeting is crucial as the Mhadei catchment inspection report is to be discussed at the meeting. The PRAWAH Committee will finalise its report by month end. “I cannot comment on the committee’s report,” Water Supply Minister Subhash Shirodkar told media. The Mhadei catchment inspection by the committee had begun on Wednesday. Speculation of a Cabinet reshuffle to induct more of the defectors has intensified with Digambar Kamat, Michael Lobo and Sankalp Amonkar said to be among the names on the shortlist, along with that of Ramesh Tawadkar tensified now with  Kamat, Calangute MLA Michael Lobo and Mormugao MLA Sankalp Amonkar said to be among the names on the shortlist, along with that of Tawadkar. The Kamat-Lobo-Amonkar trio are the only ones from the group of eight defectors who have not been accommodated with any office. However, exactly when Sawant will resort to the >Continued on P5 THE GOAN I NETWORK Chandor ‘Heritage Village’ plan delay may floor govt THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI he State government is expected to come under fire for lack of any significant steps on the ground to initiate the plan to develop Chandor as a ‘Heritage Village’ through the department of Archives T and Archeology announced in the 2023-24 State budget by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant in February last year. When the Leader of the Opposition, Yuri Alemao, of whose Cuncolim constituency WHAT THE HERITAGE PLAN ENTAILS „„’Heritage village’ project proposes beautification of presentable heritage, signages and information boards „„Preparing circuits for heritage walks, cycle tracks, treasure hunt tracks and streetscapes „„Conservation of heritage homes, besides setting up Chandor is a part, raised the issue in this year’s budget session in March, Minister for Archives and Archaeology, Subhash Phaldesai, had revealed that the government had thus far approved the ‘scope of work’ and the process for the appointment of a consultant initiated. The consultant so appointed will have to prepare the detailed project report (DPR) and only then will the timeline for its implementation can be set, Phaldesai had said. Alemao is expected to raise the matter again when >Continued on P5 PANAJI: Director of Education, Shailesh Zingde, issued the circular on Sunday afternoon declaring Monday a holiday for schools. The holiday is for students and teachers of schools, Zingde said in the circular but added that those teachers who have been deputed for training shall report for training. Zingde’s circular also advised students to stay indoors and avoid venturing into risky areas such as flooded streets, riversides and other potentially hazardous locations. Mhadei team meeting in B’luru today ly made a trip to Delhi, where he met the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi and other BJP bigwigs. Also, so far, only one of the eight Congress defectors -Aleixo Sequeira -- has found a place in the Cabinet. He was sworn-in a minister in November last year after Nilesh Cabral quit to make way.  Since then, speculation of a Cabinet reshuffle to induct more of the defectors has constantly sustained and in- In the capital city, as usual the 18th June Road was waterlogged most part of the day with the Met office reporting 115 mm of rain in the 6-odd hours between 8.30 am and 3 pm. The fire and emergency services personnel were kept on their toes as calls of houses being damaged and power lines being snapped with trees Govt declares holiday for schools today Cabinet reshuffle murmurs echo in corridors of power PANAJI Chief Minister Pramod Sawant may have stoutly refrained from making any comments on a possible rejig of his team but talk of a Cabinet reshuffle persists in the corridors of power. The discussions revolve around the possible induction of Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar into the Cabinet along with a couple of the turncoats from the Congress, including former chief minister, Digambar Kamat. Meanwhile, reports of the induction of Tawadkar into the Cabinet, gained momentum after the Speaker recent- MESSY TRAIL IN PANAJI of art galleries „„Interpretation centres and museums on heritage (tangible, intangible and liberation struggle) „„Setting up ‘Memorial Gallery’ of prominent Goan personalities the monsoon session.   Chandor, also known in ancient times as Chandrapur, is the first known capital city of ancient Goa in the era between the fourth and 10th century when the Bhoja and the Kadamba dynasties reigned. In 2000, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had also done a series of excavations there and several antiques were unearthed including the invaluable inscription in Brahmi Script, sculpture of Bhairava and several structural remains. The  ‘heritage village’ project proposes beautification of presentable heritage, signages and information boards to be put up, preparing circuits for heritage walks, cycle tracks, treasure hunt tracks and streetscapes, conservation of heritage homes, besides setting up of art galleries, interpretation centres and museums on heritage. Setting up of a ‘Memorial Gallery’ of prominent Goan personalities is also part of the plan. Sudden cyclonic storm in Cortalim uproots 80 trees in 10-minute span Cortalim MLA Anton Vas inspects the clearing work at Consua on Sunday.  Vikram Nayak THE GOAN I NETWORK VASCO  In an unusual incident on Sunday morning, residents of Consua in Cortalim experienced a cyclonic storm that uprooted around 80 trees within a brief ten-minute period. The unexpected incident, which took place around 8:30 am, left villagers shocked and scrambling for shelter. De- spite the extensive damage to property, no injuries or loss of life were reported. Cortalim MLA Anton Vas immediately rushed to the scene and directed the firemen and electricity department to begin clean up operations.  Speaking to media, Vas said the fallen trees had damaged some houses and brought ON PAGES 3 & 5 >Continued on P5 > Selaulim dam overflows from spillway > Six high tension electric poles collapse at Raia > Emergency calls keep firemen on toes in Vasco > Several parts of Old Goa submerged under water > Bicholim bears brunt, all rivers overflow, water enters houses > Floods cause widespread disruption in Bardez > Roofs of both warehouses of Civil Supplies Dept blown away at Honda > Landslide on national highway at Priol, traffic blocked > Roof of old panchayat ghar blown off at Khola