log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline SUNDAY APRIL 27, 2025 Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) Instagram.com/thegoanonline 16 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME X, NO. 309 RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 MOVIES »PAGE 16 PLAY & PAUSE »PAGE 13 LIVE SMART »PAGE 14 No Mayasabha link Catch me in velvet Nag or nudge? SPORTS »PAGE 8 Rain halts KKR-PBKS clash after Prabhsimran, Arya fireworks Shruti gets emotional, spotted crying in Chennai stadium after CSK loss DELHI DIARIES: NIGHT OF CELEBRATION & CAMARADERIE BREWED TO STAND OUT Women’s Tri-Series: India takes on Sri Lanka in opening match Naga Chaitanya’s team debunks rumours about Mayasabha reports >> SEE PG 2 CASHEW CRISIS: A SHRINKING HARVEST MAGAZINE MAGAZ Building a safer future for all Velvet has made a major comeback in 2025, with designers reimagining the fabric in both casual and formal designs Know when reminders become nagging —and how to avoid crossing that subtle line World bids adieu to Papa Francesco n LAID TO REST IN A SIMPLE COFFIN AT ST MARY’S MAJOR BASILICA n TOP LEADERS, MIGRANTS AMONG 2,50,000 AT FUNERAL MASS Goa cardinal, priests concelebrate Pope’s funeral Mass Pallbearers carry the coffin of Pope Francis during his funeral Mass at the Vatican on Saturday. Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrao seen among the 220 cardinals while concelebrating the funeral Mass of Pope Francis in the Vatican on Saturday. 9 Terror attack in Kashmir casts shadow over Goans’ summer travel plans Tested and customerapproved! The rise of Foodlab_Goa 11 How Universi Dominici Gregis controls factional bias in Papal elections IN SHORT >> Compulsory, free sterilization for pet dogs on cards PANAJI: Amid an ongoing major move to tackle the growing menace of stray dogs and plans to regulate pet ownership, the State Monitoring Committee proposed compulsory sterilization and registration of pet dogs. Sources revealed to The Goan that the proposal was put forth during a joint meeting of line departments and stakeholders. >> See pg 3 Drugs seized in Corlim, 2 arrested MAPUSA: Old Goa Police arrested two persons and seized 2.35 kgs of ganja worth Rs 2.35 lakh after conducting a raid in Corlim. Police had received information from reliable sources that drugs would be smuggled near the railway bridge in Corlim on Friday night and accordingly a trap was laid at the scene. High Court quashes FIR against advocate PANAJI: The High Court of Bombay at Goa has quashed criminal proceedings against advocate Damodar Dhond after a Mumbai-based woman complainant tendered a no-objection affidavit. The Division Bench however directed her to donate books worth Rs 10,000 to the library of the Goa High Court Bar Association for consuming the Court’s valuable time.   >> See pg 5 WEATHER >> Max: 35.2 C Min: 27.5 C Humidity: 78% TIDES Low: High: 04:01 16:28 10:47 22:07 PTI VATICAN CITY World leaders and rank-andfile Catholic faithful bade farewell to Pope Francis in a funeral Saturday that highlighted his concern for people on the peripheries and reflected his wish to be remembered as a simple pastor. Though presidents and princes attended the Mass in St Peter’s Square, prisoners and migrants welcomed Francis’ coffin at his final resting place in a basilica across town. According to Vatican estimates, some 2,50,000 people flocked to the funeral Mass at the Vatican and 1,50,000 more lined the motorcade route through downtown Rome to witness the first funeral procession for a pope WORLD MOURNS POPE FRANCIS WITH HISTORIC FUNERAL PROCESSION >> See pg 9 in a century. They clapped and cheered Papa Francesco as his simple wooden coffin travelled aboard a modified popemobile to St Mary’s Major Basilica, some 6 kilometres away. As bells tolled, the pallbearers brought the coffin past several dozen migrants, prisoners and homeless people holding white roses outside the basilica. Once inside, the pallbearers stopped in front of the icon of the Virgin Mary that Francis loved. Four children deposited the roses at the foot of the altar before cardinals performed the burial rite at his tomb in a nearby niche. I’m so sorry that we’ve lost him, said Mohammed Abdallah, a 35-year-old migrant from Sudan who was one of the people who welcomed Francis to his final resting place. Francis helped so many people, refugees like us, and many other people in the world. >Continued on P6 THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrao, another cardinal of Goan origin and a number of Goan priests concelebrated at the Funeral Mass of Pope Francis in the Vatican on Saturday. Cardinal Ferrao and Archbishop Emeritus of Karachi Cardinal Joseph Coutts were among the estimated 220 cardinals, 750 bishops and more than 4,000 priests India cracks down; houses Marital ties keep 17 Pakistanis razed, safe havens raided in Goa safe from deportation n AGENCIES DRAW LIST OF MOST WANTED TERRORISTS n HUNDREDS OF SUPPORTERS HELD FOR QUESTIONING PTI ANANTNAG Authorities in Kashmir have launched a massive crackdown on terrorists and their sympathisers in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, razing homes of the ultras, raiding their safe havens and detaining hundreds of overground workers for questioning, officials said on Saturday. PAHALGAM AFTERMATH Houses of five terrorists or their associates have been demolished in the past 48 hours with officials saying similar action will be taken against others involved in terror activities. Intelligence agencies have A woman walks past the demolished house in Tral, Kashmir on Saturday. drawn a list of 14 active terrorists operating in South Kashmir’s Anantnag, Shopian, and Pulwama districts. According to the list, eight of the identified terrorists are associated with the Lashkar-e-Taiba, while three each belong to Jaish-e-Mohammed and Hizbul Mujahideen. Mysterious blasts blew up the houses of two active ter- rorists -- Aadil Thoker in the Bijbehara area of Anantnag district and Asif Sheikh in the Tral area of Pulwama district. While Thoker has been named as one of the three terrorists involved in the gruesome killing of tourists in Pahalgam, Sheikh’s involvement in the attack has also not been ruled out, officials said. AUTHORITIES TO CLOSELY MONITOR MOVEMENTS THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Seventeen Pakistani nationals living in Goa on long-term visas remain safe from deportation for now as most of them are married to Indian citizens. Reliable sources confirmed to The Goan that 12 are based in North Goa and five in South Goa. However, their movements are being watched with the state government also ensuring the deportation of three Pakistani nationals residing on short-term visas, as the Centre’s deadline for their compulsory exit ends on April 27. “Maximum of the long-term visa holders are married to Indian citizens, with some even employed in the government. These Pakistani nationals cannot be deported without a directive from the Government of India. However, as Chief >Continued on P6 British tourist killed, wife hurt in mishap at Candolim THE GOAN I NETWORK security concerns owing to the Pahalgam attack, Goa police and armed forces within MAPUSA An elderly British tourist died while his wife was injured after they were knocked down by a rent-a-car driven by a domestic tourist at Candolim. The driver, Vicky Omprakash Jain (48) of Ghaziabad-UP has been arrested in this connection. The accident took place near Fisherman’s Cove Restaurant in Candolim on Friday when Vicky Jain was travelling from Sinquerim to Calangute in a rent-a-car. Jain lost control of the car and knocked down a British couple, Harish Solanki (86) and his wife Chandrakanta (81), who were walking by the roadside. Both pedestrians were seriously injured and were first rushed to the Candolim Primary Health Centre, from >Continued on P6 >Continued on P6 80 Kashmiris register with Calangute cops PANAJI: As many as 80 Kashmiris, living in Calangute jurisdiction, registered their details with the local police station on Saturday. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant had a day prior urged the Kashmiris residing in Goa to register with the police, so as to ensure they are given complete protection. The move comes after the deadly Pahalgam attack that killed 25 tourists and one resident on August 22. “The Calangute Police Station has taken proactive measures to ensure public safety. As part of these efforts, over 80 Kashmiri residents within Calangute Police Station jurisdiction have been verified. The verification process aims to enhance security and gather intelligence to prevent any potential threats,” reads a statement issued by Superintendent of Police (North) Akshat Kaushal. Several Kashmiris have been carrying out their business in Candolim and Calangute jurisdiction for several years. Minister Pramod Sawant stated on Friday, their movements will be closely monitored as a precaution,” the source said. In the wake of heightened concelebrating the Funeral Mass. Canon Norbert Fernandes, the first Canon of Goan-origin at the Westminster Cathedral and one of the concelebrants, described the funeral of Pope Francis as “a mystical experience of the world coming to Rome: a variety of ages, cultures, languages and faiths.” “Our Catholic Christian hope of Resurrection was Cyber sleuths nab MP man in Goan farmers reap big with fresh vegetable boom Production of cucumber, okra, cluster beans, bottle gourd rises by 30% `  .44 cr online stock scam 2 PLAYED KEY ROLE IN MULE BANK ACCOUNTS THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Cyber Crime police on Saturday arrested a Madhya Pradesh native in connection with a massive online stock market fraud case amounting to Rs 2.44 crore approx.  Superintendent of Police (Cyber Crime) Rahul Gupta said the accused Neeraj Raiz aged 50, played a key role in managing mule bank accounts and was responsible for routing Rs 3 lakh of the defrauded amount to various accounts with the account linked to 40 fraud cases reported across India.  The offence has been registered under Sections 318(4), 319(2) read with 3(5) of the BNS and Section 66-D of the Information Technology Act, based on a complaint filed by Ponda based resident “Between November 25, 2024 and January 7, 2025, the complainant was contacted via Facebook and WhatsApp by unknown individuals posing as stock market trading experts. The fraudsters induced the complainant to invest in fake online stock mar- ket schemes with promises of high returns, thereby cheating him to the tune of Rs. 2.44 crores through multiple bank transactions,” Gupta said.  Based on investigation and financial analysis, a suspect was identified and traced to Narsinghpur, Madhya Pradesh. He was arrested subsequently. “During interrogation, it was revealed that the accused played a key role in managing mule bank accounts and was responsible for routing >Continued on P6 THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI ocal vegetable production has spiked significantly and some -cucumber, okra, cluster beans and cabbage -- grown by Goan farmers are even being exported to other States including Belagavi. According to Goa Horticulture Corporation, its ‘assured market scheme’ is one factor that has encouraged local farmers to venture into vegetable farming in a big way. The scheme assures farmers market facilities and assured prices for their produce, said GSHDC General L GOA’S GREEN GOLD: THE WAY FORWARD „„‘Assured market scheme’ one factor that has encouraged local farmers „„Scheme assures farmers market facilities and assured prices for their produce „„Production of cucumber, okra, konkan dudhi (bottle gourd), eggplant, green chillies and cabbage marching towards self-sufficiency „„Import of these vegetables from Belagavi drops over 30% „„GSHDC purchases these vegetables from farmers in Goa and distributes it to outlets across State  „„Some part of procurement also routed to open market and private traders Manager, Chandrahas Desai, adding that production of certain types of vegetables like cucumber, okra, konkan dudhi (bottle gourd), eggplant, green chillies and cabbage is marching towards self-sufficiency in the State.  The import of these vegetables from Belagavi has dropped over 30 per cent and the Corporation no longer is heavily dependent on importing these varieties, he said, adding that the Corporation purchases these vegetables from farmers in Goa and distributes it to its outlets across the State.  “Some part of the procurement is also routed to the open market and private traders and if stocks are excessive they are even exported to Belagavi,” Desai said. Over the last six years since the scheme was instituted in 2019-20, the number of farmers covered under it has grown by 167 from 1,081 to 1,248 in 2024-25.  Also, the quantum of vegetable produced by these farmers has increased by >Continued on P6