log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) Instagram.com/thegoanonline PG14 FRIDAY FEBRUARY 23, 2024 14 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME IX, NO.246 RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 Tragic Thursday: Three lives snuffed out in 3 accidents RIDER FLUNG INTO MANDOVI RIVER AFTER BEING HIT BY SPEEDING CAR ON BRIDGE, FEARED DEAD ELDERLY PEDESTRIAN KILLED IN BAMBOLIM MISHAP PAINTER DIES AT DABOLIM THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Thursday marked another chapter in Goa's tragic story of lives lost on roads with three persons dead in separate incidents, including one on the Mandovi bridge wherein a biker from Nachinola, Javed Sadekar, got flung from his bike after head-on collision with an oncoming rent-a-cab car and plunged into the Mandovi river from the bridge. The accident on the bridge occurred around 5.20 pm and the search and rescue operations were launched soon after by the Fire & Emergency Services who were later joined by Naval and Coast Guard personnel. However, Sadekar's body had not been retrieved until late in the night. Police managed to identify him as Javed Sadekar from Nachinola and only his helmet had been found. IN SHORT >> Restricted water supply in Bardez MAPUSA: Water supply will be restricted in Bardez taluka on February 24, following a leakage in a pipeline in Porvorim. The 750 mm water pipeline, which supplies water from the Assonora, developed a leak near the Sapna Habitat Housing Colony and Bhale Hospital in Porvorim. The repairs will be taken up by PWD on Saturday. Dead body found in Kundaim rivulet PANAJI: Dead body of a man was found floating in the rivulet at Kundaim. Police recovered the body from the rivulet near Primary High School at Guraswad, Kundaim. Lime prices skyrocket MARGAO: The humble lime, the go-to thirst-quenching citrus fruit, has turned dearer a month before summer arrives.  >> See pg 2 'QUIRK OF FATE' PANAJI: Javed Sadekar left home on Thursday in what would have been his last bike trip to work from Nachinola to Panaji. Fate made it his last in life. If sources from Sadekar's Nachinola neighbourhood are to be believed, he had a job offer abroad and was headed to his work place – a Casino in Panaji – for the purpose of handing over his resignation letter to his employer. Fate however had other plans and he met his tragic end in the mishap on Mandovi bridge in which he got flung off his bike and plunged to his death into the Mandovi river, leaving family and friends shocked and grieving. Search operations for the rider who was flung off the bridge into the Mandovi river after a collision with a rent-a-cab car on Thursday evening. (Circled) The site of the accident.  Narayan Pissurlenkar Sorties were made by the Coast Guard's helicopter and Naval deep sea divers were also called in to support the operation. According to eye-witness accounts, Sadekar was head- ing towards Panaji while the rent-a-cab car driven by an Odisha native Ankit Tripathi was headed in the opposite direction but on the wrong side of the road. "The bike and the car crashed head on. The impact of the collision was such that the rider who got flung from his bike bounced from the dashboard of the car and plunged down into the river," one eye-witness account said. Sadekar, according to sources, was an employee of one of the casinos operating in the Mandovi river. Panaji Police have detained Ankit Tripathi who has suffered minor injuries and both the car and the bike Cong, AAP stride closer to LS poll deal for Goa seats SOUTH GOA FOR CONG; NO DECISION ON NORTH SEAT YET THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) central leaderships strode closer towards clinching an amicable deal for sharing seats including the two in Goa as part of the INDIA bloc's electoral strategy to fight the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Apart from Delhi and Goa, the two parties which held discussions in Delhi on Thursday have reportedly agreed on seat deals in Haryana and Gujarat. In Punjab, where the AAP is in power and the Congress is the principal Opposition party, the two parties had already agreed and announced that SEAT SHARE DEAL „„The decision of AAP's central leadership to concede the South Goa seat was in exchange for a seat in Haryana „„Two reasons: one is that the seat was won in 2019 by the Congress' Francisco Sardinha and second more importantly to clinch a seat in Haryana there will be no alliance and both will fight the Lok Sabha elections separately. Reports from Delhi suggest that the AAP, which had earlier announced it would field its Benaulim MLA Venzy Viegas for the South Goa seat causing much consternation in the Congress camp here in Goa, climbed down for two reasons: one is that the seat was won in 2019 by the Congress' Francisco Sardinha and second more importantly to clinch a seat in Haryana. However, there is no clear indication on the second seat from Goa – Panaji (North Goa) – and a decision on it is likely to be taken later. Political sources said the decision of AAP's central leadership to concede the South Goa seat was in exchange for a seat in Haryana. >Continued on P5 Season’s first set of 77 Olive Ridley hatchlings released from Agonda THE GOAN I NETWORK CANACONA The season’s first set of 77 Olive Ridley hatchlings were released into the Arabian Sea from the Agonda Turtle Rehabilitation Centre (TRC). According to forest (wildlife) sources, some Olive Ridley hatchlings were seen in Pit 2 (protected with 103 eggs since December 30, 2023) on the midnight of Tuesday-Wednesday and by morning, 77 hatchlings were collected and later released into the sea. “However, 26 eggs failed to hatch from this pit,” informed a forest source. The Olive Ridley hatchlings at a protected pit in Agonda.  Kathy Fernandes Incidentally, all 150 eggs protected in Pit 1 at Agonda TRC on November 16, 2023 failed to hatch. Meanwhile, 11 Olive Ridley turtles visited Canacona beaches on Wednesday and laid 1,303 eggs. While most Olive Ridley turtles have arrived at night or in the wee hours to lay their eggs, two Olive Ridley turtles visited the shores in broad daylight on Thursday and laid eggs at Agonda and Galgibaga beaches. A mother turtle arrived at 2.45 pm and laid 142 eggs on Galgibaga beach, while another mother turtle arrived at Agonda shore at 5.11 pm and laid 105 eggs. Both pits were relocated to the respective nursery sites of Galgibaga and Agonda TRC. >Continued on P5 Mohammed Shami ruled out of IPL 2024 due to injury have been attached. AT BAMBOLIM Meanwhile, in another accident reported at Bambolim late Thursday evening an elderly pedestrian was knocked down by a KTC bus when he was crossing the road near the Holy Cross shrine. Gopal Gaonkar, a senior citizen from St Cruz aged 83, died later while undergoing treatment at the Goa Medical College >Continued on P5 Govt extends LPG cylinder refill subsidy scheme THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The State government has extended the benefit under the Chief Minister’s Financial Assistance for the refilling of LPG cylinder scheme, for the fiscal year 2024-25. Launched in July, 2023, the scheme provides financial assistance of Rs 275 per month by cash transfer, sent directly to the head of the family of the beneficiaries registered under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana. VRS scheme for Group C staffers The State government has notified the voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) for the permanent government employees of Group C who have crossed 45 years of age or completed 20 years of regular >Continued on P5 Coastal plan 2019 likely to miss final May deadline AUTHORITIES NOW NEED TO FIX ANOMALIES IN NOTIFIED 2011 PLAN, SEEK TIMELY CORRECTIONS FLAWS IN 2011 PLAN THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI While the time is running out yet again for Goa government to avert missing out on the final deadline of May, to finalise the Coastal Zone Management Plan 2019- a delay of almost five years since the CRZ notification 2019 was notified, the State authorities step towards fixing the anomalies in the already notified CZMP 2011, is likely to prolong the new coastal plan. The State Environment department is now in process of preparing CZMP 2011 in 1:4000 scale and the same would be submitted to the Union Ministry for Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) for approval. State has already notified CZMP 2011 in 1:25000 scale. It is learnt that the local maps at a 1:4000 scale, which were received in PDF format from the Chennai-based National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM) in October, 2023, are „„The maps submitted by NCZMA diverge from the officially notified survey plans of the State, grounded in the Goa Land Revenue Code of 1968 „„There are multiple errors including overlapping and voids at village boundaries, improper delineation of key features such as high tide line, low tide line, ecologically sensitive areas, coastal regulation zone, and erroneous inclusion of khazans, mangroves, and waterbodies riddled with discrepancies and the same needs to be corrected for timely finalisation of CZMP 2019. “The maps submitted by NCZMA diverge from the officially notified survey plans of the State, grounded in the Goa Land Revenue Code of 1968. There are multiple errors including overlapping and voids at village boundaries, improper delineation of key features such as high tide line (HTL), low tide line (LTL), ecologically sensitive areas, coastal regulation zone (CRZ), and erroneous inclusion of khazans, mangroves, and waterbodies,” sources said. The State, through several communications to NCSCM has requested use of the latest village-wise shape files shared by the State, and the corresponding update of HTL, LTL, and other features. During its recent visit to Delhi, the Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and Environment Minister Aleixo Sequeira had raised the issue with MoEF&CC, following which the Ministry decided to intervene and directed NCSCM to carry out necessary corrections. “We have already raised the issue with the Union Ministry and necessary directions are >Continued on P5 Cardinal Ferrao to head Catholic Church in Asia SECOND GOAN CARDINAL TO BE ELECTED TO THE POST THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Archbishop of Goa and Daman Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrão was on Thursday elected President of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC), which represents the Catholic Church in Asia. Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrão, who was elected during the three-day FABC central committee meeting in Bangkok, becomes the second Goan cardinal after Cardinal Oswald Gracias, who hails from Orlim, to be elected to this post. Cardinal Ferrão, who currently serves as the President of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI), the national body of the Bishops of the Latin Rite in India, ON PAGE 2 Archdiocese rejoices as Cardinal elected FABC president Aldona hails its son of the soil will succeed Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, S.D.B. Archbishop of Yangon, Myanmar, in January 2025. In addition to Cardinal Ferrão's election, Bishop Pablo Virgilio Siongco David of Kalookan, Philippines, has been elected as the Vice President of the FABC, while Archbishop Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi, S.V.D., Archbishop of Tokyo, Japan, has been re-elected for a second term as the Secretary General. Cardinal Sebastian Francis of Malaysia, who is of Indian origin, described Cardinal Ferrão’s election as “The best of Asia and the Church of Asia.” “The continuity of the Mission from Cardinal Charles Bo to Cardinal Filipe Neri is what unites us as One Asian >Continued on P5 Shivaji statue row: Areal villagers invoke Almighty in candlelit rally, pray for peace THE GOAN I NETWORK MARGAO Sao Jose de Areal villagers on Thursday took out a candle light procession in the village to pray for peace and for the peaceful resolution of the issue arising out of the installation of the statue of Maratha Warrior Shivaji Maharaj at an isolated property earlier this week. Priests and nuns, besides the villagers and local Velim MLA Cruz Silva took part in the procession at the Padribhat ground on Thursday evening. Public spirited citizens and activists from other parts of the State also joined in the procession to extend solidarity with Sao Jose de Areal villagers, including priests and nuns, participate in a peaceful candle light procession to pray for peace in the village.  Santosh Mirajkar the villagers for the peaceful resolution of the issue. The participants invoked blessings of the Almighty seeking peace in the village. They offered prayers to the Almighty to bring peace and harmony amongst all sections of the society. In his brief address, Areal Parish Priest Fr Damacian Carvalho said the candle light procession has been called to show that the villagers of Areal are messengers of peace. “God has given us this big opportunity to come together to show we are messengers of peace. We can do some things in a peaceful manner. God has given us so many beautiful things, flora and fauna and the entire universe. Let us spend some time in prayer for peace,” he said. Addressing the people, social activist Freddy Travasso, who was injured in the incident on February 19 during the installation of the statue that the villagers have no intention to hurt anyone. “Our village >Continued on P5