log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline FRIDAY MARCH 15, 2024 GOA Petrol, diesel prices cut by `2 per litre NEW DELHI: Petrol and diesel prices were cut by Rs 2 per litre each as State-owned oil companies ended a nearly two-year-long hiatus in rate revision, just hours before the general election schedule is announced. The revised price will be applicable from 6 am on Friday, March 15, the oil ministry said on Thursday. Petrol in the national capital will now cost Rs 94.72 a litre while diesel prices will be Rs 87.62. 45-yr-old govt staffers can now seek VRS PANAJI: The State govt has notified amendment to the voluntary retirement scheme. A permanent government employee who has attained the age of 45 years or who has completed 20 years of regular service can now seek voluntary retirement by a written request to the appointing authority. More manpower for smart city work PANAJI: Contractors working on the 'smart city' projects in the capital city have been directed to employ a larger work force and to also carry out work on the night shift to speed up work and meet the May 31 completion deadline.  >> See pg 2 Govt releases SOPs to foil forest fires PANAJI: While imposing ban on open burning in the forest areas ahead of upcoming festivities like Shimgostav and Holi, the forest department unveiled SOPs and said worshipping or performing rituals into forest or protected areas could be a threat to wild fire. >> See pg 3 GMC preferred choice for kidney transplant PANAJI: Having to rely on facilities outside the State, renal failure patients in Goa now prefer the Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) at Bambolim for kidney transplant procedures, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane has claimed. >> See pg 5 P’yats have no say in Mopa airport: Naik PERNEM: Agriculture Minister Ravi Naik made it clear to residents of Pernem taluka that they cannot expect permanent jobs at the Manohar International Airport and panchayats to not have a say within the jurisdiction of Mopa airport.  >> See pg 5 WEATHER >> Max: 33 C Min: 23 C Humidity: 84% TIDES Low: High: 08:12 09:21  20:27 15:08 The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 14 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME IX, NO.267 2 Questions over road access to kabrastan at Sonsodo as authorities demarcate site IN SHORT >> Facebook.com/thegoan GOA Arambol illegal structures: HC asks GSPCB, p’yat to seal all structures 3 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO Hair care myths and the facts behind them! 9 13 SPORTS ISL: FC Goa registers 2-1 win against Bengaluru FC Future Gaming top buyer of Committee backs simultaneous electoral bonds, shows data polls in 2 phases ONE NATION ONE POLL LIST INCLUDES BUSINESS TYCOONS, LESSER-KNOWN ENTITIES BJP TOP BENEFICIARY; TMC, CONG DISTANT SECOND AND THIRD PTI NEW DELHI From steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal to billionaire Sunil Bharti Mittal's Airtel, Anil Agarwal's Vedanta, ITC, Mahindra and Mahindra, and a lesser-known Future Gaming and Hotel Services were among the prominent buyers of the now-scrapped electoral bonds for making political donations. The Election Commission put up on its website the data on electoral bonds on Thursday, a day ahead of the Supreme Court-fixed deadline. According to the data, the BJP received funding of over Rs 6,061 crore via electoral bonds, while the TMC got Rs 1,610 crore. The Congress received Rs 1,422 crore through those bonds. Following close behind is the Bharat Rashtra TOP BUYERS OF ELECTORAL BONDS „„ Future Gaming & Hotel Services: Rs 1,368 crore „„Megha Engineering & Infr Ltd: Rs 966 crore „„Qwik Supply Chain Private Ltd: Rs 410 crore „„Vedanta Ltd: Rs 400 crore „„ Haldia Energy Ltd: Rs 377 crore „„Bharati Group: Rs 247 crore „„Essel Mining and Industries Ltd: Rs 224 crore „„ Western UP Power Transmission: Rs 220 crore „„Keventer Foodpark Infra Ltd: Rs 194 crore „„Madanlal Ltd: Rs 185 crore „„DLF Group: Rs 170 crore „„Yashoda Super Speciality Hospital: Rs 162 crore „„Utkal Alumina International: Rs 145.3 crore „„Jindal Steel and Power Ltd: Rs 123 crore „„Rungta Sons: Rs 100 crore „„Dr Reddy's: Rs 80 crore „„Piramal Enterprises Group: Rs 60 crore „„Navyuga Engineering: Rs 55 crore „„Shirdi Sai Electricals: Rs 40 crore Samithi (BRS) with a total of Rs 1,215 crore in funds though the electoral bonds. Future Gaming, which was probed by the Enforcement Directorate in March 2022, bought electoral bonds worth over Rs 1,350 crore under two different sets of companies. Among the known corporates, Vedanta Ltd bought Rs 398 cr worth of bonds, while Sunil Mittal's three companies together purchased a total of Rs 246 cr worth of bonds. Steel magnate Lakshmi Niwas Mittal bought Rs 35 crore worth of bonds in his Visas: Govt drafting policy for convicted foreigners FOCUS ON WHETHER SUCH FOREIGNERS SHOULD BE GRANTED TRAVEL DOCUMENTS FOR FUTURE JOURNEYS THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI After strict directives from the High Court of Bombay at Goa regarding the bail of foreigners involved in crimes, the Government of India is now poised to formulate a comprehensive policy to decide whether such foreign nationals should be granted travel documents for future journeys. The genesis of this policy is considering that a number of foreign nationals are entangled in criminal activities, which could pose a threat to the nation's security. Deputy Solicitor General of India Pravin Fadesai has confirmed the development stating that the Central government is in the process of drafting a policy regarding handling visa renewal or extension applications for under trial or convicted foreigners, or those who have a pending investigation against them. The policy will also prevent undertrials from fleeing to another nation till the verdict is pronounced. “The decision regarding the granting of visas to those without valid travel documents will squarely rest with the Government of India. It will address the circumstances under which accused foreign nationals with valid visas, but implicated in other offenses, may return to India after the expiry of the stay validity,” he said, speaking to The Goan. In one specific case involving Portuguese national Antonio Ramos, accused of drug >Continued on P5 >Continued on P5 „„There could be hundreds of thousands of cases against foreigners pending before various courts „„Goa alone accounts for around 90 FIRs, including 6-7 related to illegal stays „„Among those granted bail, another 6-7 await release subject to producing their original travel documents as per another stringent directive of HC NEW DELHI A high-level panel on Thursday recommended simultaneous elections for Lok Sabha and State Assemblies as the first step followed by synchronised local body polls within 100 days in its report on ''one nation, one election'' submitted to President Droupadi Murmu. Simultaneous polls will help save resources, spur development and social cohesion, deepen “foundations of democratic rubric” and help realise the aspirations of “India, that is Bharat”, the panel headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind said in its report that runs into more than 18,000 pages. However, the panel has made 321 pages public. The committee noted that B R Ambedkar had envisioned the necessity of uniformity in 2 NEW ELECTION COMMISSIONERS ANNOUNCED NEW DELHI: Former bureaucrats Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Gyanesh Kumar have been named as the new election commissioners by a panel chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, committee member and Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said on Thursday. the electoral process and further advocated for the Union to be responsible for conducting elections in India. Separately, the Law Commission is also likely to come up soon with its own report on simultaneous elections, of which Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been a strong votary. THE GOAN I NETWORK trafficking, the High Court granted him bail around eight months ago, yet he is in judicial custody pending a decision on his visa extension. In a criminal writ petition filed recently, he claimed that despite bail, pending decision on his visa renewal application has hindered his release. To this claim of delay, Fadesai submitted to the Court that FACTS & FIGURES PTI In a first, five pay-parking zones notified in Vasco VASCO Vasco will get pay-parking zones for the first time after the South Goa District Magistrate notified 24-hour pay-parking zones for four-wheelers at five locations in the port town. The places notified for pay-parking zones are Namrata Selection to Noormohmmad Aboobaker & Sons; Rajani Stores to Deepak Mahal; in front of Post Office at Mormugao Municipal Council (MMC) building; south side of MMC building and opposite Raikar & Sons to Manthan Kajuwala. The notification shall be applicable for 24 hours on all days. The notification follows from a joint inspection of roads in Vasco by MMC Chairperson Girish Borker along with Traffic PI Shailesh Narvekar and other officials from the PWD and RTO on January 9, as part of efforts to implement a pay-parking system in Vasco. Speaking to reporters, MMC Chairperson Girish Borker admitted that the historic decision may be opposed by a few but he justified the decision to have pay-parking zones as it would be a revenue generation option for the MMC and A CASE IN POINT „„Portuguese national Antonio Ramos, accused of drug trafficking has been granted bail by the High Court around eight months ago „„He is still in judicial custody pending a decision on his visa extension „„He has claimed that despite bail, pending decision on his visa renewal application has hindered his release individual capacity. Hyderabad-based Megha Engg, which has bagged contracts of several large infrastructure projects, bought bonds worth Rs 966 cr. While most of the bonds have been issued in the name of political parties, the donations made to the Congress and the Samajwadi Party were made in the name of ''President, All India Congress Committee'' and ''Adyaksha Samajvadi Party''. Following a SC directive, SBI had shared the data with the poll panel on March 12. The top court had given the Election Commission time till 5 pm of March 15 to upload the data on its website. The EC has put the details on ''Disclosure of Electoral Bonds Submitted by SBI'' in two parts -- one listing the buyers and the other listing the beneficiary parties. SAYS WILL SAVE RESOURCES, SPUR DEVPT UNDER COVER: Balgopal Mandal from Chimbel gives shape to a float to be displayed at the Shigmotsav parade. Narayan Pissurlenkar Events of up to 100 people exempted of permissions THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said religious or domestic events of up to 100 people in temples, churches or private areas no longer will require a licence. "You don’t even need a license for sound. This will eliminate the need for a license for birthday parties and weddings for up to 100 people," Sawant said. Sawant also said, open air venues will be eligible for a licence of up to three years validity by paying a fee. "The fees will be Rs 60,000 per annum. Once the license is obtained, the owner of the open air venue will be free to organize as many events as he wants," Sawant said. However, the option to obtain a licence for each event will continue to be available, he said, adding that the government has taken this decision under its 'Ease of Doing >Continued on P5 Pollution Board reins in e-waste Govt gets a pat and snub for ordinance on shacks BOUQUETS AND BRICKBATS handlers, asks them to register THE GOAN I NETWORK SETS MARCH 31 DEADLINE, WARNS OF ACTION THE GOAN I NETWORK MAPUSA The Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) has issued a directive requiring all manufacturers, producers, re-furbishers, dismantlers and recyclers of electrical and electronic equipment and their components or consumables to register on the national online Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) E-waste portal by March 31. In accordance with the provisions outlined in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Any entity found furnishing false information or wilfully concealing information for registration may face revocation of registration by the Central Pollution Control Board for a period of up to three years Climate Change's (MoEF&CC) E-waste (Management) Rules of 2022, entities involved in these activities are obligated to register on the portal. “Failure to comply with this requirement will result in the inability to conduct business,” said Shamila Monteiro, Member Secretary of GSPCB. The notice emphasised that non-compliance with the rules will prompt the Board to take further action in accordance with the stipulated regulations. The EPR E-waste portal, accessible at https://eprewastecpcb.in/ serves as a centralised platform for the registration and management of electronic waste handlers in line with environmental >Continued on P5 MAPUSA he State government received both praise and criticism for its recent decision to introduce an ordinance exempting temporary structures like shacks from the requirement of obtaining construction licenses. While shack owners have largely welcomed the move, local residents have criticised it as regressive, fearing it may provide a loophole for those flouting the laws. Critics argue that the decision could embolden individuals engaging in illegal activities without regard for legal norms. Anjuna resident Sagardeep Sirsaikar highlighted discrep- T „„Anjuna resident Sagardeep Sirsaikar highlights discrepancies in the construction of shacks, noting that influential businessmen often use concrete instead of wood „„Trevor Mascarenhas raises concerns about definition of “temporary structures,” pointing out instances where suppos- edly temporary setups have transformed into lavish establishments „„Desmond D’Costa of Assagao stressed importance of obtaining construction licenses, particularly for structures built using materials like steel and concrete „„Cruz Cardozo cautiously welcomed the ordinance, provided it is applied uniformly without discrimination among shack owners „„Manuel Cardozo supported the decision asserting it primarily benefits private shack owners ancies in the construction of shacks, noting that influential businessmen often use materials like concrete instead of the mandated wood material. “Interested parties misuse the NOC of beach shack policy issued by the tourism department to construct shacks/temporary structures,” Sirsaikar said. He suggested that the ordi- nance might be aimed at protecting such structures, which have come under scrutiny from the High Court. Echoing similar sentiments, Trevor Mascarenhas raised concerns about the definition of "temporary structures," pointing out instances where supposedly temporary setups have transformed into lavish establishments with substantial investments in amenities like generators. “Some of the temporary structures/shacks have posh setup with all the amenities. They spend crores to build the structure,” Mascarenhas said. He further emphasised the need for clarity on what constitutes a temporary structure. Desmond D'Costa of Assagao contested the ordinance, stressing the importance of obtaining construction licenses, particularly for structures built using materials >Continued on P5