log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline TUESDAY APRIL 30, 2024 GOA Testing time for Nuvem MLA in Congress bastion HC grants extension to Western Bypass contractor till Sept 30 PANAJI: The Panjim Bench of the Bombay High Court has granted extension to the contractor of much delayed Western Bypass to complete the work by September 30, 2024. The court said that there are no more excuses left for the contractor to drag the work as the Konkan Railway has given the contractor permission to commence the work in KRC property from May 2 to May 29. The court further directed the PWD engineers to monitor the work and report the process to the court from time to time to ensure that the contractor completes the work before September 30. IN SHORT >> Assagao locals roar against nightclub MAPUSA: Putting a united front against any public nuisance in their pristine village, residents of Assagao took their protest against a nightclub a notch higher by writing to the local panchayat and demanding cancellation of the NOC issued to the owner of the club. >> See pg 3 Over `  0 lakh stolen 1 from Mapusa temple MAPUSA: Four robbers stole cash of about Rs 10-12 lakh from the famous Shri Dev Bodgeshwar temple in Mapusa, after confronting and tying the security guard in the wee hours of Monday. The robbery is believed to have taken place sometime between 2.05 am and 2.38 am, when the robbers entered the temple premises from the rear side. >> See pg 6 Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 14 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME IX, NO. 313 2 GOA Illegal construction on storm water drain sparks outcry in Arpora 3 Mercury pushes up price of vegetables PANAJI: With summer heat soaring in Goa, so are prices of vegetables in the capital's market and traders say there is unlikely to be any respite very soon. >> See pg 3 WEATHER >> Max: 34 C Min: 28 C Humidity: 77% TIDES Low: High: 08:26 21:42 01:13 16:02 RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO Essential oils you should include in your winter skin care routine MAPUSA s the scorching summer sun beats down relentlessly, Goa finds itself facing a challenging situation with the water levels in its seven reservoirs plummeting due to the absence of summer rains. Among these, the Anjunem and Panchwadi reservoirs are particularly affected, with their capacities barely surpassing 25 per cent. The Selaulim and Amthane reservoirs fare only slightly better, registering just over 30 per cent capacity. Despite these concerning statistics, the government remains steadfast in its assurance to the public, asserting that there is no reason for alarm as the State possesses adequate water resources A SPORTS Mumbai City FC confirms ISL Final spot with win over FC Goa 13 920 IRB cops may not be able to vote at May 7 polls FIRST VOTES CAST; SENIORS, OTHERS GET FINGERS INKED AT HOME POSTED FOR DUTY AT GUJARAT NOT YET GIVEN OPTION OF POSTAL BALLOTS THE GOAN I NETWORK THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The first votes for the two Lok Sabha seats in Goa were cast on Monday when some senior citizens aged 85 and above besides voters with disability got their fingers inked through the facility provided by the Election Commission of India. The office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Goa, however, could not give the exact number of persons who voted on Monday, the first of five days allocated for the purpose. Designated officials from the respective District Election Office (DEO) visited the homes of these elderly voters with a pre-appointment between 9 am and 5 pm and facilitated their voting process on Monday. This exercise will continue for the next four days until May 3 in both the North Goa as well 3000 invalid votes of 2022 poll come back to haunt parties A woman casts her vote at home in the presence of polling officials on Monday. as South Goa constituencies. Apart from these two categories -- senior citizens and the disabled -- also eligible for this postal ballot paper voting are those 'absentee voters' who would be on essential services duty on the May 7 polling day. They, however, will not get to exercise their franchise from home and instead have to cast their votes mandatorily at their respective Postal Voting Centres on three days from May 3 to 5 between 9 am and 5 pm. On Monday separate polling teams visited the registered address of these seniors and disabled as provided by them in Form 12D previously. However, >Continued on P6 Babush solidifies grip over Taleigao, wins p’yat 11-0 MARGAO: As election officials began the process of voting for absentee voters, rejection of around 3000 votes rendered invalid by election officials have come back to haunt the political parties and citizens. Senior citizens and Congress leaders called for caution by the inmates housing senior citizens and others. Congress leader Savio Coutinho made a plea to inmates to remain alert and ensure that ballot paper is inserted in the envelope having the same ballot number. “This process of absentee voters was introduced in the 2022 Assembly election. Thousands of absentee voters had cast their votes at their residences. Sadly, around 3000 votes were declared invalid since the ballot number and the number on the envelope did not tally”, he said. “We do not want a repeat of 2022 election situation. Ensure the votes cast by the absentee voters are inserted in the right envelope to rule out mischief by polling officials”, he said. Leader of the Senior Citizens Forum Deigo D’Costa said the election officials should allow the family members of the absentee voters to cross check at the time of sealing the envelopes that the votes cast by the absentee voters are inserted in the right envelope. Heavy vehicle topples 6 poles at Dhargal, power supply disrupted THE GOAN I NETWORK unopposed are: Siddhi Kerkar from Ward I, Estella D'Souza from Ward VI, Sagar Bandekar from Ward X and Sydney Barreto from Ward XI. In ward II, where elections were held, long time political aide of Monserrate, Agnel D'Cunha, won bagging a huge 1,403 votes as against just 124 to his opponent Domnic D'Cunha. Winners of the other wards which saw a contest are: Helena Pereira who defeated Emie Rodrigues in Ward III. In Ward IV Ratika Gawas defeated Madvi Kankonkar while PERNEM A heavy vehicle brought down six electricity poles along the NH66 highway at Dhargal on Monday afternoon, and while there was no loss or injury to life, the incident caused a traffic jam and disruption in power supply. The vehicle was proceeding along the National highway at Dhargal when it came in contact with an overhead 11 KV power line at around 2.30 pm, causing five newly installed and one old electricity pole to come crashing down. While there was no loss or injury to life, the mishap led to a traffic jam for some time. Teams from the electricity department, the Pernem Traffic Cell and Pernem Police rushed to the spot. While the police began regulating traffic, electricity department staff were at work to clear the fallen electricity poles. The electricity department was confident that power supply would be restored by Monday night. An activist, Rajan Korgaonkar, has stated that many accidents have taken place in the area. “Passengers travelling on >Continued on P6 >Continued on P6 Revenue Minister Atanansio (Babush) Monserrate and Taleigao MLA Jennifer along with the victorious candidates on Monday. THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Revenue minister Atanansio (Babush) Monserrate further tightened his political grip on Taleigao with all seven panchayat wards going to candidates from his Taleigao Progressive Development Front, counting for which was held on Monday morning at the Bal Bhavan complex in Campal. With four of his panel's candidates already winning without a contest, the Taleigao panchayat will have all eleven panchas owing allegiance to Monserrate. On Sunday, the panchayat polls in seven of the eleven wards had evoked enthusiastic response with 68.79 per cent turnout reported by the election authority. In wards I, VI, X and XI, candidates had already been elected unopposed. In the balance seven wards where polling took place on Sunday, all witnessed a oneto-one fight but the spirited opposition put up by a combined Opposition including AAP and the Congress, could not stand up to the electoral muscle of the Monserrate camp as the results indicate. The four panchas elected Dwindling reservoir levels put Goa on edge THE GOAN I NETWORK 9 Postal ballots kick off Goa’s Lok Sabha voting process Labourer killed in mishap at scrap plant OLD GOA: A 20-year-old labourer Pramod Ramu, a native of Uttar Pradesh but residing at Old Goa, was killed in a mishap at a scrap processing plant in Dhauji, Old Goa. The incident occurred when Ramu accidentally fell on the blade of the machine, which was used to cut the plastic into pieces.  >> See pg 3 Instagram.com/thegoanonline THE LOOMING WATER CRISIS NO NEED TO WORRY: GOVT „„Challenging situation at Selaulim reservoir, water level at 38% „„Dire scene at Anjunem dam, capacity teetering at mere 26% „„Fate of Panchwadi dam bleak, water levels dwindle to 28% „„Amthane reservoir records meagre 34% capacity „„Chapoli & Gaunem reservoirs hold steady with 51% capacity „„Tillari dam records water level at 44% WRD Minister Subhash Shirodkar emphasised that the State possesses sufficient quantum of water to sustain through the summer season and that there was no need to worry. India Meteorological Department has also forecast above-normal monsoon rainfall for the year ahead. to meet the demands of its populace. Anjunem dam, a vital source of drinking and irrigation water for the regions of Sattari and parts of Bicholim, faces a dire situation with its holding capacity teetering at a mere 26 per cent. Similarly, the fate of the Panchwadi dam, which caters to the water needs of Shiroda and Panchwadi, is equally bleak, with its water levels dwindling to 28 per cent. Memories of last year's crisis loom large, as both these dams had nearly dried up due to delayed monsoon onset, plunging the affected areas into a severe water shortage. The Selaulim reservoir, a lifeline for the majority of South Goa's drinking water needs, is also facing challenges, with its water levels stagnant at 38 per cent. Meanwhile, the Amthane reservoir, which caters to Bardez, Pernem, and parts of Bicholim, records a meagre 34 per cent capacity. In the remaining three dams, both Chapoli and Gaunem reservoirs held steady at an identical 51 per cent capacity. Meanwhile, the Tillari dam recorded a slightly lower water level, standing at 44 per cent. In a bid to assuage public apprehensions, WRD Minister Subhash Shirodkar has emphasised that the State possesses a sufficient quantum of water to sustain through the summer season. Citing historical rainfall patterns, Shirodkar underscores the expectation of imminent showers, typically observed in May. Despite the solitary shower >Continued on P6 MAPUSA At a time when every vote is considered precious and efforts are being made by election authorities to get voters to exercise their franchise, it has now emerged that a whopping 920-odd members from an Indian Reserve Battalion (IRB) of Goa Police are likely to be deprived of their voting rights. This is because, the IRB team had been dispatched for two phases of voting in Rajasthan and from there to Gujarat and Jharkhand, where they will miss the Lok Sabha polls in Goa. To make matters worse, they have not been provided with the right to vote through postal ballots. According to sources, the IRB battalion consists of one deputy superintendent, 10 inspectors, 10 sub-inspectors, The team was sent to Rajasthan for security duties and was later posted in Gujarat, where voting will be conducted at the same time as in Goa. The police department has not made a provision for the IRB team to fill forms for ballot voting 20 assistant sub-inspectors and police constables. This team was sent to Rajasthan for security duties and was later posted in Gujarat, where voting will be conducted at the same time as in Goa. According to election rules, Absentee Voters on Essential Services (AVES) have been provided with the option of Postal Ballot Paper Voting >Continued on P6 Centre calls for yearly update, review of NCERT textbooks PTI NEW DELHI The Ministry of Education (MoE) has asked the NCERT to conduct a review of its textbooks and update them on yearly basis, according to sources. So far, there has been no mandate on the frequency of updating NCERT textbooks. However, the National Coun- cil of Educational Research and Training has been occasionally revising and updating content since 2017. A rationalisation exercise was also conducted in view of the closure of schools due to the pandemic but there were allegations from a section of agenda-driven editing. “In the fast-changing world of today, it is important that the textbooks are absolutely updated,” a source said. “NCERT books once published should not remain the same for many years. They should be reviewed every year before printing and if any changes have to be made or some new facts have to be added, they should be included in the books. For instance, topics like Artificial Intelligence are very evolving,” the source added.