log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline SATURDAY JUNE 1, 2024 GOA Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 13 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME IX, NO.345 Cong treading cautious path on INDI Alliance continuation post-LS polls 2 GOA Porvorim flyover work started on April 14, foundation for piers by June-end: PWD 3 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO How aloe vera can help in treating dry scalp 10 SPORTS Nishant Dev becomes first Indian male boxer to book Paris ticket DEADLINE ENDS, WORK GOES ON 13 Heatwave sweeps India, 25 poll staff among 40 dead  WORK AT OVER A DOZEN LOCATIONS IN PANAJI NOT YET COMPLETE  SEWERAGE CHAMBERS STILL BARRICADED WITH WOODEN PLANKS  WIDTH OF ROAD HALVED AT SOME PLACES  FLOOD FEARS LOOM OVER UNCONNECTED DRAINS IN CERTAIN AREAS Water shortage adds to woes THE GOAN I NETWORK PTI PANAJI  While most sites across the capital city wore a sight of hurried closure and almost all roads opened up to traffic there were several hiccups in throwing the city open to full normalcy as the deadline for the Smart City work ended on Friday. The most worrying case was at St Inez-Tonca, where work of a major sewerage chamber has shut the road T-junction at the Caculo Mall. Elsewhere in the city too, at least in a dozen locations, the Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Limited (IPSCDL) contractors have been unable to complete work fully. Also, in a case which appears to be after-thought planning, some sections of the four-arm road junctions in the city have been excavated anew, like in the case of the General Bernard Guedes Road in the CCP Market area, reportedly because of lack of connectivity of drains alongside the Smart City's newly redesigned pavements. Also, in at least half-adozen spots on the MG Road along the stretch between PATNA India on Friday reported at least 40 suspected heat-related deaths, 25 of them of staff deployed on Lok Sabha poll duty in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, as heatwave conditions gripped a large swathe of the country. According to officials, heat-related deaths were reported from Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh on Thursday also. Among the fatalities recorded on Friday, the maximum 17 were from Uttar Pradesh, 14 from Bihar, five from Odisha and four from Jharkhand, where officials said more than 1,300 people are hospitalised with heatstroke conditions. The soaring temperatures also caused water scarcity in some parts including in Delhi where residents faced continued acute shortages, with people in long queues struggling to secure enough to meet their daily needs. “I stand in line from 4 am, but due to the crowd, I cannot reach the water tanker... It’s hard to get water,” said Vibha Devi, resident of Geeta Colony. page 6 In a first, all-women team at helm of Colva Union UK Indian Cultural Centre fetes Goan dance troupe in Qatar IN SHORT >> Goa first to have ‘living will’ regime PANAJI: Goa on Friday became the first in India to adopt the advanced medical directive’ (living will) regime in sync with standards set by the Supreme Court of India. Justice Mahesh Sonak of the Bombay High Court did the honour of releasing the ‘Advanced Medical Directive’ (‘Living Will’) booklet on Friday, and he also became the first Goan to make a ‘living will’. >> See pg 3 Agriculture dept gets new head PANAJI: Agriculture Dept got a new director -- Sandeep Phaldesai -- as the incumbent, Neville Alphonso, bowed out of office on Friday following his superannuation. Alphonso was given a warm send-off at the headquarters.  >> See pg 3 Smart city work at Caculo Mall on Friday. (Right) A motorcyclist negotiates a narrow stretch at St Inez.  'Casa International' and the Azad Maidan, the pits for sewerage chambers barricaded with wooden planks are nowhere close to completion and continue to halve the width of the road impeding traffic flow. Some city dwellers who have borne the brunt of chaotic traffic, severe dust pollution and generally their day-to-day lives being thrown in disarray for over two years due to the never-ending 'smart city' work, meanwhile, are ex- pressing relief that the end to these troubles is beginning to show up, if not already here. Small traders and businessmen who run their enterprises from ground-floor shops of edifices across Central Panaji The Goan spoke to said all the work may not be complete but at least the roads have got cleared of the pits dug and the mounds of mud and debris that was strewn all over. A restaurateur operating along the 18th June Road, who Dept releases NEP circular, clears air on teaching hrs GRANTS RELAXATION TO STD IX STUDENTS OPTING FOR FRENCH, PORTUGUESE, GERMAN IN STD VIII THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI  The Education department on Friday rolled out the much awaited Circular on NEP 2020 implementation for Class IX from 2024-25 academic year, giving a clarity on five and half daily instructional hours. The department also granted relaxation to Class IX students, who opted for French, Portuguese, German or Arabic languages in Class VIII, under the ‘R3’ Curricular Areas. “All institutions will maintain minimum five and half instructional hours which shall not include assembly, recess and remedial teaching. The timings may be decided by the schools concerned in consultation with all stakeholders,” reads the circular issued by Education Director Shailesh Zingde. Education Secretary Prasad Lolayekar had clarified on Thursday that the ‘model timetable’ provided by SEMESTER-BASED ASSESSMENT PANAJI: The circular also states that assessment would be semester-based wherein curricular areas will have 80 marks theory paper -- 40 marks MCQs and 40 marks subjective questions. The papers will be set by Goa Board. The internal assessment for 20 marks will consist of assignments, projects, practical, activities/field trips, etc. ADDITIONAL TEACHERS: The department states that proposal from schools for additional teachers will be considered on contract/lecture basis, subject to the workload. These teachers will be trained as per the NEP requirement and State Curriculum Framework. the Education Department to schools for implementing the NEP in Class IX is not mandatory. Earlier, the Goa Secondary School Teachers Association (GSSTA) called upon the education officials opposing the State Council of Educational Research and Training’s (SCERT) provision of 39 working hours per week, which contrasted with the National Curriculum Framework’s recommendation of 29 hours. Trump first former US prez to be convicted of felony JURY SAYS HE FALSIFIED BUSINESS RECORDS PTI WASHINGTON Donald Trump has become the first former US president to be convicted of a felony after a grand jury in New York found him guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records to cover up a payment to silence a porn star ahead of the 2016 presidential election, mounting his legal challenges amidst his bid to return to the White House in November. In a historic verdict, a panel of 12 Manhattan jurors on did not want to be identified out of fear of retribution from the city's political establishment, said that the work of the smart city projects in the last two-and-half-years was a disaster in terms of planning and execution. "Why couldn't they have divided the city into zones and take up work one zone at a time? Panaji is a living city. They cared a damn for us residents and businessmen throughout these two-and- Thursday said they unanimously agreed that Trump, 77, falsified business records to conceal a USD 130,000 hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels to influence the 2016 contest. The decision came after about a day and a half of deliberations. The conviction does not prevent Trump from standing in November’s election, but he is almost certain to appeal against it regardless. Over a six-week trial, the court heard from 22 witnesses, including Daniels, whose alleged sexual encounter with the former president was at the centre of the case. The NEP, to be implemented under State Curriculum Framework, has also defined the curricular areas explaining the language options. While English will remain R1 (Regional Languages), R2 contains another language option from Marathi, Konkani or Hindi; whereas R3 will be ‘any language native to India presently offered by Goa Board of Secondary and >Continued on P5 half-years," he said. Businesses in the city have faced the worst in this period when the turnovers of most dropped drastically due to the falling foot-falls because of the smart city mess. Several businesses even shut operations in the duration. They have now raised the demand that some financial relief be given to them by either waiving off levies, including the annual trade licence renewal fees of the CCP. SEX ABUSE CASE Revanna arrested on return, sent to police custody 1 Prajwal Revanna, the suspended JD(S) MP facing sexual abuse allegations, was arrested on Friday upon his return from Germany. A special court remanded him to police custody till June 6. In a clear messaging early in the day, a team of women police personnel ‘’welcomed’’ Prajwal upon his arrival, as they were deputed to execute a warrant and take him to the CID office. After evading summons and staying out of the country for a little over a month, the 33 year-old landed here past midnight from Germany’s Munich. >> See pg 7  2 3 Narayan Pissurlenkar Meanwhile, a day after Revenue Minister Atanasio (Babush) Monserrate, who represents Panaji came up with the claim that almost "90 per-cent work is completed" Utpal Parrikar on Friday sought to disprove the claim. Descending on one of the sites where work was still going on along the stretch from Taj Vivanta junction to the PWD office at Tonca, Parrikar >Continued on P5 Final phase of LS polls today NEW DELHI: Fifty-seven seats across seven states and the Union territory of Chandigarh will go to polls in the seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha elections on Saturday that include Varanasi, from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third consecutive term.   >> See pg 7 According to the India Meteorological Department, the Kanpur (IAF) weather station recorded the maximum temperature in the country at 48.2. Haryana’s Sirsa was the second hottest place at 47.8 degree Celsius. Delhi’s Ayanagar recorded the maximum temperature for the city at 47 degrees Celsius. Overall, the IMD said heatwave to severe heatwave conditions prevailed over many parts of Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh; in some parts of Bihar, east Madhya Pradesh; in isolated pockets of Odisha, Jharkhand. Kala Academy gets another `10.56 crore for repairs `50 LAKH TO CLEAR DEBRIS OF COLLAPSED CEILING THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI  Days after ordering an audit of the works of recently renovated Kala Academy, the State government has now decided to pump in additional Rs 10.56 cr to undertake the repair of the renovated structure. The iconic Kala Academy building was renovated at a cost of Rs 56 crore over a period of three years since 2021.  The extensive renovation and strengthening of Kala Academy was in progress since 2021 before it was thrown open to public in November 2023.  Highly placed sources informed that during a meeting held recently by the Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, who also holds PWD portfolio, a decision was taken to spend another Rs 10.56 cr to repair the renovated structure. PWD is the nodal agency for undertaking the renovation work.  “CM has issued clear directions to the PWD chief engineer to ensure that all the repair works are done on top Debris being cleared at Kala Academy. (File photo) priority and special precautions are taken during monsoons to avoid any leakage and flooding,” sources said.  Sources also informed that PWD has recently floated tender worth Rs 50 lakhs to clear the debris that was piled up after the ceiling collapsed twice last year. The portion of under renovation Kala Academy had collapsed in July last year. Before that in April a portion of its false ceiling had collapsed due to incessant rains. The government has already ordered audit of the renovation work while a  three-member technical committee is examining the alleged “corruption”, “irregularities” and “illegalities” into the same.  Based on two separate complaints, Anti-Corruption bureau (ACB) as well as Vigilance Department in their inquiry had concluded indicating prima facie scam in the entire work’. Opposition parties had grilled and cornered government over issuing work orders on nomination basis and termed it as a major scam.  Trawlers drop anchor as fishing ban takes effect THE GOAN I NETWORK MARGAO ozens of mechanised fishing boats dropped anchor at the Cutbona fishing jetty ahead of the fishing ban that would come into force from June 1 for a period of 61 days. Officials of the Salcete Mamlatdar, who has been designated by the High Court the receiver of the fishing jetty, were expected to descend at Cutbona to seal the diesel pumps located at the fisheries complex. A visit to the Cutbona jetty revealed that almost all fishing vessels have dropped anchor in the River Sal. Workers were engaged in unloading the As the fishing season draws to a close, Goans will now need to rely on fish imported from other parts of the country, as well as from fish processing units and cold storage facilities. D Mechanised vessels anchored at Cutbona fishing jetty ahead of the fishing ban on June 1. (Right) Migrant workers on their way back to their native States.  Santosh Mirajkar fishing nets into waiting vehicles for transportation to the residence or godowns of the boat owners. Heavy duty cranes were also spotted on the jetty to lift the dingy and to cover other items on the fishing vessel. THE LAST CATCH The last fishing trip of the season saw a couple of fishing boats returning at the Cutbona fishing jetty with the prized mackerels and balle. Mackerels and balles are the only fish varieties available for sale at the wholesale fish market and the retail fish markets in the last few days. While big size commanded a good rate in the wholesale fish market, around five mackerels were being sold at a premium for Rs 500. MIGRANT WORKERS As curtains came down on the fishing season, migrant labourers, employed as crew on the fishing vessels, are bracing to return to their native States of Odisha and Jharkhand. In fact, the migrant workforce have already started leaving the jetty for their native States, either via the trains or by special buses arranged by the boat owners. >Continued on P5