log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) Instagram.com/thegoanonline PG12 MONDAY AUGUST 12, 2024 12 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME X, NO. 56 Indian football team head coach should be an Indian in future: Marquez RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 Tourist hub Anjuna faces security risks with vacuum in cop station ■ NO FULL-TIME HEAD APPOINTED SINCE ASSAGAO FIASCO ■ TOURIST INFLUX EXPECTED DURING I-DAY HOLIDAY, LONG WEEKEND ■ TRANCE PARTIES SCHEDULED ■ SIOLIM MLA, PANCHAYAT RAISE CONCERNS OF PROSTITUTION RACKET AGNELO PEREIRA THE GOAN I MAPUSA >> pg 6 Hindenburg vs Sebi among 6 factors to impact D-Street mood this week IN SHORT >> Porvorim elevated corridor: Traffic diversion trial today MAPUSA: Traffic Police will conduct a trial for traffic diversion during ongoing work at the elevated corridor at Porvorim on Monday. As part of the trial run, traffic will be diverted along the service roads near the junctions at Porvorim Old Bazaar Bazaar Junction and Teen Building Junction.  >> See pg 3 Usgao gets tap water after 3 days PONDA: The water supply to the residents Ganje–Usgao was restarted on Sunday morning from the taps which were dry for last three days.  >> See pg 3 Ex-foreign minister Natwar Singh dead NEW DELHI: Former External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh passed away on Saturday night after a prolonged illness, family sources said. He was 93. He breathed his last at Medanta Hospital in Gurugram near Delhi, where he had been admitted for the past couple of weeks, they said. WEATHER >> Max: 29 C Min: 26 C Humidity: 81% The Anjuna police station, a critical outpost in one of Goa’s most bustling coastal village, has been operating without a full-time officer in charge for more than a month. This lapse in leadership follows the suspension of Police Inspector Prashal Desai and two subordinate officers due to alleged mishandling of the investigation into the demolition of a house in Assagao. The absence of a dedicated in-charge at the Anjuna police station is raising alarms among locals and officials alike, particularly given the village’s significance as a hub of tourism and nightlife. Anjuna, with its pictur- SECURITY COMPROMISED? „„Anjuna police station, a crucial outpost in a bustling coastal village, has been without a full-time officer in charge for over a month „„The leadership gap follows the suspension of PI Prashal Desai and two subordinate officers due to alleged mishandling of an investigation related to a house demolition in Assagao „„The lack of a dedicated in-charge is raising concerns among locals and officials, especially given Anjuna’s role as a key tourism and nightlife hub esque beaches, numerous nightclubs and vibrant restaurant scene, is a favoured des- tination for Indian tourists, especially among the youth who flock to the area’s many Gram sabha says firm ‘No’ to Sunburn in Loutolim EXTRA ORDINARY MEET HELD AMID CONCERNS OVER LOUTOLIM-VERNA PLATEAU SURVEY MARGAO Opposition to the controversial Sunburn music festival reverberated at the Loutolim gram sabha on Sunday with agitated members unanimously saying a firm no to the festival at the Loutolim-Verna plateau. The unanimous resolution assumes significance and comes against the backdrop of the survey conducted by representatives of BookMyShow on the Loutolim-Verna plateau last month, with villagers suspecting that the survey was part of the plan to shift Sunburn to South Goa this year. Hands went up at the packed hall, the venue of the extra ordinary gram sabha meeting chaired by Sarpanch Sanfrancisco Fernandes, as gram sabha members in one voice opposed the festival from being held on the Loutolim-Verna plateau or any- where in the State of Goa. Sarpanch Sanfrancisco Fernandes told the members that the Loutolim village panchayat has not received any proposal seeking permission from Sunburn to hold the festival at the Loutolim plateau. He was replying to a gram sabha member, who was referring to the notice of the extra ordinary gram sabha meeting published in the local media. When he was questioned by another gram sabha member why the panchayat called for an extra ordinary LONDON choolchildren will be taught how to spot extremist content and fake news online under proposed changes to the curriculum in the wake of far-right riots across UK cities fuelled by misinformation on social media. UK Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson told The Daily Telegraph' on Sunday that she is launching a review of the curriculum in both primary and secondary schools to embed critical thinking across multiple subjects and arm children against “putrid conspiracy theories”. It means schoolchildren may analyse articles in English lessons to help learn how to weed out fabricated clickbait from accurate reporting. S CURRICULUM REVIEW: Critical Thinking „„A review of both primary and secondary school curriculums aims to equip students with skills to challenge online content, including the analysis of articles in English lessons „„The curriculum will maintain high standards in core subjects while expanding access to cultural subjects, preparing students for work and life „„Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson plans to embed critical thinking across subjects, helping students distinguish between reliable information and disinformation “It's more important than ever that we give young people the knowledge and skills to be able to challenge what they see online, Phillipson told the newspaper. That's why our curriculum review will develop plans to embed critical skills in lessons to arm our children against the disinformation, fake news and putrid conspiracy theories awash on social media, she said. FIRE STATISTICS IN RAJYA SABHA „„Goa experienced 412 forest fires over the past five years „„Of these, 147 fires occurred during the non-monsoon months of November to June in 2022-23 „„March 2023 saw multiple fires ravaging large areas of Goa's Western Ghats forests „„Goa is among the least vulnerable states for forest fires Power dept to equip linesmen with smart helmets, watches THE GOAN I NETWORK >Continued on P5 >Continued on P5 Our renewed curriculum will always put high and rising standards in core subjects first that's non-negotiable. But alongside this we will create a broad, knowledge-rich curriculum that widens access to cultural subjects and gives pupils the knowledge and skills they need to thrive at work and throughout life, she added. The move came as the chair of the National Police Chiefs' Council, Chief Constable Gavin Stephens, cautioned in an article in the newspaper over disinformation being widely shared on social media sites during the recent violent clashes. What has struck me during the disorder is how vulnerable we all are to disinformation and vile hatred online. We have spoken in recent years about how to keep our chil- PANAJI Forest Survey of India (FSI) data has revealed that Goa had 412 forest fires in the last five years and a whopping 147 of these in the eight non-monsoon months of 2022-23 (NovJune), which includes the devastating month of March '23 when several forest fires devastated vast patches of Goa's evergreen Western Ghats forests for several days. According to data furnished by Union Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Ms Jebi Mather Hisham, in Parliament earlier last week, the SNPP-VIIRS sensors of the FSI detected in the Goa region 47 fires in Nov-June of 2019-20 and another 45 in the same eight months of 2020-21. The forest fires drastically dropped by more than half to 21 in the next Nov-June period (2021-22), the data produced by Hisham in the Rajya Sabha 3 Bangladeshi nationals escape from Mapusa detention centre Post riots, UK to train school kids to spot fake news PTI THE GOAN I NETWORK “Considering the parties that are lined up during the long weekend following the Independence Day holiday, and given the sensitivity of the place and its past records, the government should have appointed a full-time police incharge at the station by now," he said. Currently, PI Paresh Naik, who is already responsible for the Calangute police station – another critical outpost along Goa’s coastal belt – has been given additional charge of the Anjuna police station. While it is not unprecedented for police stations to be managed by officers holding additional charges, the situation in Anjuna is far more gram sabha meeting instead of the ordinary gram sabha due this month, Sarpanch Sanfrancisco maintained that the panchayat called for the extra ordinary gram sabha based on a representation received from gram sabha members. In fact, he point blank told the gram sabha members that he has no objection if the members do not want the meeting. Gram sabha member Xavier Fernandes later explained to Hands went up at the packed hall, the venue of the Loutolim gram sabha on Sunday opposing Sunburn festival at Loutolim-Verna plateau.  Santosh Mirajkar DATA ALSO SHOWS 412 FIRES IN LAST 5 YRS nightspots. Anjuna’s popularity as a tourist destination places immense pressure on the local police force to maintain law and order. The village's police station plays a crucial role in ensuring the safety of both residents and visitors. With Independence Day approaching on Thursday, followed by a long weekend, the area is expected to see a significant influx of tourists. The village is poised to become a massive party ground, with numerous trance parties scheduled from August 15 to 18. A former senior police official, who requested anonymity, expressed concerns over the delay in appointing a fulltime officer in-charge. MAPUSA Three Bangladeshi nationals managed to escape from the detention centre in Mapusa during the early hours of Sunday by removing tin sheets from the roof and jumping off the security wall. The escapees have been identified as Mohammad Havledar (19), Mohammad Hilal (35), and Mohammad Marida (25). The trio had been held at the detention centre, located next to the Mapusa Police Station, since last year. Their escape has drawn attention to the security measures in place at the facility. The three men were initially arrested by the Pernem Police last year on charges of theft and were subsequently convicted by the court. After serving a six-month sentence at Colvale jail, they were transferred to the detention centre. The deportation of the THE GOAN I NETWORK 147 fires detected in non-monsoon months of 2022-23: FSI report dren safe online, and what we have learned this week is that left unchecked misinformation and harmful posts can undermine all our safety, he writes. How we behave online is not abstract. It has real world consequences. Perhaps we should be deleting a lot more than we share, he added. The riots began in Southport, the scene of the fatal stabbings in north-west England of three young girls at a holiday dance workshop on July 29, after false claims over the UK-born teenage male suspect being a Muslim refugee who arrived illegally into the country on a small boat recently spread like wildfire online. The violent clashes, blamed by Prime Minister Keir Starmer on far-right thuggery, soon >Continued on P5 >Continued on P5 THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Electricity Department will soon shore up the personal safety equipment for its field staff including linesmen and line-helpers with the procurement of smart helmets and smart watches designed by the Goa Engineering College, showed. Then came the Nov-June eight-month period of 2022-23, which includes the March '23 month which had Goa's >Continued on P5 Farmagudi, The plan which has been in the works for some time got hastened up after recent accidents >Continued on P5