log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 17, 2024 Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 13 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME X, NO. 90 Instagram.com/thegoanonline Cholera outbreak at Cutbona jetty threatens to hit tourism REVIEWS ON ONLINE TRAVEL PLATFORMS PAINT GLOOMY PICTURE THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Just as prospects for the upcoming charter season appeared to be improving, the outbreak of dengue and cholera at Cutbona fishing jetty could play a major spoilsport. Concerns have already been raised by probable international visitors and experts as reviews on some online travel platforms have not been favourable for Goa. A UK-based travel expert, known as Dragonfly, posted about the prevailing concerns at Cutbona while referring to news reports of 175 cases and six fatalities. “Not wanting to be scaremongering but there is a cholera outbreak in Goa. 175 people with  6  deaths. These are people  that have  come into Goa on boats. I don’t want to Women not safe in Goa: Canada advisory PANAJI: As if concerns around cholera and dengue outbreak weren’t enough, there’s a fresh advisory issued for travellers from Canada on women’s safety. The Canadian government, on September 13, issued a stark advisory flagging Goa besides Delhi, a hotspot for crimes against women, and urging its people to stay on high alert. “Crimes committed against women frequently occur in scaremonger as I said  but  I think people should be aware of it as its not usual for NHS to vaccinate against cholera and it is worsening,” reads India. Foreign women are often the target of unwanted attention. Staring, verbal abuse, groping, and other forms of sexual harassment can occur anywhere, including in tourist sites and areas. the post on Tripadvisor. in. In response, another user from Mexico, Guera, commented, “It’s helpful to know so we can make decisions.” Attackers sometimes act as a group,” it stated, adding, “reports of rape and assault against foreign women have increased. You should be particularly vigilant: in Goa, in Delhi, on all forms of public transportation, at Yoga centres, ashrams and other places of spiritual retreats.” Incidentally, Goa is also a destination for yoga and spiritual retreat centres often visited by foreign nationals. A Pittsburgh-based traveller MaryAnne Cogan Beasley suggested vaccination to the water-borne disease. “…. travelers if they’re going in certain Job scarcity, quota drive 30% drop in engg seats over 5 yrs No takers for 500 seats this year as admissions end SHWETA KAMAT MAHATME THE GOAN I PANAJI IN SHORT >> New CIC, SIC to take oath today PANAJI: The newly-appointed State Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) Aravind Kumar Nair and State Information Commissioner (SIC) Atmaram Barve will take oath on September 17. Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai will administer the oath of office to the new CIC and SIC. The oath taking ceremony will held at Durbar Hall, Raj Bhavan, Dona Paula. Camurlim teacher’s suspension expected to be upheld  >> See pg 3 Lack of job opportunities and reservation quota saw total intake capacity of engineering seats in Goa being reduced by nearly 30 per cent in the past five years, with almost 20-25 per cent seats going vacant annually. This year, as the final round of admissions ended on September 15, total 500 seats of the 1600 available, found no takers. This is despite the State government relaxing the crucial JEE criteria for admissions to the degree programme. During the final round of admissions held from September 13-15, only 15 students turned up. “The need of the hour is to ensure employment for engineering graduates, which is still not happening. The government has come up with various skill-based training courses but there needs to be more focus on ensuring employment,” said a GMC dean makes case for another medical college PANAJI: The Goa Medical College (GMC) Dean Shivanand Bandekar on Monday said that considering the growing demand for MBBS, State will require yet another medical college to accommodate candidates in near future. Health Minister Vishwajit Rane had last month announced the government decision to drop the proposed private medical college project, supposed to come up in South Goa.  >> See pg 3 senior official. According to the information, less than 50 per cent engineering graduates are being placed every year. “This definitely makes a big impact on the demand for engineering courses altogether,” an official said. The core courses such as civil and mechanical engineering have witnessed a drastic drop in applications in the past few years due to the lack of job opportunities after graduation. However, the rising demand for IT and computer saw all the seats going full. “At present, the government has no plans to introduce any demand based courses,” an official said. Ever since additional 25 per cent seats were added to engineering colleges in the State in 2019 to accommodate the India clinches ACT final spot with win over South Korea Pg 13 RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 areas, they should visit a clinic in their area and get whatever necessary vaccines,” she commented. A local travel agent in Panaji, speaking to The Goan, recalled Goa had never witnessed a  serious  cholera outbreak for decades. “Any person will now think twice about going to a place that suddenly had this cholera outbreak,” he stated, confirming some of his clients are seeking updates about the situation. Not too long ago, in a related health advisory, Australian travel health service Travelvax.com.au highlighted a spike in dengue cases in Goa with more than 23 cases reported in Gaondongrim. During the same period, Birmingham Mail from the UK reported that Goa reported a steady rise in dengue cases over the years. Huge spike in road mishaps: 7 fatalities in just 72 hours Over 1,800 accidents from January till date THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Seven deaths in 72 hours have once again put the spotlight on the alarming rise in road accidents in the State, which has already recorded close to 1,900 mishaps this year. As many as 200 persons have lost their lives to 188 fatal accidents so far. Exactly a week after Ganesh Chaturthi, four deaths on a single day sent shockwaves to the State. Sanika Karbe (19), Priyanka Kharbe (29), Siddhi Shetkar (13), Pratik Kanolkar (22) and Laxman Malik (19) were killed in two separate accidents at Mandrem and Pethwada-Nanora junction respectively on Saturday. In yet another mishap early Monday morning, a goods carrier driver, Niyaz Zari from Vasco, died in a hit-and-run case. As per official data, the State has recorded around 1,824 accidents from January 1 till date, which averages to ON PAGE 3 45-year-old woman dies in tragic accident at Sancoale Third victim succumbs in Mandrem road accident Pickup driver killed, 2 injured in road mishap at Virnoda seven accidents per day and one death every 31 hours. Besides the fatalities, around 187 persons have been seriously injured in 143 accidents while about 566 sustained minor injuries in 369 cases. Major damage to vehicles has been reported in 1,496 incidents. Drunken driving, reckless driving and riding without a helmet have been the three main reasons for accidents amid several traffic vi- olations and challans issued. Director General of Police Alok Kumar has already stressed the need for stricter enforcement of traffic laws, admitting that drivers often share real-time information to evade checkpoints. In a recent conversation with The Goan, the DGP insisted on the need to strengthen nakas to curb violations. The opposition has now seized the opportunity to criticize the government with Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao taking to the social media to slam Goa’s poor road safety record. “Goa has already recorded 16346 accidents in the past six and half years. Horrifying number of fatal accidents in Goa. In the last 69 months, 16349 accidents are reported, in which 953 persons have lost their lives. Goa CM failed to reduce road accidents. Need road safety management plan to save lives. Identify hotspots, faulty road designs, potholes,” he posted. Trump escapes assassination bid in Florida 1 Former US president Donald Trump is safe after he escaped an apparent assassination attempt while he was golfing on his course in Florida, a second bid on his life in two months. 2 The incident took place on Sunday at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Secret Service agents opened fire on a gunman located near the property line of Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Rafael Barros, the special agent in charge in Miami, said. 3 According to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, a Secret Service agent spotted the suspect with a rifle sticking through the fence of the golf course and immediately fired at the man before he fled the scene. The 78-year-old Republican presidential nominee was 300 to 500 yards away from the suspect, Bradshaw said. >> See pg 7 >Continued on P5 FESTIVE MOMENT: Children take part in Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi celebration with a Julus (procession) from Jama Masjid, Panjim on Monday. Celebrations were also held in different parts of the State to mark the day.  Narayan Pissurlenkar Doctors finally meet Mamata to end month-long deadlock PTI KOLKATA After two unsuccessful attempts, the protesting junior doctors of Kolkata finally had talks with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at her Kalighat residence. This is the third meeting, KOLKATA RAPE-MURDER described by the State government as the “fifth and final invitation for talks.” The protesting junior doctors of Kolkata, after two failed attempts at talks with Mama- ta, held a two-hour discussion with her at her residence. Ahead of the meeting the government had described it as a “fifth and final invitation for talks”. The meeting, which was expected to begin at 5 pm, finally started around 7 pm and ended around 9 pm. Chaos reigns in Anjuna as tourists flock Soon, earn additional discounts when Illegal parking near nightclubs sparks frustration among locals you pay your electricity bills online THE GOAN I NETWORK THE GOAN I NETWORK MAPUSA In addition to violations such as loud music and operating without proper permits, clubs and restaurants along the North Goa coastal belt, particularly in Anjuna, are causing further problems by failing to provide adequate parking spaces for their patrons. This negligence forces hundreds of tourists and club-goers to park their vehicles in open spaces and along narrow village roads, resulting in significant inconvenience for local residents. The situation has escalated in the popular beach destina- and enforcement of parking norms by the authorities. TRAFFIC CHAOS Haphazard parking witnessed on narrow roads during the weekend in Gaumvaddi, Anjuna. tion of Anjuna, where several club venues particularly in the Ozrant area are allowing their customers to park vehicles on land belonging to the Anjuna comunidade. This not only constitutes an unauthorised use of public land but also raises concerns about the lack of regulation The problem is not limited to Ozrant. In other parts of the North Goa coastal belt, tourists frequently park their vehicles along narrow village roads, exacerbating traffic congestion. The situation is particularly acute during the peak tourist season when parking along roads causes traffic jams that stretch up to 3 kms long. These prolonged traffic snarls disrupt the daily lives of local residents, many of whom rely on these roads for >Continued on P5 MAPUSA lectricity consumers in the State are poised to enjoy additional incentives for paying their bills online, thanks to new guidelines issued by the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC). According to the latest notification from the JERC, consumers can now receive a rebate of up to 0.5 percent on their electricity bill payments if they opt for online payment methods. This new directive applies to both low-tension and high-tension consumers, with rebates of 0.5 percent for low-tension consumers and E TIMELINES FOR NEW POWER CONNECTIONS MAPUSA: In another significant move, the JERC has also outlined a specific timeline for providing new electricity connections to consumers. According to the commission’s directive, consumers in metro cities can expect to receive their electricity connections within three days of submitting a complete application. Urban areas have a deadline of seven days, while rural areas are given a timeline of 15 0.25 percent for high-tension consumers. In addition to this, the JERC has introduced a new set of regulations that also mandate days. In the case of rural islands, the connection must be provided within 30 days. “It’s ok in areas where the electricity connection is received through underground cabling. In areas where connections are still provided through overhead lines, it is not always possible to meet these timelines,” explained a department official. financial penalties on the electricity department for failing to meet service delivery timelines, especially with regard to power outages and bill delivery. If the department is unable to supply electricity within >Continued on P5