@thegoanonline WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 16, 2024 Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 15 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME X, NO. 119 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 3 2 10 Calangute’s crime wave casts shadow over tourism hotspot Villagers up in arms against mega projects in Cavelossim GOA Panaji gets India’s first vacuum sewer network system INFO Overnight fat-burner: Remedy to boost metabolism GROWING CONCERN OVER PUBLIC SAFETY, ROLE OF BOUNCERS AGNELO PEREIRA THE GOAN I MAPUSA >> pg 7 Redefining luxury: A trailblazer’s journey to global expansion WORLD FOOD DAY Right to Food: A path to a better future Celebrating culinary heritage: A Goan connection through >> pg 6 philately IN SHORT >> Velingkar granted anticipatory bail PANAJI: The Bombay High Court at Goa on Tuesday granted anticipatory bail to former Goa RSS chief Subhash Velingkar in the case of hurting religious sentiments with his controversial comment on St Francis Xavier. The single bench of Justice B P Deshpande observed that the applicant has been cooperating in the investigation.  >> See pg 3 IMD announces monsoon withdrawal PANAJI: Amid heavy bouts of rain, the India Meteorological Department on Tuesday declared the withdrawal of southwest monsoon from Goa as well as the entire country. The monsoon withdrawal was delayed by a day over Goa coast from its traditional date of October 14.   >> See pg 3 Restricted water in Bardez, Bicholim MAPUSA: Residents of Bardez and parts of Bicholim talukas are set to face yet another restricted water supply on Oct 16 and 17 >> See pg 3 WEATHER >> Max: 32.4 C Min: 25.9 C Humidity: 92% TIDES Low: High: 03:19 15:49 09:27 22:19 Calangute, a coastal village synonymous with Goa’s tourism, has been shaken by three violent incidents in the past few days, casting a shadow over the beginning of the tourism season. Known for its vibrant beach life, the village is now at the centre of a growing concern over public safety, particularly as criminal activity spills into areas frequented by both locals and visitors. The most shocking of the incidents was a brutal attack on two local youth by a group of bouncers from a popular nightclub. Locals expressed outrage, questioning the role of bouncers in escalating violence rather than ensuring safety. “It’s terrifying that the very people meant to keep the peace inside these clubs are the ones attacking us. Calangute PI, PSI transferred amid rising criminal activities MAPUSA: In a significant shake-up within the local police force, Calangute Police Inspector Paresh Naik and Police Sub-Inspector Kiran Naik were transferred to the Goa Reserve Police following a surge in criminal activities along the Calangute coastline. The sudden transfer of the two cops has sparked controversy in the wake of the sealing of a popular Baga club, whose bouncers were involved in the violent attack on two local youth. The transfer orders were issued late Monday night, shortly after the club was sealed by the Calangute Police.  >> See pg 3 This isn’t the Goa we grew up in,” said Anny Fernandes, a panchayat member of the ward. In another troubling incident, two young Goan women were harassed with lewd remarks by a group of tourists after attending a Dandiya event early Sunday morning. The incident highlights a growing fear that women are increasingly vulnerable to harassment in Goa’s most popular tourist areas. The offensive behaviour, which included the derogatory “aati he kya?” slur, has sparked anger among locals, particularly in light of Goa’s reputation as a liberal and safe destination for women. In the third incident, three veterinary doctors were physically assaulted by a group of locals following a verbal altercation. All three incidents occurred either late night or early morning, contributing to a growing sense of unease in Calangute, especially as the tourism season gathers momentum. Violence, harassment and disorder do not bode well for a State that relies so heavily on its image as a peaceful and welcoming destination. “These incidents are a concern but as long as the authorities take action and the problem is nipped in the bud, it shouldn’t cast a shadow on the season ahead. There are bad eggs in every basket,” said Jack Sukhija President of Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG). PROBLEM WITH BOUNCERS One recurring issue in the Calangute is the presence of nightclub bouncers, who have been linked to several violent altercations in recent years. Bouncers, who are supposed to maintain order within the clubs, often find themselves involved in or instigating violence. Their heavy-handed methods, combined with the rowdy behaviour of some tourists, have led to several such incidents in the past. “The presence of bouncers, instead of making people feel safe, is actually creating fear. Many tourists, especially families and women, feel intimidated by them,” said Premanand Diukar, an active resident who takes up social issues in Calangute. Some have called for stronger regulation or even restrictions on the use of bouncers in coastal clubs, fearing that the current situation is >Continued on P8 SPORTS Women’s T20 World Cup: West Indies stuns England to reach semis 15 Huge drug bust in Anjuna, narcotics worth `  cr seized 1 ANC says it’s the biggest seizure in Goa BIG HAUL THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI In a rare, start-of-the-season drug bust, the Goa Police’s Anti-Narcotic cell effected  a big seizure of party drugs in a raid at an apartment at Anjuna late Monday night.  Interestingly, the ANC has withheld the name of the accused from whom the contraband was seized, without explaining why, although he has been arrested. The ANC also said, it is one of the biggest drug busts in Goa ever and the accused is not a local but lived in Goa for several years.  In the seized haul of drugs were 1,825 LSD blotters whose value in the international market is said to be Rs 1.1 crore.  LSD is a popular party drug  among youth and Monday’s seizure is the largest in terms of monetary value ever carried out by the Goa police. ANC said, the accused had been allegedly operating a nationwide network to  supply drugs and used courier servic- „„Sleuths seized 1,825 LSD blotters whose value in international market is Rs 1.1 cr  „„Accused not a local but lived in Goa for several years „„He received drugs hidden in books & photo frames via courier and then distributed them using same modus operandi es to do so. LSD and other drugs used to be sent to clients across India, suspected to be linked to the party scene in metros. “He would receive drugs hidden in items like books and photo frames via courier and then distribute them using the same modus operandi,” an ANC official said, adding that their men had been monitoring him for nearly a month. >Continued on P8 Mhadei panel to hold 3rd meet in Goa on Oct 25 Goa submits petition to Centre to drop 21 villages from ESA PANAJI The third meeting of the Mhadei PRAWAH (Progressive River Authority for Welfare and Harmony), is scheduled in Goa on October 25. The meeting, which was supposed to be held in New Delhi on Sept 5, was postponed due to Ganesh Chaturthi festival. PRAWAH  held its first meeting in Goa in February, while the second took place in Bengaluru in July.  The incumbent in-charge of Central Water Commission (CWC) Navin Kumar will chair the meeting, following superannuation of PM Scott.  According to sources, Goa government’s request for  yet another joint site inspection of the Kalsa Diversion Project site at Kankumbi, Karnataka -- the one that was missed out during the first visit in July --will be taken up for discussion during the meeting. The State, via two communications, had requested PRAWAH to issue necessary directions to Karnataka, during its upcoming meeting to restore the reverse slope of the Mhadei river water -- which THE GOAN I NETWORK THE GOAN I NETWORK Proposes inclusion of 87 other villages The incumbent in-charge of Central Water Commission Navin Kumar will chair the meeting which was supposed to be held in New Delhi on September 5 but was postponed in view of Ganesh Chaturthi is currently being diverted to Malaprabha basin. Following the request from the Goa government,  PRAWAH  team visited Mhadei basin areas in Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra, in July. However, the team failed to inspect actual diversion site and accordingly, the outgoing chairman PM Scott in its report gave a complete skip to Karnataka’s violation. The Authority was constituted on May 22, 2023 to give effect to the Mhadei Water Dispute Tribunal (MWDT) Award passed in August 2018. Following its first meeting,  the Authority was of the view that the river diversion issue could be resolved “amicably” by the three riparian States- Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra through PRAWAH. FIERY ART: An artist spray paints demon faces at Merces on Tuesday. Narkasur effigies will go up in flames on the eve of Diwali.  Narayan Pissurlenkar EC announces poll schedule, M’rashtra votes on Nov 20 Jharkhand on Nov 13 & 20; results on Nov 23 PTI NEW DELHI The Election Commission Tuesday announced Maharashtra will vote in one phase on November 20, while Jharkhand will go to polls in two phases on November 13 and 20, setting the stage for another round of contest between a buoyant BJP and the opposition INDIA bloc, which has been jolted by the Congress’ shock Haryana defeat. Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar announced at a press conference here that the counting of votes will be held on November 23, a day before the current Maharashtra assembly completes its term. Flanked by Election Com- missioners Gyanesh Kumar and S S Sandhu, Kumar also said the bypolls to 47 assembly seats and Wayanad Lok Sabha seats will be held on November 13. The Wayanad Lok Sabha seat was vacated by Rahul Gandhi, who has also won from the Rae Bareli parliamentary constituency which he kept. PANAJI The State government on Tuesday urged the Union Ministry for Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) to exclude 21 villages from the category of ecologically sensitive areas (ESA) of the Western Ghats region. Environment Minister Aleixo Sequeira along with Chief Secretary IAS Puneet Kumar Goel submitted the proposal to Union Ministry recommending inclusion of 87 villages under ESA since they meet the criteria. The proposal was based on findings and recommendation made by the seven-member committee headed by Dr Devendra Pandey, former director general of the Forest Survey of India, Dehradun. In July, the Union Ministry had issued a  draft notification naming 108 Goa villages, instead of 99 villages, as the Western Ghats’ ESAs. The Ministry admitted to the discrepancies between the plan and draft notification and added nine villages to the list. 15 GOA ON ER log on to thegoan.net O CTO B As reported earlier, the committee recommended dropping 21 villages that includes 12 from Sattari, five from Dharbandora, three from Sanguem and one from Canacona taluka. Of the total 87 villages proposed under ESA categories include 51 villages from Sattari, 23 villages from Sanguem, 8 from Dharbandora, 4 from Canacona and 1 from Ponda. A total of 1,247 sq kms of area in Goa is proposed for categorization under ESA. In its objection, the State had pointed out that out of Goa’s total geographical area of 3,702sq km, it is hardly left with 342 sq km area (only 9.25%), which can be made use of for growth and development. Decks cleared for dictionary Taste test: Mid-day meals to undergo lab scrutiny in Konkani, MoU signed Students to get allowance if Raggi laddoos for students THE GOAN I NETWORK CM says will boost Konkani scientific vocabulary THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The State government on Tuesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the  Union Education Ministry’s Commission for Scientific and Technical Terminology, (CSTT) to create glossary in Konkani.    Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said the collaboration with CSTT is a good opportunity for Goan students to get access to scientific words in Konkani that will help them to easily understand the subject. He said in the long run, this building of lexicon in Konkani will help in the National Education Policy (NEP) in schools and higher education. Chairperson of CSTT, Prof Girish Nath Jha, spoke of the mandate the CSTT has in creating technical terminology in India languages. He said that they hoped to establish a Granth Academy in Goa. He further said the CSTT would like to not just create a glossary in Konkani but also help create content which will be beneficial to students. The MoU signed with the Directorate of Official Languages will help prepare, coin and frame technical terminology in Konkani.  Besides, it will help in creating text books in regional languages and will be useful for translation and research purposes.  So far, a workshop in order to achieve this endeavor was conducted in August and September covering fundamentals in Mass Communication/ Journalism, Chemistry and Learners Glossary for school level in Maths, Environmental Studies & Computer Science.  A workshop in Fundamentals in Zoology, Agriculture, and Learners in Chemistry, Computer Science and Maths for High School is currently on. More are slated to be conducted soon. PANAJI n a bid to check the quality and nutritional content of the mid-day meal supplied to over 1.61 lakh students, the Central government has directed Goa to carry out the testing of all food samples through laboratories accredited with The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) or National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) and to submit the report.   During the meeting of the Programme Approval Board (PAB) - Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM-POSHAN) held to consider the Annual Work Plan & Budget (AWP&B) for the FY 2024-25, the State was advised to ensure provision of hot cooked meal on all I PANAJI: The Centre has approved State’s proposal to provide supplementary nutrition Ragi laddoos thrice in a week to 94,532 primary school students. The State has proposed to supply Ragi laddoos thrice a week for 22 days spread over two months to 94,532 Primary school students at an estimated expenditure of Rs 1.45 crore comprising Rs 87.35 lakh as Central share and Rs 58.23 lakh as State share. The State is advised to provide the supplementary nutrition items by the 3rd quarter of 2024-25. school working days and the same is served in a hygienic and safe manner to all eligible students. “PAB advised the State Government to carry out the testing of the samples of meals to check quality and nutritional contents etc through NABL / FSSAI accredited laboratories across the State as envisaged in the PM POSHAN Scheme guidelines and the reports may also be shared. Expenditure on testing of meals may be met from MME – Management, Monitoring and Evaluation component,” reads the not provided cooked meals PANAJI: The Programme Approval Board has directed the State to ensure that every eligible student gets a hot cooked meal or is provided with food security allowance on all school days. “The government is advised to disseminate approvals of resources to all field functionaries to enable all eligible institutions to ensure that every eligible student must be served hot cooked meal or provided with Food Security Allowance on school days,” Centre said adding there should be uninterrupted supply even in case of delay or release of funds.  minutes of the meeting. The Central officials also advised the State Government to adhere to the extant guidelines for engaging Civil Society Organizations / NGOs in the scheme for supply of meal. Secretary (SE&L) cum Chairman of PAB advised the State to ensure that the menu is devised in such a manner that a variety food items may be prepared to increase the interest of students in the school meals. State Government informed >Continued on P8