log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline FRIDAY FEBRUARY 28, 2025 page 6 India’s EV boom: Global giants race to claim a piece of the market 2025 KTM Adventure 390: The go anywhere machine IN SHORT >> Mhadei Water Tribunal gets 6-month extension PANAJI: The Union Ministry for Jal Shakti (Water Resources) has further extended the tenure of the Mhadei Water Disputes Tribunal (MWDT), in order to submit a report on the inter-State water dispute between Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra by another six months with effect from February 21, 2025.  >> See pg 3 Applications invited for CWC posts PANAJI: After nearly nine months of hiatus, the Directorate of Women & Child Development has invited applications to constitute new Child Welfare Committees (CWCs) for both districts. In what is likely a first, the government has introduced a new clause disqualifying applicants working in NGOs as well as their family members from applying for CWC posts.  >> See pg 2 6th arrest in Anjuna house eviction case PANAJI: The Crime Branch arrested another accused in the Anjuna house eviction case, taking the total count of arrested persons to six. Superintendent of Police (CB) Rahul Parab informed the media on Thursday that Gaus Khatal Shaikh, a resident of Sanquelim was apprehended and brought to the CB office in Ribandar for interrogation.   >> See pg 2 4 Russians rescued off Mandrem beach PANAJI: Four Russians, including three women, were dramatically rescued from drowning off Mandrem beach by Drishti Marine lifesavers on Thursday afternoon.  >> See pg 7 WEATHER >> Max: 31 C Min: 25 C Humidity: 64% TIDES Low: High: 05:04 16:59 10:52 23:36 Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 15 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME X, NO. 251 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 HC directs cable operators to pay 20% dues to Power dept n LICENCE RENEWAL TO BE CONSIDERED ONLY AFTER PAYMENT n COURT ASKS FOR COUNT OF OPERATORS, TOTAL ARREARS THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The High Court of Bombay at Goa has directed cable operators to pay 20 per cent of their arrears to the Electricity Department, only after which their applications for licence renewal will be considered. The Court’s directive came during the hearing of a writ petition filed by the Goa Cable TV Networking and Service Providers Association, which sought relief against the Electricity Department’s drive to disconnect cables hanging from electric poles. The Bench has also sought clarity from both the association and the government on the total number of cable operators. “Each operator with pending dues must clear 20 per cent of their arrears. Their applications will be taken KEY COURT RULING „„The court ruled that cable operators must pay 20% of their outstanding arrears before their applications for licence renewal can be considered „„The Bench noted a mismatch between the government’s record of 223 cable service providers and the association’s claims, directing both parties to provide a clear count Govt mandates online permission for service providers using Power infra PANAJI: The State government has now made it mandatory for all service providers – telecom, internet and cable TV – to apply for permissions to utilise infrastructure of the Electricity Department including poles to mount their cables online on the Central government’s ‘Gatishakti Sanchar’ portal. >> See pg 3 up/ considered for renewal only thereafter,” the Bench stated during the hearing on Thursday. SAG wants legal notices served on sports associations THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Sports Authority of Goa (SAG) has approached the State government for issuing legal notices to the State sports associations, who have failed to submit the financial bills and utilisation certificates towards the funds provided to them for the National Games 2023. NATIONAL GAMES More than one year later, most of the associations are yet to provide details including audit reports despite several reminders and show cause notices. SAG had sanctioned grants of approximately Rs 15 crore to 35 State associations so that they could prepare adequately for the National Games, held in Goa between October 26 and November 29, 2023. Speaking to The Goan, Sports Minister Govind Gaude said that SAG has moved a Advocate General Devidas Pangam informed the court that, according to government records, there are 223 cable >Continued on P8 FIRM SAYS ITALIAN VESSEL UNDERGOING MAINTENANCE IN MUMBAI; AWAITS CLEARANCES FROM DG SHIPPING THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Over three decades after the passenger sea link between Goa and Mumbai snapped with the famed Navy operated ‘Konkan Shakti’ and ‘Konkan Sevak’ vessels deployed in Sri Lanka to serve the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF), there is now hope again that you could embark on the pleasant Arabian sea voyage and take your car with you too. The Mumbai based M2M Ferries is in the advanced stage of introducing a Ro-Ro ferry service between the Metropolis and Goa promising a six-and-half-hour journey. The company has said, the Italian vessel it has purchased is undergoing maintenance at a Mumbai yard and licencing work is on with the DG Shipping and other related authorities and agencies for the requisite approvals to operate on the Goa-Mumbai route. The company already oper- THE WATERWAYS ROUTE „„Mumbai-based M2M Ferries is in advanced stages of launching a roll-on, roll-off (RoRo) service, allowing passengers to travel with their cars „„The ferry promises a 6-andhalf-hour journey between Mumbai (Mazagaon) and Goa (Mormugao port), offering an alternative to road and rail travel „„The company has acquired a 15-year-old Italian vessel, currently under maintenance, with a capacity of 620 passengers and 60 cars per trip ates a Ro-Ro service daily between Mumbai and Mandwa. The roll-on-roll-off vessel it plans to operate on the Goa-Mumbai route has a per trip capacity of 620 passengers and 60 cars, multiple media reports said, adding that once commissioned it will sail from Mazagaon and dock at the Mormugao port in Goa. The media reports quoted an official of the M2M company to say that the Italian vessel is a 15-year-old second-hand >Continued on P8 >Continued on P8 one and will be brought out from dry dock next month. “We have applied for permissions with Director General of Shipping and other agencies,” the official has been quoted as saying. The official said his company has also approached the Goa government to explore having the Ro-Ro vessel dock at the Panaji jetty. The reports also quoted Director General of Shipping, >Continued on P8 Goa launches e-passports on pilot basis THE GOAN I NETWORK THE GOAN I NETWORK file to the Law Department for necessary action. “We had already served show cause notices to them. We had even granted them one year’s time to submit the bills, UC and audit report but most of the associations have not done it,” he said. Gaude said that the government will soon start serving legal notices to the associations. Gaude in the past had lambasted the associations for Sports minister service providers. However, this figure does not match the association’s claim submitted to the Court. To this, the Bench has asked for a clear count of total operators and the exact amount of arrears owed by each. The matter has been adjourned for Monday when the petition is expected for disposal. It is also learnt that the Court initially sought a 50 per cent payment of arrears but later reduced it to 20 per cent during the hearing itself. In their writ petition, the association stated that some members had previously applied for licences under the Goa Telecom Infrastructure Policy 2020 to use public infrastructure for laying cables. They claimed that despite their willingness to Revival of Goa-Mumbai sea link with Ro-Ro ferry service on cards SEAC defers decision on EC for handling of ore dumps PANAJI The Goa State Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC) has deferred decision on an application filed by erstwhile mining leaseholders seeking environmental clearance (EC) for handling iron ore dumps lying outside lease bound area. Chowgule and Company Pvt Ltd had approached SEAC for EC to handle dumps lying outside mining lease on a private property in Sirigao village in Bicholim taluka. The Authority, during its meeting held earlier this month, decided to conduct the site inspection of the proposed site before recommending the application for grant of EC. The State government last month amended Policy for Regulating Iron Ore Dump Handling in the State of Goa to allow erstwhile leaseholders to handle the low-grade ore dumped by them in private land or another mining lease that was never operated. We had already served show cause notices to the associations. We had even granted them one year’s time to submit the bills, UC and audit report but most of the them have not done it,” — Govind Gaude, Gujarat Giants wins by 6 wickets against RCB  Pg 15 GOLDEN HARVEST: Prawns laid out to dry in the sun along the service road at Old Goa on Thursday. Once dried, they will be sold in local markets.  Narayan Pissurlenkar Illegal construction owners misused Public Health Act, govt tells HC THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The State government on Thursday informed the High Court of Bombay at Goa that several illegal constructions have misused the Public Health Act to obtain NOC for water and electricity connections. While the Act was intended to ensure occupants are not denied basic amenities, it has been misused by owners of several commercial properties. “Several illegal constructions have come up without obtaining the necessary NOC. The violators submit this NOC to the electricity and public works departments to obtain permissions. We suggest reconsidering the provision to prevent further blatant mis- use of the Act,” Advocate General Devidas Pangam stated during a hearing into a suo motu PIL on illegal constructions across Goa. The AG also stated that there are rules to crackdown on these constructions but the process is time consuming. In October 2024, the High Court took suo motu >Continued on P8 PANAJI After Nagpur and Bhubaneswar, the Regional Passport Office in Goa has started issuing e-passports on a pilot basis to civilians. This new e-passport combines both paper and electronic components, including a special embedded chip that stores important data about the passport holder. With the soft launch, the Regional Office intends to check on how the embedded chip, biometric data collection, and passport readers work. Officials are also looking for any potential issues or glitches. The Union Ministry of External Affairs had launched the project on pilot basis first through Nagpur and Bhubaneswar Passport office in April 2024. The Ministry will seek feedback from users and immigration officers before nationwide rollout. US firms can now hire Indian Divar fights to keep Potekar Fest local, rejects global hype FEARS AND CONCERNS grads with ‘gold card’: Trump THE GOAN I NETWORK PTI WASHINGTON US President Donald Trump has said that the newly proposed ‘gold card’ initiative will allow American companies to hire Indian graduates from top US universities like Harvard and Stanford. Trump on Wednesday unveiled the ‘gold card’ initiative for wealthy foreigners, giving them the right to live and work in the country and offering a path to citizenship in exchange for a USD 5 million fee. We’re going to be selling a gold card, Trump said from the Oval Office. You have a green card. This is a gold card. We’re going to be putting a ROUTE TO CITIZENSHIP „„Trump claims the initiative will help American companies recruit top Indian graduates from elite US universities like Harvard and Stanford „„Companies can purchase Gold Cards to recruit international talent and use the funds to pay down national debt price on that card of about USD 5 million and that’s going to give you green card privileges, plus it’s going to be a route to citizenship. And wealthy people will be coming into our country by buying this card, Trump was quoted as saying by the CNN. Trump said the current immigration system has hindered top international talent, especially from India, from staying and working in the US. Trump said that a company can buy a gold card and use it for this recruitment matter. I want to be able to have that person stay in the country, these companies can go and buy a gold card, and they can use it as a matter of recruitment. At the same time, the company is using that money to pay down debt. PANAJI s Carnival’s promotion explodes on various social media platforms – a bid to draw tourists from across the world – the island of Divar is standing firm against the tide. The villagers have made their stance clear: they don’t want to go global. At the heart of this quiet defiance is the ‘Potekar Fest’, an age-old tradition that runs parallel to Carnival. Masked figures roaming the streets on three days is a part of their deeply rooted narrative fest that has survived for centuries. But as this began to be highlighted on social media with Goa Tourism also allegedly promoting it, the islanders demanded that all the A „„Potekar Fest is a community-driven event, not a tourist attraction or cultural showcase „„Villagers oppose the global promotion of Potekar Fest, fearing unwanted attention and disruption „„Villagers worry about outsiders causing trouble, citing past incidents of misbehavior by non-islanders as a cause for alarm „„Villagers fear that unchecked outsiders behind masks could commit crimes without being identified „„Memo to Tourism Dept „„Villagers demand the withdrawal of promotions and urge the department to stop associating with the festival promotions be withdrawn. They fear loss of control, safety threats and invasion of their space. “This is a festival for Divarkars, by Divarkars,” Alex- inho Monserrate, one of the residents, asserted. He recalled that last year, some non-islanders arrived on two-wheelers and four-wheelers on the island, disguised themselves as Potekars and began misbehaving. “When residents sensed trouble, the Old Goa police were called but the miscreants had already fled. We cannot let such incidents repeat,” Monserrate told The Goan. Echoing his concerns, Prasad Halmalkar made it clear that Potekar is neither a tourist attraction nor a cultural showcase. “This is not about entertainment, and we are not even showcasing Goa’s culture or tradition. It is just a narrative that has continued for centuries. Publicity is drawing unwanted attention, and we fear more outsiders including tourists will disrupt it,” he said. The residents also cited past incidents of eve-teasing and molestation by non-Divarkars as a chilling reminder of the risks of an open festival. “We know our people. If anything goes out of line, we can >Continued on P8