log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline SATURDAY MAY 10, 2025 GOA Electricity dept draws consumer reclassification plan for billing Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 14 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME X, NO. 322 2 GOA State targets 488 ha compensatory afforestation in three years 3 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO The importance of visiting a dermatologist for skin diseases DRONE ATTACKS INTENSIFY PAK ATTEMPTS TO TARGET SRINAGAR AIRPORT, AWANTIPORA AIR BASE FOILED; SIGHTINGS REPORTED AT 26 LOCATIONS; BLACKOUTS AND SIRENS USED TO COUNTER THREATS; CIVILIAN INJURED IN FEROZPUR PTI SRINAGAR Drone attacks on several installations, including Srinagar airport and south Kashmir's Awantipora air base, were thwarted late on Friday, officials said. The attacks came a day after India scuppered attempts by the Pakistan military to hit Indian military installations with drones and missiles, they said. Drones have been sighted at 26 locations from Baramulla in the north to Bhuj in the south, along the International Border and the Line of Control, officials said. Locations where these sightings were made, include Srinagar, Awantipora, Nagrota, Jammu, Ferozpur, Pathankot, Fazilka, Lalgarh Jatta, Jaisalmer, Barmer, Bhuj, Kuarbet, and Lakhi Nala. A drone was noticed flying over the Srinagar airport at around 9 pm, prompting a blackout to neutralise the attack, officials said. The drone was shot down by the military. The explosions, however, sent panic among the locals. Another drone was shot Govt extends closure of 28 airports till May 15 NEW DELHI: After Pakistan attempted to attack multiple cities in Northern India using drones, the ministry of civil aviation on Friday extended the closure of 28 airports across the country until May 15 morning from May 10. A senior government official confirmed that after a meeting with other stakeholders, the decision has been taken and airlines and airport authorities have been informed about it. The S-400 air defence missile system used by India to tackle aerial threats by Pakistan. down near the Awantipora air base in south Kashmir, officials said. Drone attacks were also foiled in north Kashmir's Baramulla and Kupwara districts close to some sensitive installations, officials said. An armed drone, however, succeeded in hitting a civilian area in Punjab's Ferozpur, resulting in severe injuries to members of a local family, officials said. The wounded were tended to medically, and the area was sanitised, they said. Earlier in the evening, blasts were heard and sirens blared in the Jammu region and south Kashmir as many parts of Jammu and Kashmir plunged into darkness, officials said. Defence officials said drones were also sighted in Jammu, Samba and neighbouring Pathankot district in Punjab, and they were being engaged. In Srinagar, mosque loudspeakers were used to con- IMF approves $1 bn loan for Pak; India objects ISLAMABAD: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday approved the immediate disbursement of about USD 1 billion to Pakistan under the ongoing Extended Fund Facility, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) here said. India earlier raised concerns over the efficacy of IMF programmes in the case of Pakistan. vey to locals to switch off their lights as a precautionary measure. Officials said drones were also engaged in Udhampur and Nagrota of Jammu and Punjab. Tension between the two neighbours soared after the Indian Armed Forces on Wednesday conducted precision strikes targeting terror launchpads in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in response to the April 22 attack by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam in which 26 people, mostly tourists, were killed. 11 SPORTS Man United, Tottenham set up Europa League final clash 14 Goa prepared? Coastal security cuts sorry picture Of 9 interceptor boats, 8 are non-functional, only one operational along 105-km coastline THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI As tensions mount along the India-Pakistan border and the Government of India urged states to tighten security, a stark disconnect has emerged in Goa. Despite Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s assurance that the State is equipped to handle emergencies, a ground-level review reveals that the Goa Police’s coastal security apparatus is woefully underprepared. The Coastal Police have been relying on a single functional interceptor boat along the entire 105-kilometre coastline. Reliable police sources confirmed to The Goan that of the nine interceptor boats allocated to the seven coastal police stations, eight are non-operational and pending condemnation. The remaining lone vessel, a 15-metre Fast Interceptor Boat (FIB) named Chandreshwar, commissioned only over a year ago for Rs 5.25 crore, is the sole guardian of Goa’s vast and strategically sensitive coastal waters. The operational Chan- SECURITY: CAUSE FOR CONCERN „„Of nine interceptor boats allocated, only one — Chandreshwar — is operational along the 105km coastline „„Remaining interceptor boats are pending condemnation; most are over a decade old „„Goa Police has had no agreement for boat maintenance for nearly five years „„Proposal to buy two new patrol boats with conventional propulsion is allegedly delayed „„Five HDPE boats with low-powered engines used only for inland waters; ineffective for high-seas missions ON PAGE 3 Goa Police advisory South Collector issues bans sharing visuals SOP for air raid alerts of military sites and blackout protocol CM chairs high-level Bomb threat disrupts security meet with work at North Goa senior officials Collectorate dreshwar is stationed alternately at Agassaim and Patto jetties, while five High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) boats are deployed for river- ine patrols across the Tiracol, Chapora, Mandovi, Zuari and Talpona rivers. >Continued on P6