10,000 sanads for forest land in 18 months: Goa CM Pramod Sawant

Times of India | 2 months ago | 25-09-2022 | 07:50 am

MARGAO: Chief minister Pramod Sawant on Saturday handed over land title documents (sanads) for forest land under occupation to several beneficiaries under the Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006. Addressing the gathering at a function held at the south Goa collectorate, Sawant said that the government has set a target of handing over 10,000 sanads to claimants of both individual and community rights category, within the next 12 to 18 months. Sawant said that his government was working on the Antyodaya principle, and said that being able to hand over titles to rightful claimants of forest land under the Act was his biggest achievement since becoming the chief minister. “There were nearly 10,000 applications pending under the Act whenI became the chief minister in 2019. No sanad was given to any claimant before that. So far 2,000 to 2,500 sanads have been handed over to beneficiaries. The rest will be cleared in due course,” he said. He urged beneficiaries not to sell the agricultural land they have now come to own, but cultivate it with the assistance of the agriculture department. Sawant also inaugurated the FRC Sanad Information System portal that will facilitate beneficiaries under the Act to obtain their land title documents online. “This is yet another step in our mission towards making Goa swayampurna (self-reliant),” Sawant said. Despite a large number of claims, sources said lack of documentation by claimants, the requirement of 50% quorum at gram sabhas have turned out to be major impediments in speedy processing of claims.

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Goa: BJP’s South Goa in-charge Rajeev Chandrasekhar on two-day visit for LS poll prep

Times of India | 11 hours ago | 28-11-2022 | 07:47 pm

Times of India

11 hours ago | 28-11-2022 | 07:47 pm

PANAJI: BJP South Goa in-charge and Union minister of state for skill development and entrepreneurship, electronics and IT, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, will hold a brainstorm meeting with BJP functionaries, ministers and MLAs at Margao to chalk out a plan to win the South Goa Lok Sabha parliamentary seat. Chandrasekhar will arrive in Goa on Tuesday on a two-day visit as part of the Lok Sabha Pravas programme. He will visit the district office at Margao and meet the chairperson and councillors of the Margao Municipal Council and sarpanches, deputy sarpanches and elected representatives of South Goa panchayats and zilla parishad. Discussions will be held on the progress of Central government schemes in the region.

‘Clean beaches vital for Goa’s tourism’

Times of India | 1 day ago | 28-11-2022 | 04:17 am

Times of India

1 day ago | 28-11-2022 | 04:17 am

Panaji: Tourism is one of the largest revenue generating sectors in Goa and keeping the state’s beaches is important so the growth of this sector continues, said Amruta Fadnavis, wife of ex-Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. Amruta’s Divyaj Foundation has organised a beach ‘Clean A Thon’ in Goa on November 28 at 8am at Miramar beach to raise awareness about the importance of preserving the environment.The event is being organised as part of the 53rd International Film Festival of India (Iffi) and Union information and broadcasting minister Anurag Singh Thakur, Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant, along with celebrities like Jackie Shroff, Remo D’Souza and Karan Kundra will participate in the clean-up drive.“Goa has such a big tourism industry. We are having the clean-up drive to just reignite an awareness which is already there within you. At Cannes too, there were sessions this time on sustainable development. And a film festival has the eyeballs to raise awareness about such a message,” said Amruta.“Tourism is one of the largest sectors in Goa. So we should see that this paradise remains a paradise forever,” said Fadnavis.

Slab portion collapses in Usgao mkt, eatery owner escapes unhurt

Times of India | 3 days ago | 26-11-2022 | 04:47 am

Times of India

3 days ago | 26-11-2022 | 04:47 am

Ponda: A portion of the ceiling of the Tisk-Usgao PDA market collapsed recently. However, no one was injured in the incident.Suresh Naik, who runs a restaurant at the market, had a lucky escape. Naik was cleaning vegetables on a bench, and moved to pick up some plastic bags littered on the floor. Soon, the plaster fell at the spot where he was earlier seated on the bench.The two-storey market complex houses 36 shops, with fish and vegetable vendors occupying the ground floor and a 900 seating capacity hall on the first floor. There have been three such incidents, including in 2018 and July 2021. The complex is in a dilapidated condition for over 15 years, and poses a threat to vendors and visitors. The market occupants have been demanding a complete reconstruction of the building.The building was constructed between 1992 and 1994 during current Ponda MLA Ravi Naik’s tenure as the chief minister.It is currently under the South Goa Planning and Development Authority (SGPDA).

Industry bodies meet CM, convey dismay over hike in minimum wages

Times of India | 4 days ago | 25-11-2022 | 04:56 am

Times of India

4 days ago | 25-11-2022 | 04:56 am

Panaji: The upward revision in minimum wages appears to have upset calculations for the private sector, with 21 industry associations, including private nursing homes, highlighting their concerns about the 80% hike. In an indicator that all is not well, representatives from the 21 industry bodies approached chief minister Pramod Sawant at the Rojgaar Melava and urged him to reconsider the labour department’s move.The representatives said that hiking the minimum wages from Rs 307 to Rs 553 will be “suicidal” for Goa’s industry. The delegation also told Sawant that the labour and employment department’s move runs contrary to the state government’s aim to make Goa industry-friendly.“The industry delegation submitted a comparative chart showing how minimum wages in Goa are higher than most other states. The industry members said that with no tax incentives and advantages, there is no reason why new investors will come to Goa,” said an official.An industry delegation met Sawant after the Rojgaar Melava to draw the government’s attention to the concerns.The 21-member delegation also conveyed their concerns to labour and employment minister Atanasio Monserrate and industry minister Mauvin Godinho. Sawant and Godinho assured the private sector that their concerns will be looked into.While Goa’s manufacturing sector has repeatedly warned about the adverse implications of the wage hike, this is the first time that other organisations have publicly come forward to highlight concerns. The Goa Cashew Manufacturers Association, the Goa Electronics Dealers Association, Caterers Association of Goa, National Restaurant Association of India, Shipyards Association of Goa, Association of Private Nursing homes, All Goa Khajekar Association and Goa Pharmaceuticals Manufacturers’ Association are among the 21 private industry bodies that have come forward. The organisations have pressed for three demands, chief among them is a correction in the recently notified minimum wage. The industry has also urged the government to remove the clause that links Goa’s minimum wages with the Centre’s notification. “Going from Rs 307 to Rs 553 is an 80% hike and is suicidal. This is a misguided figure,” said an industry representative. Each industry body has given individual letters to the chief minister which specifies concerns for their respective sector,” said an official.

Report those seeking money for jobs: CM

Times of India | 4 days ago | 25-11-2022 | 04:36 am

Times of India

4 days ago | 25-11-2022 | 04:36 am

Panaji: Calling for a zero-tolerance approach to bribes-for-jobs, chief minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday appealed to citizens to report such cases to either the police, ministers or MLAs. Stating that persons asking for bribes in exchange for government jobs need to be arrested, Sawant said, “My government runs on the principle of na khaunga na khane dunga.”The chief minister, who was addressing the Rojgaar Melava organised by the state government at Raj Bhavan, said recruitment to government departments through the Goa Staff Selection Commission (SSC) will begin from January. Eligible and capable candidates and not those with influence will be recruited, Sawant said. “Youth have to give only one exam for peon to LDC posts. For one peon post 5,000 applications and for five LDC posts 10,000 applications have been received. With the SSC, youth don’t have to repeatedly appear for exams and they also don’t have to run to MLAs,” Sawant said. Of the 1,250 joining letters given to candidates at the Rojgaar Melava, 900 are for the police department, 189 for the directorate of fire and emergency services, 59 for the directorate of agriculture, 54 for the directorate of planning, statistics and evaluation, and 11 for the department of river navigation. “When you get jobs without paying money, you should work dedicatedly for the people of the state,” Sawant said.“Our government is transparent and people-oriented. Still there are some who are trying to make false propaganda and some others who are trying to take advantage by promising government jobs in exchange for money. Those useless people should be arrested,” he said. “I am of the clear opinion that in case anyone approaches anyone for money for a government job then a complaint should be filed with the police department or a direct complaint should be made to MLAs or ministers,” the chief minister said.Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said, has set a target to provide 10 lakh jobs. While 64 Goan youth have joined central government departments, Sawant said that in the past seven month, besides 1,250 jobs, around 500 candidates have been directly recruited in various government departments and 1,200 have got jobs at the Mopa airport. In the case of the recent job fair organised for 4,000 vacancies, 1,000 candidates have got offer letters, 1,000 have been called for a second interview and 2,000 jobs are still available, he said.The chief minister said that it is the vision of his government to provide government or private jobs to all those willing to be employed. “We have taken the initiative to make sure that not a single youth in the state remains unemployed,” Sawant said. He said that there two lakh opportunities will become available in the hospitality sector within the next five years and that the youth should get trained in some skill or should upgrade their skill.

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