Goa Ponda News

Drunken driving, indiscipline behind spike in accidents: Goa CM Pramod Sawant
Times of India | 3 months ago | |
Times of India
3 months ago | |

PANAJI: CM Pramod Sawant on Tuesday said that drunken driving and indiscipline on roads are some of the reasons for the increase in accidents. He added that the Goa police traffic cell, transport department and PWD are holding meetings and will chalk out a plan to reduce accidents.Sawant pointed out that the vehicle population has increased compared to the state population. "There are three reasons for the increase in accidents. These include people not following rules, drunken driving, rash and negligence driving among others," he said. The chief minister added that people should cooperate with the authorities, and this will help reduce the frequency of road accidents.In 2020, the vehicle population was 14.5 lakh vehicles, in 2021, it was 14.9 lakh and in 2022 it climbed to 15.4 lakh, but the infrastructure more or less stayed the same. Police said that looking at 2020-21 and 2021-2022, there has been a 3% increase in vehicle population, but the infrastructure hasn't changed much.It has been found that two-thirds of the people who died in road accidents in 2022 were linked to two-wheelers. The state witnessed an almost 9% rise in road accidents during the year.In 2022, 3,011 road accidents were reported, of which 253 were fatal, wherein 271 succumbed to injuries. A total number of 181 persons on two-wheelers died in accidents while 51 pedestrians lost their lives.In 2021, 2,849 accidents were reported, of which 218 were fatal. Almost 226 people lost their lives. A total number of 152 persons on two-wheelers died while 36 pedestrians were killed.The highest number of accidents in North Goa was reported in the jurisdiction of Panaji, Mapusa and Porvorim police stations areas. In South Goa, the highest number of accidents were reported in Ponda, Verna and Vasco police station areas.State witnessed 9% rise in road accidents in 2022In 2020, the vehicle population was 14.5 lakh vehicles, in 2021, it was 14.9 lakh and in 2022 it climbed to 15.4 lakh, but the infrastructure more or less stayed the same. Police said that looking at 2020-21 and 2021-2022, there has been a 3% increase in vehicle population, but the infrastructure hasn't changed much.It has been found that two-thirds of the people who died in road accidents in 2022 were linked to two-wheelers. The state witnessed an almost 9% rise in road accidents during the year.In 2022, 3,011 road accidents were reported, of which 253 were fatal, wherein 271 succumbed to injuries. A total number of 181 persons on two-wheelers died in accidents while 51 pedestrians lost their lives.In 2021, 2,849 accidents were reported, of which 218 were fatal. Almost 226 people lost their lives. A total number of 152 persons on two-wheelers died while 36 pedestrians were killed.The highest number of accidents in North Goa was reported in the jurisdiction of Panaji, Mapusa and Porvorim police stations areas. In South Goa, the highest number of accidents were reported in Ponda, Verna and Vasco police station areas.

Drunken driving, indiscipline behind spike in accidents: Goa CM Pramod Sawant
Want to develop Ponda taluka as dev bhoomi for tourism: Goa CM Dayanand Bandodkar
Times of India | 3 months ago | |
Times of India
3 months ago | |

PANAJI: The state government will renovate the fortress at Farmagudi and a statue of Goa’s first chief minister Dayanand Bandodkar will be installed in the complex, chief minister Pramod Sawant said on Sunday. The Shree Ganesh temple at Farmagudi will also be renovated, he said.Similarly plans are also on the anvil to renovate all other forts in the state, the chief minister said at the state’s official event to celebrate Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti.He said that Ponda will be the focus of the state’s plans to develop Goa as a spiritual tourism destination.“I will make a budget provision this time to renovate the fortress at Farmagudi, to install a statue of Bhausaheb Bandodkar and to renovate the Shree Ganesh temple of Farmagudi. We will definitely take up this project and we want to develop Ponda taluka as a dev bhoomi from the tourism point of view. To grow spiritual tourism in Goa, Ponda taluka is the ideal place,” Sawant said.He said that to ensure that Goa is not left behind in attaining Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream of a new India, “we are working to establish IT and electronic city, but, along with that, it is equally important to renovate our forts and other such places of historical importance”.“For the first time, we have established a research chair in the name of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at the Goa University. The government is also working to renovate all forts in the state,” Sawant said, adding that the government is continuously working to see that the values of Shivaji Maharaj are imbibed in children and we will continue to work on it.“By stepping on this land of Gomantak, he had blessed this land. Under Portuguese rule, numerous temples were destroyed and if there was anyone who stopped that rampage, it was Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. It is from Narve in Bicholim with Shree Saptakoteshwar temple that he started the work of rebuilding a temple for the first time. I feel fortunate that I could inaugurate the renovated temple premises recently,” Sawant said.Shivaji Maharaj did not only rule, but worked to see that every person in his kingdom lived in peace and prosperity and with their self-respect intact, the chief minister said.

Want to develop Ponda taluka as dev bhoomi for tourism: Goa CM Dayanand Bandodkar
Energy-from-waste plants in pipeline at Ponda and Valpoi
Times of India | 3 months ago | |
Times of India
3 months ago | |

Panaji: The state government has decided to set up two 5 tonnes per day (TPD) bio-methanation plants at a total cost of over Rs 5.5 crore in the two municipal councils of Ponda and Valpoi. The plants will generate power from the waste generated in these civic jurisdictions.Bio-methanation is a process in which organic material is microbiologically converted to biogas under anaerobic conditions. Biogas is mostly methane and carbon dioxide and also contains very small amounts of water vapor and other gases.The state government has invited bidders to supply, install, test and commission the 5 TPD bio-methanation plants in Ponda and Valpoi municipal councils to generate power. The bids also include operating and maintaining the plants for 5 years.The plant will have an automatic scum-breaking (foreign material) mechanism and will treat 5,000kg of food, fish and vegetable waste generated in the two municipal areas.The state government had already installed a bio-methanation plant as a pilot project at the South Goa planning and development authority (SGPDA) market under the Margao Municipal Council (MMC). A senior official said that currently 760 TPD of municipal solid waste is being generated by the state urban local bodies.A solid waste treatment plant with a capacity of 250 TPD is fully operational at Saligao and caters to the waste being generated from coastal-stretch of the north Goa district among other few areas.The solid waste treatment plant at Cacora is also expected to be inaugurated soon. The plant which treats waste from four talukas of Quepem, Curchorem, Canacona and Dharbandora is ready and undergoing trials and has a capacity to treat 100 tonnes of garbage daily. Construction of the plant began in 2019.The Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC) has received four bids to set up the solid waste management plant at Bainguinim. GWMC invited bidders to take up the design, engineering, financing, performance as well as to run, operate, and maintain the plant for 10 years with a solid waste processing facility of 100 TPD capacity based on recycle and sorting lines, segregation, bio-methanation, and composting systems.The government is also in the process of setting up a waste-to-energy plant at Verna at an estimated cost of Rs500 crore and will generate 16MW electricity and 38MW heat while processing 250 TPD of waste. A total of 1,110 tonnes of waste has been collected and treated at this facility up to November 2022.

Energy-from-waste plants in pipeline at Ponda and Valpoi
Ensure safety of students at Opa junction, says child rights panel in Goa
Times of India | 3 months ago | |
Times of India
3 months ago | |

PONDA: After several casualties were reported, and with children forced to board public transport standing on the road at Opa road junction bus stop, the Goa state commission for protection of child rights has recommended urgent action from the Ponda deputy collector’s office. The commission has called for urgent action through a joint inspection of PWD Division XV and XVIII to sort out issues related to the land where a proper bus stop is proposed, and also recommended the secretary of Khandepar village panchayat to take up the issue in the coming gram sabha meeting for action as per the powers of the local civic body. The Goa state commission for protection for child rights conducted a joint inspection of the bus stop where numerous students from Mathoshri Indirabai Baburao Khandeparkar High School congregate for public transport after school hours. The joint inspection comprised representatives from the Ponda deputy collector’s office, PWD Division XVIII, secretary of Curti-Khandepar panchayat and Ponda police station after a local resident, Sandeep Parkar raised the issue with the commission. “There have been several casualties at this spot, and with illegal shops at this location, children are forced to board public transport by standing on the road which exposes them to the dangers of road accidents and injuries,” chairperson of the commission Peter Borges said. Children are vulnerable due to their physical size, difficulty in risk perceptions, impulsivity and risk-taking behaviours, he added. “Physical safety of children should be a collective effort of all stakeholders to protect our children, ensure safety and security and reduce the number of injuries and deaths. Safety of every child, whether at home, school or public places or recreational facilities, should be a priority,” he added.

Ensure safety of students at Opa junction, says child rights panel in Goa
9% rise in 2022 road accidents in Goa, 271 lives lost in 3,011 crashes
Times of India | 4 months ago | |
Times of India
4 months ago | |

PANAJI: In a shocking revelation, it has been found that two-third of the people who died in road accidents in 2022 were on two-wheelers. The state also witnessed a rise of almost 9% in road accidents during the year. As per the Goa police traffic cell data, 3,011 road accidents were reported in 2022, out of which 253 were fatal wherein 271 succumbed to injuries. A total number of 181 persons on two-wheelers died in the accidents while 51 pedestrians lost their lives.In 2021, 2,849 accidents were reported, out of which 218 were fatal. Almost 226 persons lost their lives. A total number of 152 persons on two-wheelers died while 36 pedestrians lost their lives. The highest number of accidents in North Goa were reported in the jurisdiction of Panaji police (211) followed by Mapusa (182) and Porvorim (157). Though Panaji to Mapusa via Porvorim route is the busiest for traffic movement, it has been revealed that maximum number of people lost their lives in the police jurisdiction of Pernem (16), Bicholim (15) and Agasaim (14). In South Goa, the highest number of accidents were reported in the Ponda police station jurisdiction (24), followed by Verna (16) and Vasco (12). The maximum number of people who lost their lives in the same police jurisdiction were: Ponda (25), Verna (17) and Vasco (13).In October 2022, Goa police constituted a 3-member committee under the chairmanship of IGP Omvir Singh and other members, including DIGP Aslam Khan and SP Shekhar Prabhudessai to suggest measures to be undertaken by various stakeholders and road owning agencies to prevent and reduce accidents. Chief minister Pramod Sawant attributed nearly 95% of the road accidents that happen at night to drunken driving. “There has been a rise in accidents at night and this may be because of driving under the influence of alcohol. There is a need to stop 100% of the accidents happening due to this, we need to take steps,” Sawant had said.In a major accident in July 2022, four people died in the early hours after the car they were travelling in crashed into the railings of Zuari bridge and plunged into the river. A joint operation conducted by state agencies and the Indian Navy lasted for almost 12 hours, and culminated in the vehicle being retrieved with all four bodies still inside.The four were on their way from Loutolim to Panaji to celebrate the birthday of one of the occupants. Police said that they had cut a cake before leaving for Panaji for dinner, since restaurants in the village were closed due to the ensuing panchayat elections. Police said that the driver of the vehicle lost control and it rammed into the bridge’s railings.

9% rise in 2022 road accidents in Goa, 271 lives lost in 3,011 crashes
  • Study by Goa Medical College doctors finds 12.7% road accidents due to alcohol consumption
  • Times of India

    PANAJI: A study on road traffic accidents (RTAs) conducted by two doctors from the Goa Medical College and covering 440 cases found that a large number of drivers—13.04%—drove without a licence and that a sizeable number had consumed alcohol, thus placing themselves and others at risk.As per the study, the use of alcohol within six hours before the accident was noted in 38 (12.7%) of the victims who were in the driver’s seat. It also found that 234 (65.4%) had not used a seat belt or worn a helmet and that 350 (79.5%) suffered grievous injuries as opposed to 90 who sustained simple injuries.‘A Study of Road Traffic Injury Victims at the Tertiary Care Hospital in Goa’ by Dr Abhishek Bicholkar and Dr Jagadish Cacodkar was published in the Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care in 2022.The study has attempted to highlight the root causes of RTAs and to study injury patterns in victims. It found that 40 victims (9.1%) reported regular use of alcohol, while 32 reported smoking.As many as 90 (23.6%) victims did not own the vehicle involved in the accident. It either belonged to a friend, relative or employer. A majority, 134 (30.4%) were in the age group of 30-40, whereas more than half were in the 20-55 age bracket, a key wage-earning and child-raising group.As many as 114 (25.9%) were in the 20-30 age group. Also, the majority, 322 (73.2%) of the victims were men and 118 (26.8%) women. More than half the victims were married, and 144 were single. Other victims were either widows, divorcees, or separated from their spouses. The loss of a breadwinner or head of the household in a road accident, an injury, or a disability can be catastrophic to a family and often lead to a lower standard of living, and drives them deeper into poverty, the study noted.Also, 46 victims reported an obstruction on the road, which caused the accident. Most of the hurdles were in the form of animals crossing the road or cattle sitting on the road. Movable dividers lying across the road, a pedestrian, road construction debris, or other objects such as fallen tree branches accounted for some of the accidents. The study concluded there was a need to increase awareness among road users and the community regarding road safety. Government authorities should ensure consistent and strict implementation of traffic rules and accelerate the implementation of road-safety preventive measures, the study stated.

40 yrs before Liberation, Mallikarjun institute stoked Liceum revolution
Times of India | 4 months ago | |
Times of India
4 months ago | |

Margao/Canacona: Forty years before Goa’s Liberation, a group of young people from Canacona aspired to have the intellectually liberating force of Liceum (higher secondary education) spread to the southern-most taluka.Their mission fructified on December 28, 1922, with the establishment of Centro Promotor de Instrucao de Canacona or Centre for Promotion of Education of Canacona (CPI). On September 3, 1923, the initiative got the stamp of approval from the then governor of Portuguese Goa, Dr Jaime Alberto De Castro Moraes. The CPI’s Institute Liceal Shree Mallikarjun, which later evolved into Shree Mallikarjun High School and Higher Secondary School, is celebrating its centennial year of inception.Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai will inaugurate the year-long celebration of the institution on Saturday.“That was a time when students of Canacona had to travel to Ponda using antiquated transport facilities,” said Vikas Desai, a former president of the institution. “They had to travel by bullock cart to Sanvordem via Quepem. From Sanvordem, they had to board a ‘vapor’ (ferry boat) that would take them across to Durbhat, from where they had to walk a few miles to the school.”In 1918-19, the influenza pandemic broke out which claimed the life of a young lad from Canacona. Struck by fear, the people of Canacona didn’t let their children travel to Ponda to school. “Fortuitously,” added Desai, “that led to the setting up of the institution.” Somnath Komarpant, a writer and former head of the department of Marathi, Goa University, is among the alumni of the school. Reminiscing about the days spent in the school soon after Liberation, Komarpant said that the school functioned from a structure sans walls and covered by tarpaulin sheets. The facilities were rudimentary. “But the dedication of our teachers was legendary,” said Komarpant, who made a special mention of his principal, H R Prabhu and Nayak Sir from Sadolxem, Kanta Bhaireli, Nanda Gaitonde and others. “Nayak Sir had to cross the river on a canoe to come to the school. And often when the only boatman was unavailable, Nayak Sir would himself row the canoe using a bamboo stick as an oar,” Komarpant said. “Such was his humility that he would bow to the students in his peculiar style soon after entering the classroom.” Expressing his gratitude to the school for sowing among the students the seeds of nationalism, Komarpant said he owes it to his teachers for “making a man” out of him.

40 yrs before Liberation, Mallikarjun institute stoked Liceum revolution
Traffic fines jump by Rs 1.2 crore in Ponda under new MV Act
Times of India | 5 months ago | |
Times of India
5 months ago | |

PONDA: The revised fines under the new Motor Vehicles (MV) Act have not slowed down traffic violations in Ponda. The traffic cell in the temple town has earned Rs 1.9 crore from 44,925 traffic violations during 2022, a rise of Rs 1.2 crore from the previous year. In 2021, it had earned Rs 71 lakh from 56,988 motorists. In 2020, the cell had collected Rs 65 lakh from 54,625 violators, states the data maintained by the Ponda traffic police cell.Despite the hike in fines, dangerous roadside parking has failed to subside across Ponda. The number of such offenders in 2022 remains similar to that of 2021. A total of 7,193 motorists were fined for parking at risky places between January 1 and December 31, 2022, as against 7,278 cases in 2021. Ponda traffic police cell has netted Rs 23.6 lakh from the defaulting motorists. Ponda traffic PI Krishna Sinari attributed the reason behind more amount to hike in traffic violation fines.On a positive note, there has been an increase in people wearing seat belts. In 2022, 3,551 motorists were found driving vehicles without a seat belt as against 8,578 in 2021.In 2022, police had traced 3,609 vehicles with no proper registration number plates and 1,008 vehicles had no number plates. In 2021, 4,120 motorists were spotted with either improper number plates and 1,290 vehicles were found driving without number plates.A total of 158 motorists were found riding in rash and negligent manner as against 509 in 2021. The number of motorists using mobile phones while driving was less in 2021 at 107 violations as against 218 in 2022.

Traffic fines jump by Rs 1.2 crore in Ponda under new MV Act
  • Traffic fines jump by Rs 1.2cr in Ponda under new MV Act
  • Times of India

    Ponda: The revised fines under the new Motor Vehicles (MV) Act have not slowed down traffic violations in Ponda. The traffic cell in the temple town has earned Rs 1.9 crore from 44,925 traffic violations during 2022, a rise of Rs 1.2 crore from the previous year. In 2021, it had earned Rs 71 lakh from 56,988 motorists. In 2020, the cell had collected Rs 65 lakh from 54,625 violators, states the data maintained by the Ponda traffic police cell.Despite the hike in fines, dangerous roadside parking has failed to subside across Ponda. The number of such offenders in 2022 remains similar to that of 2021. A total of 7,193 motorists were fined for parking at risky places between January 1 and December 31, 2022, as against 7,278 cases in 2021. Ponda traffic police cell has netted Rs 23.6 lakh from the defaulting motorists. Ponda traffic PI Krishna Sinari attributed the reason behind more amount to hike in traffic violation fines.On a positive note, there has been an increase in people wearing seat belts. In 2022, 3,551 motorists were found driving vehicles without a seat belt as against 8,578 in 2021.In 2022, police had traced 3,609 vehicles with no proper registration number plates and 1,008 vehicles had no number plates. In 2021, 4,120 motorists were spotted with either improper number plates and 1,290 vehicles were found driving without number plates.A total of 158 motorists were found riding in rash and negligent manner as against 509 in 2021. The number of motorists using mobile phones while driving was less in 2021 at 107 violations as against 218 in 2022.

Ponda’s Rs 33 crore sewage plant misses another deadline
Times of India | 5 months ago | |
Times of India
5 months ago | |

PONDA: A review meeting of key stakeholders was held on December 2 to expedite the pending work and to commission the sewage treatment plant (STP) at Kapileshwari, Ponda, by December-end. However, with the new year already in, the deadline for the critical infrastructure in Ponda has been missed yet again.Managing director of the Sewage Infrastructure Development Corporation of Goa Ltd (SIDCGL) Amar Vazirani said that the delay was due to pending tests of 'some mechanical equipment'. The plant will be commissioned as soon as the tests are completed, he added. With the work of a major manhole on the Khadapabandh link road at Tisk, Ponda, incomplete, SIDCGL was looking to partly commission the plant by the year-end. Deputy manager of SIDCGL Pradip Gaude said that since the construction of the manhole on Khadapabandh link road was not completed, they would have to keep the Khadapabandh area on hold till the manhole was fully constructed. "Of the 54km network, 2km is incomplete due to the manhole," Gaude said. "The 15-MLD sewage treatment plant is built at a cost of Rs 33 crore and will treat sewage and other domestic effluents from 14 wards of the Ponda Municipal Council, the area surrounding Kamaxi Higher Secondary School at Curti and part of Kavlem panchayat," he said.The plant has missed several dates of commissioning. During early 2020, chief minister Pramod Sawant had announced that the project could be commissioned by mid-2020 but the work was delayed due to the pandemic. The plant is expected to free nullahs in Ponda of pollutants from domestic effluents by dwellings situated on the banks of the nullah. The nullah which was once a lifeline of Ponda, Kavlem, and Bandora has been contaminated due to effluents which have reached a dangerous level.

Ponda’s Rs 33 crore sewage plant misses another deadline
Vargao villagers confront armed poachers, send them packing
Times of India | 5 months ago | |
Times of India
5 months ago | |

Keri: The villagers of Vargao in Ponda taluka recently took it upon themselves to stop poaching activities in their area. Not only did they unitedly confront the poachers, but they also alerted the forest department officials about the illegal activity.Vargao and Khandola have large tracts of forested land and plateaus where sambar, mouse deer, wild boar, monitor lizards, and rabbits thrive. Of late, the villagers had begun noticing that these animals were being hunted for their meat and, in the case of monitor lizards, for their skin, meat, and blood. Locals said that they saw poachers coming with guns for many days and that, on Monday night, they decided to take it upon themselves to stop the illegal activity. The Vargao villagers got together, stopped the poachers, and issued them a stern warning. They also got the poachers to promise that they would never return to Vargao for poaching purposes again. They then contacted deputy conservator of forests, north division, Jiss Varkey, who assured to send his personnel to patrol the area to discourage poaching. “This incident is a very good example of how people can stop poaching. When government bodies fail to take action or safeguard wildlife from poachers, locals have to take things into their own hands. Sometimes, I think initiatives of the forest department, like anti-poaching mobile squads, are just on paper,” said Charan Desai, a wildlife enthusiast from Ponda.He alleged that poaching is allowed to happen due to political pressure and other vested interests.The Vargao villagers got together, stopped the poachers, and issued them a stern warning. They also got the poachers to promise that they would never return to Vargao for poaching again

Vargao villagers confront armed poachers, send them packing