Mapusa News

When firefighters risked Covid, live wires & floods in line of duty
Times of India | 1 day ago
Times of India
1 day ago

Panaji: This time last year the fire and emergency personnel doubly risked their lives in the line of duty as they battled the ravages of the Cyclone Tauktae knowing full well they were exposed to the risk of Covid-19, which at that time was at the peak of its second wave in the state and several thousands has succumbed to the virus. “Our fire station alone registered around 400 calls. People began queueing up and politicians began sitting in the office and pressuring us to send teams to their areas as trees had fallen on homes, roads and electrical infrastructure,” a fire station operator said. “We ourselves had power supply cut off for around three days. Our telephones and UPS backup went off and our wireless systems stopped and fire personnel used their personal numbers to communicate. It felt like war time. At the same time people were calling with requests to sanitise areas where there was an outbreak of Covid-19,” he added. The trees — mango, banyan, nilgiri, casuarina, gulmohar, tamarind, jackfruit — that the cyclone brought down were huge and took fire personnel two to three hours to cut. The cutter they handled itself weighed five kilograms. Fire personnel also took the assistance of private tree cutters. They worked closely with panchayats and municipalities as well as the electricity department, checking with them each time about live wires, etc. Such was the impact of the cyclone that the teams would set off to attend to a call but end up clearing the damage caused by several other fallen trees along their way to be able to reach their final destination. “We would be on our way to attend to calls when along the route people would stop our vehicle and ask for help. The difference between this and other cyclones was that we had to be on our toes all the time. We managed to tackle it because of team work. Without that nothing would have been possible,” firefighter Sairaj Naik said. Blocked roads meant that it took firefighter Richard Trindade two hours to reach the Mapusa fire station to report for duty from Pernem, which was otherwise a 45-minute journey for him. Fire personnel got injured on the job, requiring stitches and other treatment. Many said it was not possible to carry out the strenuous work of clearing trees off roads, houses and power infrastructure and rescuing people from inundated areas with their masks on continuously. In one incident, with the rains and winds continuing, the branch of a tree came crashing down on the head and shoulders of one of Trinidade’s colleagues knocking the fire personnel unconscious for a few minutes while they were attending to another tree fall case. “He didn’t know what had happened and was taken by surprise. If he wasn’t wearing a helmet he would have been seriously injured,” Trindade said. In rescue operations from flood hit areas, some seniors were not ready to leave their homes and needed lots of convincing, he added. The Mapusa fire station that looked after almost the entire North coastal belt, which was badly affected, was kept on its toes. Some firefighters like Shaylesh G Tari were on leave, but all leaves were cancelled as the damage was too much to handle and they were all asked to report on duty early morning. “We may have cut up and cleared around 200 fallen trees during that week. We had handled cyclones earlier, but this one caused widespread damage to people’s property and electrical equipment. In addition, we tackled rain, heavy wind and Covid while on the job,” he said. Fire personnel worked overtime and even stayed over at the fire station for days to be able to attend to all the calls. Leading firefighter Vishnu B Gawas said his family was left worried each time he returned home from duty and prayed he wouldn’t carry Covid into the home where there were elderly and children. “It was a big risk working during the second wave, but we had to take it. We didn’t know when we would be the next casualty of Covid, but we were proud to do our job and provide service to society. Our teams even crossed the Maharashtra border and went into Muneri from Dodamarg to help and we enjoyed our work,” he said. During rescue operations at flood hit areas in Revora and Pernem, firefighters also risked entering water bodies during the day and night to rescue stranded people even as the fear of encountering crocodiles loomed large. “Our families don’t always know the kind of risks we take and we don’t tell them. It’s only when we are felicitated or when our efforts are reported that they find out much later and gain new respect for their husbands, fathers, brothers,” Gawas said.

When firefighters risked Covid, live wires & floods in line of duty
Atal Setu report: IIT-Madras seeks more core samples
Times of India | 1 week ago
Times of India
1 week ago

Panaji: IIT-Madras, which has been roped in by the Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC) to study the defects in the 5.1-km long cable-stayed Atal Setu, has requested for four additional core samples. GSIDC will extract the 100mm core samples from the bridge’s tarmac and send them to Chennai for analysis. The corporation’s officials expect IIT-Madras to submit the preliminary report by May-end. Unable to prevent the frequent potholes on the Atal Setu, the state government had turned to IIT-Madras in July last year for answers. Chief minister Pramod Sawant had said that the institute would study the reason why the bitumen fails to adhere with the span of the bridge, after which L&T — the company that constructed the bridge — will be asked to take corrective measures. While the GSIDC has started interim repairs on the bridge, a permanent solution will be possible only after IIT Madras submits its report and findings. Potholes have become a common occurrence on the bridge, which has been built at a cost of Rs 581 crore. Though inaugurated in January 2019, the Atal Setu remains incomplete and the GSIDC has yet to issue a completion certificate to L&T. With a five-year defect liability period mentioned in the contract, L&T has been repairing the Atal Setu without any cost to the exchequer. Recently, at least six vehicles were damaged in accidents on the Atal Setu because of the potholes that mar the bridge. Given the spate of accidents, it is no surprise that some motorists have decided to avoid the bridge. Panaji resident Arun Baba Naik recently took to social media to announce that he would no longer use the bridge for his commute to Mapusa. “Looking at two accidents in two days on Atal Setu, I have decided not to use this bridge to go or come back from Mapusa,” said Naik.

Atal Setu report: IIT-Madras seeks more core samples
Barricades in Mapusa market removed after ire
Navhind Times | 1 week ago
Navhind Times
1 week ago

Staff ReporterMapusaTraders in the Mapusa municipal market on Tuesday objected to installation of barricades at the entry point and charging of fees for parking.They demanded that the municipality should take stakeholders into confidence before taking such decisions. Paying heed to the issues raised by the traders, the MMC removed the barricades.On Tuesday morning, the situation had turned chaotic as four-wheelers were not allowed inside the market due to the barricades that were installed.The traders also alleged that the contractor was charging people who were entering the market in the name of pay parking.Trader Ashish Shirodkar said that only pay parking contract has been given and it is wrong to charge entry fee from vehicle owners. Such a decision was taken without taking stakeholders into confidence by the MMC, he claimed.Following complaints from traders, chairman of the municipal market committee Viraj Phadke rushed to the market and asked the market inspectors to remove the barricades. He said that people will be charged only parking fees and notentry fee.Chief officer Sitaram Sawal said that after discussion with the contractor it was suggested to install barricades at entry points to control vehicular movement, however it was alleged that the contractor was charging. “After having a discussion with the merchant committee, we have decided to hold inspection of the market and then decide accordingly,” said Sawal.Meanwhile, the mango vendors conducting business in Mapusa market on Tuesday called on the municipal market committee chairman Phadke and requested him not to shift them to the fish market.These vendors conduct business in the market only during the mango season. They mostly occupy the lanes opposite the J K Wines Stores. This has been going on for several years, however this time the vendors were told that the municipality wants to shift them to the fish market area.Not pleased by this, the vendors approached Phadke and Ashirwad Khorjuvekar with a request to allow them to operate from theexisting space.They said they are in the market doing business only for two months given the seasonal nature of the fruit and that they do not cause trouble to anyone.Chairman of the municipal market committee Phadke said that outsiders come and do whatever they want. “We submitted our report to the chief officer to take action against these people as local vendors are getting affected,” he said.

Barricades in Mapusa market removed after ire
Released just 3 days back, trio held again for theft
Navhind Times | 1 week ago
Navhind Times
1 week ago

The accused had targeted offices in MapusaMapusa: A trio released on bail from the Central jail at Colvale just three days back has been re-arrested by the Mapusa police for theft of three mobile phones and cash of `70,000 from an office located in a private building in Mapusa. Police have recovered the mobile phones and cash of Rs16,000 from Ramesh Wadar (37), Sanjay Bane (26), Mohammad Shaikh (28), all natives of Karnataka.Police will write to the concerned police station to cancel bails of the three who were earlier arrested in a theft case.It may be recalled that on Thursday, one Babal Dhargalkar had lodged a complaint about theft from his office and three other offices located on the second floor of a private building at Morod in Mapusa. Police had said that the accused had decamped with three mobile phones and cash of `25,000 all worth `70,000.In this connection, Mapusa police had registered an offence against an unknown person and had started investigation.During the course of investigation, a police team gained reliable information and apprehended the three accused at Mapusa.During interrogation, the trio admitted to their involvement in the theft and they were placed under arrest.Sources said that similar thefts were reported in a private building two years back which went unreported and there is possibility that the trio might have committed them. Mapusa police is further investigating the case.

Released just 3 days back, trio held again for theft
Goa: Complaint against opposition leader, wife for Parra illegal land filling
Times of India | 2 weeks ago
Times of India
2 weeks ago

PANAJI: The North Goa Planning and Development Authority (NGPDA) on Monday filed a complaint against leader of the opposition Michael Lobo and his wife and Siolim MLA Delilah at Mapusa police station in connection with alleged land filling at Parra. Mapusa police inspector Paresh Naik said that they are conducting an inquiry into the complaint and no FIR has been registered yet. Earlier in the day town and country planning (TCP) minister Vishwajit Rane tweeted, “In violation of the Section 17A & 17B of the TCP Act, 1974, an FIR has been filed against Michael Lobo and his wife Delilah Lobo for landfilling and tree cutting in Parra. The Congress party’s vision for destruction of the state of Goa will never be a reality.” Later at night, Rane again tweeted, “An FIR has been filed against Michael Lobo & Delilah Lobo for violation of Section 17A & Section 17B. However, the FIR has been pending for registration with Paresh Naik, PI Mapusa.” Denying the charges, Lobo said, “This is nothing but politics of revenge.” NGPDA assistant engineer Vikram Tengse said, “The authority was in receipt of letter from deputy town planner, TCP department Mapusa, enclosing complaint received from Rama Ganesh Matondkar stating that his property bearing survey No. 10/8 of Parra village and access to his field bearing survey No. 10/15 and 10/20 blocked by Michael Lobo and Delilah Lobo.” “Accordingly the site was inspected by undersigned on September 7, 2021 and noticed that property bearing survey No 10/8 and 10/10 of Parra village is filled up to adjoining road level and mud filling is done of 4m width approximately in survey No. 10/9 of Parra village without taking permission under Section 17-A of Town & Country Planning Act 1974,” Tengse said. He said that Matondkar had filed writ petition before the high court against said land filling. “The high court directed to this authority to take action in terms of the law based on the prima facie material in the form of check list/inspection report of the flying squad,” Tengse said. The NGPDA said, “Requested to file FIR against Michael Lobo and Delilah resident of Bhatti Vaddo, Parra, Bardez, Goa for filling mud in low-lying paddy field bearing survey No. 10/8, 9, 10 of Parra village under Section 17-B of the Town & Country Planning Act 1974.”

Goa: Complaint against opposition leader, wife for Parra illegal land filling
Lobo, wife face heat over alleged land filling
Navhind Times | 2 weeks ago
Navhind Times
2 weeks ago

NGPDA files police complaint against them over Parra propertyPanaji/Mapusa: The North Goa Planning and Development Authority (NGPDA) on Monday filed a complaint with the Mapusa police against Opposition leader Michael Lobo and his MLA wife Delilah Lobo over the alleged land filling at Parra in Bardez taluka.However, Town and Country Planning Minister Vishwajit Rane maintained that “in violation of the Section 17A and 17B of TCP Act, 1974, an FIR has been filed against Michael Lobo and his wife Delilah Lobo for land filling and tree-cutting at Parra”.The NGPDA asked the police to register an FIR against the Opposition leader and Delilah Lobo under Section 17-B of the Town and Country Planning Act, 1974 for illegally filling mud in a low-lying paddy field bearing survey number 10/8, 9, 10 at Parra.Michael Lobo is Congress’ Calangute MLA, while his wife represents Siolim constituency forthe Congress. Michael Lobo refuted the charges made in the letter claiming that the property shown in the photographs posted on the social media by the TCP Minister is not owned by them, and that Rane is trying to defame them.On March 17, 2022, the NGPDA issued a show-cause notice to the Lobo couple in this matter.Assistant engineer of the NGPDA Vikram Tengse in his letter to police inspector of Mapusa police station stated that the authority was in receipt of a letter on November 11, 2020 from deputy town planner of town and country planning department, Mapusa from Rama Matondkar, which stated that access to his property has been blocked by the Lobos.“Accordingly the site was inspected on September 7, 2021 and noticed that property bearing survey number 10/8 and 10/10 of Parra village is filled up to adjoining road level and mud filling is done of 4.00 mts width approximately in survey number 10/9 of Parra village without taking permission under section 17A of TCP act, 1974,” it stated.The letter further said that Matondkar had filed a writ petition before High Court against the said land filling upon which the court directed to the authority on March 2, 2022 to take action in terms of the law based on the prima facie material in the form of inspection report of a flying squad.“In view of the above, you are kindly requested to file (an) FIR against Michael Lobo and Delilah Lobo, residents of Bhatti Vaddo, Parra Bardez for filling mud in (a) low-lying paddy field bearing survey number 108, 9, and 10 of Parra village under Section 17B of TCP Act, 1974,” said the letter addressed to the police inspector.Reacting to the Michael Lobo’s statement, Rane tweeted, “Why is the term land mafia offensive to Lobo?”“I would like to draw the attention of the leader of Opposition to the fact – there are one PIL, 10 civil appeals, 3 PILs and 60 civil appeals in the court, of which 30 miscellaneous appeals have been dismissed,” Rane maintained.He also alleged that mangroves and saltpans have been converted, and a petition has been filed in this regard.The Opposition leader should not look upon the development as a political witch hunt, but rather as an act of cleansing of all illegalities committed in Calangute and Candolim, the TCP Minister said.“Experts will scrutinise all the matters and everything will be revealed in the next 60 days,” he added.Taking still yet another dig at the Lobos, Rane in his tweet asked: why would so many people petition the court if everything was in line? Isn’t it responsible governance to take cognisance and pause on sub judice matters?There is a similar case of 90,000 sq. mt. of land in survey number 92 of Marra village purchased by an influential person, Rane claimed.“The area is under natural cover and illegally converted as an ‘outline development plan’ for settlement. We will submit this to the committee for review. Such transgressions will not be tolerated,” he said.Addressing at a press conference at Parra, the Opposition leader said that he will meet the Chief Minister Pramod Sawant over the issue and will write a letter to him.He said the TCP Minister posted on social media wrong photographs over the issue of the alleged land filling and hill-cutting.“…My property is being developed as a farm after taking all permission from all authorities. We want to grow vegetables which will be used for our restaurant and hotels and not undertake any construction. It looks like we are being targeted for being in Opposition,” the Calangute MLA stated.“He (Rane) is trying to target me at the behest of someone. He wants to show somebody that he is a capable minister to handle the Opposition. This is political revenge. Rane wants to become holier than cow,” Opposition leader maintained.AICC incharge of Goa desk Dinesh Gundu Rao said the filing of the complaint against Michael Lobo and Delilah Lobo is an act of vindictive politics by the TCP Minister.“You have got an opportunity to govern Goa again for 5 more years; use that period judiciously; don’t use it to settle scores,” Rao tweeted.

Lobo, wife face heat over alleged land filling
Mapusa’s Our Lady of Miracles feast celebrated
Navhind Times | 2 weeks ago
Navhind Times
2 weeks ago

NT BUZZA fortnight after Easter, Mapusa celebrates the feast of Our Lady of Milagres (Miracles). Always celebrated on a Monday the feast is celebrated at St Jerome’s Church after nine days of novenas. On May 2, the city of Mapusa came alive for the festivities of Milagres Saibinn who was originally known as Nossa Senhora de Todos os Bens (Our Lady of All Blessings)People from across the state, especially Hindus, also come to venerate and pay obeisance to Milagres Saibinn, who is known from grantingmiracles.While praying to Our Lady, people offer candles, oil, money, parts of human body made out of wax, and even sarees. There are two statues kept for veneration for 15 days, to allow those who wish to pay their obeisance to visit them, before they are moved inside the church.There are people who also vow to beg for alms, with a coconut shell ‘kotti’ in their hands on the feast day. The money collected is used to buy oil, candles or whatever vowed by the devotee- “Hanv borim zalim zalear, bhik magon Tuji angonn farik kortellim”-is the promise made. Oil is also poured on the statue of Our Lady that is kept for veneration, generally by Hindus.According to folklore, Milagres is one of the seven sisters who converted to the Catholic religion. Another sister who was converted is the patron of the chapel of Our Lady of Remedios in Cansaulim. The other sisters are worshipped in different temples. These are Lairai at Shirgao, Mhamai at Mayem, Kelbai at Mulgao, Monai at Morjim, Mahalsa at Mardol. The youngest sister apparently committed Sati.Another interesting tradition of the past would be the ‘ojem’, gifts sent by the two sisters, Lairai and Milagres, to each other. While Lairai would send one pot of oil, Milagres would send a basket of flowers (mogrim). These gifts were sent on the day of the feast and the zatra respectively. This time the zatra of Lairai will begin on Thursday.Despite the heat, people were seen thronging for mass on Monday in the Church premises. The last two years, due to the pandemic, saw the feast being celebrated on a very low scale withoutmuch pomp.

Mapusa’s Our Lady of Miracles feast celebrated
Dempo end decade-long wait for state league title
Times of India | 2 weeks ago
Times of India
2 weeks ago

Mapusa: Dempo Sports Club tasted success after more than a decade as they emerged champions in the Goa Pro League to win their 16th state league title. Dempo defeated Sesa FA 2-1 to top the league stages of the GFA President’s Super League at the Duler Football Stadium in Mapusa, on Sunday. One of the country's most successful clubs with five national titles, Dempo were last crowned the state league champions in 2011 when they were India’s best football team. “I am very happy and humbled that Dempo SC has won the Goa Pro League after some years. This is all due to the efforts of our players, support staff and especially our chief coach Samir Naik,” said chairman Shrinivas Dempo. Dempo won the I-League in the 2011-12 season which was their fifth national crown. The club, however, opted out of the I-League in 2016 in protest against the All India Football Federation’s roadmap for Indian football that saw ISL being made the top-tier league, while I-League was relegated to the second tier. Other Goan clubs like Salgaocar FC and Sporting Club de Goa also pulled out. Since then, Dempo have gone on to focus entirely on youth development and set up their very own residential academy in Old Goa in 2017. They are now reaping the rewards. “It is satisfying that we had six players from our academy in the team this season,” said Dempo. Dempo scored two goals in the first half through Klusner Pereira’s well executed curling 30-yard free kick in the fourth minute and a simple tap-in by Aman Govekar (41’) after a defensive error was enough for the league leaders to see off Sesa. Dempo gathered 33 points from 15 matches and have one game in hand against Sporting Clube de Goa. In another match, Salgaocar defeated FC Goa’s developmental side 2-1 at Salvador do Mundo panchayat ground. They now have 28 points, while Sesa have 25 points from 15 matches.

Dempo end decade-long wait for state league title
Must boost network of officers to tackle dengue, malaria
Times of India | 3 weeks ago
Times of India
3 weeks ago

Panaji: Several suggestions, including keeping a watch on the Mapusa municipal market and undertaking ward-wise mapping of high-risk areas in village panchayats and municipal jurisdictions, were discussed at a meeting of the Bardez block committee held to control vector-borne diseases. At the meeting, chaired by deputy collector Sneha Gitte at the government office complex in Mapusa, the committee called for intersectoral coordination and strengthening the network of nodal teachers/officers and their effectiveness to prevent and control vector-borne diseases. The labour department was asked to inform of new labourers entering the state. Listing of registered labour contractors and data management of healthcards issued to migrant construction workers, along with review of compliance of licence/NOC display boards at all construction sites were also discussed. It was decided to put up posters and paintings educating people about vector-borne diseases at the Mapusa market. The committee also called for activating water and sanitation, garbage management committees as well as village health and sanitation, and nutrition committees. Meanwhile, dengue cases that surfaced in Dattagad, Bethora a few weeks ago are on the decline, and there are no new clusters in the state, the health department has stated. In view of the pre-monsoon showers, the department is appealing to the public to prevent any kind of water stagnationin the vicinity of their homes as well as inside the houses. “Even 5 ml of water is sufficient for the Aedes Aegypti mosquito, which spreads dengue, to breed,” the department stated. Dengue cases in Dattagad, that began emerging in the beginning of April, were caused as residents began storing water in open containers due to restricted supply, thereby leading to breeding of mosquitoes.

Must boost network of officers to tackle dengue, malaria
Kiran blames I-PAC for poll losses, quits TMC
Times of India | 3 weeks ago
Times of India
3 weeks ago

Panaji: The churn in TMC continued with state party president Kiran Kandolkar quitting the party on Wednesday. Kandolkar blamed poll strategist Prashant Kishor and the Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) for the party’s debacle in the state assembly elections. TMC’s candidates for Mapusa, Siolim and Porvorim also quit the party along with Kandolkar, saying that they saw no hope for the party in Goa. All of them said that their supporters and workers had asked them to ditch the TMC. TMC’s Mapusa candidate Tarak Arolkar, Porvorim candidate Sandeep Vazarkar, Siolim candidate Leo Dias Aldona panch member Rajesh Pirankar and former Aldona sarpanch Deepak Naik quit the TMC along with their supporters. Three days earlier, 32 TMC members quit. Kandolkar challenged Kishor’s claim that he was not involved in the state legislative assembly elections and said that Kishor’s main objective was to defeat Congress and permit BJP to win. “I feel that Kishor came to Goa only to blackmail Congress and to divide the opposition vote,” Kandolkar said. “He wanted to show Congress that they should not take him lightly. He was using Goa to show Congress the kind of damage he can do. If he came to Goa, he came to help BJP win not to defeat them. Kishor distanced himself from Goa’s polls well before the elections and claimed that he was in Goa just for a holiday. However, TMC Rajya Sabha MP Luizinho Faleiro clearly stated that Kishor played an instrumental role in convincing him to leave Congress and join TMC. Kandolkar said that he has held 17-18 meetings with Kishor about election strategy. “If anybody has failed, it is not TMC or the candidates, it is I-PAC. And I-PAC was steered by Prashant Kishor and he is the one who misled Goa, the voters and everyone. I am making an allegation against Prashant Kishor, let him clarify,” Kandolkar said. Despite a media blitz and grand promises, TMC failed to win a single seat. Kandolkar said that in hindsight he realised that he and other party workers made a mistake. “We were quiet for many days but we have finally made our decision because we know that there is no future for TMC in Goa. I spoke to AITC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee. It was a one-hour-long meeting and I realised that TMC does not have any clear plans for Goa.”

Kiran blames I-PAC for poll losses, quits TMC
Kiran Kandolkar quits TMC
Navhind Times | 3 weeks ago
Navhind Times
3 weeks ago

Staff ReporterMapusaAll India Trinamool Congress’ Goa unit president Kiran Kandolkar along with the party’s three candidates in the recent state assembly polls and workers on Wednesday resigned from the party.Kandolkar held political strategist Prashant Kishor responsible for the defeat of the party in Goa and said that instead he helped BJP to win the elections.Addressing media persons, Kandolkar, in the presence of the party’s Mapusa, Siolim and Porvorim candidates Tarak Arolkar, Leo Dias, and Sandip Vazarkar respectively, panchayat members and other party workers, announced about his exit from TMC as he had resigned from its primary membership along with others in Mapusa. Kandolkar said that the decision was taken after consulting his supporters.Stating that the TMC has no future in Goa, Kandolkar said, “I don’t blame TMC but hold Prashant Kishor responsible for the humiliating defeat in Goa as the party had given responsibility to him. He may be the biggest political strategist but he has failed in Goa.”He further said, “Prashant Kishor’s entire strategy has failed. First Aleixo Reginaldo had joined but he failed to retain him in the party which was a loss for us. Secondly, he failed to bring Mamata Banerjee to Goa during the last leg of election while another party’s national leader had come and campaigned in Goa.”Kandolkar further said that Kishor came to Goa to blackmail the Congress party and Sonia Gandhi adding, “He wanted to show that if he is not taken then he would reduce the Congress vote share.The opposition was divided so BJP is ruling with 33% of vote share while 67% vote share was divided for which the opposition and Prashant Kishor is responsible. He eventually ended up helping BJP to form government again in Goa.”Replying to a question whether he had made a mistake, Kandolkar said, “We did what we felt was right at that time. It’s human to commit a mistake. We did commit a mistake.”Kandolkar also accused IPAC Company of cheating Goans and said, “Huge bills of taxi drivers, volunteers who were employed during polls, printers, hoarding and others were not paid.”Kandolkar further said that the opposition parties have failed to unite which has resulted in victory of BJP.Commenting about his future plans, Kandolkar said that he would work for people as an independent and not float a new party.It may be recalled that on Tuesday, Colvale ZP and Tivim candidate Kavita Kandolkar, who is Kiran’s wife, along with 32 supporters, had resigned from the party.

Kiran Kandolkar quits TMC
  • Kavita Kandolkar quits TMC
  • Navhind Times

    Party to restructure Goa state committeePanaji: On a day when Colvale Zilla Panchayat member Kavita Kandolkar, a member of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) party and wife of Goa TMC president Kiran Kandolkar, quit the party along with all her supporters from the Thivim constituency, the All India Trinamool Congress announced on Monday that it has decided to restructure the entire Goa state committee with immediate effect.Kavita Kandolkar was also a candidate of the TMC party during the recently-held Goa Assembly polls. She has resigned from the primary membership of TMC, along with sarpanchas, panchayat members and her supporters. She has submitted her resignation letter to the Goa TMC president.Kandolkar said she took the step following pressure from her supporters, as the Mamata Banerjee-led party was not accepted by the people of Goa at the Assembly polls.She also said that I-PAC and its then mentor Prashant Kishor had failed to fulfill the promises made before the elections on behalf of TMC.“People who have not been paid their money for various services during the elections were coming to my residence asking for the pending dues. This is also one of the reasons why I quit the party,” she said.Meanwhile, the TMC has said that it has decided to restructure the Goa state executive committee with immediate effect. “A newly-constituted ad hoc committee will be announced shortly,” the party tweeted. “We take this opportunity to reiterate our solemn commitment towards working for the people of Goa and their well-being,” the party said.

Complete Paikul bridge on priority
Times of India | 3 weeks ago
Times of India
3 weeks ago

Panaji: Chief minister Pramod Sawant on Tuesday reviewed ongoing projects taken up by the Goa Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC), and directed that they be completed on time. He also asked GSIDC to complete the Paikul bridge in Valpoi, which was washed out due to floods, on priority. Sawant held a board meeting and reviewed a total of 51 projects, each of which costs a minimum of Rs 5 crore. The total cost of the projects he reviewed is around Rs 300 crore.The projects include construction of the district court in Merces, Tar bridge in Mapusa, Kala Bhavan in Sancoale, Ravindra Bhavans in Curchorem and Canacona, Paikul bridge in Valpoi, the terminal building of the captain of ports in Panaji, the pedestrian bridge at Patto and Bhoma market complex, among others. “We have not taken up any new projects, but ongoing projects, including those related to health and schools, will be completed. I have issued instructions to make financial provisions to complete the projects,” Sawant said.

Complete Paikul bridge on priority
  • Completion of Paikul-Valpoi bridge to get priority
  • Navhind Times

    Special CorrespondencePanajiChief Minister Pramod Sawant, who held the first meeting of the Board of Directors of the Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC), on Tuesday decided to review all the ongoing projects and those taken up under the GSIDC, in order to complete them as per the schedule.In all, 51 projects were reviewed at the meeting, with every project having a minimum cost of ` 5 crore. The collective cost of these projects is approximately ` 300 crore.Some of the important projects reviewed at the meeting were the construction of the district court at Merces, the Tar bridge in Mapusa, Kala Bhavan in Sancoale, Ravindra Bhavans in Curchorem and Canacona, Paikul bridge in Valpoi that was damaged due to the floods, the terminal building of the Captain of Ports in the city, the pedestrian bridge at Patto and Bhoma market complex.It was decided at the meeting to complete the Paikul bridge on priority. This bridge over the Ragada river in Sattari taluka was washed away in the unprecedented floods witnessed on July 23, 2021, and was subsequently replaced by a temporary footbridge.“New major projects have not yet been taken up, while the ongoing projects including those related to health, bridges, schools, and so on will be completed fast,” the Chief Minister stated, pointing out, “Due financial provision has been made for the same.”Later replying to a question, the Chief Minister told the pressmen that the Mapusa MLA Joshua D’Souza is not upset with the post of the GSIDC vice-chairman given to him. “D’Souza will take charge of the post soon,” headded.Incidentally, D’Souza has not taken charge of the post and was absent at themeeting.

Despite pre-monsoon works, power outages continue
Navhind Times | 3 weeks ago
Navhind Times
3 weeks ago

Staff ReporterPanajiEven thoughpre-monsoon works are being undertaken by the electricity department to avoid any inconvenience during the rains, Goans had to struggle on Monday night after a thunderstorm accompanied by gusty winds and heavy rain hit parts of the state, leading to the snapping ofelectricity lines.The thunderstorm was witnessed in Mandrem in Pernem, while other parts of the state received light rain. However, this led to major power outages across the North Goa district. Residents of Porvorim said they suffered for nearly six hours, with power that was cut around 10 p.m. on Monday being restored only around 3.30 a.m. on Tuesday. Mapusa residents said power was restored at 4.30 a.m.In Pernem taluka, which witnessed the thunderstorm, people said electricity is yet to be restored. Until Tuesday evening, many households in the taluka complained they had no electricity.Residents of Sankhali and Bicholim said power was disrupted from 10 p.m on Monday to 12.30 a.m. on Tuesday, while in the interior area of Nanoda, many complained of spending the night without power supply.According to the electricity department, the gusty winds uprooted trees, which brought down a few electricity poles.Chief electrical engineer of the electricity department Stephen Fernandes said, “Power cables snapped mainly in Valpoi, Bicholim, Varca, Benaulim and Sankhali, resulting in damage to the 11 KV and 33 KV lines.” He said the repair work could not be carried out on Monday night due to safety issues. “Work commenced on a war-footing since morning. Engineers worked through the night to restore 50% power supply,” claimed Fernandes.On Tuesday evening, the department tweeted that 95% of the power has been restored in the jurisdiction of sub-division 3, Mapusa and work on erection of one electricity pole at Tambudki was in progress.The India Meteorological Department has predicted rain accompanied with gusty winds and lightning over Goa till Thursday, putting to test the electricity department’s pre-monsoon works.It may be noted that power is in short supply in the state presently due to the soaring summer temperatures and the sudden spike in demand from the industrial units.Fernandes said the state has already started purchasing additional power from the open market. “The department is buying anything between 90 MW and 100 MW per day presently to meet the demand,” he said.Meanwhile, a feed put out by the electricity department on its Twitter handle saying that the department itself has no lights was quickly removed after it went viral.

Despite pre-monsoon works, power outages continue
Voices in sync
Navhind Times | 4 weeks ago
Navhind Times
4 weeks ago

Crescendo Children’s Choir is organising Mercy Concert 2022 on April 24 and May 4 at St Xavier’s Basketball Court, Mapusa and Bom Jesus Basilica, Old Goa respectively. NT KURIOCITY learns moreRAMANDEEP KAUR | NT KURIOCITYThe Crescendo Children’s Choir was born out of the Crescendo Music School at St Xavier’s College, Mapusa.“We started this choir because we felt that it was incomplete with only instruments playing and no voices. We held auditions inviting young voices from Mapusa and around, and got a very good response,” shares choir director Fr Ramiro Luis.While joining the choir was free of cost, there was a clause – if the participants failed to be present for three sessions, they were asked to leave. “The children have improved their vocal range, confidence, and stage presence since they began training in November,” says Fr Luis.And now the choir is all set to have its first concert on April 24 and May 4 at St Xavier’s Basketball Court, Mapusa and Bom Jesus Basilica, Old Goa at 6:30 p.m., respectively.“The concert is about children rendering praises to God and since we are staging it on the day of the Feast of Divine Mercy we have titled it as Mercy Concert. We are having one of the performances at Old Goa as part of the celebration of 400th anniversary of St Francis Xavier’s canonisation,” says Fr Luis, who is also concept director for the concert. He adds that the choir will be singing tunes infive languages (Latin, English, Italian, Hindi ,and Konkani).The concert will have 67 children aged four to 16 who will be led by Raj Fernandes D’pietro, an ex army man who is currently an art teacher at St Michael’s Convent High School, Anjuna. Sharing his experience of training the children, D’pietro describes it as fun but challenging. “Kids are like soft clay. One can mould them the way it’s needed to make a masterpiece. They believe in you. This made me very comfortable in training them. Patience and spending time with them was key to train them,” says D’pietro, adding that the hope and confidence he saw in each child’s eyes boosted his morale. “The concert has a lot of variety. Some of the songs are common but I’ve tried to make it sound unique. So one has to witness it to experience it,” he adds. (The concert is free and open to all)

Voices in sync