Goa has opportunity to shape future infrastructure: Sawant

Times of India | 4 days ago | 22-09-2022 | 07:40 am

Panaji: While lauding the contributions of civil engineers, chief minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday sought inputs on offshore construction, flood mitigation measures and marine pollution. Sawant said that Goa aims to create sustainable and resilient infrastructure. Sawant also said that Goa has the required resources to shape future sustainable infrastructure. “Being a coastal state, we are facing many problems. First of all, the coastal region faces the threat of sea level rise because of climate change. We need a solution for tsunamis,” said Sawant. He was speaking at the 9th International Civil Engineering Conference in the Asian Region (CECAR9) organised by Asian Civil Engineering Coordinating Council (ACECC) and hosted by the Institution of Civil Engineers (India). He also said Goa depends on a coastal economy which needs niche solutions. “Tidal energy, offshore engineering and offshore construction... We want advanced solution for this purpose. We have the Coastal Regulatory Zone, and for this we need to come up with offshore constructions,” said Sawant. He also stressed on the need to curb and control marine pollution since Goa is dependent upon the Blue Economy. “If we control the marine pollution, only then can we sustain tourism and everything else. We want to save our environment and aspire to have a sustainable and resilient infrastructure for the future generations,” said the chief minister. He said that Goa has some of the oldest architectural and engineering structures that date back to the time of the Portuguese. He also made a strong pitch for Goa as an investment destination, with the state well connected through a port, two airports, a rail network and the road network. “We need to exploit the capacity so that can fasten growth,”the chief minister said.

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‘Improve sambar population to raise tiger numbers’

Times of India | 22 hours ago | 26-09-2022 | 08:53 am

Times of India

22 hours ago | 26-09-2022 | 08:53 am

PANAJI: Goa should focus on conserving and improving the population of sambar deer in its protected areas to help tiger conservation in the state. Sambar is the ideal prey for tigers, as it provides sufficient supply of meat for days and will allow tigers to stay and breed in Goa, said A J T Johnsingh, Padma Shri awardee, conservationist, and former dean of the Wildlife Institute of India. While subsequent ministers have often said that there are no ‘resident’ tigers in Goa and these big cats keep shifting base to the forests across the border, Johnsingh said proactive measures are required to get tigers to breed inside Goa’s protected areas. “Barking deer, spotted deer may not contribute to tiger conservation and gaurs tend to attack tigers. Sambar, once hunted, can be consumed for days. First, a detailed survey of the sambar population is required in Goa. There are sambars, but some years ago as many as 20 were poached. Sambar conservation in Goa is tiger conservation,” Johnsingh told TOI. He said the argument that a tiger reserve is not needed in Goa does not stand because though the state has almost 700sqkm of protected area, these have many human settlements within. “At least 150sqkm of core area is required with no human population. Any existing settlements should be rehabilitated. Simultaneously, efforts should be made to improve sambar population in the entire 700 sq km. And Goa will see results in five years’ time. Having a tiger reserve will earn Goa funds from the Centre for support staff, a good field director and vehicles to improve its protected areas,” said Johnsingh, who has helped shape the Wildlife Institute of India over his two-decade-long stint there. An interim cattle compensation policy is also vital for tiger conservation, Johnsingh said. “In Corbett, in the buffer area, more than 10,000 cattle have been killed over the years. But there is not a single report of tiger poisoning. This is because if Rs 20,000 is provided as cattle compensation to locals, Rs 5,000 of it is provided immediately as interim relief. Some wealthy persons from Goa should come forward to help with funds for such immediate relief in the interest of tiger conservation,” he said. Goa also needs more courageous forest officials, Johnsingh said. “We need forest officials who have courage to tell ministers what exactly is needed for Goa,” he said. Johnsingh also said Goa is not suitable for tiger safari focused tourism because of its terrain and other factors. “In Goa, one should focus on nature tourism, like birdwatching, reptile watching, amphibian watching, rather than tiger tourism,” he explained.

GFP questions jetty policy, calls it backdoor entry for offshore casinos

Times of India | 1 day ago | 26-09-2022 | 04:47 am

Times of India

1 day ago | 26-09-2022 | 04:47 am

Panaji: GFP on Sunday questioned if locals stand to benefit from the tourism department’s jetty policy. Party president Vijai Sardesai also asked if the state government would share revenue with the village panchayats.While agreeing that river transportation could ease traffic congestion, Sardesai made it clear that he saw the jetty policy as a step towards the introduction of offshore casinos in other parts of Goa.“I feel some issues remain ambiguous,” he said. “Once a cruise terminal comes into existence, how long will it take for offshore casinos to mushroom in other rivers across Goa?”To back his suspicions, Sardesai asked the government if it has data on the number of Goans employed in the local cruise sector. He also pointed out that the government has not shown a preference for locals while issuing licences for cruise boats and jetty operations or for jobs created by the sector.Sardesai said his party welcomes the importance being given to river transportation, which is in line with eminent architect Charles Correa’s vision. He said that if the state government is serious about water transportation and cruise tourism, it should promote Mormugao Port as a cruise ship terminal instead of a coal terminal.

Trinamool Spent Rs 47 Crore For Goa Polls, BJP Rs 17 Crore: Election Body

Ndtv | 1 day ago | 25-09-2022 | 11:19 am

Ndtv

1 day ago | 25-09-2022 | 11:19 am

Eyeing expansion, the Trinamool Congress had actively campaigned for the assembly elections in Goa.New Delhi: The Goa assembly elections were keenly fought with the Trinamool Congress and Aam Aadmi Party throwing their hats in the ring but when it came to poll expenditure, it was the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress that loosened its purse strings spending a whopping Rs 47.54 crore.The BJP, which retained power in Goa with Chief Minister Pramod Sawant at the helm, spent over Rs 17.75 crore towards election expenditure in the state.The Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP spent nearly Rs 3.5 crore in Goa, where it tried its luck for the second consecutive assembly elections.The details of the election expenditure were submitted by the respective political parties to the Election Commission recently.The Congress, which was hoping to dislodge the BJP from power in Goa, spent approximately Rs 12 crore on the Goa elections.The Nationalist Congress Party gave Rs 25 lakh each to the 11 candidates it had fielded for the elections, besides spending on the campaign from the party's central fund.The Shiv Sena, which fielded 10 candidates in the Goa elections, spent nearly Rs 92 lakh towards poll expenditure. Eyeing expansion, the Trinamool Congress had launched an election blitzkrieg in Goa with poll strategist Prashant Kishor playing a key role in trying to get the party a toehold in the state.The party fielded 23 candidates in the Goa assembly election but none of them won, while its ally Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party put up candidates in 13 seats and managed to win two.The AAP fielded 39 candidates and managed to open its account in the state by winning two seats.The Congress had cried foul at the entry of Trinamool Congress and the AAP in the electoral fray in Goa, accusing them of dividing the anti-BJP vote.The BJP won 20 seats in the 40-member assembly and formed the government with the support of two MGP MLAs and three Independent legislators.PromotedListen to the latest songs, only on JioSaavn.comEarlier this month, eight of the 11 Congress MLAs, including Leader of Opposition Michael Lobo and former chief minister Digambar Kamat, defected to the BJP.(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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

Times of India | 1 day ago | 25-09-2022 | 07:50 am

Times of India

1 day 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.

Man tries to enter club as CM’s brother, booked

Times of India | 2 days ago | 25-09-2022 | 04:46 am

Times of India

2 days ago | 25-09-2022 | 04:46 am

Panaji: The Porvorim police have booked an unidentified man, who introduced himself only as Dhairya, after he tried to enter a nightclub free of cost by claiming that he was the brother of chief minister Pramod Sawant. Although he was subsequently denied entry, he tried to forcefully enter the club. Sawant said he has instructed the police to nab the accused immediately.As per a complaint lodged before the police, a tall person called Dhairya, who had a strong build and fair complexion, and was dressed in a short-sleeved white shirt and trousers appeared at the entry counter of LPK Waterfront – a club that is located at Nerul – at around 12am on September 20. He claimed to be the brother of the chief minister in order to avoid being charged for entry into the club, the complaint stated. The club’s security in-charge, Pavan Rozer, said that the accused also promised ‘help’ in exchange for being let into the club. However, when he was denied entry, he attempted to use force to get into the club and even threatened the staff there with dire consequences, the complaint added.

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