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FromlApri 10th

2011

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, APRIL 17

Around 72 student sportsmenon their way to Chattisgarh torepresent the State of Goa wentthrough a harrowing experience,thanks to mismanagement bygovernment agencies.

Four sports teams athletics,basketball, hockey and bad-minton would be represent-ing the State in Chattisgarh fromMonday in the U-16 (under 16)national games. They have de-scribed their two-day journeyhorrible.

Few of the panicky studentscontacted Herald stating thatnone of their seats were re-served, contrary to claims bythe Sports Authority of Goa(SAG), who assured that theyhad booked confirmed tickets.

The student had boardedMandovi Express from Margaorailway station on April 16 andreached the Mumbai station at10pm. Before boarding theirconnected train Geetanjali Ex-press, to Chattisgarh at 6am on

Sunday, the team members wereshocked when they were in-formed that their berths werenot confirmed.

The students including girlsand other team members sleptovernight on the railway plat-form, before boarding the morn-ing train.

The SAG had booked ticketsfrom the tatkal quota. We weretold that all our seats were con-

firmed, only to realize later thatthe tickets were actually in thewaiting list, SAG coach memberNaneshwar, who is accompany-ing the team members alongwith other sports coaches, said.

The journey between Goa andMumbai was comfortable, butit wasnt the case further. If notall, we planned to adjust our-selves on few confirmed berths.But only six out of 72 seats were

confirmed, he said. The students, who reached

Chattisgarh at about 10pm onSunday, spend their travel sittingon the luggage, floor, in the cor-ners and even near the passageand main door, posing a riskthat they might be pulled outwith the speed of another trainor get squashed in the crowd.

The players spent their entirejourney shuttling between three

bogies in S-9, S-10 and S-11. We were not given clear in-

formation about our rail tickets.Only three seats were confirmedand we were facing hardships.The bogies were jam-packedno proper place to sit, JoshuaGeorge, a basketball player toldHerald over the phone.

The panic-stricken studentscontacted their parents in Goathat their journey was not as

good as they thought. Hi daddy. Please call. Ur-

gent! reads one of the text mes-sages, which was forwarded onthis reporters mobile phone.

We are sitting on our lug-gagestanding in the passage.It is embarrassing and a difficultsituation for all of us. Since thereis no space, other team mem-bers have occupied place nextto the toilet, said a badmintonplayer, who refused to identifyherself.

One of the concerned parentstold Herald that his son who isrepresenting the State in bas-ketball was not able to consumeeither liquid or solid food.

My son phone called me now(little after 10pm) informing thathe along with other team mateshave reached Chattisgarh. At thesame time he complained thathe did not eat anything through-out his journey and now he feelslike vomiting when eatingsaid the parent.

The team members are nowskeptical that they might have

to go through the same adver-sity on their return journey toGoa.

The students will be playingat Rajnanda Gao stadium fromMonday onwards for the nextnine days. It is becoming diffi-cult to even adjust among our-selves. We are not only panickybut also mentally and physicallydisturbed. This was unexpected.We are afraid it may affect ourperformance, Rameshwar, anathlete said.

SAG Executive Director V MPrabhudesai when contactedtold Herald that 45 of the total72 tickets were booked on themember of parliament and chiefministers quota. It is a her-culean task to get tickets in largenumbers at one time, and beingvacation months, it is chock-a-block situation. As it was difficultto get tickets, we booked itthrough MP and CMs quota,Prabhudessai said.

The tickets were booked byNehru Yuva Kendra (NYK), a

HARROWING TRAIN TRIP FOR GOA TEAMS

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, APRIL 17

The governments decision onthe floor of the legislative as-sembly sticking to status quoon the controversial medium ofinstruction appears is yet to befinalised.

In fact, the government is stillopen for further discussions anddebates on the issue, with astrong section within the Con-gress, led by Public Works De-partment Minister ChurchillAlemao, demanding a review ofthe status quo.

If Chief Minister DigambarKamat is to be believed, the gov-ernment is open for discussionsnot only with agitating groups,but all the stakeholders as well,including educationists and ex-perts.

Replying to a query whetherthe governments decision onthe medium of instruction im-broglio is final in the light ofdemands made by his ministerialcolleagues for a review, the chiefminister told Herald that thegovernment is open on the sub-ject. I have even told PWD Min-ister, Churchill Alemao to takeup the issue with the partyscentral leaders, Kamat said,adding that he is ready to leada delegation to New Delhi fordiscussions with party leaderson the issue, indicating that hehas apprised the party high com-mand on the controversy andthe demands for and againstEnglish as the medium of in-struction.

Incidentally, the Chief Min-ister admitted that theres op-position to English as themedium of instruction even in

the Congress fold. Apart fromopposition to English from theopposition parties, even a sec-tion of the Congress leadershipis opposed to making Englishas the medium of instruction,he said.

Asked whether theres a wayout in solving the issue to thesatisfaction of the agitating par-ents, the chief minister said thegovernment is ready to open adialogue not just with the groupdemanding English, but the op-ponents as well, including edu-cationists and experts.

Meanwhile, Alemao alongwith Congress MLAs support-ing English as the medium ofinstruction have decided tomeet and discuss the situationbefore calling on the chief min-ister.

Sources in the know said thatparty legislators supporting Eng-lish as the medium of instructionwere scheduled to meet on Sun-day. Alemao, when contacted,however, said the legislators willmeet soon and convey their de-cision to the chief minister toreview the governments deci-sion.

In another development, for-mer Tourism Minister and Be-naulim MLA Mickky Pacheco hassaid that he would soon call ameeting of agitating parents todiscuss the issue and to chalkout the future course of action.A group of parents from myconstituency have called on melast week and demanded actionin support of English. I have de-cided to call a meeting of theparents in Betalbatim to chalkout the future course of action,he said.

Chapter onmedium notyet closed

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, APRIL 17

The trouble for the private busoperators in the State, whostruck pressing for various de-mands, is far from over.

The State Transport Depart-ment has decided to issue showcause notices to around 150owners of private buses thatwere off the road on Friday as apart of statewide strike callgiven by All Goa Private BusOwners Association (AGPBOA).

Transport Director Arun Desaisaid that the department is inprocess of verifying the numberof buses that attended the strikeand the list will be out by Mon-day morning.

Till date we have identified150 such buses, whose ownerswill be issued show cause no-tices will be issued on Monday,he said adding that maximumbuses are from Mapusa andPonda.

Desai said that as per ADTsreport, most of the bus opera-tors in South Goa preferred to

remain away from the strike. Director said that inspite of

prior warning, the buses re-mained off the road. The deci-s ion over cancel lat ion oftemporary permits would betaken after they reply to theirnotices, he said.

A day long strike was calledin the state under the bannerof AGPBOA on April 15. Thoughthe strike received a mixed re-sponse, the bus operatorsclaimed that the strike was asuccess, with 90 percent busesremaining off road.

The bus operators later calledoff their strike, which wastermed as indefinite, citing as-surance from the transport

No halt to woes of pvt bus operators

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, APRIL 17

An eyesore at Sinquerim-Can-dolim beach, River Princess, willbe cleared off by January, nextyear, if the monsoons does notprolong its date with Goa.

Tourism Department officialssaid that 40 per cent of theships upper portion has alreadybeen cut and now the lower por-tion, which comprises of smallerplates, is being separated.

Mumbai-based Arihant ShipBreakers have been awarded thecontract to cut down this shipand remove it from the coast,where it had run aground almost12 years back.

Tourism Director SwapnilNaik said that if monsoon is notdelayed then the entire ship willbe cleared by January, 2012.

He said that the company willhave to remove it within 180working days which excludes

the monsoon period when seais choppy and breaking work isnot possible.

The work officially began onMarch 14 and it is expected tocontinue till May 14 before mon-soon sets in. Naik said that dur-ing monsoons, the work will beshut only to be restarted in Sep-tember.

The State government willhave to pay Rs 99 crore for Ari-hant to break and carry awaythe ship in scrap form. Goa willalso have to bear liability oftaxes. The only earning is from

the va lue o fscrap, which would be deductedfrom the payments made to Ar-ihant.

Naik said that after deductionand total calculation, the Stategovernment will have to bear aliability of Rs 85 crore on thisship.

Naik said that the real chal-lenge would be to cut the por-t ion of the sh ip which i sunderwater, which is a tedioustask and may consume time.The ship after being strandedat the coast for more then adecade has sunk 8 metres in thewater from behind while itsfrontal portion is 5 metres inthe sea: he added saying thatthe contractor will have to em-ploy divers and under water cut-ting gadgets to remove thisvessel completely from theshore.

Princess may go by January next year

HERALD REPORTER

VASCO, APRIL 17

After a two-day shutdown in op-erations, normalcy returned tothe Mormugao Port Trust (MPT),as the berths in the port com-menced operations late Satur-day night.

Iron ore-loaded barges alongwith crew, which were strandedfor the last two days, rushed to-wards the mechanical ore han-dling plant (MOHP). Besides,other berths were also in oper-ation and two mooring dol-phins, which were blocked, wereseen unloading iron-ore loadedbarges.

However, few iron ore loadedbarges are still stranded andwaiting for their turns to unloadtheir ore.

Kharewado Affected People(KAP) and Goa Fishing Boat Own-ers Association (GFBOA) willmeet Chief Minister DigambarKamat on Monday to ensure thattheir demands, accepted by theState government and the portauthority are fulfilled.

Earlier, Fr Bismark Dias, whois leading KAP delegates, said

they have kept their strike inabeyance, as the governmentand port have accepted theirdemands.

We are waiting for the min-utes of the meeting. Whateveris discussed in the meetingshould reflect in the minutes. Ifthe State administration triesto delay and backtrack its prom-

ises, then we will resume ourstrike, said Fr Dias while ad-dressing the media on Saturdaynight.

The demands are met andthough the agitation was non-political, the entire cabinetalong with the opposition cametogether to resolve the issue.We thank them for their sup-port, added Fr Dias.

Edwin Carvalho of Goa Fish-ing Boat Owners Associationsaid: We will meet Chief Min-ister Digambar Kamat on Mon-day to ensure that assurancesgiven to us are implemented intoto.

Fishing trawlers commencedoperating on Sunday morning,while the fish market which wasclosed for the last two days also

started functioning, said Car-valho.

Meanwhile, Kamat will leadall party delegation to the UnionShipping Ministry on the issuerelated to jurisdiction of MPTon April 20.

The State government willpitch in for the deletion of cer-tain areas like Kharewado fromthe MPTs jurisdiction. The lo-cals have demanded that theport be restricted upto berthnumber 11.

During the meeting held onSaturday to break the ice be-tween the MPT managementand KAP, Kamat had assured thatthe Union Shipping Ministrysintervention would be soughtto curtail MPTs jurisdiction.

Kharewado cools; meet with Centre on Wed

CD involving father cut-paste

job: Prashant PTI

NEW DELHI, APRIL

The war over an alleged CD in-volving eminent lawyer ShantiBhushan intensified today withhis son Prashant claiming thedisc was doctored using 2006conversations of Mulayam SinghYadav and said he will moveSupreme Court on the groundit was intended to influencejudgements in 2G and AmarSingh tape cases.

The whole thing is a cut andpaste job, sa id PrashantBhushan, who along with his fa-ther are members of the LokpalBill joint drafting committee.

Claiming that the forensicanalysis done by an US expertGeorge Papcun and Hyderabad-based Truth Labs had shownthat the CD has multiple gapsand signs of electronic editingat very very critical places,Prashant Bhushan said thisshowed a very very ominousconspiracy with the blessingsof many powerful people includ-ing corporates and politiciansto derail judicial proceedings.

Amid a demand for removalof Shanti Bhushan, who is theco-chairman drafting commit-tee, over the CD controversy,

social activist Anna Hazaresaid he should remain on thepanel but action should be takenagainst him if found guity.

If found guilty, he deservesto be punished but if not, he isinnocent. How can I give a guar-antee about any person. I gotto know him only because ofthis committee.

THE RAIL JOURNEYl None of the seats were reserved, contrary to SAGclaims.

l Students, including girls, slept on railwayplatform.

l Players shuttled between three bogies.l Students sat on luggage, floor, in the corners andeven near the passage and main door, posing arisk to their lives.

l Team members skeptical of return journey to Goa.

THE JOURNEY BEGINS: A life-sized statue of Jesus carrying the cross is taken out in a procession in Panjim, depicting the Passion of Christ, on Sunday. Photo by Rozario Estibeiro.

(Continued on page 11)

(Continued on page 11)

(Continued on page 11)(Continued on page 11)

India: Aishwarya to go solo

at Cannes this year Pg 7

GOAOHERALD

O

Pg2GOA, MONDAY, 18 APRIL, 2011

CIVIC FORUMMore taps needed

ALLWYN GEORGE, CARMONA

The above picture is that of a fresh water tap. It is the only tapavailable for those who visit the famous Colva Beach. Peoplehave a tough time as the water is used for drinking and washingup, after a visit to the beach. The Tourism Department shouldincrease the number of fresh water taps and changing roomsfor the benefit of beach lovers, especially during the peak touristseason.

Protect wildlife

AYRES SEQUEIRA, SALVADOR DO MUNDO

A migrant labourer found a baby python in the village of Salvadordo Mundo. It may have wandered into the village because ofthe destruction of natural habitat by the builders. The ForestDepartment with the assistance of the local panchayat muststrive to bring about awareness among the villagers to protectwildlife, which is very important for its sustenance.

Will the Archbishop intervene?

BABLUIS PEREIRA, POMBURPA

The above picture shows two-wheelers parked beneath theshed of the Holy Cross, which shows disrespect to the place ofworship.

This Holy Cross (Dhazanamcho Khuris) at Palmar-Pomburpais an emblem of religious pride and dignity of the village. Today,it lies in shambles. A place of reverence, this spot has turnedinto a parking lot for two-wheelers and four-wheelers and adumping ground for building materials.

As a member of the Associacao, I had written a letter to thethen Associacao President and the Parish Priest and suggestedsome remedial measures in the form of an iron grill around theshed, with a front gate. Nothing has been done. Will the Arch-bishop Filipe Neri Ferrao intervene in the matter to save theHoly Cross?

CM: Please sort this outJOAQUIM DIAS, CHANDOR

It has been more than two months since I applied for a BSNLbroadband connection and I am still awaiting one. Frequentphone calls to the enquiry centre are of no avail as they respondby saying that the concerned telephone exchange should releasethe connection. The telephone exchange in turn, states that it does not havethe ports to grant a connection.

We speak of advanced IT age and technology, but in Goa, theBSNL takes months on end to give a broadband connection.Our MLAs boast of everything getting online and talk of accessto the internet to all in rural and urban areas, but BSNL is foundlacking in giving a timely connection.

Can the concerned department see that this delay is sortedout and that customers are not made to wait for so long. Alter-natively, our 'Aam Admi Chief Minister should use his goodoffices to ensure that customers get their connections imme-diately.

Remove the obstaclesBOSCO VAZ, MAPUSA

Mapusa is a very congested city and there is hardly any parkingplace for two and four-wheelers. The Mapusa Municipal Councilis not at all interested in marking proper parking lots for vehicleowners. Builders have built buildings leaving no space aroundand Municipal Council has issued NOCs to such buildings withoutproper site inspection. I have seen the parking signs placed here and there from SirsatLodge to Asilo Hospital, but many shopkeepers have put blocksalong the parking area to enable people to walk to their shopsand the Mapusa Traffic Cell has not taken any action. While they are ready to issue challans to vehicle owners whenthey park in the no parking zone, they ignore the metallic ob-stacles placed on the roads. It is high time the Deputy Super-intendent of Police attached to the Mapusa orders the trafficcell to remove the obstacles at the earliest.

(Do you have a complaint against some authority or service?Are there any violations of the law that you would like tobring to the notice of the public? Do you have any suggestionsfor improvement and/or redressal of services? If you do, thenwrite to us at editor@herald-goa.com. With the aim of im-proving the quality of our civic life, every Monday, Herald willpublish the best letters on these subjects received during theweek. This is in addition to our regular Letters to the Editorcolumn.)

Lightning strikes light up the sky in the Capital City of Panjim on Sunday evening. Photo by Rozario Estibeiro

HERALD REPORTERPANJIM, APRIL 17

The recent blast at a scrap yard at Fatorda, killingone person, has again raised the issue of illegalscrap yards in the State.

As per governments own statistics, almosthalf of scrap yards in the State run illegally thatcould be closed any time, if government wants.

The statistics presented during the recentbudget session reveals that of the total 95 scrapyards in the state 54 are legal and 41 are illegal.

The issue of scrap yards and their nuisancehas come to the fore following a blast at Fatordayard, last week. One person, who was welding atank, died in the explosion. The locals had ex-pressed fear

that scrap yards from the localities should beshifted out of town, at distant locations.

But the ground reality is that most scrap yardsin the state operate without consent of the localauthorities. Except Margao, Mapusa and Bicholim,none other municipalities including Corporation

of City of Panjim (CCP) have registered thescrap yards in their jurisdiction.

Mapusa Municipal Council has maximum scrapyards and all of them are legally registered bythe civic body. The municipal council has 30 scrapyards followed by Margao Municipal Council,which houses 22 scrap yards, which are legallyregistered.

In Bicholim Municipal Council jurisdiction,there are 7 scrap yards of which only 2 are reg-istered with the council.

In rest of the municipal jurisdiction, none ofthe scrap yard works legally. CCP has two scrapyards, Mormugao 17, Cuncolim 4, Curchorem 7,Valpoi 2 and Sanquelim 2.

During the recently held budget session Aldonalegislator Dayanand Narvekar had pointed outthat the scrap yards are mushrooming all acrossthe road at Karaswada.

He had claimed that certain mafias are oper-ating through these scrap yards, who dont carefor the law of the land.

HERALD REPORTERMARGAO, APRIL 17

The gram sabha of Dramapur-Sirlim Village Panchayat on Sun-day demanded tha t thepanchayat seal all the illegalscrap yards operating in the vil-lage.

At the meeting held on Sun-day, agitated gram sabha mem-bers questioned Sarpanch SebyPereira over the failure by thepanchayat body to initiate actionagainst the scrap yards.

When the Sarpanch repliedsaying that a committee headedby the Deputy Collector, Margaois seized of the issue of scrapyard, gram sabha member Wil-son Viegas demanded that thepanchayat seal the scrap yardspending a final decision by theCommittee. Viegas said the Pan-chayat need not wait for the de-cision of the deputy collector,saying that the panchayat canseal the premises before theyare shifted to any industrial

zones.While referring to the recent

tanker blast at a scrap yard inFatorda, members demandedthat the Sarpanch produce thenotices served on the scrapyards failing which they threat-ened not to allow the next gramsabha meeting.

The meeting also discussedthe issue of water tanks distrib-uted to residents of the village.When Viegas demanded toknow how many residents havebeen provided water tanks inthe village, the Sarpanch wrig-gled out of the situation by say-ing that the Panchayat isunaware of distribution of watertanks by the government in thevillage.

Alleging that water tanks havebeen distributed even to therich in the village, Viegas de-manded that the Panchayatwrite a letter to the governmentto implement the water tankscheme through the village pan-

chayats.The garbage issues also fig-

ured prominently at the meet-ing, with members demandingto know the measures under-taken by the panchayat to solvethe garbage menace. Memberspointed out to the dumping ofwaste at unauthorized places inthe village and called for actionby the panchayat body.

When the members de-manded identification of suit-able sites for the disposal ofwaste generated in the village,Sarpanch Seby sought the as-sistance and cooperation of thevillagers in the identification ofsites.

The issue over the mobiletower was raised by some mem-bers, with the meeting adoptinga resolution raising serious ob-jections to the tower. TheSarpanch told the members thatthe panchayat body has alreadyadopted a resolution objectingto the mobile tower.

Seal illegal scrap yards, Sirlim locals tell panchayat

Of 95 scrap yards in State, 41 are illegal: Statistics

Cyclist killed in Siolimmishap

HERALD CORRESPONDENTCALANGUTE, APRIL 17

A 64-year-old cyclist from Ca-murlim died, after he wasknocked down by a car nearLaxminarayan Temple, Siolim,on Sunday morning.

According to Anjuna Police,the accident occurred whenRamesh Bandekar, who was pro-ceeding towards Tar-Siolim onhis bicycle, was knocked by acar (GA-07-E-0630).

Police further informed thatgrievously injured Bandekar wasrushed to PHC Siolim, fromwhere he was shifted to AsiloHospital in Mapusa.

He was then referred to GMCHospital in Bambolim, where hesuccumbed to injuries at 11.30am.

Anjuna Police have arrestedcar driver Sharif Dodamani andPSI Vishwajeet Chodankar is in-vestigating the case.

HERALD REPORTERMARGAO, APRIL 17

Garbage collection and disposaldominated the gram sabhameeting of the coastal villageof Majorda-Utorda-Calata onSunday.

In fact, the acute problem ofwaste disposal was deliberatedthreadbare with members de-manded to know the measuresundertaken by the Panchayatbody to solve the menace.

Sarpanch Visitation Da Silvaexplained to the gram sabhamembers that the problem hasbecome acute for want ofgarbage dumping sites. Shepointed out that the Panchayatbody had identified as many asthree sites for waste disposal,but hastened to add that thesites did not find favour withGoa State Pollution ControlBoard.

During discussions on the sub-ject, the Sarpanch informed themembers that the Panchayat hadapproached the neighbouring Pan-chayats of Nuvem and Verna fora common disposal site, butadded that the Panchayats did notagree to the suggestion.

Presently, plastic waste gen-erated in the village is collectedtwice a month by the contractor,but the sarpanch informed thatthe Panchayat has been forcedto employ a labourer for wastesegregation as other waste, be-sides plastic, is finding its wayinto the bins.

The meeting also approvedthe budget estimates for the fi-nancial year 2011-12 after dis-cussions. Members suggestedto the Sarpanch to make provi-sion of Rs one lakh for the pro-motion of agriculture and sportsin the budget. The suggestion

was ag reed upon by theSarpanch, who said she wouldwrite to the Panchayat Directorto accept the proposal.

The issue of the long-delayedMajorda sub way came up fordiscussions, with members de-manding to know the status ofthe project and the safety meas-ures adopted by the PWD.

The sarpanch explained themembers that work on the sub-way is not yet complete withwork on the drainage underwayat the site.

On the safety aspects, theSarpanch said the Panchayat hadwritten a letter to the PWD En-gineer, Barros on the safety ofchildren inside the subway afterits commissioning.

The sarpanch said the PWDhas got back to the panchayatstating that all safety aspects,including the safety of schoolchildren, will be discussed anddeliberated upon after the com-pletion of the sub way in all as-pects.

The sarpanch also placedbefore the meeting the repliesreceived by the panchayat onthe traffic management andon other issues raised by themembers at the previous meet-ing.

Garbage collection,disposal dominates

Majorda meet

Man sustains fracture in

attackHERALD REPORTERMARGAO, APRIL 17

One Naguesh Basavraj was at-tacked by a three member groupnear Cine Lata on Sunday after-noon, leaving his hand fractured.

Margao PSI Manguesh saidthat Mahadev Talwar, PundalikTalwar and Shivram Latur at-tacked the injured while he wassleeping. One of the accused hitthe victim with an iron rod, caus-ing a fracture.

Attributing previous enmitybetween the two groups as theimmediate cause of the attack,PSI Manguesh said the Margaohas booked the trio for causinggrievous injuries to the victim,who is convalescing at the Hos-picio hospital.

The police are investigating.

New NIObuilding to be ready by

mid-2012HERALD REPORTERPANJIM, APRIL 17

National Institute of Oceanog-raphy (NIO) at Dona Paula willnow be free from its space con-straint once its new administra-tive building is in place bymid-2012.

NIO officials stated that thisis their third ever expansionsince its inception in 1976.

The main building of NIOwas commissioned in 1976.Being a small laboratory at thattime, with limited staff, it wasan ideal laboratory building,NIO website says.

A wing to this building wasadded to this main building dur-ing early eighties as Phase IIconstruction as the number ofstaff increased.

Since then the institutes ac-tivities have grown multi-fold.The Institute recently com-pleted the construction of theextension of the Biology Wing,it adds.

In the third phase, the con-struction of AdministrativeBuilding in an area of 1800sq.mt has now been taken up.

This will house Administra-tion, Accounts, Bills, and Storesand Purchase Sections. Cur-rently, these sections are spreadover available places within thecampus.

The website mentions thatbringing all these activitiesunder one roof with requiredfacilities, like record room, con-ference room, stores godownsetc, will increase better inter-action, coordination and therebyefficiency.

Over 1100 sq.m area wouldbe then vacated by these sec-tions, once the building is ready,would be allocated to the labo-ratories and scientific and tech-nical staff. The new buildingwould get ready by mid-2012.

HERALD CORRESPONDENTBICHOLIM, APRIL 17

A male Bison was found deadin Netravali Wild Life sanctuaryon Sunday.

A group of six persons (in-cluding this correspondent) hadgone to Mainapi Waterfall at Ne-travali in Sanguem taluka. Atabout 11.30 am, as the groupwas proceeding towards the wa-terfall, they found a Bison some40 mts away. Being excited theyclicked some photos and laterproceeded towards the water-

fall.However, after about two

hours, when the group was re-turning, much to the surpriseof the group they found thatthe Bison was lying dead.

When it was alive, we sawthat saliva was coming out fromhis mouth and it is likely that itwas bitten by some poisonoussnake, Gautam Umarye said.

When we returned, wefound it was dead and we sus-pect that it might have died dueto some trap, but there were

no marks on Bisons body or theneck, added Umarye.

When tried to contact KurdiNeturlim Forest check post andthe RFO, it was found that the of-fice was closed being a Sunday.

However, when contactedafter efforts, Deputy Conserva-tor of Forest South Waradkarassured to look into the mat-ter.

We will look into the matterand I will ask the concerned RFOto immediately inspect the site,Waradkar told Herald.

Congress enrols 1,500 members

from Mayem Bison found dead in Netravali

Bison that was found dead in Netravali Wildlife Sanctuary. Photos by Samir Umarye

Congress youth leader Praveen Zantye submits forms of youth Congress to central observer CongressSunil Dave. Photo by Vishant Vaze

HERALD CORRESPONDENTMAYEM, APRIL 17

Commencing its preparationsfor the forthcoming assemblyelections, the Congress partyunder the leadership of PraveenZantye enrolled 1,500 newmembers from Mayem con-stituency.

The membership forms weresubmitted to youth Congressobserver Sunil Dave in the officeof Goa Congress Bhavan, Pan-jim.

Zantye was accompanied byNorth Goa Congress Sewa Dal

organizer Jaidev Parab Gaonkar,Rayu Sawant of Pradesh Com-mittee, Rajashri Gaonkar, Ra-makant Amonkar, AapaArondekar, Leena Kauthankar,Krishna Parab and others.

The membership drive wasundertaken following RahulGandhis determination tostrengthen Congress base inGoa.

Praveen Zantye who was inforefront in uniting the membersstated that this was possibledue to co-operation from allsegments of party.

n In fact, the acuteproblem of wastedisposal wasdeliberated threadbarewith membersdemanded to know themeasures undertakenby the Panchayat bodyto solve the menace.

GOAOHERALD

OPg3

GOA, MONDAY, 18 APRIL, 2011

ALL GOA FMCG & TELECOM DISTRIBUTORS ASSOCIATION

PRESENTS

A tiger takes a stroll at the Bondla Zoo on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Photo by Rozario Estibeiro

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, APRIL 17

After resuming the iron ore exportfrom Goa, the shippers are nowlikely to apply for force majeureclause to their buyers abroad tosave themselves from the hugelosses due to the strike.

The iron ore export, whichhad stopped since Friday, re-sumed from Mormugao PortTrust (MPT) and Panjim MinorPort since Sunday.

Goa Mineral Ore Exporters As-sociation (GMOEA) Secretary GlenKalavampara confirmed that theloading has started in around 20transshippers, which were an-chored at the outer ports.

He further lamented that theexporters have faced loss to thetune of USD 1.6 lakh due to thestrike that began on Friday.

Goa, which exports around45 million metric tones of ironore annually, loads almost twoto three lakh metric tones ofore daily through both the ports.The business had, however,came to standstill after people

Shippers may applyforce majeure

clause to buyers HERALD NEWS BUREAU

PANJIM, APRIL 17

A 28-year-old native of Kar-nataka was found murdered atSaibhag-Uthan, Tisk-Usgao, onSunday morning.

Ponda Police have identifiedthe deceased as one ShankarGanpat Dessai.

According to Ponda Police,stab wounds were found allover Dessais body. Dessai hadcome to his brother-in-lawsresidence at Tisk-Usgao forsome religious function twodays ago.

Police further informed thata jeep driver has been detainedfor interrogation.

Ponda Police have regis-tered the case against un-known person under Section

Karnataka nativefound murdered

in Usgao

HERALD CORRESPONDENT

MERCES, APRIL 17

The Catholic community inChimbel is deeply hurt and hasexpressed dismay over the factthe Chimbel Panchayat has de-cided to hold the gram sabhaon Easter Sunday, which is themost important festival for theCatholics.

Speaking to Herald, ChimbelGram Seva Kala and SanskrutikSangh President Rumaldo Car-valho said the decision of thepanchayat has deeply hurt reli-gious sentiments of the Catholiccommunity and has demandedthat the gram sabha be post-poned to some other Sunday sothat the Catholics can activelyparticipate in the same.

Another villager, Paul Fer-nandes, alleged that it is a de-liberate attempt to keep theCatholics from participating atthe gram sabha since the com-munity has been at the fore-front in highlighting severalissues affecting the village.

Fernandes further demandedthat the panchayat authoritiesshould immediately postpone

the gram sabha for the nextmonth if there is no deliberateattempt in hurting the senti-ments of the Catholics.

If the panchayat fails topostpone the gram sabha, itwill expose the real motive be-hind holding the gram sabhaon Easter Sunday, he addedand exhorted that like othercommunities, the Catholics toohave a right to voice their opin-ions on the larger issues affect-ing the village.

Crying foul over panchayatsdecision, activist Lourdes Con-ception expressed anger and saidthe panchayat could haveplanned well in advance to avoidthe gram sabha on Easter Sun-day.

However, it is not too lateand the panchayat can still cor-rect its mistake and postponethe meet to some other Sun-day, he demanded andlamented that the Chimbel Pan-chayat would probably the onlypanchayat in entire State tohold gram sabha on Easter.

When contacted, DeputySarpanch Hazel Fernandes said

she came to know about thedecision only when the noticereached the panchayat officeand denied having any priorknowledge of the same.

However, Sarpanch Chan-drakant Kunkolkar said that theauthorities were left with nochoice as Secretary Prasad Shetsuddenly went on leave andthe panchayat could not holdthe gram sabha on April 17, asplanned.

Further, the additionalcharge of the panchayat washanded over to the Merces VPsecretary, he added and in-formed that since the MercesPanchayat had planned its gramsabha on April 17, the ChimbelPanchayat were forced toschedule its meet on April 24.

When asked whether thepanchayat cannot postpone thegram sabha for the next month,Chandrakant replied in the neg-ative since the panchayat hasto pass the budget before theend of April. He also deniedthat there was any malafide in-tent behind scheduling thegram sabha on April 24.

HERALD CORRESPONDENT

MERCES, APRIL 17

Expressing disappointment overthe construction activity beingundertaken near Morombi-O-Pequeno Lake without prior ap-proval from Merces Panchayat,the gram sabha passed a reso-lution demanding that the pan-chayat immediately issue a stopwork notice on the construc-tion.

Raking up the issue, JoseCarmin Joao said the con-struction of a retaining wallnear the lake would blockthe flow of water from thelake into nearby fields, whichwill result in flooding of

nearby areas.Jose Carmin also said that any

construction near the lakeshould be done in a plannedmanner so that the water pas-sages are not blocked and flood-ing is avoided.

Sarpanch Deepika Shir-gaonkar informed that shehad told the contractor un-dertaking the constructionto provide relevant docu-ments to the panchayat, butthe contractor had behavedrudely with her and otherpanchas who had gone to in-spect the same.

Later, the villagers passed aresolution urging the panchayat

to immediately issue stop worknotice on the construction andask the concerned governmentauthorities to get prior approvalfrom the panchayat before goingahead with the project.

Highlighting the issue of poortax recovery by the panchayatauthorities, Anil Hoble de-manded to know what the pan-chayat is doing to ensure thatthe pending tax is recovered atthe earliest.

Hoble also informed thatmore the tax is recovered, thepanchayat would be eligible formore matching grants from thegovernment, which could be uti-lized for the development of the

Catholics cry foul over holdingof Chimbel meet on Easter

Merces VP urged to stop construction work near lakevillage.

Replying on the issue, Secre-tary Rupesh Halarnkar informedthat the panchayat is making ef-forts on this front and duringthe last financial year, the pan-chayat was able to recover moretax than during the precedingyear.

On the demand of utilizingthe panchayat staff for tax re-covery, Rupesh said the staff isalready overburdened withwork, but, he assured that thepanchayat would work out a sys-tem to ensure maximum recov-ery of tax.

The issue of bus services ex-clusively for Merces village wasalso demanded by Hoble, whocomplained that the Merces vil-lagers have to depend on Chim-bel and Curca buses, and duringpeak hours are made to sufferas they cannot board thesebuses which are packed to thegrim.

Hoble then demanded thatthe panchayat forward a pro-posal to the Road Transport Au-thority to issue permits foroperating buses in Merces.

Throwing light on various

business activities being un-dertaken near the Santa Cruz-Merces junction at Carmibhat,Jerry Vaz sought to knowwhether these businesses arelegal and whether the pan-chayat is earning any revenuefrom them.

Vaz further demanded thatthe panchayat conduct an in-spection of all the business ac-tivities undertaken in this areaand see to it that action is takenon illegal activities, if any.

Joining the discussion, JoseCarmin Joao asked the pan-chayat how a mosque is allowedto come up in the area and ques-tioned whether the panchayathas given any license to it.

When told that no license hasbeen issued for the said mosque,Jose Carmin demanded that thepanchayat should take immedi-ate action against it.

The issue of installing a statueof Dr Jack Sequeira in Merceswas highlighted by SebastiaoFernandes who later formed apanel under the chairmanshipof Sarpanch Deepika Shir-gaonkar to identify land for thepurpose.

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, APRIL 17

Agitated gram sabha membersof Sao Jose de Areal village onSunday demanded the immedi-ate transfer of the Panchayatsecretary and reiterated its de-mand for the revocation of theoccupancy certificate issued toOm Sai building project.

At the meeting held on Sunday,members questioned the Pan-chayat secretary over the failureto write minutes of the previousgram sabha meeting. The pan-chayat secretary also came underthe firing line of the members forthe panchayats failure to approvethe budget of the financial year2011-12. The members also crit-icized the panchayat secretary forhis role in issuing the occupancycertificate to the Om Sai buildingproject.

The meeting witnessed up-roar when the secretary repliedsaying that it is not mandatoryto place the budget estimatesbefore the gram sabha, with ag-itated members demanding toknow how the panchayat canspend the money without ap-

proval from the gram sabha.After many discussions, the

gram sabha members resolved todemand the immediate transferof the secretary. Not taking anychances, the gram sabha membersundertook a signature campaigncalling for the Secretarys transfer.The members decided to submitmemorandums to the SalceteBDO, Deputy Director of Panchay-ats, besides the police demandingthe secretary of the panchayatsecretary.

On the Om Sai project, gramsabha members reiterated theirdemand for the immediate rev-ocation of the occupancy cer-tificate. They reiterated that thebuildings have allegedly comeup on the CADA land and onthe alignment of the railway lineas shown in the RP 2021.

Gram sabha members alsoadopted a resolution demandingrelease of water in the irrigationcanal built in the village sincethe last 20 years. They de-manded that the irrigation waterbe released in the canal by Oc-tober this year to facilitate cul-tivation of the paddy fields.

from Kharewado block the chan-nel protesting against the dem-olition of their houses. Theprotest was later called off onSaturday after assurance fromChief Minister Digambar Kamat.

MPT officials have predictedthat the two-day long strikewould cost them loss Rs 45 crorein various forms. Industrysources told Herald that theshippers have decided to applyfor force majeure clause withthe buyers that would save themconsiderably from bearing thelosses, caused due to the strike.

It is for the buyers to decidewhether to accept the forcemeasure clause or not. But cer-tainly, applying for such clausesends wrong signal about thecountry, representative of aleading shipper said.

302 of IPC.PI Manoj Mardolkar is inves-

tigating the case.

Areal locals want VP secy transferred immediately

GOA, MONDAY, 18 APRIL, 2011GOAOHERA

LDO Pg 4

SHORT TAKEUPCOMING EVENTS

Ramnavmi heldat Bicholim

HERALD CORRESPONDENTMAYEM, APRIL 17

Ramnavmi was celebrated at Bi-cholim and Gimone-Pilgao withpomp and religious fervour. AtGimone, the festival was cele-brated by the entire Chari com-munity f rom Goa. On theoccasion, a wooden idol of theinfant Ram was placed in thedecorated cradle and lullabiespraising the deeds of Ram weresung.

A special folk drama was alsostaged by folk artistes depictingthe birth of Lord Ram. Devotionalprogrammes were also organizedon the occasion.

Ramnavmi was also cele-brated at Maruti Temple SudhaCo lony, Vy syas ram MathSashtiwada, Lord Vithal Tem-ple Vithlapur-Sanquelim andsurrounding areas, wheredevotees paid homage to LordRam.

Holy Week services PANJIM(HND): St Britto High School at Mapusa will conduct

Holy Week Services in the school premises.The services will be conducted on Maundy Thursday (6 pm),

Good Friday (5.30 pm) and Easter Vigil (11.30 pm), states apress note issued by Fr Apollo Cardozo SJ, Superior at St BrittoHigh school.

PILAR: A solemn concelebrated mass on Maundy Thursday(April 21) will be held in the Mission Seminary Chapel at6.30 pm. A special way of the cross will be conducted onGood Friday on the steps leading to the Pilar Monastery at7 am.

The reflection on the last seven words of Jesus on the crosswill be conducted by Fr Feroz Fernandes in the Pilar Monasteryat 9 am. The celebration of the Lords Passion will start at3.30 pm in the Mission Seminary Chapel. The solemn EasterVigil will begin at 11 pm in front of the Pilar Seminary. OnEaster Sunday, masses will be held at 6.30 am and 7.30 am inKonkani and at 9 am in English. There will be no evening masson Easter Sunday at Pilar Monastery.

Holy Triduum retreat at PilarPANJIM(HND): A Holy Triduum retreat in English will be con-

ducted at the Pilar Retreat Centre on April 21 at 3 pm and willend on Easter Sunday after breakfast. Participants will be al-lowed to witness the celebration of the Holy Triduum with afresh insight. Those interested can contact the Pilar RetreatCentre on: 2218694, 2218553.

Admissions by HTMi SwitzerlandPANJIM (HND): Overseas Education Consultants, GeeBee Ed-

ucation, will organise spot admissions by HTMi Switzerland,on April 18 From 12 noon to 2 pm at its office at L36 /38, 4thFloor, Alfran Plaza, Opp Don Bosco School, Panjim. For freeregistration call 6655197/9764007643 or visit www.geebee-world.com.

CDs released at GMC

PANJIM(HND): The Department of Pathology Goa MedicalCollege in collaboration with the Indian Academy of Cytologistshas released two volumes of CDs on Recent Advances in Med-icine. These are edited by Dr R G Wiseman Pinto, and containarticles by Dr Arun Chitale, Professor and Head of PathologyDepartment, Bombay Hospital Institute of Medical Sciences,Head of Pathology at Jaslok Hospital, Sir H N Hospital, Mumbai,Dr K M Mohandas Director, Centre for Cancer Epidemiology,Tata Memorial Hospital and Head of Digestive Diseases andClinical Nutrition, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, Dr JerzyKlijanienko, Professor and Head of Pathology Department,Curie Institute, Paris, France, Dr Fernando Schmitt, Professorand Head of Pathology Department University of Porto, Portugal,Secretary of the International Academy of Cytology and Pres-ident of the EFCS (European Federation of Cytology Societies) and Dr Aileen Wee, Professor and Head of Pathology, NationalUniversity of Singapore, Singapore.

The topics that are covered include interpretation of biopsiesof the urinary bladder, polyps of the gastrointestinal tract,personalised cancer medicine, soft tissue tumours, breast can-cer, therapeutic targets and molecular classification, lungpathology, liver fibrosis, past, present and future approach toliver biopsy, thyroid and retroperitoneal space. The CDs areavailable in the office of pathology department, Goa MedicalCollege.

HERALD CORRESPONDENTNEW DELHI, APRIL 17

Goas representative in the RajyaSabha, Shantaram Naik is set tocall it a day as he completes histerm in the House on July 28.

In fact, Naik will be the firstto retire among those complet-ing their tenures in the RajyaSabha.

There are no further retire-ments from the Rajya Sabha dur-ing the current year.

Naik, who is one of the AICCsecretaries, may, however, getanother term as he is in goodbooks of both Sonia Gandhi andAhmed Patel and has just re-turned to Goa after overseeingthe Congress election campaignin Tamil Nadu.

The next three retirements inthe New Year will be on January27 when Congress General Sec-retary Janardan Dwivedi, Secre-tary Parvez Hashmi and Dr KaranSingh, all elected from Delhi.

Sixty-one-year-old AhmedPatel, the most powerful manin the Congress after SoniaGandhi as her political secretary,is also dropping hints that hemay not seek yet another termin the Rajya Sabha as three terms

in the House and two in the LokSabha are more than enough.

He is, however, quick to tellwell-wishers that he is onlythinking so and has not takenany final decision as he feels itwould be unfair for him to seekthe fourth term when the partyrefuses anybody more thanthree terms.

Dum Maro Dum Issue (HND): Meanwhile, Shantaram Naikhas thanked Union Minister forInformation and Broadcasting,Ambika Soni, for her prompt ac-tion in getting the objectionabledialogues deleted from theHindi film Dum Maro Dum.

Naik spoke to Jt Secretary in

the Ministry of Information andBroadcasting , Deva Reddy, whoconfirmed that the dialogueshad been deleted .

It may be recalled that Naikhad sought revision of the de-cision of Central Broad of FilmCertification which had passedthe film and had prayed for thedeletion of the objectionabledialogues by using powersunder section 6 of the Cine-matograph Act, 1952 and pend-ing the revisional proceedings,revoke the certification by theCensor Board under the samesection.

However, it appears that goodsense prevailed with all the con-cerned and it appears that dele-tion of objectionable dialoguesturned out to be a fairly simpletask.

Naik has further said thatGoans haveto be vigilant re-garding attacks on the cultureand the fair name of State.Some elements outside Goaand outside country too, wouldlike to treat Goa as a moneyspinning machine, which Goansshould not allow, said MP Shan-taram Naik in a press releaseissued here.

Shantaram set to quit RS as tenure nears end

Siolim resident dies in accident

HERALD CORRESPONDENTPORVORIM, APRIL 17

A 67-year-old resident of Afra-ment-Siolim died, after he wasknocked down by a motorcyclistat Gaunswado recently.

According to Mapusa Police,Lazarus DSouza was admittedin Asilo Hospital a few days ago.After being discharged againstmedical advice he left the hos-pital.

However, at about 8 am whilehe was crossing the road nearPreetam Hospital at Gaunswadoin the darkness, he was knockeddown by the motorcycle (GA-07-C-7159), which was proceed-ing from Kharaswado towardsPanjim.

Injured Lazarus was admittedto Asilo Hospital, where he suc-cumbed to injuries. Police SubInspector Nitin Halarnkar is in-vestigating the case.

LOUIS RODRIGUESBELGAUM, APRIL 17

With the Lenten season at itspeak, hundreds of pilgrims fromGoa, Karnataka and Maharashtraon Friday thronged the NandgadHill, the seat of the MiraculousCross, about 12 kms fromKhanapur.

Pilgrims from Goa, whosepresence was prominent, paidrich tributes to the MiraculousCross along with the pilgrimsfrom Karnataka and Maharashtracomprising Christians and non-Christians alike.

They thronged the sanctifiedplace seeking salvation and totake part in the religious cele-brations organised by the Dio-cese of Belgaum under BishopPeter Machado.

The prayer ful day com-menced from the ImmaculateConception Church, Nandgad,at 9 am with Way of the Crossthat was enacted live by theyouth of Hubli under the direc-tion of Fr Vijay Mendith. Hymnswere sung and prayers recitedas the procession went alongNandgad town and reached theMiraculous Cross at about 12noon.

Sindhudurg Bishop Rev AlwynBaretto, who presided over theEucharistic celebrations, urgedthe people to proclaim theGood News as God sent hisonly son Jesus Christ to givenew life to the world.

Belgaum Bishop Rev PeterMachado, who presided overanother Eucharistic celebration,urged the faithful to carry themessage of love all over.

Goan pilgrims take part in prayer service at Nandgad Cross

Bishop Allwyn Baretto and other priests during the Eucharistic Cel-ebrations at the Miraculous Cross atop the Nandgad Hill.

Photo by Louis Rodrigues

The Cross is a holy symbolof our religion. Jesus died onthe Cross for the repartition ofour sins. His resurrection fromdeath represents his victory oversin, darkness and death. Jesusforgave his enemies from theCross. May all the pilgrims whovisit the Miraculous Cross carrythis message of love and for-giveness to everyone, especiallythose they have hurt in theirfamilies and society they comefrom, Bishop Machado empha-sized.

Parish Priest Fr Michael Fer-nandes in his welcome addressbriefed about the MiraculousCross and sought special bless-ing on the pilgrims.

Msgr Lucio Mascarenhas, FrLouis Gonsalves, Fr Walter anda large number of priests andnuns took part in the Eucharisticcelebrations.

Goan pilgrims who had ar-

rived Nandgad in three Kadambabuses and by private transportexpressed their gratitude to Her-ald for updating them about thecelebrations.

Thanks to Herald, where wegot the details about MiraculousCross at Nandgad. Its a nice ex-perience to be here, especiallyduring the Lenten season whereon top of the hill we feel thecloseness to God, remarked AlexSaldanha from Bardez, who washere with his family and relatives.

This is our first year and weare very much overwhelmedwith the serenity here. Now on,we will visit this place everyyear, said Felix and Nati Bra-ganza from Ponda.

Daisy Dourado and Maria Diasfrom Panjim who along with 15others were here said this is thesecond year of their pilgrimageand they would continue thesame in years to come.

HERALD CORRESPONDENTOLD GOA, APRIL 17

Over 60 farmers from north Goatook part in the day-long sessionKrishi Dhan 2011, a training pro-gramme on Floriculture at ICARResearch Complex ConferenceHall, Old Goa, recently.

The one-day training pro-gramme was conducted in col-laboration with ICAR ResearchComplex Old Goa and Depart-ment of Agriculture, where anoverview discussion on floricul-ture was discussed by eminentpersonalities which included DrNarendra Pratap Singh (Directorof ICAR Research Complex forGoa), Dr Anjali Parasnis (HeadWestern Region TERI), SatishTendulkar (Director of Agricul-ture Department) and A San-dal iya (Regional ManagerNABARD).

The day-long session high-lighted floriculture a boomingentrepreneurship, scope of cutflower production under pro-tected structures, prospects ofcut flower production underopen field condition a profitableventure, opportunities andschemes available to take upfloriculture in Goa, linking tothe market floriculture industryin Goa, followed by open dis-cussion and interaction.

In h i s spec ia l address ,NABARD Regional Manager ASandilya said a lot of efforts aretaken by Goa Government to re-vive agriculture sector in theState.

One of the ways, it has beenthrough floriculture, as Goa isthe right spot which has greatpotential industry for floricul-ture farming. Being well-knowntourism industry, I do not findany reason why there will be aproblem to market flowers asGoa is being connected with thecountry in all means of trans-port, said Sandilya.

There is a need from ICARand Department of Agricultureto involve themselves with the

N Goa farmers participatein Krishi Dhan at Old Goa

NABARD Regional Manager A Sandaliya inaugurates the conferenceat ICAR Research Complex Conference Hall in Old Goa.

Photo by Kanzil Rodrigues

farmers clubs of Goa which arebeing supported by commercialbanks to create capacity builtin training programme forfarmer clubs.

ICAR Goa should identify cer-tain areas in the State, wherecertain flowers could be culti-vated by a farmer and at thesame time, need to bring variousfarmers under one federationso that marketing of flowers isnot a problem, he added.

Director of Agriculture De-partment Satish Tendulkar said:Its a good initiative taken upby ICAR for showing demonstra-tion on growing of flowers inthe State.

Though there was less inter-est shown by farmers in theState in floriculture farming, theState government in its recentbudget announced 90 per centsubsidy in farming, said Ten-dulkar.

If a farmer is interested indoing business in floricultureand want to construct a poly-house on a 1,000 sq mtr areacosting about Rs 5 lakh, thenthe government will sanctionRs 4.50 lakh to the farmer, whileRs 50,000 needs to be borne bythe farmer, he said.

There isnt a single state likeGoa in the country or anywherein the world where 90% subsidyhas been provided to a farmerfor agriculture purpose, headded.

If a farmer is into floriculturebusiness, there is a need of four-five farmers to get together andform a group and market theirflowers by putting up a smallshop in the market, said Ten-dulkar.

Contractor caughtdumping waste

HERALD REPORTERMARGAO, APRIL 17

Youth from Benaulim on Satur-day yet again caught unscrupu-lous contractor while dumpingwaste near the St John the Bap-tist Church.

As tonnes of waste was founddumped near the Church prem-ises, local youngsters thesources and managed to laytheir hands on the miscreants.As per the punishment pre-scribed by the local youth, theculprits were made to lift awaythe waste from the site, besidesthe nearby football grounds.

HERALD CORRESPONDENTPORVORIM, APRIL 17

A 47-year-old man was caughtred-handed while allegedly at-tempting to decamp with cashfrom the Rastroli temple at Khor-lim-Xim, Mapusa, on Saturdayafternoon.

According to Mapusa police,the accused, Babu Nair (47), en-tered the Rastroli temple atabout 1.30 pm and on noticingnobody in the temple, brokeopened the fund box.

Two persons, Dilip Aroskerand Akshay Salgaonker, whowere passing by the templenot iced some susp ic iousmovements and entered thetemple.

They caught the accused red-handed while he was stealingmoney from the fund box. Theylater alerted the president ofthe Rastroli temple Rajesh KantaNaik, who reported the matterto the Mapusa police.

PSI T Dhawasker and a policeteam rushed to the spot andtook custody of the accused.They recovered from him cashof Rs 1000, a spanner, knife andbunch of keys.

Police has arrested him underSections 454 and 384 IPC. In-vestigations are on to ascertainif the accused is involved inother temple burglaries else-where in the State. PSI Dawaskeris investigating the case.

One caught stealing cash from

Khorlim temple

A Mapusa police team along with the accused. Photo By Anil Shankhwalker

Fashion designer apologises to Taleigao VP

HERALD REPORTERPANJIM, APRIL 17

A Goa based fashion designerhas made a public apology tomembers of Taleigao village Pan-chayat for having alleged themof harassing him.

I want to apologise to theTaleigao Sarpanch Jennifer Mon-serrate and other panchayatmembers for the problems theyfaced because of me, NoelAndre said while speaking toHerald.

He has also decided to with-draw the case filed against them.Andre, in August 2010 had al-leged Jennifer of abusing herposition and provoking author-ities to demolish a portion ofhis villa at Dona Paula.

But he now terms their actionas proper. He said, The actionwas rightly taken by the Pan-chayat as I ignored their no-tices.

HERALD NEWS BUREAUPANJIM, APRIL 17

Union Minister of Culture, Hous-ing and Urban Poverty Allevia-tion Kumari Selja will releasethe book Triumph of Secular-ism at Goa Marriott Resort onApril 18.

Selja will release the book inthe presence of Chief MinisterDigambar Kamat.

The book Triumph of Secu-larism is based on the historicOpinion Poll of Goa of 1967.

The book is brought out byDattaraj V Salgaocar, Chairmanof Goa Publications Pvt Ltd, Pub-lisher of Sunaparanta and GoaToday, in memory of his fatherlate V M Salgaocar, who openlyfought for the preservation ofGoas unique identity againstthe pro-merger forces.

Goa Publications had earlierpubl ished the book Goa:Aparanta - Land Beyond theEnd.

This book is written by RajanNarayan, a veteran journalist,and Dr Sharon DCruz, a Profes-sor of History, on the basis ofmeticulous and exhaustive re-search, and edited by VictorRangel-Ribeiro.

The book is the most author-itative book on the OpinionPoll which captures in lucid stylethe determined fight put up byGoans to resist the merger withMaharashtra. It shows in no un-certain terms that the final vic-tory of the people of Goa waspossible because of united ef-forts of the majority and minor-ity communities in spite of thecommunal divide that was at-tempted.

It also highlights the commit-ment of the Nehru-Gandhi familyto the preservation of Goasunique identity.

PG in Health Care

Management PANJIM (HND): The Marian In-

stitute of Health Care Manage-ment offers a two-year full timepostgraduate programme inhealthcare management to trainmanagers for pharmaceuticalcompanies, hospitals and healthservices, medical equipment com-panies and health insurance. Theinstitute is located at Agnel Tech-nical Education Complex, Verna,Salcete. For details contact:2791206/09225905400.

Book on opinion pollto be released today

POWER SHUTDOWNAPRIL 18

BETIM-NERUL: From 9 am to 5 pm at Betim, Verem, Kegdevelim,Nerul, Pilerne, Moica Waddo, Navy Campus and surrounding areas.

APRIL 19

CALANGUTE: From 9 am to 5 pm at Bom Veigem, Dongarpur,Calangute Taxi Stand, Calangute Beach and surrounding areas.

MAPUSA: From 9 am to 3 pm at Feira Alta, Alcon, Divine MercySchool, Gaunsawaddo and surrounding areas.

GOA, MONDAY, 18 APRIL, 2011

OHERALDO Pg 5

Beloved MLA of Tivim andTourism Minister of Goa StateShri. Nilkanth Halarnkar entered pol-itics in his youth and has served peo-ple as their representative. Today isthe birthday of this dynamic person-ality and this write up vividly depicthis work and capacity as the repre-

sentative of the masses.

One can create wonders with astrong willpower. Incredible things areachieved by such personalities andone of such a kind is Shri. NilkanthHalarnkar. The above definition bene-fits his personality. One can actuallyfeel his achievement by looking at theworks he has carried out in hisConstituency.

With ten Panchayats in hisConstituency, every Panchayat hasundergone sizeable works ofprogress. He has undertaken maxi-mum works in remote villages.Hotmixing and tarring of roads, con-struction of new roads, repairs andwidening, construction of gutters, pro-tection walls, construction of culvertsare such examples of work carried outby him.

To solve the problems of powersupply - erecting new poles and trans-formers, construction of new water

tanks and pipelines to eradicate waterscarcity. A mammoth market complexand bus-stand at Assonora has beenoffered to the people of Assonora andnearby villages. Well facilitated sportscomplex is coming up at Koniwada,Colvale and similar complexes areproposed for Sirsaim and Assonora.Process of construction of protectionwalls around Juvem in Nadora islandsare in progress. The work ofmarket complex in Pirna willcommence in this week. Newpipelines and water tanks, arebeing put up in Tivim village and mostof the major roads have been hot-mixed in Tivim. The surrounding ofMauli Temple in Nadora and SateriTemple in Camurli, will be beautifiedvery soon the illumination of St. RitaChurch in Camurli will be done as partof beautification in next few months.Nilkanth Halarnkar is the only MLA

who has completed 130 cr. Works ofprogress in his Tivim Constituency.The poor and downtroden people inhis constituency were given the bene-fits of different Govt. schemes. He hasprovided govt. and other private jobsto many educated on employedyouths in the constituency. Besides,sizeable works have been done in thefield of Education, sports, religion and

culture. He has overcomedevery difficulty in his imagina-tive thinking. He did not giveway to criticize his works by

planning them in systematic manners.His caliber made him very popular inhis constituency. We pray to Godalmighty with all our heart, to give ourbeloved leader a good health andunder his leadership our constituencymay flourish further and be an idealone in Goa and make him a supremoin political field.

Many Many Happy Returns of the day to our dearest MLA of TivimConstituency and Tourism Minister Mr. Nilkant Halarnkar

Vishant Desai,Colvale-Goa

One can create wonderswith a strong willpower.Incredible things are

achieved by such personal-ities and one of such a kindis Shri. Nilkanth Halarnkar.

the above definition benefits his personality.

with PWD Minister Churchil Alemao at inauguration of water purify-ing project at Assonora.

Eternal blessings : Archbishop Phillip Neri Ferrao with Nilkant Halarnkar.

Real Maker of Tivim

Martina P. Fernandes-Sarpanch

Shankar Korjuvekar-PanchDionisia D'souza-PanchTereza C. Naik- Panch

Village PanchayatNachinola,

Bardez-Goa

Robert D'melllo, Joaquim Conceisav,Charles D'souza, Carmin D'cruz, Sebastaio

Fernandes, Crizol Menezes, DickyD'Souza, Newton Fernandes, SylvesterMascarenhas, Victor Menezes, Sarvalo

Menezes, Agnelo Fernandes, Norlaz Lobo,Dneiz Rodrigues, Cynthia Fernandes,Savio Mascarenhas, Freddy Menezes,

Pirna, Bardez, Goa

Wishing my colleague avery happy 48th birthdayand many more to come.

Wishing you a good health

Robert D'souzaGerald Fernandes

Eustace FernandesGabriel D'Souza -Ex Panch Member

Colvale,Bardez,Goa

With best wishes fromJoaquim, Ricardina,Maria Rosa, Sonia,

Rosy, Antonette, Lina,Franco

Assonora,Bardez-Goa

Rev. Fr. Mathew, Parish Priest and

Parish council members of

Tivim Bardez,

Goa

Alex FernandesPWD ContractorBicholim-Goa

St. Christopher Sports Club

Tivim, Bardez - Goa

May God Showerhis choicest bless-ings on you andkeep you happy

always.

Joaquim RodriguesPrudence NoronhaAuxillio Rodrigues

Maria MendesZacarias MendesEscolas D'cruz

Perpetua FerraoClaro Ferrao

Benedict FerraoCarmin Muniz

Joanita FurtadoAssonora,

Bardez, Goa

Thanks for all that youhave done and aredoing for our parish

Good wishes & happi-ness on your birthdayLove and prayers from

the parish priest.

Parish priest Council members &

your close ones of Tivim

Good health & happiness to ourdynamic leader

Shri.

Nilkant

Halarnkar(Minister for Toursim)

fromParish Priest &

Parishionersof Sirsaim

Pradeep Pednekar-SarpanchAncilla Trinidade-

Dy. SarpanchThomas Coelho-PanchShankar Naik- Panch

Vinod Parulekar-PanchSuvarna Salkar-Panch

Pranali Chodankar-PanchUlhas Mapari- Panch

and staff of V.P. Assonora

Dyna Braganza Z. P. member Tivim,Johny, Tina, Babush,

Carmeline,Philu Pinto, Shawn,

Sherwin, Shania,Samuela, Philu

Menezes, Rita, Paulo& Maria - Madel, Tivim,

Ramakant & ShailaNaik, Pradeep,

Bhanu, Krishna &Baban.

Many Happy Returnsof the Day to my dear-

est Colleague. andthe hon'ble tourism

minister of Goa

Best wishes from

Many Many HappyReturns of the day to

our dearest Leader andTourism Minister

Mr. Nilkant Halarnkar

Robert Colaco, Domnic D'Souza, AngelaLobo, Arthur Lobo, Carmin Lobo, Simon

Lobo, Nelson Barreto, Joseph Fernandes,Domnic Rodrigues, Mathew Pereira, Peter

Lobo, Julian Fernandes, Moses Ferrao,Caitan Fernandes

Tivim, Bardez - Goa

Happy 48 th Birthdayto our beloved Leaderand Hon'ble Tourism

Minister of GoaMr. Nilkant Halarnkar

Arjun Aroskar-SarpanchShubhada Palkar -Dy. Sarpanch,

Shivdas Kambli-Panch,Tulshidas Shinde-Panch,Ramita R. Bugde-Panch,

Dinesh Chodankar-Secretary& Staff of VillagePanchayat Tivim,

Bardez-Goa

Happy 48 thBirthday to our

beloved Leader andHon'ble TourismMinister of Goa

Mr. NilkantHalarnkar

Pascoal Fernandes, ArthurFernandes, Daniel Fernandes, Paul

Alex D'Souza, Mario Braganza, RosyAnthony Fernandes, Edvin Pinto,Sylvester D'Souza, Lucy Pereira,Calisto D'Souza, Estevio Dias,Jamesh D'Souza, Victor Perira

Paul D'SouzaNadora, Bardez-Goa

WWiitthh BBeesstt WWiisshheess oonn YYoouurr BBiirrtthhddaayy

Fr. Diego

We are Grateful to you

for all that you have

done for our Village

Mr. FreddyFernandes,Ex Z.P. Member,

Moira

Carlos Menezes & Fly.St. Rock Wado,

Colvale, Bardez-Goa

blank:SUNDAY-Pg-12 4/17/2011 9:52 PM Page 1

Spoils of warFloriano Lobo, Moira

I would want to fast unto death along withLawrence Fernandes, should he take hisdecision seriously. (His Letter titled QuitDabolim Herald, 15 April). Unless the IndianNavy quits Dabolim lock, stock andbarrel by handing over the Dabolim Air-port to Goas civilian authority, which itwas, prior to Goas annexation in 1961, Ido not consider Goa as liberated. The IndianNavy is holding on to the Dabolim Airportas spoils of war. Therefore, they must va-cate Dabolim.

Well done KhariwadocarsAugustus Alphonso, Vasco-da-gama.

It anything rings like a thunder in the pre-tentious deaf ears of the government, itwill be the Vasco Khariwado fishermensvoice, a show of solidarity and might, toprotest the demolition of their homes. TheMPT and the state government must bereally shaken up now. This is just the be-

ginning of such protests in Goa. People,when united by common interest or socialinjustice, wont tolerate foolish adminis-tration by the state government. I believethis protest is a good lesson for the MPTand state government although MPT suf-fered a loss of approximately Rs20 croredue to the blockade of the land and searoute by these fishermen. Its always thecase in Goa that careless authorities waitfor peoples reactions instead of sensitivelyacting in advance, and at the right time,to solve problems. I wish to convey mygreetings to the people of Khariwado. Welldone!

No truthMahesh Kumar, New Delhi

The book Great soul: Mahatma Gandhiand his struggle with India by JosephLevyveld is banned in Gujarat. There mustbe evidence for whatever is published. Else,call it a novel inspired by the life of a publicfigure and not based on true facts. Democ-racy or the freedom of the press does not

mean that one has a right to malign some-body elses image. If Joseph has sufficientproof for his claim, he must produce it inpublic.

Keep lingo alive & kickingMelwyn Pereira, by email

Goa is a high literate state, but, however,we have been ruled by people with leastamount of qualification. The irony is thatwe ourselves time and again fall prey tothe ubiquitous Gandhi note or now morerecently to colour TV sets or gifts givenduring election, but accept the same as aright.

The controversy for Medium of Instruc-tion is a well planned strategy of our politi-cians. But then, we have forgotten thatpoliticians of yesteryear still have a desireto stage a comeback by raking up baselessissues to divide the people.

Making Konkani as one language com-pulsory in schools will definitely keep thelanguage alive and loved.

Do something differentMarushka Mendes, Margao

With regard to the meeting held in Margaoby the parent body FORCE, their move to

hold back information from parents is in itselfvery suspicious. It does not suffice callingparents for meetings and blurting out speechafter speech, the contents of which are nodifferent from the first meeting.

What was the action taken when the dead-line wasnt met when government maintaineda status on the MoI? Something needs tohappen on a practical front, as action speakslouder than words.

New bus & brake failure?Adelmo Fernandes, Vasco

The other day, an accident took place at Mar-gao wherein a brand new Kadamba busploughed into a traffic island which killed ascooterist on the spot and seriously injuredan elderly couple.

According to the driver of the bus, brakefailure was the cause of the accident. Howcould a brand new bus develop a brake failure?It must be said that the Kadamba bus driverscannot handle these hi-tech buses which haveair-brakes.

Therefore, it seems necessary for bus driv-ers to undergo some sort of training in usingthese high-tech buses by the bus manufac-turers themselves. This will prevent fatal ac-cidents due to human error.

Giving Goa a bad nameMichael Vaz, Merces

These days, several people have expressedtheir views on Bollywood projecting Goa inbad light, particularly with reference to thefilm Dum Maaro Dum. The people may beright in demanding that the controversialverses likely to tarnish the image of Goa needto be deleted, and an apology tendered tothe people of Goa. People have argued thatquite often Bollywood has projected Goa asa haven for drunkards and drug addicts. Hon-estly speaking, one cannot refute this claim.The culture of binge drinking in parties, socialget-togethers etc is a way of life.

The drug scene is rampant. Even our lead-ing politicians and their closest kin are in-volved. We have molestations and rapesgalore. Taking a cue from all this, even do-mestic tourists lose all ethics after they de-scend into Goa.

Goan Muslims deprivedShaikh Iftikar, President, MMYO, viaemail

The Congress Goverment of Goa, led by CMDigambar Kamat has announced financialpackage of Rs25 lakhs to deserving NGOsworking on humanitarian grounds in Goa.He has also stressed on more help of uptoRs1crore, if required, to committed and gen-uine workers in the said field. Astonishingly,not a single Muslim NGO features in the listprovided by the Goverment. Are Muslim NGOsnot fit to be in the list? Mufeedul MuslameenYouth Organisation (MMYO) has been tirelesslyworking in the social and educational fieldfor the last 10 years. We have a helped numberof needy students get admission by providingthem books, uniforms, fees etc.MufeedulMuslameen requests the Goa goverment toinclude Muslim NGOs in the list so that theycan continue the good work.

Govt ployJonas Correia, Aldona

The strike by malaria control workers, whoare demanding regularisation of their serv-ices, is unjustified. It has to be seen whetherthey went on strike of their own or have beeninstigated to do so. They were employed as

daily wage workers for a fixed purpose. Ithas become a practice for successive Gov-ernments to employ their cronies as Tempo-rary workers, PETS etc. and retain them astheir vote banks. They then ask them to goon a strike and get their services regularised.

Therefore, what is the purpose of havingan employment exchange? How are peopleregistered with the employment exchangegoing to get jobs? Perhaps, the answer liesin the next election, when our precious voteswill be sought and a fitting reply will be given.

No media attention Mike Carvalho, Canada

It is very disheartening to note that little orno attention was given internationally, to-wards the great act of courage shown byAnna Hazare, to fight corruption. It was sur-prising to note that the Indian correspondentsof major English news channels provided nocoverage whatsoever about the deeds of thisgreat Gandhian. For weeks prior to the Com-monwealth Games these channels were veryquick to broadcast all the negative set backs.Anna Hazares heroics should put all corruptrulers and officials into shame. He is a perfectnominee for a Nobel Prize.

Konkani books a plentyFr Jaime Couto, Margao

I was greatly pleased to read the unbiasedand candid views expressed by EulaliaDMello in her letter Promote use ofKonkani(Herald 15 April). The amount ofgood books and magazines produced inDevanagari, in the last 40 years or so, rightfrom school literature, poetry, essays, plays,novels to dictionaries and encyclopedias,is really praiseworthy. These publicationsare available in Panjim, Goa KonkaniAkademi at 243, Patto Colony, and Ra-jhauns Vitaran, Meenakshi Building, DrWolfango da Silva Marg or in Margao, Con-fidant, A Faria Road, and also TG BorkarStationers, Station Road, and Maya Book-stores. For the sake of students and otherswho seek to read or write simple but correctKonkani, in Devanagari, we have today Dal-gadacho Sondex a bimonthly magazine.

Details may be obtained on cell no.9975167671.

We know well enough that laws governeverything in the universe; yet mostpeople have never tried to apply the sci-

entific approach of experimentation and researchto test religious doctrines.

They simply believe, thinking it is impossibleto investigate and prove the scriptural texts. Wehave only to believe, they assure themselves andothers; and that is to be accepted as all there isto religion.

But the Holy Bible tells us that Faith is thesubstance of things hoped for, the evidence ofthings not seen (Hebrews 11:1). Clearly, faith isdifferent from belief, which is only the first stepbefore you carry out a spiritual experiment.

We know that scientific knowledge is builtupon facts. Take medical science, which is fairlywell developed, though causes and cures of certainailments are yet to be discovered.

But what science does know, it is more or lesssure about, because the various factors concernedhave been tested: theories have been tried andproved. However, in religion, it is different. Peopleare merely given certain facts or truths and toldto believe them.

After a little while, when their belief is not ful-filled, doubt creeps in; and then they go from re-ligion to religion trying to find proof. You hearabout God in churches and temples; you can readabout him in books; but you can experience Godonly through self-realisation attained by practicingdefinite scientific techniques.

In the future, religion everywhere will be amatter of experimentation, it will not be basedsolely upon belief.

We see people all over changing from onechurch to another without truly believing in theirhearts what they have heard about God. Theysay, Well, I pray, but most of the time he doesnot respond.

Nevertheless, God is always aware of us. Heknows all about us, yet we remain absolutely ig-norant of him.

This is the cause of the various kinds of doubtsthat play upon our minds. We must be able toknow him.

Why should we merely read and hear discus-sions about Him, and yet know nothing from per-

sonal experience?There is a definite way to experience God. And

what is that way? It is a scientific experimentation with religious

truths, and putting into practice, what you be-lieve! It is possible to put religion into practice,to use it as a science that you can prove by ex-perimenting on yourself.

The search for truth is the most marvelloussearch in the world. Instead of merely a matterof attending a Sunday service or performingones puja, religion must have a practical side.

Learn how to build your life around spiritualideals. Without practical application, religionis of little value.

In order that religion may guide and fulfillyour life, you need to experiment in meditation.Shake God out of his silence.

You must insist: Lord, speak to me! If youmake a supreme effort in the silence of the nightand in the early morning, after a little while, youwill see a glimmer of Gods light or feel a rippleof his joy coming over your consciousness.

Experimenting to know God in meditation, insilence, brings the most real, most remarkableresults.

Through regular meditation, we begin to ex-perience our world through new senses, we startto see beyond our old reality, as defined by ap-pearances, and we enter a state of clarity wherewe share a common self.

We find that inner peace and unconditionallove are, in fact, real and in our hearts. They sayprayer is, in a way, in which you speak to God,and meditation is when God speaks to you.

It was once thought that water was a single el-

ement. But experiments later proved that two in-visible elements, hydrogen and oxygen, come to-gether in a certain combination, to make up water.

Similarly, by religious experiment, wonderfulspiritual truths are realised. When you sit quietlyin meditation, and your mind is withdrawn within,you will have proof of God and of your own truenature.

We read in the Old Testament: Be still, andknow I am thy God (Psalm 46:10). Experimenta-tion with religious laws is marvellous becausethe result doesnt take place outside yourself; itis right within you.

Do we doubt that every tree and every bladeof grass is controlled by the power of God withinit though that power is not visible externally?

What you see are merely the results comingfrom the power in the seeds planted in the earth,which emerge as the tree and the blades of grass.You do not see what is going on within, in thefactory of the infinite.

Every object in this universe, and every potentialtherein, has been produced first in the factory ofthe mind of God; and God sublets that power tothe factory of the mind of man.

Isnt it true from that little factory of mansmind come marvellous discoveries and inventionsin every field of science, great ideas and booksthat revolutionise the world, intricate machinesand artificial intelligence to make life comfort-able,

And above all, need we doubt that in thatmind, lies mans unique ability to find God?Living a truth-driven life, you see everything in aclear, undistorted way, exactly as it is.

Therefore, learn to experiment with thismind. Learn to follow the science of religionand you can become the greatest kind of sci-entist, the greatest kind of inventor, the masterof your own fate.

With the application of these truths, thereis nothing you cannot accomplish in life. Andthe greatest of all achievements is to find God.

The great ones who have discovered himnever live in doubt; they experience the truth,as the Bible reveals: Ye shall know the truth,and the truth shall make you free.(John8:32).

OPINIONwww.oheraldo.in

Pg6Vol No CX No: 107

Goa, Monday, 18 April, 2011

Letters to the Editor

Letter of the DayDeplorable & disgusting

Prashant M, Margao

I took a Kadamba mini bus (GA 02 T 4548) from Palolem (to come to Margao) at 1030hours on Monday, 11 April. After paying the fare, I asked for the ticket. I did notreceive one. No tickets were issued to any passenger. I asked the conductor fourtimes and finally, he gave me a ticket for Rs28. In fact my co-passenger looked askanceat me as if I did something wrong by obtaining a ticket whereas it is clearly displayedin bold letters in the bus, that the passenger must pay for the ticket and retain thereceipt till the end of the journey. I wonder what these conductors show in theirrecord books. Is there any surprise check by the flying squad? None, I suppose. It,therefore, comes as no surprise that Kadamba Corporation is running into a loss. Inanother shocking development, a friend of mine who insisted on a ticket in anotherKTC bus in Margao for a short distance travel, was literally asked to leave the bus,while all fellow passengers kept on watching the scene, instead of supporting him.

Unless the public rises up, nothing much is going to change and this cancer whichwill only continue to spread. The worst part is that things like these are increasinglybeing accepted as a way of life. This is disgusting.

Printed and published by Vinayak Pai Bir for and on behalf of Herald Publications Pvt Ltd. Printed at Herald Publications Pvt Ltd, Plot No: L-135, Phase II, Verna Industrial Estate, Verna, Salcete, Goa. Published at PO Box 160, Rua Sao Tome, Panjim, Goa - 403001. Editor-in-chief: Mr R F Fernandes. Editor: Ashwin Tombat(Responsible under PRB Act). Regd Office: St Tome Road, Panjim, Goa. Tel: 2224202, 2228083, Fax: 2222475 (all Editorial); 2230535, Fax: 2225622 (Advertising); Margao: 2737689. Mumbai Office: 16-A, Bell Building, 2nd Floor, 19 Sir PM Road, Fort, Mumbai - 400001 (Tel: 22840702/22844908). RNI No: 43667/83. HOW TO CONTACT US: mail@herald-goa.com For press notes, general queries. junior@herald-goa.com Junior Herald; junioryouth@herald-goa.com Careers. heraldmirror@herald-goa.com Sunday Mirror. reporters@herald-goa.com For Reporters. business@herald-goa.com For Business news.editor@herald-goa.com For Letters to the Editor. sports@herald-goa.com For Sports news. advt@herald-goa.com For Advertisements. 2day@herald-goa.com For Herald 2day. tiatr@herald-goa.com For Tiatr Reviews and Reports. Disclaimer: Except for the editorial above, articles and letters in Heraldrepresent the views of the concerned authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Herald editor, publisher, and/or owners.

OHERALDO

By Sajla Chawla

OHERALDO

Scientific practice of religion

Smile with Smitha

MIND Over MATTer

Student concession

is non-negotiable

Either Goas bus owners were never students, or theirinsatiable greed has blinded them to any sense ofhistory. Otherwise, how could they even conceive of

asking the government to review the 50 per cent concessionthat students get on bus fare in Goa? This is no benevolentsop handed out by some opportunist chief minister preparingthe ground for a mid-term poll. This concession came onlyafter a massive state-wide agitation by students in Goa in1978.

It happened when Shashikala Kakodkar of the Maharash-trawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) was Chief Minister of Goa,and the bus lobby was the most powerful business lobby inthe state. Notwithstanding this, both the government andthe bus owners eventually had to bow to the unity, powerand determination of the students.

The 50 per cent student bus concession has been a partof life in Goa for over 30 years now. The students who foughtfor it and bravely faced the lathis of the police they werethen in their teens are today in their late forties and fifties.Their children are now teenagers, or even older.

An entire generation has grown up with this benefit, justas an entire generation of bus owners has flourished, mademoney, bought new buses and built successful businessesdespite giving students a 50 per cent concession over thepast 30-odd years. That they now simultaneously want anincrease in bus purchase subsidy and a review of this con-cession very shortly after getting a substantial increase inbus fares only shows their enormous and unbridled avarice.

The argument of the bus owners that students use bogusidentity cards is completely unfounded. The numbers ofthose who do this is infinitesimally small; even smaller thanthose who travel ticketless in buses.

The actual reason behind their putting forward this patentlyfalse argument is to be found in the so-called solution thatthey have offered, that the 50 per cent concession shouldbe restricted only to certain routes and within certain timeslots, so that they have the power to deny concessionaltickets to students in Goa. This disingenuous stealth tacticcuts no ice, and should not even be taken up for discussionby the government.

As for their demand of compensation for this concession,it should be rejected outright. Students get travel concessionsall over the country. Goas bus operators cannot claim after32 years that it is undermining the viability of their business.

Transport Minister Ramkrishna alias Sudin Dhavalikarwould do well to remember that it is his party, the MGP,which extended this concession to the students over 32years ago. What would happen to his image inside his ownparty, and to his partys image among the rural voters, if heshould become the one to withdraw the students 50 percent bus concession?

At the same time, it is a rather sad commentary on thestudents of this state today. The 1978 agitation for 50 percent bus concession was the beginning of a 10-year era of adynamic student movement in Goa, which fought not onlyfor issues pertaining to students, but against corruption,misuse of power and injustice to citizens of this state. It wasthe most powerful mass force in the state.

Last week, the bus owners not only had the effrontery todemand a review of the 50 per cent bus concession, but togo on strike while examinations were going on, deeply in-conveniencing students all over the state. Sadly, apart froma statement of condemnation by the National Students Unionof India (NSUI), hardly any student voices were raised againstthis abominable demand. Why are student organisations,college student councils, etc, so quiet?

A day from a village in GoaStraight from the heart

The culture of any place has its inception in the quiet by-lanes, laid-back villages and the back of beyond, wheretourists hardly go. It lives, breathes and seethes there; me-

andering quite a bit, before it reaches the confines of a museumor the likes of Kala Academy. Not that museums or performancetheatres do not have an intrinsic role to play in the spread ofculture they do. But the actual experience of that culture isquite far away from such elite places.

That culture lives here in the villages of Goa. It wakes up withthe hooting of the bicycle horn of the poder (baker) as it heraldsthe dawn on a sleepy misty green village with quaint lanes andmysterious by-lanes. The bread man knows more about the villagethan the Panch. He sees all the early morning activities, someblatant, some clandestine as he cheerfully blows