log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 10, 2025 GOA SIR on track, just 774 forms yet to be collected PANAJI: With only two days remaining to submit enumeration forms, just 774 forms are yet to be collected and digitized under the State’s ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Goa on Tuesday said that total 11,84,260 enumeration forms, amounting to 99.93 per cent of the total, have been collected and uploaded, so far.  >> See pg 3 Nepal national held with `16.83 L drugs PANAJI: The ANC arrested a Nepal national for allegedly possessing drugs worth Rs 16.83 lakh. The 32-year-old identified as Aiete Gharit, hailing from Nepal currently residing in Kullu, Himachal Pradesh, was found with 3.36 kg of charas worth around Rs 16.83 lakh during a raid at his rented residence in Arambol. Two women pillion riders die in mishaps PANAJI: Two women died in separate pillion motorcycle accidents in North Goa. At Keri, Sattari, 47-year-old Kamalavva Chunchawad fell off a bike ridden by her son while travelling from Khanapur to Porvorim. In another case, 64-year-old Sangeeta Satoskar of Mandrem succumbed to head injuries at GMC Bambolim, four days after she fell off a motorcycle at Colvale while riding pillion with her nephew. Delhi blast: NIA nabs 8th accused NEW DELHI: In another breakthrough in the deadly Delhi car blast case, the National Investigation Agency on Tuesday arrested the eighth accused, who harboured the deceased bomber by providing him logistical support, the agency said. The accused, identified as Dr Bilal Naseer Malla, a resident of Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla, was nabbed by an NIA team from Delhi. Microsoft to invest $17.5 bn in India NEW DELHI: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella on Tuesday announced plans to invest USD 17.5 billion in India to help build infrastructure and sovereign capabilities for the country's AI-first future, marking the third major AI-driven investment in the country in the past two months. WEATHER >> Max: 33.1 C Min: 21.2 C Humidity: 84% TIDES Low: 09.07 20.34 High: 03.02 14.25 The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 13 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME XI, NO. 173 Cong faces multi-cornered challenge in Salcete as ZP battle widens beyond BJP IN SHORT >> Facebook.com/thegoan 2 GOA GSPCB directs contractor to remove, transfer molasses in 2 days 3 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO Inexpensive and natural beauty tricks 10 Govt unleashes bulldozer action on Romeo restaurant at Vagator ENCROACHED PORTION ON GOVT LAND DEMOLISHED AGNELO PEREIRA THE GOAN I MAPUSA Reeling under public outrage following the Birch by Romeo Lane inferno that killed 25 people, the government on Tuesday scrambled to project action – but ended up exposing its own long-running complicity and inertia. In a hastily arranged, police-supervised operation, authorities demolished only the encroached portion of the Romeo Lane club and restaurant at Vagator, leaving the main structure – long accused of violations – untouched. This partial, selective demolition has raised far more questions than it has answered. The same beach-side encroachment has been demolished three times in the past by the club proponents and once by the Tourism Department, only to reappear with impunity. Each time the club’s promoters rebuilt the illegal structure and each time the government conveniently looked away, allowing a blatant mockery of the law to flourish on prime coastal CRUSH MODE: A JCB tears into the wooden extension of the controversial Romeo Lane club and restaurant at Ozrant, Vagator, on Tuesday.  land. On Tuesday, as a JCB tore down the flimsy wooden extensions, Deputy Director of Tourism Dhiraj Vagle confirmed that only the 198 sq. metres portion intruding onto tourism land was being removed. The main Romeo Lane restaurant – located on private property – was left intact. But locals see through what they call a desperate, post-tragedy performance. “This demolition is pure eyewash,” said Mahesh Dabholkar, a long-time resident who has repeatedly flagged the unchecked violations at Vagator. “The government does this only when under pressure. The real question is: how did the department allow the illegal structure to come up again and again? Everyone can see the collusion,” he added. His frustration echoes a DAYS AFTER ARPORA TRAGEDY… Govt orders safety checks across all tourism venues Constitutes joint inspection committee THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI In the wake of the tragic fire at Birch by Romeo Lane, Arpora, the government on Tuesday constituted a Joint Enforcement and Monitoring Committee to carry out inspections of tourism-related establishments across the State with immediate effect. An order issued by the Department of Home (General) stated that the committee has been formed with a view to ensuring strict adherence to fire safety norms and statutory compliance in tourism-related establishments across the State of Goa. The committee will be chaired by a senior scale officer of the Goa Civil Service and includes a police inspector, Station fire officer of the Directorate of Fire & Emergency Services, and Executive Engineers of the Public Works Department and the Electricity Department, respectively, as its members. Govt constitutes safety audit committee for tourism establishments Govt officials under police scanner in Arpora fire case sentiment now widespread along the coast: that regulatory agencies have allowed certain establishments – like those linked to the Luthra brothers, who own both Romeo Lane and the ill-fated Birch by Romeo Lane – to operate above the law for years. The fire tragedy has only magnified what residents say is a well-oiled system of selective blindness and bureaucratic indulgence. >Continued on P8 Pandya shines on return as India crushes South Africa by 101 runs 13 Birch owners, partners under lens; cops issue Blue Corner notices Financial trail of Luthras being tracked THE GOAN I NETWORK MAPUSA Goa Police have issued Look Out Notices (LOCs) against four individuals linked to the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub fire, including promoters Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, their business partner Ajay Gupta, and property owner Surinder Kumar Khosla. A Blue Corner Notice has also been issued against the Luthra brothers, who have fled to Phuket, Thailand, DIG (Crime & Range) Varsha Sharma IPS said on Tuesday. Addressing the media at Anjuna Police Station along with SP North Harish Madkaikar, Sharma said the investigation has expanded to include financial scrutiny. “We are taking the help of institutions and are tracking the financial trail of the Luthra brothers,” she stated. The trio – Gaurav, Saurabh and Ajay – are partners and owners of the nightclub, while Khosla, a British national, owns the land on which the establishment operated. Police have already arrested five members of the club’s management team. Sharma clarified that the Luthra brothers were not in Goa when the fire occurred. “They were in Delhi,” she said, rejecting accusations of delay in police action. Efforts are underway through >Continued on P8 Absconding Birch partner detained PANAJI: The Goa police late Tuesday night detained the absconding partner of Birch by Romeo Lane Ajay Gupta from Delhi. He is being brought to Goa after obtaining transfer warrant where he will be placed under arrest for culpable homicide and other serious charges. "Goa police detained one more accused linked to this case namely Ajay Gupta from New Delhi. A Look Out Circular was earlier issued against him," the police said. The team had earlier searched for him at his residence but was found absconding only to be traced later. 327 file papers for Zilla polls, withdrawals on Thursday THE GOAN I NETWORK As per the order, the Chairperson has been vested with magisterial powers for enforcement and monitoring. “The Chairperson is appointed as an Executive Magistrate under section 14(1) of BNSS, 2023 for the purpose of enforcement and monitoring in PANAJI The deadline for filing nominations for the December 20 Zilla Panchayat (ZP) elections ended on Tuesday with a total of 327 candidates entering the fray across Goa. According to sources in the Goa State Election Commission (GSEC), 159 nominations were filed in North Goa and 168 in South Goa for the 50 ZP constituencies -- 25 in each district. The elections will be held simultaneously across the state later this month. Scrutiny of the nomination papers will be carried out by the respective returning officers on December 10. Candidates will be allowed to withdraw their nominations until December 11, after which the final list of contestants will be published the same day. Officials said the filing of 327 nominations reflects strong interest in the polls, which will determine representation in Goa’s two district panchayats. The elections are expected to >Continued on P8 >Continued on P8 „„Conduct joint insound & lighting norms spections of tourism and crowd-control safety establishments like measures nightclubs, bars/ „„Submit monthrestaurants, MANDATE ly inspection hotels, guestreports to the OF JOINT houses, resorts, govt through reshacks etc COMMITTEE spective District „„Verify compliMagistrates ance with fire safe„„Chairperson to ty norms -- valid Fire report directly to the Safety Certificate, working concerned District Magisfire-fighting equipment, trate, with all enforcement proper emergency exits directions to be imple„„Check adherence to mented immediately ON PAGE 3 Agnelo Pereira Even more damning is the fact that the Tourism Department had previously demolished this exact structure earlier this year. Yet it rose again, brick for brick, timber for timber – proving that enforcement exists only on paper, while offenders continue business as usual. The department’s inability, or unwillingness, to prevent reconstruction speaks volumes about the deeper rot in oversight mechanisms. Residents also point to a growing cluster of hilltop structures in Vagator that mysteriously obtain licences despite clear environmental and planning restrictions. “If the government really wants to prove it isn’t shielding anyone, let it investigate how half these hill structures got permissions,” Dabholkar said. As the dust settles over the token demolition, one fact stands out starkly: the government’s sudden display of activity comes not from commitment to rule of law, but from the compulsion of public anger after a deadly disaster. SPORTS SLAB DISASTER: A portion of the fifth-floor slab of Junta House that collapsed on Tuesday. Most of the offices have already been shifted as the building is slated for demolition.   Narayan Pissurlenkar Panel to examine K’taka’s plea on forest land for Kalsa project THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Regional Empowered Committee of the Union MoEF&CC is set to review, on December 12, Karnataka’s request to divert 28.44 hectares of forest land in Nerase village, Khanapur taluka, for the Kalsa-Bhandura drinking water project. The proposal, earlier de- ferred by the committee in May due to its proximity to the Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary, will now be taken up again for consideration. Karnataka, through Neeravari Nigam Limited (KNNL) had approached REC for diversion of 28.44 ha of forest land in Nerase village of Khanapur taluka for construction of diversion weir, jackwell-cumpump house, electric substa- tion, pipeline and powerline for utilisation of Bandura Nala drinking water to Hubli-Dharwad twin cities and other surrounding areas for Kalsa project diversion. The REC during its meeting held in May had kept the proposal on hold considering that the proposed area falls close to the protected >Continued on P8 Aviation watchdog cracks down, SC orders Centre to come clean on missing kids orders IndiGo to cut flights by 5% AGENCIES PTI NEW DELHI Aviation regulator DGCA has ordered IndiGo to cut its planned flights by 5 per cent on high-capacity routes during winter, as it looked to bring some order at India's biggest airline, which cancelled thousands of flights nationwide after failing to plan for tighter safety regulations. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation, in the December 8 order, asked IndiGo to submit a revised schedule by Wednesday. As part of the winter sched- IndiGo back on track, claims CEO NEW DELHI: Crisis-ridden IndiGo on Tuesday claimed that the airline is back on its feet and operations are stable. In the latest video message, IndiGo CEO Peter Elbers also said that lakhs of customers, whose flights were cancelled or delayed, have already received their full refunds. ule for 2025-26, the airline has been operating over 2,200 flights per day. The latest order is part of a suite of actions by authorities that followed IndiGo, which controls over 65 per cent of the market share, cancelling more than 4,000 flights since December 2 that left tens of thou- sands of passengers stranded, upending their vacation plans, important meetings and weddings. DGCA, which previously issued a notice to IndiGo's chief executive and chief operating officer to explain the disruptions, has set up a four-member panel to probe the lapses. NEW DELHI he Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Union Government to submit six years of nationwide data on missing children, expressing concern over gaps in coordination among States, Union Territories, and central agencies. A Bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and R Mahadevan issued the order while hearing a PIL filed by Guria Swayam Sevi Sansthan, a non-profit working on child rights and anti-trafficking. The petition flagged a steady rise in untraced children and highlighted inconsistencies in reporting T WHAT SC SAID ON MISSING CHILDREN „„Accurate, real-time data crucial for tracing missing children, identifying trafficking patterns, and addressing systemic lapses „„Several States have reported a worrying rise in untraced minors „„Centre must provide six years of nationwide data on missing children across jurisdictions. Taking note of these issues, the Court asked the Union Home Ministry to appoint a officer to liaise with all States and Union Territories, ensuring „„Centre should update the Court on appointment of a Home Ministry nodal officer „„Union Home Ministry to appoint a dedicated officer to coordinate with all States/UTs and ensure uniform reporting „„States/UTs must comply with the Mission Vatsalya portal, uploading all missing children data for effective tracking and intervention timely, uniform, and updated data on missing children. This comes after an earlier direction asking States and UTs to designate nodal officers and regularly upload case details on the Mission Vatsalya portal, operated by the Ministry of Women and Child Development. The Court observed, however, that data entry and compliance remained patchy. The Bench stressed that accurate, real-time data is crucial for tracing children, identifying trafficking patterns, and addressing systemic lapses. Several States, the judges noted, have reported a worrying increase in untraced minors. The Centre must now produce the six-year dataset and update the Court on the appointment of the Home Ministry officer.