log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline TUESDAY MARCH 26, 2024 GOA Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 12 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME IX, NO.278 BJP eyes political goal in South Goa with football goodwill of Dempo 2 GOA Relief for Mapusa council over SEC nod to hold budget meeting 3 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO Hair care habits you need to stop this summer and to do instead Illegal structures return to haunt coastal Anjuna CONSTRUCTIONS SPRING ON HILLS, BEACHFRONTS IN VIOLATION OF RULES THE GOAN I NETWORK MAPUSA A concerning trend of unauthorized constructions has emerged along the fragile coastline of Anjuna, as new structures continue to proliferate despite legal interventions. Despite the closure of 175 illegal commercial establishments under the directive of the High Court, new constructions are rampant in Anjuna, flouting coastal rules and regulations. The emergence of structures on hills and beachfronts, notably behind Romeo Lane and near the Sunburn club at Ozrant, in front of Titlees and at the side of Glory restaurant which was demolished last year, highlights the ongoing challenges faced by authori- THE G AN POLL-STIR An ongoing construction on a hill offers panoramic view of the sea in Anjuna. (Right) A structure takes shape by cutting the hill at Ozrant, Anjuna. ties in curbing unauthorised developments. The construction activities on steep hills signal a blatant disregard for coastal regulations. Villagers have raised alarm over the involvement of influ- ential individuals from Delhi and North India, purportedly leveraging governmental connections to bypass legal hurdles. Local residents have voiced frustrations over the lack of enforcement by authorities. “It’s a free-for-all on the beachside of Anjuna. People from Delhi and other parts of North India come here and start businesses along the coast in the State. We don’t have any problem with people doing business here. Howev- THE GOAN I NETWORK TODAY’S POLL : Has BJP made the right choice of picking Pallavi Dempo for the South Goa LS seat? n Yes n No n Can’t say To vote, follow The Goan on X (twitter) @thegoanonline Azad Maidan, Panaji was drenched in hues of the rainbow as youngsters revelled in Holi celebrations smearing ‘gulal’ on each other. Thousands of people from all walks of life came out to celebrate the festival of colours on Monday. (More photos on page 3) Narayan Pissurlenkar Scan QR to vote With a 50% drop, is Cashew plantation dying in Goa? YES 84.9% NO 11.3% CAN’T SAY 3.8% IN SHORT >> Protest against arrest of Kejriwal at Azad Maidan today PANAJI: In light of the arrest of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, the INDIA Alliance is organising a protest at Azad Maidan on March 26. >> See pg 3 >Continued on P5 Thieves strike gold at Telaulim, flee with `69L worth ornaments COLOURS OF HOLI Readers can VOTE on a wide range of issues @ TWITTER POLLS presented by your pollster, The Goan. Results of 23rd March: er, the issue arises when they construct structures while disregarding all the laws. How can someone build a structure in the No Development Zone?” remarked Sagardeep Sirsaikar, an Anjuna resident. Interestingly, a notice board near the construction site behind the Romeo Lane displays an NOC for proposed erection of temporary cottages and restro lounge. “The licence indicates that the NOC is for temporary cottages. However, the construction seems to be of a permanent nature. What are the authorities doing?” questioned Sirsaikar. Despite the High Court’s reprimand of the local panchayat for issuing construction licences without due 358 kgs of garbage removed in clean up Op at Moira river THE GOAN I NETWORK MAPUSA Over 100 volunteers joined forces in a concerted effort to cleanse the Moira river, successfully extracting an estimated 358 kilograms of garbage, significantly enhancing the river’s pristine condition. The garbage was later handed over to the Moira panchayat for disposal. The Mapusa Rotaract Club, Aldona BJP Yuva Mandal, Baga Kayaks and Travel XP had conducted the river cleaning activity on Sunday. The volunteers were given life jackets, gloves and garbage bags for cleaning. Many volunteers went collecting garbage floating in the river with the help of kayaks. Gar- bage collected from the river bank was later segregated and placed into garbage bags by the volunteers. Former Aldona MLA Glen Ticlo and others also participated in the initiative. Of the 358 kg of waste collected, 128 kg of waste consisted of glass waste mainly >Continued on P5 MARGAO Thieves struck gold at the Vernekar family at Telaulim in Salcete when they decamped with gold ornaments worth around Rs 69 lakh. The incident is believed to have occurred on Sunday when the family had gone to Panjim. When the family returned, to their utter shock and surprise they found that the thieves had decamped with gold ornaments worth around Rs 69 lakh. The thieves are believed to have gained entry into the house by breaking the glass pane of the kitchen window. Margao police requisitioned the services of finger print and forensic experts to assist in the investigations. Margao police station in charge PI Tulsidas Naik informed that the police have commenced investigations into the complaint lodged by the Vernekar family. He said the FIR will be registered upon receipt of the opinion from the forensic experts. The Vernekar family reportedly told the police that the family had brought the gold ornaments home for a religious function. Further investigations are underway. Monsoon forecast: La Nina set for India return Asia Pacific Centre predicts above-average monsoon from July to September AGENCIES NEW DELHI he Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Climate Centre has released its first monsoon forecast for India this year. The Centre has given two distinct forecasts for the periods of April to June and July to September. As per the predictions, India is expected to receive above-average rainfall during its main monsoon season from July to September. The change in forecast is linked to the recent ENSO alert that anticipates a smooth shift from El Nino to La Nina condition. T T H E J U LY-S E P T E M B E R F O R EC A ST La Nina conditions may appear in June first, but are likely to be prominent in August and September Enhanced probability for above-normal precipitation is predicted for the region spanning eastern Africa to the Arabian Sea, India, The APEC introduced an ENSO (El Nino-Southern Oscillation) alert system update on March 15, 2024. The ENSO status predicts a La Nina WATCH for the period of April the Bay of Bengal, and Indonesia to September 2024. The alert underlines the crucial need for stakeholders and policymakers to closely observe climate patterns in the approaching months due to Tendency for above-normal precipitation is expected for some regions of East Asia and northern Australia There is an 83% chance of a transition of El Nino (warming of Pacific) to ENSO neutral by April-June potential impacts associated with La Nina conditions, such as altered weather patterns and consequent environmental consequences. The APEC Climate Centre, in its July to September outlook, stated: “Enhanced probability for above-normal precipitation is predicted for the region spanning eastern Africa to the Arabian Sea, India, the Bay of Bengal, and Indonesia, the Caribbean Sea, the tropical North Atlantic, southern Australia, and the southern South Pacific.” Earlier, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) had said that India is likely to embrace abundant rainfall during monsoon this year, under the reduced influence of El Nino and significant La Nina conditions in the Pacific region after May. 9 SPORTS Kohli stars as RCB beats Punjab Kings in IPL 12 Corporate sway beats karyakartas, Oppn slams BJP’s South Goa pick Politicos take to social media, attack BJP for yielding to the influence of industrialist family THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI After more than a fortnight of ‘tarik pe tarik’, BJP’s Parliamentary Board finally revealed its candidate for South Goa, a decision that drew sharp criticism from the Opposition. The move to introduce a newcomer -- the heavyweight industrialist Pallavi Dempo -- has raised questions over BJP’s commitment to its grassroots supporters. It may be noted that while the party has harped on 50 per cent reservation of Lok Sabha for women, loyal women karyakartas including Sulakshana Sawant, wife of Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, who is actively involved in politics, were deprived of this opportunity. Besides Sulakshana, names like Shefali Vaidya, Vidhya Gaude and Suvarna Tendulkar initially emerged as potential candidates when the party sought to include wom- Pallavi’s candidature: No differences within the party, asserts Shripad PANAJI: Union Minister of State for Tourism and North Goa candidate Shripad Naik has indicated that there are no internal differences within the party after the Parliamentary Board sealed the candidature of industrialist Pallavi Dempo as South Goa candidate. He stated that there was a careful thought process involved in choosing the candidate, which is why the party took time, while refuting claims that BJP’s decision was ‘shocking or >> See pg 3 surprising’ to the cadre. en in its candidate pool. This internal dynamics has now become the centre of controversy with the Opposition ridiculing the ruling party over ignoring grassroot leaders. Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao was the first to take to social media criticizing the BJP for bending to the industrialist family. “Dedication, sacrifice, and hard work of loyal karyakartas are laid to rest by the pro-crony and anti-poor @BJP4India by giving South Goa Lok Sabha ticket to an industrialist. A clear reflection of helplessness of @ BJP4Goa leadership before dictatorship in Delhi,” he said in his post on X. >Continued on P5 Cong fast-tracks process to select Goa candidates, meet tomorrow THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Congress party has finally fast-tracked the process to finalise candidates for both the parliamentary seats in Goa. Sources said that senior Congress leaders in Delhi summoned Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao, MLA Altone D’Costa and GPCC President Amit Patkar on Monday, with a final round of meetings by the Central Election Committee slated on March 27. Although the leaders were not reachable for comments, sources told The Goan that the Congress is now reworking its strategy after BJP picked Pallavi Dempo for South Goa. Indications are that Girish Chodankar and Capt Viriato are frontrunners for South. Similarly, in North, Sunil Kawthankar and Ramakant Khalap are the leading contenders. “Since the Congress leaders will be busy with protest called by INDIA Alliance against Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest, the final round of meeting is scheduled on March 27.
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