log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline THURSDAY JANUARY 29, 2026 GOA Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 15 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME XI, NO. 221 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 3 2 Govt concedes to demands, agrees to relocate Unity Mall 2,400 trees to make way for expansion of 2 bypasses GOA Cong stares at leadership uncertainty, alliance dilemma GOA One year on, Mapusa commuters still navigate stone-filled lanes SAYS SURVEY CONFIRMS ORIGINAL SITE OUTSIDE WETLAND BUT CITES COURT ORDER AND PUBLIC SENTIMENT FOR MOVE THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI The Goa government has decided to shift the proposed Unity Mall and Prashasan Stambh projects from their original site near Toyyar lake in Chimbel, following weeks of protests by local villagers and an order of the Principal District and Sessions Court, North Goa, cancelling the construction licence. The decision was announced by the Tourism Department in a statement issued late Wednesday evening. The department said that although the proposed site was outside the Toyyar lake wetland and its zone of influence, the government chose to relocate both projects considering the sentiments of some villagers. "Although the project site is in a settlement zone adjoining the National Highway, upon considering the sentiments and emotions of some of the villagers, it has been decided to shift the location of both the government projects to a The survey of Toyyar Lake was conducted from January 23 to 28, 2026 The survey included villagers’ representatives, experts, an advocate, a hydrologist, an architect, and officials from CSIRNIO, Wetland Authority, DSLR, and the Tourism Department The exercise involved demarcating the different site," the statement said. The department said that Chief Minister Pramod Sawant had held a meeting with villagers of Chimbel on January 21, during which he directed that a detailed mapping of the Toyyar lake wetland and its zone of influence be undertaken. "Thereafter, the survey exercise commenced on January 23, 2026, with representatives THE SURVEY catchment area, mapping drainage lines, and studying surface and subsurface water flows Surveyors also assessed vegetation cover, agricultural land, and natural springs within the catchment area The team traversed the entire boundary, checking all locations flagged by villagers and mapping inlet of the villagers, expert members, an advocate, a hydrologist, an architect, officials of CSIR-NIO, expert members of the Wetland Authority, DSLR, and the Tourism Department, and the exercise was completed on January 28," it said. The statement further said that a comprehensive ground-truthing exercise was carried out during the survey to demarcate the catchment area, drainage lines, surface points, high and low water lines, and the earthen bunds of the lake High-definition drones were used to capture land contours and aid detailed mapping The survey confirmed that the original site of Unity Mall and Prashasan Stambh lies outside the wetland zone and catchment area and sub-surface water flows, vegetation cover, agricultural land and natural springs, as pointed out by the villagers. The department said the survey team traversed the entire boundary of the catchment area to map water sources and drainage lines and inspected every location highlighted by villagers. "The survey team mapped the various inlet points in the lake along with high wa- ter line and low water line and the earthen bund of the lake. Besides the physical demarcation, assistance of high definition drones was taken for understanding the contours of the land," it said adding that after completion of the exercise, the draft report along with detailed maps was shared with the villagers and their advocate. "Upon completion of the exercise the draft report along with the detailed maps were shared with the villagers and their advocate. From the survey, it was amply clear that the proposed site for the Unity Mall and Prashasan Stambh not only falls outside the zone of influence of the Toyyar lake wetland, but also the catchment area that was mapped by the experts engaged by the villagers," the statement added. Earlier in the day, villagers of Chimbel have dug heels and declined to attend a meeting called by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on >Continued on P9 5 SPORTS T20I: Dube’s blitz in vain as New Zealand seals big win 15 Maharashtra Dy CM Ajit Pawar, 4 others killed in plane crash AAIB launches probe into mishap; Pawar’s last rites to be held with full state honours in Baramati today PTI BARAMATI Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four other persons on board an aircraft were killed after it crashed near the Baramati airport in Maharashtra's Pune district on Wednesday. Pawar had taken off from Mumbai in the morning to address four rallies in the day in Pune district for the February 5 zilla parishad elections. The others killed in the tragedy were Captain Sumit Kapoor, who had a flying experience of 15,000 hours, co-pilot Capt Shambhavi Pathak with 1,500 hours of flying, Personal Security Officer (PSO) Vidip Jadhav and flight attendant Pinky Mali. The government released a statement detailing the sequence of events that led to the crash and Pawar's death. The aircraft, a Learjet, was cleared for landing in Baramati on Wednesday morning after a go-around due to poor visibility, but having finally received a clearance it did not give any read-back' to the ATC, and moments later burst into flames on the edge of the runway. In aviation parlance, a go- Rescuers at the site where the plane carrying Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar crashed in Pune district. Instrument landing system could have averted tragedy, says expert MUMBAI: The Baramati plane crash, which killed Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others on Wednesday, could have been avoided if the airport runway had been equipped with an instrument landing system (ILS) to guide the pilot through marginal visibility, according to an aviation expert. >> See pg 9 around is a standard procedure where a pilot discontinues a landing attempt and initiates a climb to fly another approach. It is used when a landing cannot be completed safely due to factors like poor weather, an unstable approach, or traffic on the runway. It is a proactive safety measure rather than an emergency. >Continued on P9
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