OHERALDOThe Voice of Goa Since 1900

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, JUNE 21

The Bombay High Court at Goaon Monday rejected anticipatorybail applications filed by the ab-sconding former tourism min-ister Mickky Pacheco and hisaide, Officer on Special Duty,Lyndon Monteiro even as thedefence tried to highlight con-tradictions in the police inves-tigation. The accused have beennamed as main accused in theNadia Torrado death case whodied on May 29 in Chennai hos-pital, a fortnight after she con-sumed rat poison.

The Single Bench of Justice AS Oka in a special seating heardboth the applications. The ChiefJustice of the Bombay HighCourt assigned the matter toJustice Oka as applicants ap-proached him after Justice N ABritto, on June 18, declined tohear them saying not beforeme.

The senior counsel SurendraDessai appearing on behalf ofthe accused pointed out thatthe prosecution has made con-tradictory claims as regards toalleged involvement of the ac-

cused in the death of Nadia Tor-rado. The accused has beenframed for extraneous rea-sons.

On one hand prosecution hasbeen holding the accused re-sponsible for the death of Nadiaand on the other it has claimedthat the accused have borne

medical treatment cost of thedeceased amounting to Rs 50lakh. And this is quite contra-dictory, he said.

He further highlighted thatin her dying declaration thatwas recorded before the SpecialExecutive Officer of Thane,Nadia had absolved accused ofany culpability. Also, the injuriespointed out by the prosecutionon the body of Nadia were su-perficial and no evidence hasbeen produced to indicate thathe provoked her to end her life.

The prosecution counsel alsoalleged that the government isafter accused because of pres-sure from some women organ-isations.

On the other hand PublicProsecutor Carlos Ferreira toldthe Court that the first postmortem report received fromChennai stated the cause ofdeath as poisoning and its com-plications with multiple contu-sions and has mention ofinjuries found on the body.

He highlighted that a mobileset and a laptop of the accusedhas been missing and that her

PTI

NEW DELHI, JUNE 21

The Group of Ministers onBhopal gas disaster today rec-ommended a Rs 1,300 crorepackage for the victims enhanc-ing the compensation for thekin of dead to Rs 10 lakh andfor permanently disabled Rs fivelakh.

The GoM, headed by HomeMinister P Chidambaram, con-cluded four-day deliberationsand submitted its report toPrime Minister ManmohanSingh, which will be consideredby the Union Cabinet at a specialmeeting on Friday.

The Ministers recommendedfresh steps to seek extradition

of former chief of Union CarbideWarren Anderson and filing ofa curative petit ion in theSupreme Court to restore strin-gent charges against the accusedin the gas leak disaster thatclaimed over 15,000 lives nearly26 years ago.

Surface Transport MinisterKamal Nath, a member of theGoM, told reporters that thedead would get Rs 10 lakh whilethe permanently disabled willget Rs five lakh, those temporar-ily disabled will get Rs 1 lakh.

Those afflicted by cancer andother serious ailments will getRs 2 lakh, Nath said adding themoney would be given after de-ducting payments already made

to the victims. He said the Cen-tre would foot Rs 750 crore inthis regard.

Madhya Pradesh Minister Bab-ulal Gaur, who is also a memberof the GoM, expressed dissatis-faction over the package sayingthe state has demanded a Rs

5,000 crore package.On the legal front, the GoM

recommended that the Centrewill file a curative petition inthe Supreme Court to seekrestoration of the stringentcha rges f i l ed i n the CB Ichargesheet against the accusedin the case.

In 1996 the apex court hadreduced the charge from Section304-Part II (culpable homicidenot amounting to murder) toSection 304 A (criminal negli-gence) of IPC.

While Section 304 II providesa maximum imprisonment of10 years, Section 304 A providesa maximum jail term of twoyears.

Portugal's midfielder Tiago celebrates after scoring against North Korea in the World Cup at Green Point stadium in Cape Town, on Monday.

Goas Heartbeat: Amanda

retires from acting Pg 14

Sports: Dhoni reclaims

ODI No.1 spot Pg 13Business: IRDA to frame new

guidelines on ULIPs Pg 12

Visit us at:www.oheraldo.in pAnjim, tuesDAY, june 22, 2010 pRiCe Rs. 3.00 (Air surcharge Rs. 1.50) pages 18

IN BRIEf

He has only returned flood reliefamount of Rs 5 crore that I'vegiven him 2 years back. Whatabout rate of interest?

Todays Matches

MExICO vs URAGUAy at 7.30 pm

fRANCE vs S AfRICA at 7.30 pm

NIGERIA vs SOUth kOREAat 00.00 Am

GREECE vs ARGENtINA

at 00.00 Am

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, JUNE 21

Exactly three years after he hadditched the party at the lastminute, Taleigaos unattachedlegislator and Education Minis-ter Atanasio Monserrate todayrejoined the Congress party end-ing months of speculation.

Monserrate had ditched theCongress during 2007 Assemblyelections when he filed his nom-ination on UGDP ticket at thelast moment after getting the

Congress ticket.The Congress claimed that

Monserrate had not only joinedthe party but also merged theUGDP, a claim which has beencategorically rejected by the re-gional outfits senior members.

Ending months of speculationMonserrate finally submitted hismembership papers to the GoaPradesh Congress CommitteePresident Subash Shirodkar, inthe presence of Chief MinisterDigambar Kamat, Calangute

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, JUNE 21

Education Minister AtanasioMonserrate who rejoined theCongress party today said thatnot much should be read intodevelopment and termed it asthe return of the prodigal.

The entry was long overduewe were just waiting for a greensignal from the party High Com-mand and AICC President SoniaGandhi, Monserrate told re-porters after joining the party.

It is the return of prodigal.Not much should be read intothe development, he assertedthanking the AICC president,chief minister and the GPCCpresident for allowing him torejoin the party.

Asked whether there was anycompromise on the Rajiv GandhiIT Habitat, which he opposedin 2007, he said There is noconnection between the IT habi-tat and me joining the Con-gress.

Babush rejoins CongMLA Agnelo Fernandes, Cur-torim MLA Alexio ReginaldoLourenco, GPCC office bearersand his supporters.

The minister alongwith ValpoiMLA Vishwajeet Rane was dueto join the party in Decemberlast but due to some differencesthe entry could not happen.

While Monserrate joinedtoday, Rane who is also theHealth Minister would join theparty in few days, GPCC Presi-dent Subash Shirodkar said.

Sources said the health min-ister is in Delhi for the finalround of talks with CongressHigh Command.

The exact deal between theCongress and Babush could notbe ascertained as both main-tained that the entry was un-conditional.

Addressing a press conferenceat the Congress headquartersChief Minister Digambar Kamatsaid that the party welcomedMonserrate into the party foldunconditionally.

Monserrate has entered theCongress without any condi-tions, Kamat said.

Asked whether there wouldbe any portfolio reshuffle afterMonserrates entry into Con-gress, he replied, the questiondoes not arise as the entry isunconditional.

Minister downplays return

Vishwajeet to enter soon?

Digambar Kamat welcomes Atanasio Monserrate back into Congressparty fold, on Monday. Photo by Rozario Estiberio

ON PAGE 3l I have no role in

Babushs entry,

says Subash

l Babush cannot merge

UGDP into Cong:

Radharao

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

Will the government finally setup the kabrastan for MargaosMuslim community at Sonsodo?

Well, a high-level meetingconvened by Chief MinisterDigambar Kamat on Mondaymorning has strongly favouredsetting up a kabrastan for theMuslim community at Sonsodonear the Christian cemetery.

In fact, the meeting has toldthe Margao Municipal Councilto begin the process of acquiringland admeasuring around 30,000square meters behind the exist-ing cemetery at Sonsodo.

Chaired by the chief minister,the meeting issued instructionsto government agencies, includ-ing the Town and Country Plan-ning Department to issue allrequired NOCs to the civic bodyfor the acquisition of land.

The meeting was attended

amongst others by Margao Mu-nicipal Chairperson SavioCoutinho, Chief Officer Y BTawde, Chief Town Planner andsenior government officials.

Sources said the meeting de-liberated on the burning con-troversy at length in the wakeof directions passed by theDelhi-based National Commis-sion for the Minorities to acquireland for the kabrastan within

six months.It is learnt that the meeting

did not touch upon the demandfrom certain quarters in the Mus-lim community to allot land forthe burial grounds in Aquem.The meeting also did not takeup the issue of a cemetery asrequested by the Our Lady ofGrace Church, Margao.

When contacted, Margao Mu-nicipal Chairperson Savio

Coutinho said that as per theinstructions from the Commit-tee, the proposal to have akabrastan at Sonsodo would beplaced before the Council meet-ing scheduled on June 28.

In fact, the June 28 meetingof the Council was scheduledto deliberate on the long-pend-ing demand of the Muslim com-munity for a kabrastan in thecity since the existing burialgrounds at Pajifond has reacheda point of saturation. The Coun-cil was scheduled to discuss thekabrastan at its meeting on June28. The proposal made attodays meeting convened bythe chief minister would beplaced before the Council meet-ing, he added.

Incidentally, at their last meet-ing on the burning kabrastanissue, the City Fathers could nei-ther identify any suitable landfor the kabrastan nor take anyconcrete decision. Instead, thecivic body had passed the buckon the district collector, Southto identify and shortlist sitesfor the burial grounds.

This barren land is being targeted by the government to set up thekabrastan at Sonsodo for the Muslim community.

Photo by Santosh Mirajkar

Meet favours kabrastan at Sonsodo

Muslims oppose Sonsodo

site for kabrastan

GoM recommends Rs 1,300 cr packageCOMPENSATIONl Rs 10 lakh for deathl Rs 5 lakh for

permanent disabilityl Rs 1 lakh for

temporary disabilityl Rs 2 lakh for serious

ailments

Mickkys troubles worsenas HC rejects bail plea

Notary hadexpired licenceHERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, JUNE 21

The Goa Police Crime Branchofficials have confirmed thatthe licence of the Margao-based Notary Adv Joey Ro-drigues, who notarisedformer tourism ministerMickky Pachecos affidavitsfiled in the court had expired.

The affidavit sworn beforeNotary Joey Rodrigues at Mar-gao on June 14 has been sub-mitted by Pacheco to theHigh Court along with his an-ticipatory bail application.

PTI

NEW DELHI/PATNA, JUNE 21

After the tough talk and retali-ation, BJP today appeared keenon not breaking its alliance withJD(U) in Bihar while Chief Min-ister Nitish Kumar kept the cardsclose to his chest.

The potter does not wanth i s p o t t o b re a k , B J Pspokesperson Shahnawaz Hus-sain said hinting that despitedifferences with the JD(U), theBJP would like the alliance tocontinue.

He, however, made it clearthat though his party wantedto work with the JD(U) forthe development of Bihar, itwould not compromise onself-respect.

Stepping in to apparently cooldown tempers, senior leader LK Advani, who is in favour ofthe 15-year old alliance contin-uing in the run-up to the assem-bly polls in the state likely inOctober this year, discussed thedevelopments with Bihars BJPunit chief C P Thakur.

BJP ready for truce, butNitish keeps it guessing

(Continued on page 2)

(Continued on page 2)

47 killed in Chinese coal mine

PTI

BEIJING, JUNE 21

An explosion in a coal mine incentral China today killed 47miners while 28 others werebrought out to safety in yet an-other major mishap in the col-l ier y sector notorious foraccidents.

The blast occurred in coalmine when a pack of gunpowderkept underground detonatedtrapping 75 miners in Weidongdistrict at around 1:40 am (localtime) the State Administrationof Work Safety said.

The official said 28 minerswere brought out to safety while47 were confirmed killed. Thecause of the explosion is stillunknown.

Preliminary investigationssaid that the mine with a pro-duction capacity of 98,000tonnes was operating illegallyand the mine owner Liu Jianguowas arrested, state media re-ported.

Of the 28 miners rescued sixwere reported to be in seriouscondition including one personwho suffered more than 78 percent burns.

40 ill after chlorinegas leakOver 40 people, includingwomen and children, weretaken ill and some of them fellunconscious after chlorine gasleaked from a cylinder ofwater supply department onMonday, officials said inBerhampur, Orissa. (PTI)

Pak violates ceasefire againIn the second ceasefire viola-tion in as many days, Pakistanitroops on Monday fired at aforward outpost along the In-ternational Border (IB) inJammu where the BSF foiledan infiltration bid by militants. (PTI)

Cartoonist LaxmanhospitalisedEminent cartoonist R K Lax-man has suffered three mildstrokes and admitted to theintensive care unit of a hospi-tal in Mumbai where doctorsdescribed his condition ascritical but stable. ( PTI)

No personal consideration shouldstand in the way of

performing a public duty.

Ulysses S Grant

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GOAHERALD

Pg2GOA, TUESDAY, 22 JUNE, 2010

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, JUNE 21

Indian Heritage Hotels Associ-ation (IHHA) has proposed thatGoa government should takeover crumbling properties anddevelop it.

There are many heritageproperties in ruin. These prop-erties can be taken over and de-ve loped by Goa Tour i smDevelopment Corporation(GTDC) and handed over for run-ning on commercial basis,IHHAs executive member AjitSukhija told reporters.

He said that the first priorityof such developed heritageproperty should be given to theowner. If not then the stategovernment can maintain it orgo for auctioning of the same,Sukhija added.

The association feels that apush by the government willhelp in preservation of heritagehouses, many of which are inbad shape due to family disputeand other related issues.

IHHAs President MaharajaGajsingh of Jodhpur believesthat in Goa there is so much po-tential, where a heritage build-ing or a structure can be

developed into productive as-sets (especially hotel business).

The main purpose is to pro-tect these structures from beingdeteriorating. People owningsuch heritage structures needto make aware about its impor-tance, he said.

IHHA has decided to ap-proach all those heritage struc-ture owners to join hands withthem and try to develop andmaintain the same for betterprospects.

Maharaja Gajsingh owns chainof heritage hotels in Rajhastan.Similarly, Sukhijha himself hasconverted his 1888-built ances-tral house at Fountainhas intoa heritage hotel, Panjim Inn,located in the heart of the city.

The general body meeting ofIHHA, which held in Panaji onSunday also pointed out thatthe government should bringout a financial package for her-itage hotel owners, which willget them much-needed mone-tary assistance.

In 2008 the state govern-ment had proposed financial as-sistance to heritage houseowners through heritage housescheme, but it is in limbo,

Sukhijha said.Sukhijha cleared that Goa

government had planned a con-cession in form of cash incen-tives to the tune of 25 percentfor the project upto 50 lakhs,where the interest wont exceed4 percent.

But the proposal is yet toget the approvalits still on pa-pers, he lamented. The meetingalso decided to demand for aTransfer of Development Rights(TDR) to heritage structure.

As per TDR, any builder canopt for development rights of abuilding if he purchases therights from heritage structure,Sukhijha cleared.

IHHA feels that governmentofficers, while on official visits,should be made to stay in her-itage hotels rather than in five-star resorts, Sukhijha said.

The Goa Heritage ActionGroup (GHAG) in associationwith the Corporation of the Cityof Panaji (CCP) has listed 1000heritage structure in Panaji andaround 3,500 structures acrossthe state.

However, only two hotels inGoa are classified under IHHAby Union Tourism Ministry.

Govt should take over heritage properties for commercial use

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, JUNE 21

Bettered infrastructure facilitiesin countrys rural areas posehindrance for development ofheritage hotels in the country,a senior heritage hotel officersaid.

More then 80 percent of her-itage structures are in rural areasof the country, which are ig-nored and needs attention. Butthere are various aspects thatrestrict us from developingthese structures into a produc-tive asset, Rakesh Mathur, pres-ident, Welcome Heritage toldreporters.

Mathur, in his recent meetwith the Union Tourism MinisterKumari Selija pointed out vari-ous difficulties that one has toface while taking up heritagedevelopment project in ruralareas.

The most important is thecost, which is very high. Be itwhile converting a heritagebuilding into a hotel or its fur-ther maintenance. The struc-tures in rural areas are verybroad and strong, which needhuge investment for its facelift,he said.

The lack of skilled workers

and the infrastructure facilitiesin these areas are yet anotherkey hindrance for the develop-ment, he added.

Apart from this, once thebusiness is set we have to sufferlosses along with profit. Beinga seasonal business there is nostability of income, Mathurlamented.

He feels that in order to de-velop these structures, the cen-ter government need to providefinancial assistance to the own-ers, which will give a betterprospect to the locals.

Indian Heritage Hotels Asso-ciation (IHHA), President Ma-haraja Gajsingh of Jodhpur, feelsthat development of better in-frastructure facilities in ruralareas will make a difference byattracting larger number oftourists.

Tourists dont prefer to goin rural areas, where we havemaximum numbers of heritagestructures. The economy of ruralareas can be changed, if devel-oped in a more productive wayemploying large section of peo-ple, Maharaja said.

He said that the heritage

tourism does not only providedirect employment through ho-tels but also provide indirectemployment to various peopleslinked with the industry.

The conversion of heritagestructure into a hotel or anyother business provides employ-ment opportunities to the locals,either in form of tourist guide,an entertainer; a craftsman withhis stall.It improves the stan-dard of living, Maharaja stated.

Maharaja, who owns chain ofheritage structures in Rajhastan,has 90 percent locals employedin his business.

Maharaja said that the rich-ness of heritage structures cumhotels has attracted large num-ber of domestic tourists com-pare to foreigners.

The main purpose of her-itage movement was to increasethe foreign tourists flow in thecountry. But the scenario is dif-ferent now. More and more In-dian travellers are checking inheritage hotels. The ratio was80:20 earlier with foreignersleading the chart but now it isdomestic tourists with 40:60percentages, he cleared.

Poor infrastructure hindering growth of heritage hotels: Mathur

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

With the high court rejectingthe bail application of formerTourism minister, MickkyPacheco, the Colva police re-sumed its hunt for the Benaulimalong the coastal belt on lateMonday evening.

As news of the high court rejectionof his bail plea reached the Margaodistrict headquarters, a police teamfrom the Colva police station wentin search of the eluding former Min-ister along the coastal belt. Thepolice team made its presence feltin Colva, Betalbatim and Majordaas part of the hunt for the MLA.

Police sources in the know,however, say the police wereunsuccessful in laying theirhands on the former TourismMinister, even as the police won-dered whether the Benaulimwould surrendered to the Crimebranch or knock the doors ofthe Supreme Court for bail.

A senior police official, whencontacted, said the hunt for theformer minister resumed latethis evening after his bail pleafailed to find favour with theHigh Court.

The hunt for the former Min-ister comes against the back-

drop of his so-called visit to theoffice of the Notary Adv JoeyRodrigues located in the con-gested New Market of the Com-mercial capital. The police hadto face flak over its failure tolay their hands on the eludingformer minister during his visitto the city.

Senior police officers, how-ever, say the police are still ver-if ying whether the formerminister had visited the notarysoffice in Margao or whether thenotary register was despatchedto Pachecos hideout for his sig-nature.

hunt for Mickkyintensifies

Rivals make hay as Mickky stays away

Churchill, Valanka to reopen Benaulimoffice, distribute fertilizer bags

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

With Benaulim MLA MickkyPacheco on the run since thelast fortnight with the Crimebranch hunting him in the NadiaTorrado death case, PWD Min-ister and Navelim MLA ChurchillAlemao along with daughterValanka made their presence feltin Benaulim on Monday.

Though the obvious reason wasto distribute free fertilizer bags tothe 200-odd farmers, both Churchilland Valanka announced the revivalof their office in Benaulim from Au-gust 15 and cherished the fond mem-ories the Alemao family had withthe Benaulikars in the late 80s and90s.

The decision to revive the Ale-maos office in Benaulim comesat a time when Pacheco has pub-licly set his sight on the newNuvem constituency.

Benaulim and my daddyChurchill had close ties since1989. This constituency had

elected my daddy many times,we cannot forget this kind ges-ture from the people. Benaulimpeople are our people. I tolddaddy, who is representingNavelim, that Benaulim peopleare our people and we have togive the fertilizers to the farmersfrom Benaulim, Valanka added.

Valanka who had nursed theambition to contest the LokSabha polls from South Goa inthe past said the people are wel-come to their residence withany difficulties. From August15, we are opening our officein Benaulim. I and ZP Chairper-son Maria Rebello will sit in theoffice to resolve the grievancesof the people, she said.

Churchill told the people thathe cannot forget them for theirlove and affection since the 80s.I had won the Benaulim in 1989with the highest voting. You areresponsible for my victory. I be-came the first Catholic chief Min-ister after you elected me as

PWD Minister Churchill Alemao along with daughter Valanka distrib-uting free fertilizers to farmers of Benaulim.

Photo by Santosh Mirajkar

your MLA. I made this historybecause of all of you, he added.

My daughter has told you ofthe plans to re-open the Be-naulim office. She has startedsocial work. I will approach theland lady for the office prem-ises, he added.

Saying there are ups anddown in politics, Alemao gavean example of a village doctor,

when people abandoned theirtrusted doctor as they wantedfast recovery, only to realizelater that the quick medicinewas not give the much desiredrelief. When I was representingBenaulim, I was in power for afew months. But now, the peo-ple of Navelim are fortunate toget the development works asI hold the portfolios of PWD andRDA, he added.

Alemao said he has cleared anumber of developmental proj-ects in Benaulim village, includ-ing drainages and roads andassured to hot mix the internalroads in the village after themonsoons.

Before distributing the fertil-izers which he has alreadydone so in his Navelim con-stituency, Alemao reminded thathe has borne the expenses to-wards the fertilizers. And, hemade it clear that he would con-tinue his gesture the next seasonas well, indicating that the Ale-maos appears set to return inthe new Benaulim constituencycomprising of the villages of Be-naulim, Colva, Seraulim, Varca,Orlim, Carmona and Cavelossim the last four village which arenow part of Navel im con-stituency represented by thePWD Minister.

Illegal hutments come up in Margao

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

Illegal hutments have re-sur-faced in the open fields near theKTC bus stand here, with theauthorities turning a blind eyeto the illegalities.

In fact, the hutment dwellershave literally converted the openfields into a scrap yard, withbundles of scrap waste lyingdumped all over the area.

Local farmers have bitterlycomplained over the presenceof the migrants and the wastedumped in the fields.

They complained that they

cannot cultivate the field be-cause of waste and defeca-tion by the migrants in thefields.

Why is the government drag-ging its feet to crack a whip onthe migrants. We cannot evenstep in the fields due to foulodour and human excreta allaround, informed a farmer.

Incidentally, the Margao Mu-nicipal council had razed downillegal huts from the KTC andother areas of the city, but thesame have resurfaced rightunder the nose of the authori-ties.

A view of the hutments near the KTC bus stand. Photo by Santosh Mirajkar

Vehicles damages property at Benaulim

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

A Swaraj Mazda van rammedagainst a telephone pole, com-pound wall and a Swift vehicleat Pedda-Benaulim on Mondaymorning.

Benaulim Deputy SarpanchStanley Fernandes said the ve-hicle went off the road andcrashed on the telephone pole

before it rammed against thecompound wall causing dam-age.

The inc iden t occu r redaround 10.45 am, he said. Itis believed the driver of theill-fated vehicle suddenly gotfits and lost control beforecrashing on the compoundwall.

The Colva police are investi-gating.

FROM PAGE 1

Mickkys troubles worsenbelongings were destroyed and her room cleaned even before thefuneral. Also, a maid who was present in the house with the victimwhen she consumed Ratol has been untraceable.

The prosecution also tried to make out a case againstPachecho by submitting a list of criminal cases pendingagainst him at various police stations in the State and thathe is of violent nature.

The court accepted the prosecutions case that Pachecos custodywould be required for completing the investigation and dismissedhis anticipatory bail application.

The Court also took objection to the fact that the secondaccused, Lyndon had not disclosed that he was asked to remainpresent in the Court on June 15.

The accused had withdrawn his bail application after hewas asked to remain present in the Court that was filed byhim through his mother. Thereafter, he filed a fresh appli-cation.

Notary had expired licenceEarlier, Adv Aires Rodrigues had alleged that Adv Joey Rodrigues

notary licence had expired.When contacted sources in the Crime Branch confirmed that

the licence had indeed expired on October 10, 2009Adv Aires Rodrigues has been further informed by the Head of

Notary Services that the government did not renew the licence ofNotary Joey Rodrigues as there is a disciplinary enquiry pendingagainst him.

The State Registrar and Head of Notary Services is conductingan inquiry on the directions of the Law Secretary following a com-plaint filed by one Joao Pereira of Utorda against Adv Joey Rodriguesfor forging and manipulation of a Power of Attorney committedby him in his capacity as Notary.

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

The High court has issued no-tices to the PWD and the Don-gorim bridge contractor in acontempt petition filed by thefarmers of Aquem-Baixo.

The farmers who are Inter-vener s i n Wr i t Pe t i t i onNo.297/2010 filed before theHigh Court of Bombay at Goa,have in their Contempt Petitionprayed that the Court be pleasedto initiate the contempt pro-ceedings against the respon-dents namely Anil S Ringane,the Executive Engineer of PWDDivision VI and the ContractorMrs Bernadette DSilva of M/SDC Construction in accordancewith the Contempt of CourtsAct 1971 which includes pun-ishment in accordance with law.

Claiming to be agriculturistsbelonging to the ScheduledCaste and Scheduled Tribes, thepetitioners said they have inpossession of their respectiveproperties consisting of paddyfields and are dependent on theincome received from theseproperties. They alleged thatthe respondents have com-menced construction activity inthe adjoining properties, whichconstruction is for the proposedRCC bridge linking Dongorim

hC issues noticesto PWD, contractor

in contempt pleaand Firgulem in the village Pan-chayat of Navelim in Navelimconstituency.

They stated that on accountof the construction activity un-dertaken by the respondents,who have been dumping con-struction material like mud, rub-ble, stones etc in the paddyfields of the petitioners; thatthe dumping of the material ison a large scale and is beingdone in a haphazard manner,that the respondents have dughuge trenches in the propertyfor constructing the approachroad to the proposed bridge etc.

hill cutting case filed

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

The Maina Curtorim police hasregistered a case against a res-ident of Navelim for hill cuttingat Cavorim-Chandor.

The police has registered acase under section 17-A of theTown and Country Planning Actfollowing a complaint lodgedby Town Planner Rajesh Naik.

Meanwhile, the Maina Cur-torim police has arrested awoman for alleged forgery andcheating a credit cooperativesociety.

Khola house burgled in daylight

HERALD CORRESPONDENT

CANACONA, JUNE 21

In a daylight robbery, burglarsdecamped with cash and goldornaments with Rs 1.60 lakhfrom a residence at Saleri-Kholaon Monday.

In her police compliant,one Ashmita Nandu Paguitold Canacona police thatsome culprits gained entryinto her house in their ab-sence between 10 am and6.30 pm by removing rearside roof tiles.

She claimed that the culpritshad decamped with cash of Rs40,000 and gold ornaments likechains, bracelets, earrings, rings,worth around Rs 1.20 lakh.

Shop gutted HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

A major fire gutted a shop atthe KTC Bus stand here lateMonday night. Fire personnelsaid goods worth around Rs90,000 has been gutted in themajor fire.

The incident is believed tohave occurred due to a sus-pected short circuit.

Fire personnel said they hadfound a cylinder inside the shopand the same was removed outof the premises, thus avertinga major tragedy.

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GOA, TUESDAY, 22 JUNE, 2010

GOAHERALD

Pg3

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, JUNE 21

Goa Pradesh Congress Commit-tee president Subhash Shirodkartoday said unattached legislatorAtanasio (Babush) Monserattesentry into Congress was clearedby the Congress president SoniaGandhi and the Congress HighCommand and he had no roleto play.

In 2008, Monserrate alongwith supporters had been ac-cused of assaulting Youth Con-gress workers in his Taleigaoconstituency, while they werepeacefully demanding the set-ting up of the Rajiv Gandhi In-formation Technology (IT)habitat in Dona Paula.

The legislator had also led amob and attacked the Panjimpolice station in which severalpolicemen were injured, whichis being investigated by CBI. Thecase is scheduled to come upfor hearing on June 23.

When these cases per pointedout to the GPCC president hejust tried to pass on the buckto the Congress high commandand the president.

"The Congress High Com-mand has taken stock of thecriminal background of Monser-rate. They have taken the final

decision, not us", Shirodkar toldreporters.

Monserrate has a string ofcriminal cases against him,which includes extortion, as-sault, etc.

Monserrate has a string ofcriminal cases against him,which include extortion and as-sault.

The Congress in 2008 haddropped its then Finance Min-ister Dayanand Narvekar fromthe cab ine t fo r be ingchargesheeted in the 2001 Tick-etgate scam.

When this was pointed toCongress office bearers none ofthem were ready to come onrecord and comment on thematter.

I have no role to play in Babushs entry into Cong, says Subhash

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, JUNE 21

The Education Minister Atanasio Monseratte may have joined theparty but the partys youth wing still wants a thorough probe inthe merciless attack on their members allegedly by the Taleigaolegislators supporters.

Speaking to Herald GPYC president Sankalp Amonkar said ad-mitting Monseratte into Congress was a decision taken by theHigh command and they had have nothing against it.

We are loyal soldiers of the party and we have nothing to sayon partys decision, Amonkar stated.

However, he added, our stand on the December 18, 2007 in-cident wherein the Youth Congress members were assaulted inTaleigao remains the same. We want a thorough probe in thematter, he said.

Monseratte joining Congress does not make any difference tous but we want that whoever is guilty in the assault case be pun-ished, he stated. In 2007, Monserrate along with supporters hadbeen accused of mercilessly assaulting Youth Congress workers inhis Taleigao constituency, while they were peacefully demandingthe setting up of the Rajiv Gandhi Information Technology (IT)habitat in Dona Paula.

The IT project, which was personally endorsed by Gandhi, wasbeing opposed by Monserrate, in whose constituency the projectwas envisaged.

Amonkar also said the Youth Congress still want the project togo ahead as it will provide employment to Goan IT professionalswho are working elsewhere in the country.

GPYC wantsthorough probe into

Taleigao assault

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

Terming reports that EducationMinister, Babush Monserrate hasmerged the UGDP into the Con-gress as utter nonsense, seniorUGDP leader Adv Radharao Gra-cias has asserted that Babushcannot merge the regional partyinto the Congress party.

Party Secretary General Ana-cleto Viegas has further saidthat GPCC president SubhashShirodkar is day dreaming if hehas made the statement thatMonseratte has merged theUGDP.

Reacting to a statement madeby GPCC President Subhash Shi-rodkar, Radharao said there isno question of Monserrate

merging the UGDP into the Con-gress. How can Babush mergethe UGDP into the Congress.The Taleigao MLA is not even amember of the UGDP since thelast two years after his expulsionfrom the regional outfit, hesaid, and demanded to knowwhether a non-member canmerge the party into anotheroutfit.

Babush was only a party MLA.He is not the UGDP, he said,but said that the party wouldwait and see how the Speakerof the Goa Legislative Assemblydecides on the matter.

Saying that trend suggeststhat Assembly Speakers havenot been doing justice in matersof mergers and disqualification.

More often than not, we haveseen that speakers have giventheir rulings in favour of the po-litical parties they belongs to.Let us wait and see in the pres-ence case, he added.

Calling for an Amendmentwithdrawing powers of theSpeaker to decide on the ques-tion of mergers and disqualifi-cation, Adv Radharao said thespeaker is the sole authority todecide on such matters. Moreoften, the Speakers have de-cided cases without observingthe principles of natural justice.

Asked to outline the nextcourse of action if the Congressinsists that Babush has mergedthe UGDP into the national party,Radhrao said we are a political

party, having office bearers anda list with the Election Commis-sion

Meanwhile, Secretary generalAnacleto Viegas said politicalleaders are joining the Congressbecause the party is like a mag-net for the corrupt to makemoney. None of us are joiningthe Congress. The ExecutiveCommittee is intact. Babushshould show which membersare joining the Congress, headded.

Viegas recalled that the po-litical leaders such as ChurchillAlemao, Mickky Pacheco andothers had tried to finish theUGDP, but the party has survivedtill date because of peoples sup-port.

Babush cannot merge UGDP into Cong: Radharao

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, JUNE 21

Close on the heels of the raidswhere harmful chemicals werediscovered in the artificial ripen-ing of mangoes, the Food andDrugs Administration on Mon-day conducted raids at fourplaces to check if bananas wereripened in a similar fashion.

Raids were conducted at Mar-gao (at the KTC Bus Stand),Vasco, Ponda, Mapusa and Pan-jim. However, no chemicals werefound at any of these places, ac-cording to FDA Directior SalimVeljee, who maintained moresurprise raids were in the off-ing.

Veljee said the recent raidsto check ripening of mangoeshad alerted the banana sellersand they probably hid the chem-icals. We know these people arenot angels and our raids willcontinue, he asserted.

He informed FDA inspectorsSanjot Kudalkar and RajaramPatil raided two places in thenew Panjim market and one ata godown in Chimbel to see ifartificial banana ripening wasbeing done. The inspectorsfound incense sticks (agarbatti)smoke being used to ripen thebananas and as such nothingcould be done because the lawsays action can be if only calcium

powder is used in the process,he stated.

VASCO REPORTER ADDS: FDAofficials Rajaram Patil and Shiv-das Naik on Monday conductedraids at two godowns in the porttown. However, the officials didnot find any chemicals like Cal-cium Carbide.

All the fruit merchants inVasco are using natural means,Agarbathi incense sticks and drycow dung for ripening, sincethese means are considered asnatural means of ripening.

It appears that fruit mer-chants have become more cau-t ious , a f t e r r a id s wereconducted to curb ripening of

mangoes using chemicals, saidSalim Veljee.

He further said if the fruitmerchants have become cau-tious and turned towards naturalmeans of ripening, then theirpurpose is served to curb suchactivities, but FDA will still keepa track on fruits merchants.

MARCEL CORRESPONDENT

ADDS: The FDA officials raidedone godown in Mapusa and twoat Upper Bazaar in Ponda tocheck if bananas were ripenedusing chemicals. FDA officialsAbel Rodrigues and Flavia D-Souza conducted raid at Ma-pusa, while Nelson Fernandesraided two godowns at Ponda.

After mangoes, FDA now raids banana godowns No illegalities found, more raids to continues: FDA chief

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

GOACAN conducted a surpriseraid at the Kadamba Bus StandatMargao on Monday as part ofthe ongoing awareness weekon consumer rights and got of-ficials of the Department ofLegal Metrology and Directorateof Food and Drug Administra-tion to book offences againstthe owners of the shops for vi-olations of the Acts & Rules inforce.

The department of legalMetrology also seized 342 pack-ets of eatables from the sixshops located at the Bus stand.

Volunteers of Civic and Con-sumer forums participated inthe raid at the bus stands fol-lowing complaint from publicthat the eatables were beingsold in the stalls without au-thorized labels.

GOACAN Coordinator RolandMartins said the raid was beingconducted to convey a messageto the government to first cleanup its one house before askingpeople and other establishmentson unhygienic eatables.

Martins and the KTC depotincharge, Luis had a verbal duelafter the activists demanded toknow why no complain box isbeing installed at the bus stand.

The goods were being sold

Eatable packets seized in Margao raid

. Officials conducting a raid at the stalls at the KTC bus stand on Monday. Photo by Santosh Mirajkar

to the people in violation ofrules. There was no name ofmanufacturer, price, address andother details. This has beengoing for a long time despitecomplaints, he said, addingthat the forum activists havefirst focusing on the bus standbecause the stalls are patronizedby the common man.

FDA Inspector Rajiv told

newsmen that similar raids willcontinue as food and otheritems are being sold withoutthe mandatory labels.

Martins said that GOACAN isconcerned that these shops havebeen granted licences by KTCLtd and using their vantage po-sition at the Bus stand exploitthe consumers by putting thesefood items for sale. He said the

Bus stand is visited by thousandsof commuters daily besides thebus conductors and drivers whopurchase food items from theseshops. Todays action wasplanned to send a strong mes-sage to the shop keepers, man-ufacturers and suppliers thatthe Consumer Forums will nottolerate this abuse of the law,he added.

Porvorim Action Committees chief pooh-poohs govt claims

Says nobody is prepared to demolish structures

HERALD CORRESPONDENT

PORVORIM, JUNE 21

NH17 Porvorim Action Commit-tee Vice Dr Ravi Chodankar hasstated that though the govern-ment claims that 45 sq mtrs ofland would be acquired for roadwidening for national highway,in reality an additional 5 mtrssetback will have to be left fromeither side of the road.

Dr Chodankar was speakingat the meeting organized byNH17 Porvorim Action Commit-tee in Azad Bhavan, Porvorim,on Monday evening.

Though the governmentclaims that 45 sq mtrs of landwill be required for widening ofnational highway, but consider-ing the setback of 5 mtrs to beleft from either side of the road,the government will acquire 55mtrs of land and as such morestructures then specified will goin for demolition, stated DrChodankar.

The proposed highway willrender more than 10,000 peopleunemployed and if governmentdoes not pay heed to our sug-gestions and demands, then the

people will be forced to comeon the road to get the griev-ances redressed, added DrChodankar. He further said thegovernment says that 50% of thepeople from Porvorim are preparedto demolish part of their structuresto pave way for widening of theroad.

This is a blatant lie. Nobodywill agree for the demolition oftheir structures, which havebeen built with their hard-earned money. We are living indemocracy and hence peoplehave every right to voice theirgrievance. The governmentshould not use dictatorial tacticsto suppress voices of the peo-ple, said Dr Chodankar.

Corporation of the City ofPanjim Councilor Patricia Pintosaid Porvorim has now devel-oped into a city and hence itwas decided to incorporate itin the City of Panjim in 2002.

No h ighway can pas sthrough the city. Porvorim is lo-cated almost on the coastal beltand hence government has noright to destroy this coastal city,voiced Pinto.

NH17 Porvorim Action Committee Vice Chairman and SpokesmanDr Ravi Chodankar addresses the gathering at Porvorim.

Photo by Anil Shankhwalker

Sai Acupuncture ResearchCentre Director Dr M B Prabhusaid if the national highwaycomes into existence, there willbe heavy vehicular traffic in Por-voirm moving at the speed of120-130 kms per hour.

The residents will face a lotof difficulties in crossing theroads. Prior to building my Re-search Centre at Porvorim, I hadenquired with the Town andCountry Planning and other re-lated departments about the na-tional highway, he added.

He further said the nationalhighway will not pass throughPorvorim and hence he had in-vested crores of rupees towardspurchase of land and construc-tion of Research Centre.

All my expenditure will godown the drain if my structureis demolished, said Dr Prabhu.

Committee Advisor DineshVaghela suggested that the ac-tion committee should submita memorandum to the Governorobtaining signatures of the res-idents of Porvorim.

Panchayats of Penha de Franca,Socorro, Salvador-do-Mundo andMarra-Pilerne should adopt resolu-tion objecting to the national high-way and if the government does notpay heed to the grievances, thenpeople should observe total bandhat least for four hours in a peacefulmanner, said Waghela.

NH17 Porvorim Action Commit-tee Chairperson Fatima DSa statedthat not only residential and com-mercial structures, but also religiousstructures will be demolished if theproposed national highway becomesa reality. The time has come forthe people of all religions, casteand creed to come together andoppose the proposed nationalhighway, said DSa.

Rajaram Parker, Fr OscarQuadros and Pratima Narvekaralso spoke on the occasion.

Monsoonlikely to

intensify innext 3 days

HERALD REPORTER

PANJIM, JUNE 21

South-west monsoon hasslipped into a weak phase andis unlikely to make any majorprogress for next couple of days,says Met department.

The weakening of the mon-soon currents is on with sub-dued rainfall activity over mostparts of the state. We expectmonsoon currents to get inten-sify in next three days, officialstated.

Once the monsoon currentdevelops, the state will receivea good amount of rainfall, of-ficial added.

In the absence of rains, themaximum temperature has goneupto 32 degree Celsius against28 degree Celsius last week.

Last week, the state wit-nessed widespread rainfall withgusty winds and thunderstormswith Met department recording16 inches of rainfall for themonth of June.

The monsoon had hit Keralacoast on May 31, while Goa re-ceived its first monsoon showerson June 10.

The cyclone Phet that origi-nated in the Arabian Sea lastweek had halted further devel-opment of monsoon currentacross the country.

The Met department predictsmore then 98 percent of show-ers for the state.

HERALD REPORTR

PANJIM, JUNE 21

The Bombay High Court at Goaon Monday issued directions torestore the eco-sensitive areato its original form in Galgibagbeach where a by pass road wasbeing built. The authorities havebeen also directed to file a com-pliance report by August end.

In reference to a news itempublished in one of the Englishdailies, Adv Norma Alvares hadwritten a letter seeking inter-vention of the High Court.

The newspaper report hadhighlighted that area earmarkedfor construction of by-pass roadwas adjacent to the turtle breed-ing area in Galgibag.

Treating the matter as suomotto public interest litigation,the High Court had then ap-pointed Adv Alvares as amicuscuriae in this petition.

Through her letter she hadsought to know whether the by-pass road project had receivedapproval from the Goa CoastalZone Management Authorityunder the CRZ notification.

Whether an environment im-pact assessment study was car-ried out for the road project,particularly with reference to itsimpact on the turtle breedinggrounds o f Ga lg ibag andwhether the same has been ap-proved by the ministry of envi-ronment.

And whether NOC from theforest department has been ob-tained under the Wildlife Pro-

Restore eco-sensitive area in Galgibag to original form: HC

tection Act.During last hearing GCZMA

informed the Court during mudfilling and construction of roadwas initiated about year ago butwas stopped due to oppositionfrom local villagers.

It had also informed theCourt that no approval wasgranted for the constructionof the road and the construc-tion was in violation of theprovisions of the CRZ noti-fication, 1991 and an offenceunder the Environment (Pro-tection) Act, 1986.

Thereafter, the PWD wasdirected by the GCZMA toforthwith stop further con-struction of the road and torestore it to the original con-dition by the removing theearth filling.

The GCZMA had sought ac-tion taken report from the PWDabout steps taken for restoration

but no report was submitted toit, claimed GCZMA in its letter.

However, when the mattercame up for hearing on Mondaymorning Advocate General Sub-odh Kantak told the Court thatconstruction activities have beenstopped.

Considering the developmentthe Court directed that area dis-torted should be restored to itsoriginal position.

One dies in Keri mishap

HERALD CORRESPONDENT

VALPOI, JUNE 21

A 28-year-old native of Kerala,but residing at Keri-Sattari, died,after his scooter skidded off theroad near Excise gate at Keri onMonday at about 3 am.

According to Valpoi police,Roy Sebastin, who was proceed-ing from Chorla Ghat towardsKeri, died on the spot when hisDio scooter kidded off the roadnear excise gate. Roy was em-ployed at a plantation at Keri,owned by his relatives.

HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

The proposed site at Sonsodoappears to be unacceptable tothe Muslim community.

In fact, the general secretaryof the Sirvodem Masjid, Abdul-matin Daud Carol who hadfiled a petition before the Na-tional Commission for Minori-ties has said the Sonsodo sitewill not be accepted by the Mi-nority community.

He said even the minoritypanel has not taken kindly tothe state governments decisionto set up the kabrastan at Son-

sodo. He said the Minority Com-mission had observed that thestate government is not at allwilling to allot suitable land forMuslim Kabrastan as it does nothave the will power to do sodue to the reasons best knownto them.

Carol said the state gov-ernment instead of acquiringland at Sonsodo should im-p lement the reso lu t ionsadopted by the Goa Legisla-tive Assembly way back in1999, which was tabled bythen MLA and present ChiefMinister, Digambar Kamat.

Sonsodo site for kabrastan opposed

by Muslim community

HERALD CORRESPONDENT

CALANGUTE, JUNE 21

Calangute police on Sunday ar-rested three persons fromCalangute on charges of assault-ing a resident of Madda Vaddo,Calangute.

According to Calangute po-lice, Gonsalo Silveira (28),Bernard Silveira (34) and Doma-cian Silveira (60), all residentsof Tivai Vaddo, were arrested

and later released on bail oncharges of assaulting Joao Fer-nandes (43) of Madda Vaddo onSunday.

Police informed that the incidentoccurred outside a resort at NaikkaVaddo, Calangute, where the SaoJoao bash was in progress.

Police further informed thatan altercation took place be-tween the accused and Joao,where the Silveiras hit Joao with

knuckleduster and hit him onhead and nose, injuring Joao.

According to Calangute po-lice, a gold chain and a braceletwent missing after the attack.Joao was rushed to a nearbyhospital for medical attention.

After a complaint was filedby Ivy Fernandes, wife of Joao,all the three accused were ar-rested by Calangute Police andlater released on bail.

3 Calangute locals held for assault

GOA GOA, TUESDAY, JUNE 22, 2010

HERALD

Pg 4sHoRt tAKes

upcoming events

KBM felicitates students

MP Shantaram Naik felicitating a student of KBM Vidhya Bhuvanschool.

PANJIM(HND): The Konkani Bhasha Mandal (KBM) recentlyfelicitated eight students of KBMs Vidhya Bhuvan primaryschool in 2004 who secured a distinction in the March 2010SSC examination.

Speaking on the occasion, Member of Parliament ShantaramNaik complimented KBM for imparting excellent primary ed-ucation in Konkani. These students could pass the board ex-amination with flying colours only because of their strongfoundation at the primary level, Naik added.

KBM President Prashant Naik said that students of VidhyaBhuvan Primary school have excelled not only in the educationalfield but also in cultural and literary activities. He appealed tothe managements of schools from Margao to admit studentsof Vidhya Bhuvan School into Std V without any objections.

President of Rotary Club of Margao Ashesh Keni, KBM VicePresident Serafino Cotta, General Secretary Nityanand Naik,PTA President Dr Gunaji Desai and School Manager PandarinathParab were also present.

MDRT conference

Prasad Arjun Shirodkar and D S Prabhu, MDRT members fromMapusa branch.

PANJIM(HND): Worldwide Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT)conference was held from June 13 to 17 at Vancouvver BritishColumbia, Canada. 18 different countries from the world par-ticipated in this conference. Around 6000 MDRT memberswere present at this conference. Prasad Arjun Shirodkar andD S Prabhu, MDRT members from Mapusa branch representedLIC of India in Canada, says a press release.

Cong congratulates CMPANJIM(HND): The Congress party is happy and congratulates

Chief Minister Digambar Kamat and his government for inau-gurating the new residential premises Goa Niwas at NewDelhi, for the benefit of the people of Goa, says a press releaseissued here.

The press release states further that Goa Sadan was toosmall to cater the needs of Goans who used to visit the NationalCapital for their work. Now, Goa Niwas will be able to servebetter the needs of accommodation in Delhi.

It has come to the knowledge of the party members thatthe tariff that has been fixed by the government is not withinthe reach of the common man.

Altinho Gomes, Secretary, GPCC has written a letter to thechief minister on behalf of the Congress party to immediatelyreduce the tariff from Rs 1500 to Rs 500 per head, which isthe common demand of the Congress workers.

Mr Gomes further says that he is confident that Chief MinisterDigambar Kamat will consider the genuine demand of theworkers to help the common man.

Curtorim PHC cleanliness drivePANJIM(HND): PHC Curtorim conducted recently a cleanliness

drive at Aquem Baixo Village Panchayat along with Sarpanchof Village Panchayat, Aquem Baixo.

Health Officer, Dr Shashi Parkar along with Rajesh andSanitary Inspector Jose Antao issued notices to hotels whohad disposed their kitchen waste in the open.

The sub-centre staff Radhika Pagui and Jose Almeida MPHWaided in the cleaning of the drains. Notices were also issuedto certain establishments for the lack of hygiene. Pesticideswere also sprayed in the area. An awareness lecture was alsoorganised with the distribution of posters educating the publicon hygiene and a clean environment.

Primary Health Centre, Curtorim is also planning to conductcleanliness drive on a larger scale to increase their IEC activities,says a press release.

Sao Joao at Alor ResortPANJIM(HND): This is the second year that Sao Joao is being

celebrated at Alor Grande Holiday Resort, Candolim on June27 from 10 am to 7 pm.

The function has been planned on a grand scale with lotsof festivity around the poolside, with Competitions like BestCopel, Best Sao Joao outfit and Bingo to keep the crowd en-tertained.

Goas band Brothers in Arms with Country Jude (one manband), DJ Ryan and DJ Jay to provide foot tapping music alongwith RJ Godfrey to keep the gathering in a festive mood, saysa press release.

Art of Living coursePANJIM(HND): Art of Living course designed by H H Sri Sri

Ravi Shanker, has been organized at Sri Sri ManagementStudies, Borda, Margao and Dada Borkar Hall, Sanquelim fromJune 22 to 27 from 7 pm to 9:30 pm.

The course has a powerful breathing technique SudarshanKriya which will be taught and is very effective for stress andstress induced ailments such as depression, diabetics, hypertension, etc. Interested persons contact Dr Venkatesh Hegdeon 9422063255.

Minister for Revenue, Jose Philip DSouza and Domrine Charita-ble Trust donated note books to the needy students of Vascoconstituency at the hands of Jose Niclau DSouza. Also presentare Clement DSouza, Socorro Estibeiro, Arnald Rego, PaxiaoMonteiro and others.

HERALD NEWS DESK

PANJIM, JUNE 21

Governor Dr S S Sidhu chairedthe meeting of the State LevelAnti-Ragging Monitoring Cell,on Monday at Raj Bhavan. Whilewelcoming the participants, theGovernor indicated that this isthe right time to review the sit-uation when schools, collegesand the university are going tostart their academic session.

The Governor expressed hissatisfaction that as per the re-ports received by him, therehave been no incidents of rag-ging in the State of Goa forthe last one year, for which he

complimented the various au-thorities dealing with the mat-t e r. H o w e v e r, D r S i d h ucautioned that we cannot becomplacent on this importantissue and emphasized that vig-ilance is required all the timeto prevent the menace of rag-ging in the educational insti-tutions.

The Governor also drew theattention of the participants to-wards the latest UGC notice in-dicating that ragging being acriminal offence and regulationshaving been framed for prohibit-ing, preventing and eliminatingragging, which needs to be

brought to the notice of all con-cerned.

The Secretary (Higher Educa-tion), Dr M Modassir, briefedthe participants about the vari-ous issues connected with theamendments of Goa Prohibitionof Ragging Act, 2008 and settingup of a helpline to facilitate im-plementation of the Act.

The Commissioner and Secre-tary to Governor, NarendraKumar, DGP B S Bassi, Vice Chan-cellor Prof Dileep Deobagkar, be-sides Heads of Department ofHigher Education, Education,Technical Education and othersparticipated in the meeting.

No incidents of ragging in State, says Governor

Governor Dr S S Sidhu addressing the meeting of the State Level Anti-Ragging Monitoring Cell, on Mon-day at Raj Bhavan.

HERALD NEWS DESK

PANJIM, JUNE 21

Bright Indian students aspiringto be engineers and managersmake every effort to qualify foradmission to an IIT or an IIM.These are the best institutes oftechnology and managementestablished and funded by theGovernment of India. They arerecognized as world class insti-tutions. There are also some in-stitutions like BITS-Pilani andthe Xavier Institutes in Jamshed-pur and Bhubaneswar estab-lished through private initiativethat have achieved a comparablestatus. These are well-known tostudents and employers alike.

According to a press release,the Indian Institutes of PublicHealth (IIPH) as new comers arehardly known. The Public HealthFoundation of India (PHFI) is aninnovative, first-of-its-kind, pub-lic/private initiative that aspiresto substantially strengthen thepublic health system in India bysetting up a number of IndianInstitutes of Public Health (IIPH).This is a recognition that publichealth has grown as an academicand practical discipline. It is alsoa response to redress the limitedinstitutional capacity in Indiafor training and research in thearea of public health.

In inaugurating PHFI onMarch 28, 2006, the Prime Min-ister, Dr Manmohan Singh said:I am confident that the insti-tutions established by the foun-dation will build bridges withother institutions in many coun-tries to collaborate and shareknowledge and collectively

shape the future of global publichealth.

Three IIPHs are currently run-ning in Delhi, Gandhinagar andHyderabad. The fourth IIPH isbeing set up in Bhubaneswar,and the fifth is likely to be placedin Shillong.

The Governing Board of PHFIincludes senior government of-ficials, eminent Indian and Inter-national academic and scientificleaders, civil society representa-tives and industry leaders. Boardmembers include: Rajat Gupta,Chairman, PHFI, (McKinsey Con-sultants) Montek Singh Ahluwalia(Deputy Chairman, PlanningCommission of India), AmartyaSen (Nobel Laureate)and otherprominent industrialists and cit-izens. The President of the Foun-dation is Prof K Srinath Reddy,the Chief Medical Advisor to thePrime Minister.

The Marian Institute of Health-care Management (MIHM) is setup to train managers for publicand private organizations servinghealthcare, including the phar-maceutical and health insuranceindustries, and health serviceproviders. The MIHM has soughtand has been granted recognitionby PHFI. With PHFI help MIHMwill soon grow into an instituteof national importance. The coreMBA courses offered by MIHMare designed in collaborationwith XLRI. Linkages are being es-tablished with other top man-agement institutes. For moreinformation contact the MarianInstitute of Healthcare Manage-ment. Phone 0832 2230021 /6515048, says a press release.

IITs, IIMs, and now IIPH...!

HERALD CORRESPONDENT

PORVORIM, JUNE 21

The Shiv Sena delegation onMonday morning handed overa memorandum to Additional

Collector, North Goa, N R Sawantdemanding installation of trafficsignals at Guirim Junction.

The Shiv Sena delegationcomprising Upendra Gaunkar(rajya pramukh), Umesh Sal-gaonkar (deputy rajya pramukh),Sunil Santinezkar (deputy talukapramukh) and Philip DSouza

(Bardez pramukh) called onSawant, since the District Col-lector was on leave, and dis-cussed the matter regardinginstallation of traffic signals at

Guirim Junction.During the discussion, the

delegation told Additional Col-lector Sawant that they had sub-mitted a memorandum to theDistrict Collector on May 3,2010, requesting to install elec-tronic signals at the Guirim(Green Park) junction.

It is more than a month sincethe memorandum was submit-ted, but no action has beentaken by the government re-garding installation of traffic sig-nals at Guirim Junction nor anyreply has been sent to them,said the delegation.

Since accidents continue totake place at the junction, caus-ing damage to life and property,the government should notdelay in installing the signals,said the delegation.

Additional Collector Sawantagreed that Guirim needs to beattended to by the authoritiesand make it safe, both for pedes-trians and motorists.

He told the delegation that areport is sought by his officefrom Superintendent of PoliceTraffic. He has also instructed hisstaff to send a reminder to thetraffic cell. He advised the dele-gation to call on him after a weekto discuss the developments.

If the matter is not taken upseriously and urgently by thegovernment, then Shiv Sena willbe left with no option, but tostage a rasta roko at the GuirimJunction, which has become adeath trap for the general pub-lic, warned Shiv Sena delega-tion.

SS wants traffic signalsinstalled at Guirim junction

The Shiv Sena delegation handing over the memorandum to Addi-tional Collector, North Goa, N R Sawant. Photo by Anil Shankhwalker

HERALD NEWS DESK

PANJIM, JUNE 21

Tiatr Academy of Goa (TAG) or-ganized a meeting of tiatrartistes as well as Khell-Tiatrartistes recently at TAG's Con-ference Hall, Campal, Panjim.The purpose of the meeting wasto decide about the correct for-mat of tiatr as well as that ofKhell-Tiatr.

According to a press releaseissued by Tomazinho Cardozo,President of TAG, says that themost of the Konkani tiatrsstaged in the recent times arenot as per the original formatof tiatr. He requested the artistesthat the original format mustbe preserved.

The veteran artistes from thefield of Tiatr and Khell-Tiatralong with the artistes of pres-ent times attended the meeting.After a thorough discussion itwas decided that the presenta-tion of tiatrs must have the fol-lowing aspect so that theuniqueness of Goan Tiatr is pre-served, promoted and devel-oped.

The details are: 1-Tiatr: Astory is divided into 6 or 7parts. Each part can be calledone act but in tiatr language itis called a 'podd'ddo'. Hence atiatr can have six to seven 'pod-d'dde'. The story begins in 1st'podd'ddo', runs without anydisconnection through all 'pod-d'dde' and ends in the 6th or7th 'podd'ddo' as the case maybe.

The tiatr begins with an open-ing song 'Kantar'. It may be asolo, duet, trio etc. Its themehas no relevance to the themeof the play.

Therefore, the tiatr scriptshould be written in such a waythat the part of the story inevery 'podd'ddo' must have ameaningful happening as far aspossible.

(2)Comedy in the Tiatr: Thehistory of the tiatr is a witness

to the fact that no tiatr has be-come successful without com-edy sequences in it. Hence tiatrsince its inception, always hadcomedy sequence in every 'pod-d'ddo' and the comedy sequencewas directly linked to the themeof the play. In other words thecomedy sequences in tiatr wereintegral part of the theme ofthe play.

(3)"Canto": 'Canto' is a smallsong mostly one verse andone chorus or two verses andone chorus. 'Canto' is the re-sult of emotions of the hap-penings in the story of thetiatr which are expressedthrough singing.

In the past there used to bepractically one 'canto' in every'podd'ddo' in the tiatr. Hence,inorder to maintain the charac-teristics of tiatr, there shouldbe at least four 'cantos' in fourof the six or seven 'podd'dde' ofthe tiatr.

(4)Kantaram:(i)Kantaramwere also called as 'side show'of the tiatr. The themes ofthese kantaram had no rele-vance to the theme of thestory of the tiatr. Infact one,two or three kantaram werepresented in between two'podd'dde' on the road sceneso that enough time is pro-vided to have new stage set-ting done behind the curtain.It also provided enough timefor the artistes to change theircostumes.

In brief kantaram are songswhich are sung in between everytwo 'podd'dde' and which haveno relevance whatsoever to thestory of the tiatr.

(ii)Types of kantaram:- Kan-taram are of following types:-solos, duets, duos, trios, quar-tets, etc. In the past, if therewere twelve kantaram in a tiatr,it always had atleast two duets,one or two duos, a quartet andeven a quintet besides solos.This package of variety of songs

is the uniqueness of the Goantiatr.

The exact nature of solos,duets, trios, quartets as de-p i c t e d i n t h e p a s t i s a sunder:-

(a) Solo:- Normally it wascalled a 'clown'. They use to havecomedy as well as non comedysolos. A solo is a song sung byone singer. However, singing asolo kantar in front of the curtainby one singer and allowingsinging in different voices forone or two lines or for the cho-rus behind the curtain was alsopermitted in the past. The sametrend needs to be strengthened.

(b) Duet: - If a song is sungby a male and a female singerthen such a song is called aduet. The lyrics of all duetssung on the tiatr staged in thepast were an interaction be-tween two different characters.Hence, this nature of duetneeds to be preserved. Thereshould be at least two duetsin a Tiatr.

(c) Duo:- It is a song sung bytwo male singers or two femalesingers. Lyrics of this song toowere of interactive nature as inthe case of duet. This trend ofduos should also be encouraged.There should be at least oneduo in a Tiatr.

(d) Trio: - It is a song sung bythree singers which may includeall males or all females or malesand females. The lyrics of trioswere also interactive in natureas in the case of duets or duos.There should be at least onetrio in a Tiatr.

(e) Quartet:- Quartet is a songsung by four singers which mayinclude all males, all females ormales and females. The lyrics ofthis song too were displayinginteraction between the differ-ent characters through singingas in the case of duets, duosand trios. There should be atleast one quartet or quintet ina Tiatr.

(f) Choral Kantar:- TAG hasalso observed the new trendon singing a song in differentvoices on the tiatr stage. Suchsongs are very pleasant tohear and enrich the quality ofKonkani songs. Such songsshould also be encouraged.Hence, there should be atleast one choral song whichmay be a choral duet, choralduo, choral trio, choral quar-tet etc.

The songs listed at 'b', 'c', 'd',and 'e' which were presentedon the tiatr stage in the pasthad the following characteris-tics: (a) Each singer was a dif-ferent character in the themeof the song. (b) The lyrics werecomposed in such a way thatthere was complete interactionbetween the various singers onthe stage. (c) Due to this, everysong appeared to be musicalpresentation on a particulartheme. (d) These songs werecomedy songs as well as noncomedy songs. (e) These songswere based on various issuessuch as social, political, reli-gious, and historical; etc. TAGwill preserve this uniqueness inTiatr.

A tiatr must have a minimumof 10 songs and maximum of14 songs. These songs must in-clude at least two duets, oneduo, one trio, one quartet andone choral song be it choralduet, duo, trio or quartet be-sides solo songs.

TAG is of the opinion that thepresent tiatrists should venturein bringing innovations on thetiatr stage but should take carethat the format of tiatr shouldnot be disturbed or altered. TAGis of the view that in this tech-nological developed atmos-phere, all compartments of tiatrmust be technologically takento greater heights without ad-versely affecting the unique for-mat of Tiatr, adds the pressrelease.

Need to adopt original tiatr format, says TAG chief

IGNOU admission date extendedPANJIM(HND): The due date to seek admissions for July 2010

academic session in IGNOU has been extended with a late fee ofRs 200 upto July 30, 2010, only Bachelors and Masters degreeprogrammes. Admissions are open for two new programmes: BAand MA in Psychology. The prospectus-cum-application form canbe obtained from IGNOU study centres at Damodar College,Margao; Dhempe College, Miramar, JSS College, Dharwad; RPDCollege, Belgaum; BGVS Arts College, Sadashivghat, BK Arts College,Chikodi. For details, contact the IGNOU Regional Centre, Alto Por-vorim on 2141553. Admission to B.Ed and MBA programmes forJanuary 2011 is done through an entrance test. The prospectusfor these programmes is also available at the above centres.

Bills dispatchedPANJIM(HND): It is for the information of customers of BSNLGoa that telephone bills of their landlines dated 7 June 2010and BSNL Mobile dated 5 June 2010 have already been dis-patched.

Customers are requested to pay the bills on or before thepay by date, to avoid interruption of services. Incase of nonreceipt of bill, duplicate copies can be obtained from thenearest BSNL Customer Service Centre.

Workshop on Community

Radio at Dona Paula

HERALD NEWS DESK

PANJIM, JUNE 21

The International Centre Goa,Comet Media Foundation andthe Community Radio Forum inassociation with the UNESCOand the Freidrich Ebert Stiftungwill be organizing a three-dayworkshop on Community Radio:Tuning into Diversity 2, at theInternational Centre, Goa- DonaPaula.

The workshop will be inau-gurated by Hon. Shri Prataps-ingh Rane, President, TheInternational Centre Goa andSpeaker, Goa Legislative Assem-bly on June 23 at 9.30 am.

The workshop will be at-tended by expert practitionersof community radio from variousparts of India. For detailed pro-gramme, visit www.internation-alcentregoa.com .

For free registration or detailscontact Arjun Halarnkar- Pro-gram Manager on 9765404391or prog@incentgoa.com .

BY HERALD REPORTER

MARGAO, JUNE 21

The Margao Municipal Councilwill play host to the citys firstair conditioned public pay toilet.

Two days after throwing upthe renovated garden with waterfountains to the public, ChiefMinister Digambar Kamat onSaturday laid the foundationstone for the Rs 12 lakh air con-ditioned pay toilet in the Mu-nicipal garden. Chief MinisterDigambar Kamat laid the foun-dation stone in the presence ofMMC Cha i rpe r son Sav ioCoutinho, Vice-Chairperson RajuNaik, GPCC general secretaryVijay Sardessai and others.

In his brief address, the ChiefMinister said efforts are beingmade to make the Margao Mu-nicipal garden the best in theentire state. We will make theMargao Municipal garden thebest in the state. Beautificationwork on the Childrens parkstands completed, he said

Aware that most of the publictoilets are lying in a day state,Kamat said the air conditioned

Foundation stone laid forMargaos first public AC toilet

toile will help visitors to the gar-den, and hastened to add thatpublic toilets in the city will eitherrenovated or constructed anewto meet the sanitary requirements.Sulabh is constructing an air con-ditioned toilet in the garden. Be-sides, plans are afoot to rectify allpublic toilets and if necessary tobuild new toilet blocks by razingdown the old ones, he assured.

MMC Chairperson SavioCoutinho said there will be manyvisitors to the Municipal gardennow that the beautification workis finally taking shape. There willbe more visitors and the proposed

toilet will help stop people fromurinating in the open, he said.

Coutinho said the air condi-tioned toilet will set a new trendon the sanitation front and didnot rule out the possibility ofmodernizing the existing toilets.

Meanwhile, the BJP has de-manded to know whether theair-conditioned is meant for theaam admi or the Kaas admi.When almost all the public toi-lets are in a mess, the Chief Min-ister has thought it fit to builtan air-conditioned toilet. Heshould have first put these toi-let, Nayak added.

Chief Minister Digambar Kamat laying the foundation stone for theAC toilet at the Margao Municipal garden. Photo: Santosh Mirajkar.

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INDIAGOA, TUESDAY, 22 JUNE, 2010

HERALD Pg 5

PTI

NEW DELHI/GURGAON, JUNE 21

Gurgaon got a little nearer to Delhi todayas the Metro train service reached the mil-lenium city but the inaugural day was marredby theft of signalling cable between twostations, leading to delay in train servicesfor some time.

Without much fanfare and sans a formalfunction, the 14.47-km link connectingQutub Minar with HUDA City Centre in Gur-gaon was thrown open to the public at 8AM as services commenced simultaneouslyat both stations with jubilant commutershopping on to the first train for a ride.

Passengers can hope to cover the entire14.47 km in around 27 minutes at a rate ofRs 18 and the minimum ticket rate is pricedat Rs 8.

However, the trains started running slowdue to the theft of signalling cable betweenSultanpur and Qutub Minar stations byunidentified persons, following which theywere run on manual mode.

Though DMRC said the theft delayed thetrain services only by five to ten minutes,passengers complained the services got de-layed by 30 to 35 minutes in the eveningdue to bunching of trains.

This is the second such incident in DMRC'shistory as a 108-metre-long section of thesignalling cable was stolen between In-draprastha and Yamuna Banks stations inSeptember last year.

Two trains were flagged off from QutubMinar and HUDA City Centre stations bythe station controllers at 8 AM after whichthe services began. DMRC Directors held aspecial puja and a 'havan' at the Qutub Minarmetro station before the services began.

A brand-new broad gauge train enteredthe HUDA City Centre station at around8.50 AM.

With this, Gurgaon became the secondsatellite city to get Metro connectivity afterNoida where it reached last November.

Till 8 pm today, the ten stations on Delhi-Gurgaon route grossed over Rs 2.45 lakhfrom sale of tokens and smart cards andregistered a footfall of over 30,000.

Qutub Minar and HUDA City Centre Metrostations were the busiest.

Metro enters Gurgaon, cable theft only glitch on day 1

A metro train heads towards the IFFCO Chowk station of the Delhi Metro Rail in Gur-gaon,on Monday. The metro is the pride of the city of 14 million, where commuters werelong forced to rely on rickshaws, motorcycles or smoke-belching buses.

PTI

MUMBAI, JUNE 21

Managing students in municipalschools is a big task as the chil-dren come from slum areas, donot have a good family back-ground and have bad habits, theMunicipal Council of GreaterMumbai (MCGM) has said in anaffidavit before the Bombay HighCourt.

The MCGM affidavit was filedbefore the High Court in replyto a petition filed by the motherof a seven-year-old child seekingfor issuance of guidelines to mu-nicipal schools with regard toproviding children with a safeand secured environment.

Sherbano Khan approachedthe HC after her son, SohailMohammad, studying in secondstandard in a BMC school insuburban Sion, lost vision inhis left eye after one of hisclassmates accidentally jabbeda pencil into his eye on January15.

According to the petition, theschool authorities and theteacher did not take immediatesteps to provide medical treat-ment to Sohail.

The HC had on June 8 di-rected the MCGM to file its replyto the allegations.

"Children coming to municipal

Managing municipal school kids big task: MCGM tells HC

schools are from slum areas andat times are not from a goodfamily and thus have bad habits.These kids have a high impactof movies on them and fight forpetty issues. The lady teachersfind it very difficult to managesuch fights," the reply filed byRam Chhotelal Pasi, Beat OfficerSchools of Sion Ward, BMCstates.

It further claims, it is very dif-ficult to prevent occurrence of

such incidents in the future un-less there is awareness on thepart of the children and theirparents regarding good behav-iour.

"With regard to the case ofSohail, the teacher of the classhad checked his eyes and sincethere was no redness or bleed-ing, she asked him to wash hiseyes and then sent him homealong with a peon of the schoolto inform the parents about theincident," the reply reads.

A division bench of the HCcomprising of Justices Ranjana

Desai and Nishita Mhatrehad on the last hearing comedown heavily on the civic bodyas to why first aid was not ad-ministered by the school to So-hail.

The matter will come up for

n Children comingto municipalschools are fromslum areas and attimes are notfrom a goodfamily and thushave bad habits.These kids have ahigh impact ofmovies on themand fight for pettyissues. The ladyteachers find itvery difficult tomanage suchfights.

hearing before the HC tomor-row.

UNI

NEW DELHI, JUNE 21

Former Madhya Pradesh ChiefMinister Arjun Singh today de-nied having said that he had

nothing to do with the releaseof Bhopal gas tragedy prime ac-cused and Union Carbide CEOWarren Anderson after the gasleak tragedy in 1984.

In a statement issued by hisoffice, Singh also denied havingspoken to the media and madethe statement that ''he had nolocus standi'' in the release ofAnderson.

A media report on Saturday

Arjun denies speaking to media on Bhopal gas tragedy

Chouhan surprised overSingh's statement

PTI

BHOPAL, JUNE 21

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Chouhan has expressedsurprise over his predecessor Arjun Singh's statement that he hadnothing to do with the release of Warren Anderson after BhopalGas Disaster in 1984.

"It is unbelievable that Arjun Singh had no connection with theadministrative action of releasing Anderson and sending him toDelhi by a state government plane," Chouhan, who is now abroad,said in a statement late last night.

The Chief Minister said that such irresponsible statement wasnot expected from a senior and experienced politician like Singh.

He said that the victims of Bhopal Gas Tragedy would not getany justice until the truth about release of Anderson was madepublic.

The Chief Minister expressed hope that Singh would reveal thetruth to the public without any further delay and said, "This wasnot any political issue but an important question related to humansensitiveness".

had quoted Mr Singh as havingsaid that he had no role in An-derson leaving the country afterthe tragedy which left more than15,000 dead and thousands oth-ers affected by the poisonous gas.

The report had quoted Singhas saying that he had nothingto with the matter.

The statement released bythe former Minister today de-

scribed the media reports as in-correct.

Anderson was arrested inBhopal on December 7 butbailed out within hours andflown to Delhi in a state gov-ernment plane.

Circumstances surroundingthe UCC chief's release and sub-sequent flight from India remaina mystery

PTI

PATNA, JUNE 21

The ruling JD(U) in Bihar todayheld ally BJP responsible forfriction between the two overflood relief advertisements, butsaid it wanted to continue tieswith the saffron party "in truespirit".

"We hold BJP responsible forthe present mess arising out ofthe developments over (GujaratChief Minister Narendra) Modi...But, we want to continue therelationship between the twopar t i e s , " JD (U ) na t iona lspokesperson Shivanand Tiwaritold PTI.

"The alliance should con-tinue. It is the need of the hourto keep the people away from'jungle raj' which was unleashedby RJD-LJP combine and Con-gress earlier," he said, addingthe ties should continue in truespirit.

Tiwari said had the BJP pre-vented the advertisementsfrom being published at thetime of its National Executivehere on June 12 and 13 thatshowed Modi holding handswith Kumar and the other ad-vertisement about the relieffor Kosi flood victims from Gu-

jarat, the situation would havebeen averted.

"What we (alliance) did withfull commitment for the upliftof minorities has come a cropperbecause of the advertisementsfor which the BJP alone is re-sponsible," Tiwari said.

"People know that Bihar hasa different political back-ground. Everybody knows thatthe leader of the alliance is Ni-tish Kumar ... so what is theproblem with the BJP in accept-ing the truth when electionsare around the corner?" heasked.

He said if the chief ministerobjected to his Gujarat coun-terpart electioneering in Bihar,the BJP should concede it in-stead of stating that it wouldbe decided at an appropriatetime.

Tiwari asked the BJP toponder over whether it wouldreally gain from campaigningby Modi. "Are people of thestate prepared to acceptModi as a leader? Will he beable to convince the elec-torate?"

He suggested that both sidesbe open to a threadbare discus-sion on these issues.

BJP responsible for present mess: JD(U)

People witnessing the Air India Express crash site on Monday where the flight from Dubai had crashed on May 22, at Kenjar near Bajpe airport in Mangalore killing 158 people.

HERALD CORRESPONDENT

BELGAUM, JUNE 22

With the term of vice chancellor of Visves-varaya Technological University (VTU),Belgaum, Prof H P Khincha set to end onJune 30, the fourth VC for the universityis likely to be named within the nextone week.

Although several noted academiciansin the state are lobbying for the post,principal of National Institute of Engi-neering Mysore Prof M S Shivakumar isexpected to emerge as the consensuscandidate due to his vast experience asan educationist and administrator.

The VTU has already nominated formerVC of Goa University B S Sonde and NALdirector A R Upadhya as its VC searchcommittee members from the university

executive council and academic senate.Once the governor and government

appoint their search committee mem-bers, the four will recommend finallyprobables for the coveted post shortly.

Highly placed sources in the govern-ment said Prof M S Shivakumar, whoserved as registrar of VTU besides beingacademician of repute in NIE, is a strongcontender for the post.

Shivakumar has rendered an out-standing job as registrar of VTU andbrought many changes during his tenureto improve the functioning of VTU. Formany years, he also has been associatedwith the field of engineering serving asprincipal of NIE and member for variousnoted organisations. His name wasdropped at the last moment by the four-

member panel of search committee mem-bers three years ago when Prof Khinchawas named as VC. The panel is certainto pick him this time, sources withinthe VTU circle informed.

It was also understood that the out-going VC Dr H P Khincha is trying for anextension for the post which is unlikelyto be extended for another year, thoughhe is eligible to get another years ex-tension as VC.

At least three other persons are incontention for the post including VC ofTumkur University Dr S C Sharma. As thelatter already is the VC of Tumkur Uni-versity, he may not be considered, saidsources.

The government is keen on havingsomebody with a rich experience in

the field of engineering. Principal ofBVB Engineering College Hubli AshokShettar and Principal of UVCE Banga-lore Dr K R Venugopal are the two ablecandidates for the post, sources ob-served.

A case filed by former VC of VTU Dr KBalaveera Reddy against Prof Khinchaover violation of Copyright Act by thelatter and the recent allegations leveledby former VC Selvidas against Khinchaof making atrocity on her may also comein the way of Khinchas claim to get ex-tension as VC.

Sources said the government may con-sider Ashok Shettar at the last momentif the lobby of leaders from north Kar-nataka to appoint an academician fromthis region clicks.

Noted academicians lobbying for VTUs vice chancellor post

Gujarat aims tobecome gateway

of tourismdevelopment

PTI

AHMEDABAD, JUNE 21

Gujarat Government is position-ing the state as the gateway fortourism development in Indiaand making the sector the en-gine of growth by 2025.

"By 2025 tourism sectorwould overshadow industries,agriculture and services sectorin terms of growth. It is time tofocus on tourism which has thepotential to move Gujarat'seconomy," Health Minister Jay-narayan Vyas said here today.

He was giving details aboutthe 'Gujarat Tourism Conclave2010' to be held on June 24.

According to Vyas, Gujarathas requisite infrastructure interms of airports, road network,transport services, hotels andhospitals which are necessaryfor tourism development.

"Gujarat would soon becomethe gateway for tourism devel-opment in India. Tourism wouldbecome a major source of eco-nomic activities in the near fu-ture."

Vyas said travelling to anydestination in North or SouthIndia would become cheaperand safer if the tourist lands inGujarat and plans tour fromhere.

"Having achieved top slots inindustrial development and in-frastructure, it is time to con-centrate on tourism, withspecial focus on health and well-ness theme," the Health Minis-ter said.

"Gujarat offers a diversechoice for tourists, ranging fromAsiatic lions, migratory birds tobig rivers and dams," Vyas noted.

"Medical tourism would betop on the agenda of the GujaratConclave," Vyas said.

Bhujbal wishesbest for

'Thackeray Jodo'campaign

PTI

MUMBAI, JUNE 21

Reacting to the 'Thackeray Jodo'campaign initiated by ShivSainiks, to unite estrangedcousins Raj and Uddhav Thack-eray, Deputy Chief Minister andformer Sena leader Chhagan Bhu-jbal today wished it all the best.

"It is good if Uddhav and Rajcome together. No one wouldthink that cousins should beparted or the party to be divided,"Bhujbal told reporters here.

Sena leaders have started thecampaign to bring together Senaexecutive chief Uddhav Thack-eray and MNS chief Raj.

"I was in touch with both thecousins when they parted ways andmy best wishes are with the cam-paign," the Deputy Chief Minister said.

The campaign was initiatedafter Marathi votes were dividedbetween Sena and MNS duringlast Assembly polls, spokesper-son of the campaign, SatishWalanju said.

With this campaign, which ispurely on the basis of publicsupport and has no involvementof any political leader, the aimwas to bring the two cousinstogether, Walanju said.

GOA, TUESDAY JUNE 22, 2010

HERALD

Pg7INDIAPTI

NEW DELHI, JUNE 21

Taking note of the recent spurtin 'honour' killings, the SupremeCourt today sought responsefrom the Union Government andeight States on steps taken toprevent such incidents.

A Bench of Justices R M Lodhaand A K Patnaik issued noticeto the Centre and the States ofHaryana, Punjab, UP, Rajasthan,Jharkhand, Bihar, Himachal

Pradesh and Madhya Pradeshon the PIL filed by Shakti Vahini,an NGO.

The NGO voiced grave con-cern over the increasing numbersuch killings allegedly carriedout at the instance of khap pan-chayats (caste councils).

The PIL alleged that theUnion/States have neither takenany preventive steps which arerequired to be done to combatsuch crimes which involves mass

fury nor drafted a policy/mech-anism to protect such couplesand individuals.

"The States have remainedmute spectators of such crimesand have remained completelysilent on even strengthening thelaw enforcement to combat suchcrimes. The States have notdrafted any monitoring mecha-nism for keeping a watch onsuch crimes.

"In many cases they have

failed to prosecute the peoplewho are involved in disturbingpublic tranquility. This has re-sulted in severe violation of fun-damental rights under Article14 (equality before law) and Ar-ticle 19 (freedom of expressionand speech) of the Constitutionof India, the PIL said.

According to the NGO, thekhap panchayats were resortingto crimes like torture, mutila-tion, rape, forced marriage, im-

prisonment within the homeand even murder.