log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 6, 2024 GOA Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore/IOS) 12 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME X, NO.139 2 GSUDA land near district court complex and SAG hockey ground turn waste dumps GOA South Goa DMF allocates 70% of fund for areas within 10 kms of mines 3 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 INFO Tips and home remedies to naturally regrow your hair JOBS-FOR-CASH RACKETS CONTINUE TO ROCK GOA 2 MORE ARRESTED, 1 BOOKED IN CANACONA, PONDA CANACONA CASE THE GOAN I NETWORK CANACONA Two more jobs-for-cash rackets were reported in different parts of the State, when a police constable was arrested by Ponda police in one case, while Canacona police in another case arrested a man from Sanquelim, and booked another person from Polem-Canacona. Canacona police had acted after the duo was accused of duping a Canacona youth to the tune of Rs 5 lakh on the pretext of promising a job in the police department. This is the second jobs-for-cash racket reported in Canacona in two weeks. According to reports, a Canacona youth Krishna Naik had filed a police complaint accusing Ravin Bhandari of Polem and Rameshwar Mandrekar of IN SHORT >> Suchana Seth to face murder trial for son’s murder PANAJI: The Children’s Court has framed charges against Bengaluru’s AI Startup CEO Suchana Seth for murdering her underage son and destroying evidence. The Calangute police had filed a 650-odd-page chargesheet in April, three months after the arrest for killing her four year old son at Candolim on January 7. She had hidden her son’s body in the trolley luggage bag. „„Accused promise Krishna Naik a police department job „„Claims to have government connections, demand Rs 5 lakh as advance „„Naik files complaint with Canacona Police in 2020 „„Police initially delay action „„New Canacona Police Inspector Harish Raut Desai reopens case PONDA CASE „„Police constable Sagar Naik had been booked by the Ponda police in a case in which he is said to have taken Rs 10 lakh for promising a government job Sanquelim of taking Rs 5 lakh as advance, after promising him a job in the police department. While an FIR was filed against the duo, police arrested Mandrekar and booked Bhandari in the case. Sources informed that in 2020, one of the accused approached Naik, assuring him a government job and his appointment in the police department while recruitments Constable arrested, remanded PANAJI: Even as they secured a two-day custody remand from the JMFC’s court for Deepashri Sawant e Gawas on Tuesday, Ponda police effected another arrest in the job-for-cash scam case – Sagar Naik, a police constable. The JMFC, Ponda also granted a one-day police custody remand for Sagar on Tuesday. Ponda police sources said, they have already seized three luxury cars and two scooters owned by Deepashri and are in the process of attaching more of her other assets. Deepashri, said to be the mastermind of the whole jobfor-cash scam had been arrested on Monday, more than a week after Mardol police had opened the lid of the scam by arresting Pooja Naik. Pooja who had secured bail in the Mardol police’s case however was then arrested by the Bicholim police in another similar case and remains in their custody. Meanwhile, Sagar who is a police constable had been booked by the Ponda police in a case in which he is said to have taken Rs 10 lakh for promising a government job. >Continued on P5 >Continued on P5 Millions rush to polling stations in historic US presidential poll POLL FORECASTERS GIVE HARRIS EDGE OVER TRUMP States can’t take over private properties: SC down lower energy costs, proposed higher tariffs on foreign goods, especially imports from China and vowed to rid the US of all undocumented immigrants by launching a major deportation programme. “This is the most consequential election in our lifetime,” senior US senator Bernie Sanders said while explaining why Trump as president will be detrimental to the US’ foundational values. NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court by a majority of 7:2 on Tuesday held all private properties cannot form part of “material resources of the community” empowering states to take them over for distribution to serve “common good” under the Constitution.  >> See pg 7 WEATHER >> Max: 31 C Min: 26 C Humidity: 69% >Continued on P5 >Continued on P5 Voters line up to cast their ballots at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Tuesday. Americans cast their ballots in the presidential race between Republican nominee former President Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris. PTI WASHINGTON Millions of Americans headed towards polling stations across the United States on Tuesday to elect the 47th President between Republican leader Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Kamala Harris in an election billed as one of the most consequential contests for the White House in decades. The race remained stubbornly deadlocked for weeks, with some of the election forecasters giving 60-year-old Vice President Harris an edge over former President Trump, 78, in some of the key battleground states like Pennsylvania. In her campaign rallies, Harris said supporting the middle class, effecting a tax cut to benefit over 100 million Americans, ensuring affordable housing and lifting the ban on abortions to safeguard the reproductive rights of women will be her top priorities as the president. On his part, Trump has pledged to strengthen the economy, promised to bring THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Three assault incidents reported at Calangute past midnight on November 4 have raised questions over a police sub-inspector’s handling of the cases with one of the victims now missing. Sources revealed to The Goan that while one FIR was registered against four persons; a second victim was allegedly turned away from the police station without action. The PSI on duty reportedly declined to investigate the incident whereas the third assault victim is currently untraceable. Interestingly, in the only FIR, just one accused Rishap Kerkar has been named while the remaining are unidentified. The victim in this case alleged that accused men assaulted him and another person Sunil Rathod, and also threatened the owner of a hotel with dire consequences. All three victims had sustained bodily and head injuries in the violent attack reported at Umtavaddo and on Calangute-Baga Road. The motive behind the attacks remains unknown. In a CCTV footage, some locals were seen attacking one of their targets – reportedly a tout – with a stick, kicks and blows. Medical examinations of all three victims were conducted Bids open for ore e-auction on Nov 7 PANAJI: The e-auction of three iron ore mineral blocks-Honda, Curpem-Sulcorna and Codli will commence from November 12. The bids would be opened on November 7.  >> See pg 3 PSI under scanner over assault cases in Calangute 9 SPORTS Manolo Marquez confident of FC Goa’s crucial clash against Punjab FC 11 Duped Cunchelim homeowners stunned by demolition notices Magistrate directs residents to vacate houses immediately to facilitate demolition process THE GOAN I NETWORK MAPUSA In a significant development in Cunchelim-Mapusa, the Deputy Collector and Sub-Divisional Magistrate of Bardez, Kabir Shirgaonkar has issued demolition notices to house owners who were duped and unknowingly purchased government-owned land that now faces demolition. The affected families, many of whom spent their life savings on these parcels of land, were informed that their homes were constructed illegally on government property. The notice, issued under the Goa (Land Prohibition on Construction) Act, 1995, pertains to land identified as PT Sheet No 1 Chalta No 10/3 and PT Sheet No 2 Chalta No 11/1 in the village of Cunchelim. Shirgaonkar stated that a demolition squad has been requisitioned to clear unauthorised constructions on this government-owned land. Around 39 notices, affixed Illegal houses on comunidade land in Kadpawada, Cunchelim, which is in possession of the government. (Inset) Demolition notice affixed on one of the houses. to the doors of affected houses, directed residents to vacate immediately to facilitate the demolition process. The news has left the families in a state of shock and despair. Many homeowners claim they were unaware that the land they purchased belonged to the Cunchelim comunidade and had been acquired by the government. They allege they were duped by sellers into buying the plots, investing significant sums to secure land and construct their homes. “We spent our life’s savings on this property, and now we’re being told our homes are illegal,” said one distressed homeowner. Another resident added, “We were never informed about the status of this land. >Continued on P5 Govt set to rollout smart power meters next fiscal IMPLEMENTATION IN PHASED MANNER FROM 2025-26; TENDER PROCESS INITIATED, OPENING NEXT WEEK SHWETA KAMAT MAHATME THE GOAN I PANAJI More than two years after the Union Ministry for Power sanctioned Rs 467 crore smart metering project for Goa, the State, after initial delay, is all set to replace existing electronic power meters with smart meters for 7.5 lakh consumers from the coming fiscal – 2025-26 onwards. The project will be implemented in a phased manner for over two and half years. According to the Electricity Department, the smart meters function on a real-time basis and record and store all electrical parameters such as consumption of energy, voltage and current levels, etc. The data will be used by the department for billing, to monitor power quality, load scheduling, demand management and fault analysis. As per the data released by the Union Ministry, Goa is one amongst few States whose progress on smart meters, distribution transformer meters (DTM) and feeder meters installation is Nil. The Ministry has sanctioned smart meters to around 7, 41, 160 consumers while 8,369 DTM and 827 feeder meters. REAL-TIME MONITORING? „„The smart meters function on a real-time basis and record and store all electrical parameters such as consumption of energy, voltage and current levels, etc „„The data will be used by the department for billing, to monitor power quality, load scheduling, demand management and fault analysis Govt plans to disconnect water, power supply of illegal houses PANAJI: After exposing the cash-for-jobs racket, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant announced a clampdown on illegal housing proposing disconnecting water and electricity supply in line with High Court directives.  >> See pg 3 Under the Revamped Distribution Scheme (RDS), Goa’s initial target date for implementation of smart electricity meters was March 2023, which was later extended to March 2024. Speaking to The Goan, Chief Electrical Engineer (CCE) Stephen Fernandes said that the smart meter tender is floated and it’s due for opening next week. “The work order to the successful bidder would be issued in another two months’ time and the implementation will commence from the next financial year,” he said. Fernandes said that the work order will be issued to replace electronic meters across all 7.5 lakh consumers but the implementation will be done in a phased manner. “I agree that there was a delay but we were waiting for some big States to implement it, to understand consumers’ response and other initial hiccups,” he explained. The CCE said that the project, which is an all-India >Continued on P5 Festive cheer: Goa’s auto sales Double track work begins at Pale amid locals’ outcry RESIDENTS, ACTIVISTS CITE LEGAL IRREGULARITIES, ENVIRONMENTAL AND HEALTH CONCERNS surge in Oct, 11K registered THE GOAN I NETWORK Dealers upbeat, but face inventory issues THE GOAN I NETWORK PANAJI Amid the gloom here and across the country there’s a silver lining in Goa’s October auto sales numbers at the Regional Transport Office (RTO) at all its centres have collectively registered over 11,500 new vehicles in the festive month. Records show, that 11,541 new vehicles were registered at the various RTO offices in the State in the 35 days between October 1 and Novem- ber 4 this year. Of these, 7,571 were two-wheelers and 2,596 were four-wheelers. The rest were three-wheelers and larger heavy vehicles. Prior to October, monthly figures of vehicle registrations at RTO offices in Goa averaged between 6,000 and 7,000 in all the nine months from January to September this year. Last year, Diwali was in November and vehicle sales numbers had also shot up in that month but not by the quantum it has increased this year. In November 2023, the RTO offices had registered 9,125 new vehicles – 5,802 two-wheelers and 1,977 four-wheelers. >Continued on P5 VASCO Protests erupt at Pale village in Velsao as the Railway Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) on Tuesday began double tracking work without prior notice to residents or local authorities. Residents, backed by activists, expressed strong objections and called for the project’s cancellation, citing environmental and health concerns as well as legal irregularities. Orville Dourado, founder member of the NGO Goencho Ekvott, stated that residents were verbally notified only the Congress leaders Olencio Simoes, Orville Dourado, Velsao Sarpanch Diana Gouveia along with locals at Pale village on Tuesday.  Vikram Nayak previous night about RVNL’s plan to commence work. “We’ve opposed this project since 2018 through protests and legal action,” Dourado said. “RVNL has moved into residential areas near survey number 18/1. The government has not addressed the objections filed by locals nor has the Railways conducted proper surveys and yet the works have begun without any demarcation. These double tracks are primarily for coal transport, putting locals at risk of pollution and structural damage to their homes.” He pointed out that RVNL had neither demarcated the area nor held consultations with locals or officials to inform them about land acquisition. Congress leader Olencio Simoes called for the scrapping of the double tracking project, stating that the people’s opposition to the project dates back to 2016. “Proper procedures are not being followed in land acquisition,” Simoes stated. “There is widespread deforestation, and the RVNL continues its work despite notices from the Forest Department, Water Resources Department, and Coastal Regulatory Zone (CRZ). The government’s lack of response may lead to significant unrest among locals.” Simoes added that the local panchayat has also opposed the project, citing risks to residents’ health due to coal pollution and the potential for structural damage from vibrations caused by the trains. He said that they were informed that the double >Continued on P5