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GOACOM DAILY NEWS CLIPPINGS
02 January, 2005
TWO DEAD, EIGHT HURT: The first few hours of New Year began on a tragic note
in the State, with two dead and as many as eight injured in four separate
road mishaps in different parts of the state. The mishaps, which took place
in the talukas of Salcete, Mormugao, Bardez and Ponda, involved eight
vehicles which comprised six two-wheelers, a jeep and a tanker. (H)
YOUTH KILLED IN ROAD ACCIDENT: New Year party proved to be fatal for a youth
who met with an accident at Ribandar-Patto in the early hours of Saturday
morning. Richard Pereira (19) and Christopher Fernandes (17), both residents
of Khorlim, were returning home on a two-wheeler after attending a New Year
Party. On reaching Ribandar-Patto, the motorcycle driven by Richard, dashed
against a roadside milestone as a result of which both were thrown off the
two-wheeler. While Christopher, the pillion rider, died on the spot, Richard
sustained grievous head injuries. (WE-GT)
GOVERNOR LIKELY TO RECOMMEND VCD WITHDRAWAL: It is reliably learnt that the
Goa Governor SC Jamir is giving finishing touches to a detailed note
addressed to the state government advising it on how this entire issue
should have been handled. It is also learnt that the Governor is almost
certain to ask the government to withdraw the VCD from all schools, pending
a thorough probe into its contents. (WE-GT)
BARGE CAPSIZES OFF ARABIAN SEA: Ten crew members had a miraculous escape
after an iron-ore laden barge they were working on, capsized in the Arabian
Sea off Raj Bhavan on Saturday (January 1) evening. Life raft and
life-jackets in the barge helped the crew to remain afloat. Fortunately for
them, a fishing trawler which noticed the barge sinking, came to their
rescue. (H)
WOMAN ALLEGES RAPE BY DRIVER: A 22-year-old married woman has complained to
Maina-Curtorim police that she was allegedly raped by her driver in their
garage at Damon-Raia. The incident reported occurred on December 16 at about
10.30 pm, when the 56-year-old accused allegedly summoned the woman to hand
over the car keys. (H)
MINOR GIRL RAPED AT PORVORIM: The advent of New Year was on a criminal note
with the raping of a minor girl at Porvorim on Saturday. The police said
that one Bir Badshah Yabsure, a resident of Torda, Salvador to Mundo, lured
two minor girls residing at Bambolim while they had gone to the Panaji
market. He then took them on his motorcycle to an isolated spot near Teen
Building, Porvorim, where he alleged raped one of the girls. (WE-GT)
EXPOSITION CONCLUDES TODAY: The concluding ceremony of the Sacred Relics of
St Francis Xavier at Old Goa will be held today (January 2). A procession
carrying the Sacred Relics from the Se Cathedral to Bom Jesus Basilica will
commence at 8.30 am followed by mass at 9.30 am. In all 1,54,398 devotees
attended the Exposition and kissing of the Sacred Relics of St Francis
Xavier from 27 November 2004 to 1 January 2005, while 78,725 devotees
attended the mass services during the same period. (WE-GT)
BANK STAFF PROTEST: The bank officers and award staff of Union Bank of India
and Bank of India recently staged a demonstration in front of Union Bank of
India, Panaji and Margao branches, to oppose the proposed unilateral merger
move of the Union Bank of India and Bank of India. (WE-GT)
MOST COMPETITIVE: According to the State Competitiveness Report 2004
prepared by the National productivity Council, Goa is the most competitive
state among 14 minor states in the country, followed closely by Delhi.
Meghalaya and Nagaland are at the bottom of this list. As far as the major
states are concerned, Maharashtra is on top among 14 major states followed
by Punjab, Gujarat, Karnataka and Kerala. (H)
CYBERAGE SCHEME TAKES OFF: The State government has set the Cyberage scheme
rolling by inviting applications for the same which ends on January 15,
2005. The government has finalised a decision of providing printers in the
package at no extra cost to the beneficiaries under the scheme. Likewise
educations, CDs will also be provided under the scheme. In all, a total of
12,000 students are expected to be covered under the scheme which is being
implemented for the third consecutive year. It is learnt that Std XI
students from all streams will be covered under the scheme. A student with
marks exceeding 60 per cent in the SSC examinations will have to pay a sum
of Rs.1000, those with 50 per cent and above will have to pay Rs.1,250 and
those with less than 50 per cent marks will have to pay Rs.1,500.
