Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Goa Blog

Goa Blog

Indian scientists’ team leave for South Pole expedition

Posted: 02 Nov 2010 08:43 AM PDT

An eight-member Indian team today left from Goa on an expedition to explore climatic changes in the frozen depths of the Antarctic region over the past 1,000 years. The team of Indian scientists is led by Goa-based National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR)

Director and glaciologist Rasik Ravindra.

“Most of the team members have gone to Antarctica but this will be a different experience,” Ravindra told PTI before leaving for the expedition.

Ravindra said the Indian team is in touch with Americans, who have extended a lot of cooperation.

“Internationally, we are getting good cooperation and we will do the Indians proud,” the scientist said.

The team today left for Cape Town in South Africa from where it will fly to Indian research base station ‘Maitri’. NCAOR officials said that from there, the team will travel up 1,200 feet to the South Pole. It will be conducting

various experiments on the route to analyse climatic and other changes over the past 1,000 years in the icy continent.

The team will bring back air and rock samples that will be tested in NCAOR’s laboratory in port town of Vasco. The expedition team will also conduct various scientific experiments on its way to the South Pole and record humidity, temperature, wind speed and atmospheric pressure.

NCAOR officials said the expedition comes almost 99 years after man first reached the South Pole and three decades after India’s first expedition to Antarctica.

Courtesy:HT

Goa’s second wettest year in over a century

Posted: 02 Nov 2010 08:01 AM PDT

year Goa got its liberation, 1961, may have been a watershed year in more ways than one, but almost fifty years later, 2010 is also turning out to be quite significant - the second wettest year in more then a century.

While December 19, 1961 marked a turning point in the state’s history, Goa also received the highest annual rainfall of 4313.6mm the same year. “Taking that into account, the rainfall of 3723.5 mm so far this year is the second highest since 1961,” K V Singh, director, meteorology department, Altinho said.

Rain clouds hovering in the sky during the weekend have dispersed on Monday, but given the uncertain weather, they may reappear. And yet, there has been enough rain with two months remaining, suffice to leave a notable statistic as the second highest rainfall in 110 years.

“The annual rainfall till October 31 is also highest rainfall during this decade,” Singh said. Recalling the trend after South West Monsoon advanced over Goa on June 10, he said there was hardly any dry spell. “This year, it rained continuously and regularly, barring a couple of days,” Singh added. Otherwise, it rained in some nook and corner of Goa every day.

The year began on a wet note as meteorologists recorded 2.6mm rainfall in January. Later, Goa received 1.2mm in April and 68.4mm in May. During the four-month monsoon season (June-September) this year, the total rainfall recorded was 3384.6mm, including 971.4mm in June, 1245.5mm in July, 701.6mm in August, 466.1mm in September and 267.7mm in October.

“As per met department norms, Goa received 30% excess rainfall till date,” Singh added. Agriculture department had reported substantial damage to areca nut crop and paddy crop to a lesser extent.

But the four-month total (June-October) of 3384.6mm this year fell short by a few cms of the 2007 (four-month) record of 3417.0mm.

In comparison, the annual total of 3680.4mm in 1999 was the highest after 1961 till another wet year (3689.0 mm in 2007 left its tatoo on the roof.

“The lowest annual rainfall recorded was 1457.6mm in 1941,” Singh said.

The met department has total annual record from 1901, but rainfall records have been recorded monthwise after 1971. The annual totals have been added up only after 1991.

Courtesy:TOI

NCP Goa Chief Jose Philip D’Souza to Resign

Posted: 02 Nov 2010 07:05 AM PDT

Nationalist Congress party’s (NCP) Goa Unit president Jose Philip D’Souza said that he will tender his resignation from the party chief’s post on tuesday.

“I have kept my resignation ready. I will tell high command to accept it and hand over the post to my colleague Fransisco Micky Pacheco,” D’Souza told PTI.

NCP’s national General secretary and Goa desk incharge Prakash Bhingsale is arriving in the state this afternoon to meet Pacheco and D'Souza, who had a public fight on October 24.

Pacheco had alleged that he was attacked by D'Souza's supporters when he was dining with his friend in port town of Vasco.

D'souza, who is also the state revenue minister, said that he wants the party to grow and if any legislator feels that they can do it, he is willing to hand over the responsibility.

The minister said that he will have a detailed discussion with high command before putting down his papers.

“Final decision will be of high command,” he said adding that state executive committee is against him resigning as chief.

NCP, which is in coalition with Congress-led government in Goa, has two of its legislators inducted as ministers in the state cabinet.

Third legislator Fransisco Micky Pacheco had to resign after his name was involved in a controversy regarding death of his friend, Nadia Torrado.

Courtesy:Outlook

Congress sweeps municipal council polls in Goa

Posted: 01 Nov 2010 09:49 AM PDT

The Congress party emerged victorious in all the 11 municipal council polls, held on Sunday in Goa.

After the results were declared, state Chief Minister Digamber Kamat said that the majority of the Congress workers have got elected which indicates that the Congress party is gaining more ground in the state.

He said that it is good governance which has paid in these civic polls.

Although the elections were not fought on party basis, the results indicate that voters favoured Congress, he said.

Eleven municipal councils in the state went for polls on Sunday which saw 72.62 per cent people exercising their right.

The counting of votes were held today.

The Chief Minister said that as far as possible, the councillors will be asked to have stable council till the end of term.

“But councillors have the aspirations. Many people want to become chairperson or vice chairperson, which triggers the change in guard,” Kamat said.

Courtesy:IE
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