Friday, July 9, 2010

Goa Blog

Goa Blog

Rampant mining activity puts Arvalem fall in the red

Posted: 09 Jul 2010 05:54 AM PDT

Goa’s second most popular waterfall after Dudhsagar transforms into a scenic cascade during the monsoon. However, villagers and environmentalists now fear that rampant pollution from mining activity in its catchment areas may lead to its eventual death.

The pleasant hum of the Arvalem fall 24-feet below into the Bhimkund from the northern cliff throws up a misty curtain, much to the delight of visitors. But the sight of its cascade into the Bhimkund (Bhim’s pool), considered as much a sacred place for Hindus as Hrishikesh and Gokarna, is marred by the flow of muddy water.

“Every monsoon it is the same scene as mining slurry mixing with the water pollutes the waterfall,” a villager lamented. Located just a stone’s throw from Sanquelim, the waterfall, gushing through the thick rain-washed foliage and the hill with the rocky face on the east, is fed by two streams from Morlem in the north and Saleli in the east.

“They meet barely a km away from the waterfall, but silt from four mines on its banks is severly polluting the world famous water body,” Ramesh Gawas, an anti-mining activist said. The muddy red and highly turbid waters empty into the oval-shaped pool below as the stream flows to meet River Cudnem.

A mining dump can be seen towering above the Bhimkund’s eastern bank. Alleging that the authorities, including the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) have not ensured that mining firms carry out restoration measures, Gawas has filed a complaint with the Board to halt the pollution. The Board normally grants a no objection certificate to work leases to a proponent of the project after the union ministry of environment and forest (MoEF) grants an environment clearance.

“Pollution of the Arvalem fall, Cudnem river and nullahs at Honda has reached alarming proportions,” Gawas said, adding that if it continued, Arvalem and other bodies may become extinct in a few years. The Bicholimbased activist has urged the Board to hold the consent to establish mines granted under the Water Act, 1974 in abeyance due to increase in contamination of water sources.

“This step should be taken immediately to protect water bodies,” he said. Incidentally, one of the mines began operations last year. A villager said the turbidity in the water settles down after monsoon, though no tests have been conducted to analyze the water quality. The water becomes clearer around October after the monsoon is over. “People bathe in the pond below the waterfall,” says a local youth. Arvalem was a muchthronged spot, especially after the ’60s as students learnt about its striking beauty in geography books. School excursions often landed there as a consequence.

“Now there are lesser visitors but more devotees here,” a villager said. Visitors shy away from going too close to the waterfall or do not remain there for long, fearing they will be doused with the muddy spray, locals claimed. Temple authorities had also complained to the government bodies in the past. “Arvalem is thronged by hundreds of devotees and is even preferred to Gokarna on the eve of Mahashivratri for the holy bath,” Gawas said. “Even cattle do not sip the water,” another source said.

The quantum of water was sufficient even during summer to generate power, a villager said. A micro hydel generation plant inaugurated by then power minister Shaikh Hassan Haroon in the presence of then chief minister and local MLA, Pratapsing Rane helped illuminate the temple and the priests’ residence till the ’90s. “Subsequently, the flow of water was not adequate to turn the turbines and the plant was abandoned,” the source said.

GSPCB chairman Simon D’Souza said that Gawas’ complaint will be looked into. “We will send our officials to conduct an inspection,” he said. A Mineral Foundation of Goa source said that desilting in stretches upstream of the waterfall had been carried out about five years back. “The Foundation has also desilted the pond below and constructed retaining walls and steps leading to the viewing point,” the source said.

The total cost of the beautification project was Rs 20 lakh. A bandhara with infrastructure to bund it after the monsoon has also been built. Clarifying that it is not only the slurry from mines above the waterfall, another source from the mining industry said there are more leases in Cudnem and in the upper reaches of the catchment spanning as far as Pissurlem and Bhuimpal.

“The silt flows from far off places, too,” the source said. However, Gawas said that more damage has been done in recent years. “The streams have filled up all over again,” he said.

Courtesy:TOI
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Thursday, July 8, 2010

Goa Blog

Goa Blog

Former Goa minister Mickky Pacheco is finally arrested

Posted: 08 Jul 2010 06:29 AM PDT

Mickky Pacheco, accused of conjuring up an illness as a get-out-of-jail pass, has been arrested finally by the Goa police. The former Minister of Tourism in Goa is accused of being involved with the death of a young woman who he describes as a “close friend”, Nadia Torrado.

Nadia died in a Chennai hospital in May of complications that arose from eating rat poison.  Her family, like Pacheco, says she mistook the tube of rat poison for a tube of toothpaste.  The Goa police, however, have accused Pacheco of culpable homicide.  It has said that Pacheco tried to destroy evidence that linked him to Nadia’s death.

Pacheco disappeared in early June for close to a month after he was interrogated by the Goa police.  He applied for anticipatory bail several times, but was rejected by a series of courts.  He finally surrendered in a court in Margao on July 3 after the Supreme Court turned down his bail application.

Within a few hours of being taken into custody, however, he complained of chest pains and was moved to hospital. The Goa police had argued that his illness did not seem genuine.  A local court said earlier this week that Pacheco could be taken back to jail as soon as doctors declared him medically fit.

Courtesy: ndtv

Goan Handicraft Small Scale Industry Sets up an E-Portal to Advertise on a Larger Scale

Posted: 08 Jul 2010 01:47 AM PDT

Virtual technology and internet has been successful in bringing the world closer through information that can be found at the tips of one's hands. It has also brought out a new set of entrepreneurs who have conducted successful business using this means of technology. Goa Handicrafts Rural and Small Scale Industries Development Corporation ("GHRSSIDC") recently launched its e-portal to market the state's crafts and handicrafts to a wider set of audience.

Goa: Goan Handicraft

Goan artisans can now market their products and already 350 Goan handicrafts have been exhibited online, with about 100 put up for sale. Products include Goan specialties such as terracotta lampshades and necklaces made of shells and beads.

The idea was generated when the Managing Director of GHRSSIDC visited handicrafts fairs in foreign countries such as USA and Greece where the importance of an e-portal was explained for widening one's customer base with larger exposure all around the world. The GHRSSIDC is now one of the few small scale handicrafts corporations in India to have its own e-portal.

An e-portal allows one to publicize complete information including photographs, size, weights, height dimensions and price range of all products. GHRSSIDC has formed two domain sites for showcasing their products; www.ghrssidc.org or www.goanhandicrafts.com. Photographs of about 500 handicraft items have been put up on the site of which 350 are for exhibition and 100 are for online sale.

The new e-portal has already fetched orders for GHRSSIDC from USA and products will soon be dispatched to the clients there. Along with improving the sale of fast moving products, the e-portal also helps a client to order a customized product as per client's specification, thus demanding product exclusivity.

Some famous Goan Handicrafts include coconut shell items, trinkets made of shells, corals and bead work, brassware, terracotta, rosewood furniture, locally crafted beads of various colours such as red, blue, yellow and others in contemporary designs, table cloths with handmade needlework, hammocks woven of strong and durable cotton fibre and pottery products with traditional techniques made by Kumbhar community of Goa.

Courtesy: rang7

Expansion of BSNL services in Goa impeded, says Centre

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 01:10 PM PDT

Stating that there is no evidence as regards mobile service towers being hazardous in nature, the Union Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology, Mr Gurudas Kamat on Monday said the major problem faced by the BSNL in expansion of its telecom services in Goa, is the resistance of the people and local bodies towards erection of such towers.

BSNL Goa

“I have already discussed this matter with the Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat and would be holding a review meeting on this situation, with the BSNL officials on July 8 in the city,” Mr Gurudas Kamat told the media during an informal chat, further pointing out “If the Goan people, who are intelligent enough besides being educated, extend their support then the state could be provided with better network and connectivity.”Earlier, Mr Gurudas Kamat, in the presence of the Governor, Dr S S Sidhu, Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat, Speaker of the legislative assembly, Mr Pratapsing Rane and the chief of the naval staff, Admiral Nirmal Verma released a commemorative postage stamp to mark the golden jubilee year of the commissioning of the only flight squadron of the Indian Army - the White Tigers, at an impressive naval function held in the city. The Governor, on the occasion unveiled a plaque of the stamp and released a coffee table book on the flight squadron, which includes Sea Hawks/ Sea Harriers aircraft.

Speaking further, Mr Gurudas Kamat told the pressmen that the department of posts under the ministry of communications and IT is considering bringing Goa under an independent Postal Circle. “However, there are various difficulties in forming a Goa Circle as far as postal services are concerned, the major difficulty being the volume of Goa, besides other parameters,” he stated, adding, “These are the precise reasons why Goa is now placed under the Maharashtra Circle.”

Discussing the expansion plans in the communication sector, Mr Kamat said that the UPA government has set up a target of establishing one lakh common service centres, in equal number of blocks around the country by 2012. “At present, around 70,000 CSCs with broadband connectivity have already been set up, and they can facilitate e-governance and video conferencing enabling tele-medicine and tele-education,” he added, pointing out that it now depends upon various states on zeroing down the locations for establishing these centres.

Replying to a question, the Union Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology said that just as the mobile service had ushered a mobile revolution in the country, the 3G services would be greeted with overwhelming response by the Indian population.

Courtesy: NT

SDM hauls up Goa police officer for staging raid

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 09:52 AM PDT

A sub-divisional magistrate has hauled up a police inspector and asked him to release 29 women who were 'rescued' last week from an alleged prostitution ring operating in the guise of a beauty saloon. Sub-Divisional Magistrate D.M. Redkar in his order said that the 'rescue' was staged by inspector Nolasco Rasposo, in-charge of Calangute police station in the popular tourist hub of Calangute, 15 km from here.

'The girls said they were called to the police station for questioning but were instead made a party to this case. The police showed they rescued these girls and remanded them. Moreover, at the time of the raid, neither a reputed citizen nor a member from any NGO accompanied the raiding team,' Redkar said, calling the detention of the women at a state-run protective home 'illegal'.

Redkar ordered the release of the 29 women after the police failed to prove that they were involved in the prostitution business. Incidentally, while the police claimed that the 29 women were rescued during a raid at a beauty parlour, five of the 'rescued' women have in a written statement to the Women and Child Development (WCD) department, said they were callously picked up from their respective houses and taken straight to the police station.

Meanwhile, the owner of the beauty parlour, Mahalaxmi Mishra, has already complained to the state women's commission about alleged harrassment by Raposo, who has denied allegations that the raid was staged.

Courtesy: calcuttatube
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Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Goa Blog

Goa Blog

Goa: Madkaikar reluctant to accept Cong offer

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 01:31 PM PDT

After having brought the Congress party to almost the halfway mark in the state assembly and stabilising the position of the government by the re-entry of Mr Atanasio Monserrate, the Education Minister and Mr Vishwajit Rane, the Health Minister, the Congress leadership has now embarked upon fulfilling the promises it made to its legislators, particularly Mr Pandurang Madkaikar.

According to the All-India Congress Committee general-secretary in-charge of Goa desk, Mr B K Hariprasad, Mr Madkaikar, the Congress Cumbharjua MLA, was accordingly being offered the chairmanship of a top government corporation. The party has been finding itself at odds in accommodating Mr Madkaikar in the cabinet due to political compulsions and the offer of the prestigious corporation was an attempt to satisfy him.

Mr Hariprasad further said that Mr Madkaikar, who was dropped from the cabinet to accommodate the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party MLA, Mr Ramkrishna Dhavalikar, was showing reluctance to head the corporation and that he was demanding a berth in the cabinet. He said that efforts were on to persuade Mr Madkaikar to accept the chairmanship of the corporation. Mr Madkaikar was camping in New Delhi to sort out the issue along with the Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat, and the Goa Pradesh Congress Committee president, Mr Subhash Shirodkar. The Goan leaders met Mr Hariprasad and others.

Sources in the Congress said that Mr Madkaikar could be given the chairmanship of prestigious Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation, which has been headed by the successive Chief Minister ever since it was formed way back in 2002.

Courtesy: Navhind Times, Goa Daily

Goa welcomes tourism code

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 11:22 AM PDT

The Goa government and the tourism industry in the state have welcomed the code of conduct for safe and honourable tourism announced by the central government earlier this week. The code of conduct applicable to both tourists and local residents has a special significance to Goa, a popular beach tourism destination, which has in the recent past been in the news for crimes against foreign tourists, especially women. 'The code of conduct is a welcome sign for tourism in Goa. We had published a do's and don'ts booklet sometime back. This code is an extension of that effort,' Swapnil Naik, director of tourism told IANS Friday.

The code of conduct is applicable to owners, suppliers, contractors and employees of the travel and tour sector including hotels, restaurants, lodges, guest houses, tour agents, entertainment establishments and service providers. When asked if the code announced by union Minister of Tourism Kumari Selja would discourage tourists from coming to Goa, Naik said: 'Not at all. These are basic things which we would follow, if we were tourists in another country.'

President of the Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) Gaurish Dhond said he was yet to read the code of conduct threadbare but such a set of guidelines was the need of the hour. 'We need to have such safety codes in place. It is certainly a much awaited gesture by the union ministry of tourism. We welcome it,' Dhond said. 'The code of conduct is applicable throughout the nation. Nothing can deter a tourist from coming to Goa. One or two incidents will not harm Goa's image,' Dhond said, when asked if strict imposition of the code would affect tourism in Goa.

The code which was formally announced by Tourism Minister Kumari Selja Thursday aims at strengthening safety and ensuring that international standards of safe tourism practices, applicable for both tourists and local residents, are followed. The code contains guidelines to encourage tourism with respect for basic rights like dignity, safety and freedom from exploitation of both tourists and local residents.

It also recommends stringent measures against involuntary drug abuse, manipulated and incorrect information and cultural and social intolerance that increases vulnerability to crime. According to Selja, the guidelines will assist in preventing prostitution, sex tourism and other forms of sexual exploitation like assault and molestation and safeguard women and children.

Courtesy: calcuttatube

Goa Police doubts ex-Minister Pacheco is really ill

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 11:15 AM PDT

Suspecting that former Goa Minister Fransisco Mikky Pacheco, named accused in the mysterious death of his woman friend, might be feigning illness, police on Tuesday said certificates given by his doctors should be referred to a medical board. Public Prosecutor Sarojini Sardinha, arguing for Goa Police’s crime branch, said during the hearing of the bail petition filed by Pacheco that there was no mention of sickness by the former Tourism Minister before he surrendered to the court.

“Only when he was remanded in judicial custody, he complained of sickness and got admitted in ICU,” she said. Pointed out errors in the medical report submitted by the state-run Hospicio hospital, Sardinha said the accused had refused to allow examination of his blood despite complaining of jaundice, hypertension and urinary tract infection.

The 46-year old NCP leader should be referred to a medical board as the certificates given by doctors from Hospicio hospital were suspicious, the crime branch said. ”Alternatively, medical certificates by doctors should be examined to check their veracity,” Sardinha submitted before Additional Sessions judge Pramod Shetye. The public prosecutor said that having not subjected to custodial interrogation, the bail application by Pacheco after surrendering to the court, is premature.

“There are no changes in circumstances from the time, he was refused anticipatory bail by Supreme court.” Seeking Pacheco’s custodial interrogation, Sardinha said more persons could be involved in Nadia’s death. “To get out all the facts, we need custodial interrogation of the accused.” After hearing the arguments of Pacheco’s lawyer Surendra Desai and Sardinha, the Sessions Court reserved its order till tomorrow.

Pacheco is currently admitted to the Hospicio hospital in Margao where he is undergoing treatment. The former Minister is accused of abetment to suicide and culpable homicide not amounting to murder in connection with the death of his close friend Nadia, 28, who died after allegedly consuming poison on May 30 in Chennai.

Courtesy: ndtv
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Monday, July 5, 2010

Goa Blog

Goa Blog

Goa offers Special Honeymoon Package for Newly Weds

Posted: 05 Jul 2010 06:26 AM PDT

Goa with its long stretch of beaches, innumerable number of churches, dense greenery, boating in lakes and backwaters and the open atmosphere has been a perfect place as a romantic destination. Now the Goa Tourism Department has launched a slogan, "Leave your worries and wallet behind and spend your honeymoon dedicated to each other,” to promote Honeymoon Tourism for newly weds, attracting them with special packages.

Goa is a popular tourist destination in India attracting both domestic and foreign tourist in large numbers. The tourist groups include singles, families, friends, office trips, school and college trips and many others. Goa with its wide stretch of beaches overlooking the Arabian Sea and with Western Ghats passing though the state receives about 20 lakh tourists each year.

Now the Tourism Department of Goa specifically wants to target the group of newly married couples and has developed a special package under the brand name of "Honeymoon Package". The package includes five nights and six days stay at three different hotels in various romantic locations. Apart from lodging and boarding facilities at good hotels, the package also includes pickup for each couple either from the airport, railway station or bus stand and sightseeing tours of the main tourist sights in the state.

The Honeymoon Package for Goa was launched by the State Tourism Department just a fortnight ago, and already they have received a very encouraging response.

In monsoons, Goa often wears a deserted look, as sightseeing gets affected due to rains. In order to promote tourism even in the rainy season, the Tourism Department had also recently launched "Raindrop Tourism" to attract tourist to Goa in monsoons, highlighting the state's feature especially during rains.

Courtesy:Rang7

Total bandh in Goa, cops arrest state Shiv Sena chief

Posted: 05 Jul 2010 01:21 AM PDT

Even as Goa observed complete bandh today as a part of nationwide protest against fuel price hike, police arrested two persons, including state Shiv Sena chief Upendra Gaonkar, for alleged unlawful activities. Superintendent of Police (North) Arvind Gauns told PTI this morning that Gaonkar was arrested at Assnora village, 30 kms away from Panaji.

“He along with other group were deflating the tyres of the tanker,” Gauns said, adding, a local panchayat member has also been arrested for “unlawful activity”.

Goa observed 100 per cent bandh as besides call for strike against spiralling prices of essential commodities and fuel hike, the private bus operators had also resorted for strike seeking hike in the ticket fare. All the major markets in the state remained closed since morning.

Police confirmed that stray incidents of stone pelting were reported at Borim village 50 kms away from here.

Courtesy: PTI

Marine research centre to be set up at Goa University

Posted: 05 Jul 2010 01:19 AM PDT

Goa university (GU) vice-chancellor D Deobagkar said recently that a marine microbial diversity research centre, under government of India’s department of earth sciences, is proposed to be set up at the university.  Speaking at a biodiversity awareness programme sponsored by UGC and organized by GU’s botany department, Deobagkar said that the national facility (with a sub-centre in Chennai) will facilitate collection of data on microbial resources.

The major hub in GU campus will have its separate building and world class infrastructure, especially laboratory and is likely to function on the pattern of central research organizations through a Rs 6-crore project. Goa university and Annamalai university, Chennai, will collaborate in commencing a new MSc programme in oceanography to carry out research on both sides of India’s coastline. Thousands of cultures, fungi, algae etc are expected to be deposited in the national facility after it is set up.

NIO scientist Baban Ingole, who was among a number of scientists who gave their presentations at the programme conducted in association with Goa Union of Journalists, said the earth’s climate has been always changing. But in the last ten years it has warmed by about 0.6 degrees Celsius as compared to 1.5 degrees Celsius in the past 1,000 years.

Other botanists, microbiologists and experts raised concerns about the loss of biodiversity in the state due to mining, construction activity and other forms of development. M K Janarthanam said plateaus harbour endemic species but awareness about this aspect is poor.

Courtesy: TOI

Will Congress fall for Alemao’s threat?

Posted: 04 Jul 2010 10:13 AM PDT

With Churchill Alemao serving an ultimatum to the Congress leadership to scrap the newly-appointed Navelim Congress block committee, it’s to be seen if the party’s central election authority will succumb to the South Goa strongman’s pressure tactics.

The authority, headed by senior Congress leader Oscar Fernandes is considered an independent entity in the party. On Friday, Alemao told a section of the media that he suspected Fernandes - in charge of the party’s organizational polls across the country - of the “development” in his constituency.

The PWD minister said that he had given the party leadership 15 days to recognize Lionel Raicar and his team as the “real block Congress committee” in Navelim. He has threatened to appoint his own committees in all the constituencies in Goa if this is not done.

Alemao’s pressure tactics in the party are not new, but this time around, political observors are wondering if a committee elected as per the procedure laid down by the party itself, will be dissolved as per the local MLA’s whims?

Sources said that Conceicao Piexote’s team - affiliated to Alemao’s bete noire Luizinho Faleiro - was elected as Alemao’s workers had failed to enlist members at the grassroots level.

They pointed out that at the Congress block committee election at Davorlim panchayat hall On May 15, both Alemao and Faleiro’s groups participated. However, Faleiro mustered a majority in the 28 polling booths. This, sources said, was because the former MLA had enlisted more members at grassroots level which saw his team whip up more votes. On the other hand, Alemao’s camp had failed to enlist enough members to draw votes.

Incidentally, it is not only at the block and booth levels that Alemao has failed to have his supporters elected. At the district level too, Schubert Furtado, a panchayat member and close aide of Faleiro, was elected, sources said.

Meanwhile, on losing the block election, an apparently humiliated Alemao, took up the matter with the party high command. The latter, however, decided not to interfere as the polls were conducted by the party’s election authority.

Earlier this week, Alemao approached chief minister Digambar Kamat and GPCC chief Subhash Shirodkar.

Courtesy:TOI
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Sunday, July 4, 2010

Goa Blog

Goa Blog

Goa: Port town gets new music academy

Posted: 04 Jul 2010 09:02 AM PDT

Goa Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat informed that the State Government, under the auspicious of the Art and Culture Department, would soon be implementing a cultural policy in Goa that would not only benefit locals but also budding artistes. Chief Minster, Mr Kamat was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of 'Shadj Gandhar Music Academy', started under the initiative of the Manda and Narayan Bandekar Charitable Trust.

The government has decided to have a Ravindra Bhavan in every taluka of the state in order to provide artistes with better facilities.

Mr Kamat said that Goan artistes should meet with success in Goa and not the neighbouring states. The Government also aims at provide theatre exposure to artistes. Praising the tireless efforts of the director, Art and Culture Department, Mr Prasad Lolyekar the Chief Minister said that art and culture was developing rapidly and the music and culture of Goa was being preserved.

Revenue Minister, Mr Jose Philip D'Souza said that the music academy in Vasco help promote artistes from the port town adding that the Ravindra Bhavan project coming up at Baina would further provide artistes of Vasco with facilities.

Deputy Speaker, Mr Mauvin Godinho praised the efforts of industrialist, Mr Narayan Bandekar for promoting music. The of music academy was a revolutionary step taken Mr Bandekar and has given a new lease of life to Indian classical music in the state.

Courtesy: Navhind Times
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Friday, July 2, 2010

Goa Blog

Goa Blog

SC refuses bail to former Goa minister

Posted: 02 Jul 2010 08:56 AM PDT

The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed the anticipatory bail petition of former Goa tourism minister Francisco Mickey Pacheco, wanted in connection with the death of his friend Nadia Torrado, saying he might influence the investigation.

According to Micky’s lawyer, Micky will surrender tomorrow. He also informed that Lyndon has been summoned at 10.30am at crime branch.

Order ‘jumping chicken’ in Goa, get served a frog

Posted: 02 Jul 2010 03:11 AM PDT

It’s a cloudy night. The only sounds are that of rubber slippers sloshing in the ankle-deep marsh in one of the many nondescript paddy fields somewhere in north Goa and the noisy symphony of croaking bull frogs seeking mates. Armed with a powerful flashlight, a gunny sack and a knife tucked in the waist, the team of hunters move in the direction where the croaking sounds seem to come from.

Frog meat, locally known as ‘jumping chicken’, is what these hunting teams are after. Scenes like these are common in the rural areas of Goa, especially on nights when the monsoon showers take a breather after a few days of sustained downpour. Although hunting of frogs is banned in Goa, assorted groups of twos and threes armed with rudimentary tools like powerful flashlights and gunny sacks can be seen throughout the countryside looking for frogs, whose meat is sought after in rural taverns as a seasonal delicacy.

“We locate the frog by following its croak. Then we use a flashlight and focus the beam on its eyes, which stuns and immobilises them. With the beam still focussed on its eyes we run towards the prey and using the thumb and the forefinger, we literally pluck it up from the ground and dump it in the sack, where it stays until it’s time to dress the animal,” an accountant who doubles up as a frog-hunter during monsoon nights told the IANS.

“On a good day we pick up a couple of dozen good-sized frogs, which fetch us about a thousand bucks,” he said, adding that some taverns or small hotels which are notorious for selling game meat, are only too willing to buy ‘jumping chicken’ by the sack-loads. Once on the chopping board in the kitchen, the frogs are skinned and only its fleshy legs retained and served either marinated and shallow fried or curried in thick, spicy broth, which can be an ideal compliment to cold, frosted beer and soft, warm bread.

The Indian Bullfrog and the Jerdon Bullfrog, both regularly slaughtered for meat in Goa, are already listed on the Schedule-I List of threatened species recognised by the government of India as well as the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, which is recognised internationally.

Under the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, any individual or restaurant detected to be catching, killing, selling, serving or even eating frog meat would attract stringent punishment with a fine of Rs 25,000 and/or imprisonment up to three years.

So how does the state government keep tabs on the slaughter and sale of ‘jumping chicken’ in Goa? ”We have launched a Save Frogs campaign because of the importance of the frog to the ecosystem. Every year we step up protection to monitor activity outside notified forest areas, especially agricultural fields where frogs are abundant. Within forest areas checks are regularly done,” said deputy conservator of forests Debendra Dalai.

Courtesy: ndtv

Guild for making Goa permanent venue for Apsara Awards

Posted: 01 Jul 2010 09:59 AM PDT

After hosting the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Goa is the likely venue for another event, the Apsara Awards, organised by the film and television producers’ guild. Entertainment Society of Goa’s (ESG) governing council, which met today under the chairmanship of state chief minister Digamber Kamat, went through the proposal by the guild regarding the same.

“The award function is held in January every year and the guild has proposed that Goa should be permanent venue for the event,” a senior governing council member told PTI. ESG, a state government run body organising IFFI, is currently examining the proposal and likely to okay the event.

The council meeting also suggested that the memorandum of understanding between Goa government and union Information and Broadcasting Ministry over IFFI should be signed once in three years as against the practice of signing it annually.

Courtesy: PTI
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Thursday, July 1, 2010

Goa Blog

Goa Blog

Next Time You’re in … Goa

Posted: 01 Jul 2010 07:09 AM PDT

With Goa’s connotations of full-moon parties, beaches and backpackers in tie-dyed pants, it’s not surprising that most visitors to the Indian state are blithely unaware of its gritty agricultural past. In that respect, the Goa Chitra Museum, tel: (91-832) 657 0877, comes as a genuine revelation.

The brainchild of artist turned curator Victor Hugo Gomes, the museum is situated on a working organic farm (also Gomes’ home) in the southern Goan town of Benaulim and showcases over 4,000 traditional tools, items of furniture and other objects sourced from across the state. The exhibits include hundreds of tillage implements, in testimony to a time when agriculture was Goa’s mainstay. (Now, tourism and mining are the key industries and Goa depends on neighboring states for such staples as cereals and vegetables.) A sugarcane grinder standing almost five meters high is one of the main focal points of the museum. Gomes took over two years to restore it.

Supplementing the farming-related displays are exhibitions of vintage paraphernalia and antique furniture, many examples of which were rescued from garbage heaps left beside demolished homes and churches. Dismayed at the speed with which local heritage was vanishing, Gomes visited over 300 traditional buildings in the process of demolition, salvaging doorways, window fittings, pillars, railings and even church altars. Folklore, costume, jewelry and marine displays are scheduled to open at the end of the year.

Goa Museum: Goa Chitra

Digging up the past: Displays of tillage implements evoke Goa’s agricultural history

Gomes personally leads hour-long tours of the facility at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. daily, communicating a passion for his native history that elevates Goa Chitra above your run-of-the-mill local museum. The tours take in an on-site gallery of work by local artists, a performance space and a walk around Gomes’ 7,400-sq-m farm, where he grows chili, okra and other crops. At the end, visitors are served a refreshing drink made from kokum, a tangy local fruit related to mangosteen.

Goa Chitra attracts a steady flow of visitors. Novelist Kiran Desai dropped in recently, as did poet and lyricist Sampooran Singh Kalra (better known as Gulzar), who was so impressed that he donated his fee for a reading to the museum. But don’t take his word for it. Pencil in a break from Goa’s beaches and scrunch your toes in the sands of time instead.

Courtesy: time
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