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O HERALD O The Voice of Goa — Since 1900 panjim, monday, july 19, 2010

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World: Doctor bans Cheryl from sex Pg 11

Business: Lord Paul recalls how Pg 12 he made it big in UK

Now, all eyes on session Oppn set to corner Govt We are ready, says CM

Let the speech be short, comprehending much in few words.

— Ecclesiasticus

IN BRIEF Sonia set to be Cong prez again Sonia Gandhi is set to become Congress President again and her election will be ratified at the next AICC plenary which is likely to be held in Mumbai by year end when the party will mark 125 years of its formation. Gandhi, who has remained at the helm for 12 years, has created a record of being the longest-serving party president. She took over the reins of the Congress in April 1998 following the exit of Sitaram Kesri. – (PTI)

China denies visa to top Kashmiri doc PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

With India objecting to stapled visas being issued to those from Jammu and Kashmir, China appears to have adopted a new policy of denying visas to those born in the State.

One of India’s leading cardiologists U Kaul, also a Padma Shri awardee, and four others born in Jammu and Kashmir have been refused visas to travel to Beijing for a conference on cardiology which he was to have chaired four days back.

Kaul, who has been to China four times before, was surprised at the denial of visa to him and to the four others. He said there was no reason given for visa rejection.

However, another doctor, who is of Kashmiri origin but born outside the State, was given a visa for the same conference.

A Chinese Embassy spokesman said he could not comment on these cases immediately due to absence of details.

However, there was no change in Chinese policy of issuing stapled visas to those born in Jammu and Kashmir, he said.

HERALD REPORTER PANJIM, JULY 19

The 15-day monsoon session of the Goa Legislative Assembly will begin tomorrow with the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) all geared to corner the Government over several issues.

In all, 2602 questions will come in the Assembly to be answered by the Government of which 871 are starred and 1731 are unstarred questions.

Crucial Bills like the Goa Panchayati Raj (amendment) Bill and the Goa Police Bill, which was referred to select committee are likely to come up for passing.

The session will also vote on the Budget 2010.

The session is expected to be stormy with the Opposition making its intention clear to corner the Government on the police-politicians-drugs nexus case besides other issues of corruption and illegal mining.

The Home Minister is unlikely to be present for first few days at least, to answer the queries on drug nexus as he is reportedly unwell and admitted in a Mumbai hospital.

The session is also expected to vote on the no-confidence motion against the Speaker moved by the BJP. The session also assumes significance as for the first time in the history of Goa Assembly an arrested legislator is expected

Prabhakaran was not India’s enemy: PC PTI VIRUDHUNAGAR (TN), JULY 18

Union Home Minister P Chidambaram has said slain LTTE leader V Prabhakaran would have been “Mudisooda Mannan” (uncrowned monarch) of the northern and eastern provinces of Sri Lanka had he accepted the 1987 Indo-Sri Lankan agreement as requested by former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Addressing a public meeting here last night, Chidambaram said he had met Prabhakaran and talked with him for hours.

“He (Prabhakaran) was not our enemy. We were opposed to the path chosen by him.”

Virudhunagar is the home constituency of MDMK chief Vaiko, a known LTTE supporter.

Vaiko was defeated by Congress nominee Manick Tagore by 15,000 votes in the 2009 LS polls.

Chidambaram said a country needs peace for development.

“Violence and rioting will not develop a country.” There had been heavy loss of lives and properties in Sri Lanka (during the war against the LTTE).

Claiming that peace had re-

turned to the island nation, he said India had given Rs 3,600 crore for the benefit of the internally displaced Tamils. The government had also allocated Rs 1,000 crore for the construction of 50,000 houses in northern Sri Lanka.

The Home Minister said efforts are underway to renovate Kangesanthurai port and repair Palali airport.

He said he was confident that in another two years, 2.5 lakh displaced Tamils would get their houses.

Chidambaram was participating in the 108th birth anniversary celebrations of former Chief Minister Kamaraj and 125th anniversary of the Congress party.

to attend the session. The court has granted permission to Mickky Pacheco arrested in the Nadia Torrado death case to attend the Assembly session.

MARGAO REPORTER ADDS: Chief Minister Digambar Kamat has said the Government is fully geared up to take on the Opposition in the Assembly in the ensuing Assembly session beginning Monday.

In an informal chat with newsmen, the Chief Minister said the government is willing to discuss every issue affecting the state and its citizens on the Floor of the House.

When asked whether he expects the monsoon assembly session to be stormy, the Chief Minister said “let us see”.

When pointed out that the Opposition is waiting to raise a host of issue in the House, the Chief Minster said the Government is fully geared up to field all questions in the house.

On the River Princess, Kamat said the Disaster Management Committee is seized with the issue.

Top RSS leader questions BJP on Jaswant PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

Senior RSS leader M G Vaidya today questioned BJP’s decision of re-admitting Jaswant Singh into the party fold and not leaders like Uma Bharti, Govindacharya and Sanjay Joshi.

“Why was only Jaswant Singh admitted? Why not Govindacharya, Uma Bharti and Sanjay Joshi?. They (the three leaders) might have made some mistakes but it was not as serious as that of praising Jinnah (which L K Advani made)” Vaidya said in an article in a Marathi newspaper.

He said there would have been no damage to the BJP even if Jaswant Singh was out of the party, but the re-admission of Bharti, Govindacharya and Joshi would certainly strengthen it.

Vaidya was critical of Advani for declaring Jinnah a secularist, saying no one would accept the point of view.

Reflecting on the six years when the BJP-led NDA was in power, the RSS functionary asked why would the Hindus vote for the BJP again when it could not even get the land near the Ram Janambhoomi area to the owners when it was in power.

Crime Branch cracks six cases in 3 yrs: statistics HERALD REPORTER PANJIM, JULY 18

Crime Branch may be in the thick of action handling some high-profile cases including that of Nadia Torrado, but going by records the department cuts a sorry picture.

Statistics show that the Crime Branch has fared very badly in the past three years with only six convictions during this time.

It may be noted the Crime Branch has been continuously under fire from Opposition Leader Manohar Parrikar who has been demanding that the investigations into police-drug dealers nexus be handed over to CBI and some officials of the Crime Branch itself be investigated for their alleged role in sabotaging the case.

Worse still, despite adverse remarks by the High Court in Ashish Shirodkar case – the po-

lice inspector who was suspended and arrested for his alleged links with drug-mafia — it does not seem to have made any striking progress in the case.

Statistics reveal that in 2007, there were acquittals in 90 cases and just six convictions. Interestingly, the large number of acquittals related to matka cases.

A total 125 cases were detected by the department and chargesheets were filed in all.

But the end resulted in 86 acquittals.

Of the 14 forgery cases reported in 2007, it could get conviction in just one case while trial is pending in 8 cases. The remaining five are still under investigation. Also, sleuths are still investigating all seven cheating cases reported in 2007.

The performance of the Crime Branch in 2008 was nothing better. A total 107 cases were re-

ported during this year but there was not a single conviction.

Again, acquittals pertain to matka and gambling of which (Continued on page 2)

Sir, your complaint that Assembly speaker is not functioning properly....it’s absolutely fine now...look 1..2...3...test...test.

Qureshi does U-turn on Krishna remark PTI ISLAMABAD, JULY 18

In a series of flip-flops, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said he will not go to India for talks only for “a leisure trip” and backtracked on his earlier claim that his counterpart S M Krishna received repeated calls from New Delhi taking instructions during their July 15 parleys.

“I do not want to visit India for a leisure trip. I want to go for meaningful, constructive and result-oriented talks if the right atmosphere prevails and if they are fully prepared (for talks),” Qureshi told reporters last night.

He was responding to a question on whether he would travel to New Delhi for talks in view of Indian Government’s current position.

Following a meeting with Qureshi here on Thursday last, Krishna had announced that he had invited his Pakistani counterpart to visit India for the next round of parleys.

Qureshi also said he never stated that Krishna was on the phone with New Delhi during their parleys on Thursday. “I never said Krishna himself was making calls (to New Delhi).”

He contended that whenever he and Krishna agreed on any issue during their talks here on Thursday, a member of the Indian delegation would leave the room to confer with New Delhi and seek instructions.

The Indian delegate, who left the room, would then return and convey a message to Krishna, he claimed.

pRiCE Rs. 3.00 (air Surcharge Rs. 1.50) pages 18

Sports: ‘Irfan’s inconsistent bowling cost him place’ Pg 18

That day Nadia went to the market, recounts friend Claims she returned at 11.50 am

Sangma meets Mickky in jail HERALD REPORTER PANJIM, JULY 18

Nadia Torrado HERALD REPORTER PANJIM, JULY 18

Even as youngest sibling of Torrado family was undergoing treatment for depression at Institute of Psychiatr y and Human Behaviour, a friend of the Torrado family has now claimed that Nadia had walked into the Loutolim market during the time when she was supposed to have consumed poison.

“Nadia was in the market after 9.30 am and returned home at around 11.50 am...

She had interacted with many people including a newspaper vendor”, Maria Mascarenhas, close friend of Torrado family told reporters today.

Police in their investigation had revealed that Nadia had consumed poison at 9 am on May 15 and was later shifted to hospital at around 2 pm.

Nadia’s mother, Sonia is charged with abetment of suicide, culpable homicide and destruction of evidence.

Mascarenhas is attending to Nadia’s brother, Conrad, at Institute of Psychiatr y and Human Behaviour, who has gone into depression after his

Ahead of State Legislative Assembly session, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) national leader James Sangma today met former tourism minister Mickky Pacheco in police custody.

Sources disclosed that Sangma had a meeting with Pacheco at the Crime Branch office in Dona Paula which lasted for about 15 minutes.

“The senior NCP leader’s visit has raised eyebrows as this is the first national leader to contact the NCP legislator in police custody”, sources said.

Interestingly, Curtorim legislator Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco had sought permission today to meet Pacheco. “Mickky refused to meet Reginaldo”, sources said. mother’s arrest.

“Nadia had enough chance to inform people about her taking poison as she had spoken to many people”, Mascarenhas said.

She added saying, “Nadia had even brought patties from a bakery for breakfast”.

The investigating agencies earlier had questioned the

This is the second Congress legislator who has made futile attempt to meet Pacheco, who was virtually isolated by political leaders since May 30 when Nadia died. Mickky reportedly refused to meet one legislator from north Goa on Saturday.

Top level sources in NCP also confirmed that another (Continued on page 2)

delay in taking Nadia to the hospital by the family memb e r s w h i l e h e r m o t h e r, Sonia, has stated that it was only at 2 pm that they came to know about Nadia consuming poison.

Former tourism minister, Mickky Pacheco and Sonia, are arrested by Crime Branch in connection with Nadia’s death.

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Liquor seizure: Excise Dept on hot pursuit of culprit HERALD CORRESPONDENT CANACONA, JULY 18

Excise officials are hotly in pursuit of the main culprit in the seizure of Rs 20 lakh worth illegally manufactured liquor at Loliem on Saturday, while the arrested business partner has succeeded in obtaining bail.

After conducting massive raid, which went past Saturday midnight, excise officials ultimately succeeded in the seizure

of illegally packed IMFL of different well-known brands, Country liquor, stocked alcohol worth lakhs of rupees, besides sealing and filling machines and other raw materials like empty bottles, caps and labels of different brands.

According to Superintendent of Excise Navnath Naik, who led the raid on the massive illegal manufacturing and stocking unit at Shelim-Loliem, the lone ar-

MORE OBITUARIES ON PG 10

Canacona Excise Inspector Shamba Naik and Superintendent of Excise Navnath Naik searching for the culprit in Canacona forest.

Photo by Kathy Pereira

rested business partner John Minz is booked under excise Sections 5, 7, 8 and 9 for illegal manufacture, illegal possession of vast quantity of different IMFL brands, alcohol and machines and other raw materials, sale of liquor, illegal imports of excise materials, etc.

The accused was produced before JMFC Canacona on Saturday night itself, who granted him bail on personal bond of Rs 1 lakh and two sureties of Rs 50,000 each.

“John Minz was quizzed on

Sunday also, but other then revealing the illegal supply he was making to Karnataka state regions, not much could be gathered from him, as the main culprit and prime accused, who is reportedly owner of these massive illegal operations, is still at large,” informed Naik.

Meanwhile, a team led by Canacona Excise Inspector Shamba Naik was in ShelimLoliem till late Sunday evening to catch hold of the house and the alleged illegal activities owner.

“The prime accused is still not traceable and he had not visited his house or seen anywhere, after he hoodwinked excise personnel on Saturday and escaped through the thick forests of his house. Some of our guards had followed him, but he was not seen after that,” added Naik.

“He is a local and he can’t be on the run forever. We expect to nab him and book him for all the offenses at the earliest possible,” said Naik.

Naik replied in negative when

asked if the raiding party or department bigwigs are getting any political pressure to go soft on the massive revelation of the illegal activities.

“Some locals told us that these massive activities are going on for the last 4-5 years without any check,” he said.

“Interrogation of the arrested person, a native of Jarkhand, did not reveal any other specific details or pointed fingers to any one else. It is too early to say anything, as the main culprit is also still at large,” Naik said.

Interestingly, this is the third success for the newly posted Canacona Excise Inspector Shamba Naik, after he was posted in Canacona two months ago.

Naik had recently seized IMFL bottles illegally trafficked through Konkan Railways from Canacona KRC station, while in the second instance, a person was arrested after this officer with his team camped for two days in Polem forests and finally caught the man, who was trafficking liquor to Karwar through Polem’ dense forests. The total worth of liquor in both these raids was about Rs 35,000.

In the latest success, Shamba is part of the massive raid conducted on a manufacturing unit situated almost in a forest area of Shelim, close to the border with Karnataka.

CIVIC FORUM

WORK NOT IN PROGRESS: Our reader, Stephen Dias clicked the above photograph near Milk Centre Booth No:29 at Caranzalem, close to the residence of Panjim Mayor Mrs Carolina Po.

Unattended cable chamber Stephen Dias, Dona Paula

A Chamber containing different type of cabling is lying unattended for the last 15 days. The photograph above also shows the existence of a police barricade all around this chamber and in the middle of the road, posing a danger to heavy traffic, as half of the road is almost blocked. Can the Government authority find out why this job is kept pending for the last 15 days, that too where the Mayor of Panjim resides nearby?

Parking for three wheelers Pravin U Sardessai, Ponda

Govt supports world Konkani convention HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, JULY 18

Chief Minister Digambar Kamat has extended all possible support from the Goa government for the first World Konkani Cultural convention scheduled at Mangalore in November-December 2010.

The Chief Minister was speaking at the Vovllik, the curtain raiser of this world convention at the Ravindra bhavan here on

Sunday evening.

He requested the organizers of the world Konkani cultural convention to hold the event in a big way, assuring Goa government’s assistance for the convention.

Kamat complimented Eric Ozario and his group for putting up a magnificent infrastructure in Mangalore, saying this will help benefit Konkani lovers in a big way.

In his address, South Goa MP Francisco Sardinha underlined the need to preserve the rich Konkani culture by creating awareness amongst the new generation. “The new generation should know about their culture. Our children have not seen our rich culture”, he said, and asserted that it is the duty of very Konkani loving citizen to protect and preserve the language for posterity.

The First World Konkani Cultural Convention is being organised at Kalaangann, Mangalore from November 25 to December 19, 2010. Over 60 troupes from across the world are expected to attend the 25-day festival. Around 30 cultural troupes from Goa will participate and showcase Goa’s culture in the field of folk music, tiatr and Nattok at the convention.

South planning panel Mining silt renders Pale fields uncultivable being reconstituted HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, JULY 18

The process to reconstitute the defunct South Goa District Planning Committee has got underway.

Elections to the DPC from amongst the South Goa Zilla Panchayat members was held, wherein six members were elected unanimously and through consensus.

After the withdrawal of ZP members, Maria Miranda and Pradeep Desai from the fray, ZP members Nelly Rodrigues (Colva), Krishna Velip (Cola), Domnic Gaonkar (Raia), Anthony Rodrigues (Velim), Aparna Bhoj Naik (Sancoale) and Rashmi Lambor (Dharbandora) were elected to the South District Planning committee.

The elections were conducted by the Presiding officer and ZP CEO N S Navti in the presence of South Goa ZP Chairperson Maria Rebello.

The DPC was not reconstituted after elections to the Zilla

Panchayat held earlier this year.

The chairperson of the Zilla Panchayat is the Chairperson of the District Planning Committee.

Incidentally, though the District planning committees were constituted nearly a decade ago, none of the committees in the last 10 years have submitted any consolidated plan to the government for consideration.

The DPC is required to consolidate the plans received from the Panchayat and Municipal bodies, besides the Zilla Panchayat and forward the same to the government for allocation of funds to the panchayat raj institutions.

Sadly, the statutory district planning committees have failed to consolidate any plan till date for want of any guidelines from the government and the lack of will from the powers that be to devolve powers and functions to the district and village Panchayat bodies.

Ponda has several traffic signboards marked as ‘Parking for Twowheelers’ and ‘Parking for Four-wheelers’ at different spots. The above photograph shows a three-wheeler goods carrier rickshaw, comfortably parked at the parking space notified for four-wheelers.

The Traffic Cell should clarify whether three-wheelers can be parked in areas reserved for four-wheelers. In case this is not permitted, the department should reserve a parking space for threewheelers as well.

This matter needs to be considered on priority in the interest and welfare of three-wheeler vehicles, which constitute a sizeable number in different locations.

Improve traffic scene at Porvorim Amit Majumdar, Porvorim

The once beautiful Bougainvillea garden near the O'Coqueiro circle and adjacent to the CHOGM road is fast disappearing, as it has made way for business activities like a steel and building materials stockyard and parking of vehicles.

Though a signpost has been installed in front of the Mutt (opposite the water tank) reading ‘No parking within 100 metres’, several cars, LCVs, tempos, vans, etc, are parked within 5 metres of this signpost. The constant movementof water tankers (from the PWD overhead tank) adds to the woes. It is a nightmare travelling through this stretch, especially during office hours, as there are no side walks for pedestrians.

Stray dog menace The fields that were rendered uncultivable due to depositing of mining silt at Pale.

Photos by Samir Umarye HERALD CORRESPONDENT BICHOLIM, JULY 18

Several fields in Ambeshi and Devulwada, Pale, were rendered uncultivable due to the mining silt in the area.

According to sources, the silt which was on the roads has entered into the fields, thereby damaging crops.

Speaking to Herald, Devanand Gawas of Devulwada Pale said there are several companies

which are operating in the area and some are illegal. “Through RTI Act on July 4, 2010 we have been informed that a mining company which is in operation in the village is not given any permission and is totally illegal,” added Gawas.

“Due to these mining activities, our fields have been rendered uncultivable and the authorities should look into this,” said Gawas.

In Ambeshi, several fields have been damaged as the silt has flown down during the rain. The villagers have demanded compensation for the loss of crops.

FROM PAGE 1 Sangma meets Mickky

Union minister has been trying to contact Pacheco on phone, which the latter refused to entertain.

Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Ravindra Yadav had questioned Mickky on Saturday night at Crime Branch.

Sources maintained that the DIG initially inquired about Mickky’s foreign visits and later wanted to know about policedrug mafia nexus case.

Pacheco is in police custody since July 8 and his bail petition will come up for hearing tomorrow in the High Court.

Police cracks cases

about 32 cases were registered.

In 2009, though it received 56 cases of which it claims to have detected 52, and chargesheets were filed in 32 cases, it failed to get even one conviction.

The statistics for last three years also reveal that Crime Branch has taken undue long time for investigating cases of cheating and all 23 cases reported during last three years are still under investigation.

Bad performance of Crime Branch only strengthens allegations levelled against it by the Opposition leader.

John Alvares, Bogmalo

The famous tourist destination, Bogmalo beach, is nowadays frequented by unwanted stray dogs, posing a risk for the safe movement of locals and tourists alike. Otherwise, this beach is quiet and serene, mostly preferred by lovers.

If the stray dog menace is not cleared before the tourist season, they may attack tourists visiting the beach, and there is every possibility of dog bites that may turn into rabies.

Ration card anxiety Edwin Braganza, Canacona

In spite of being born and brought up in Goa for 37 years, I have still not received my BPL ration card, and I am surprised to see even outsiders possessing them. I had applied for BPL ration card four years back and even after informing the Civil Supplies Minister about this, there is no response.

With the recent price hikes of essential commodities, being a daily wage worker, I find it very difficult to purchase the basic requisites for my family. I request the concerned authorities to immediately look into this matter.

Open ditches on pavement Gina Chodankar, Dona Paula

Our regular writer, Gina Chodankar, has clicked the above photograph showing open ditches on the pavement near IT park on Nagali hills.

As the area is not a populated area, it makes no difference to humans, but proves dangerous for stray dogs walking on the pavement. She has so far treated four dogs with broken legs, as they fell into these open ditches in the dark.

Fare hike discrepancies Maria Lata Pereira, Tivim

The hike in diesel and petrol prices has made a huge hole in the pockets of the working class. Bus owners have a stranglehold on commuters, a situation akin to forcing them to pay the fare at knifepoint or gunpoint. If the demand for a fare hike is not met, they threaten to go on strike. Commuters have to pay the fare asked, or miss work, school or college. Isn’t this a type of legalised daylight robbery?

Each time there is a hike in fares, the private bus owners make merry. Their demands are always met. But what about the demands of the hapless regular commuters silently suffering discrepancies in fares of the privately owned buses? Ticket collectors charge some people the old fare, while others are charged the revised fare. They easily get away with this, as they do not issue tickets.

When tickets are demanded they are rude and, at times, threaten us physically. Why are the private bus owners not dealt with strictly? Is it right for the so-called government of the ‘aam admi’ to torture the ‘aam admi’?

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Mauvin vows turnaround for Margao SGPDA market HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, JULY 18

This mega market has virtually turned an eyesore – for want of maintenance, stinking environment, broken drains et al.

But, hopes are now raised that the market may see a turnaround after monsoons, even as the Chairman of South Goa Planning and Development Authority (SGPDA) Mauvin Godinho has again pleaded with Chief Minister Digambar Kamat to hand over the PDA market to the Margao civic body for maintenance.

“I agree that this market needs a face lift. The moment monsoons are over, the entire market will get a fresh coat of paint. Illumination will get priority, while the drainage system will improve to meet the requirements,” Godinho said.

The PDA chairman assured that other improvements will be brought about to ensure the mega market truly becomes a modern market.

He, however, said that the PDA cannot be expected to take up the maintenance work forever.

“The SGPDA is supposed to do the planning needs and execute other projects. Looking after the maintenance of the markets is certainly not the job of the PDA. The only solution to the mess is handing over the market to the Margao Civic body for maintenance,” he asserted.

Godinho expressed confidence that the market can definitely see a turnaround when

Mauvin wants land for garbage plant HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, JULY 18

Cortalim ML A and Deputy Speaker, Mauvin Godinho has requested Chief Minister Digambar Kamat to make available land admeasuring one lakh square meters to the six village panchayats in his constituency to set up a garbage treatment plant.

Making a earnest appeal to the Chief Minister at the Vanamahotsava function held at the SGPDA ground here on Sunday, Godinho said the village panchayat are willing to set up a modern waste processing pant if the government makes available the land. “We are ready to put up a modern plant. Only give us the required land, may be around one lakh square meters”, Godinho said.

Promises comprehensive development plan for city HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, JULY 18

SGPDA Chairman Mauvin Godinho has said the planning body will put in place the comprehensive development plan for Margao city after taking the public views into account.

“The CDP should be people centric. All suggestions and objections will be invited and considered before the Plan is finalized”, Godinho told Herald on Sunday.

Replying to a question, he said there cannot be a time frame to put the CDP in place, reminding that it took around two years to finalise the Outline Development the chief minister is taking so much interest in his constituency by executing so many projects in Margao.

Incidentally, former Town and Country Planning Minister, Babush Monseratte had strongly rooted for handing over the SGPDA market to the Margao Civic body for maintenance. The proposal, however, fell flat after the PDA officials requested for compensation from the government for both the market complex and the land running into crores of rupees Attempts to hand over the PDA market to the civic body in

Plan (ODP) for Margao.

“When the ODP exercise was set in motion, we had thought it would be done in six months.

But, the whole process got delay as the land use map was not in place. We saw to it that the land use map was drawn before the ODP was finally finalized”, Godinho added.

He said the PDA will certainly take the public opinion into account and recalled how Chief Minister Digambar Kamat had scrapped the SEZs and sent all objections to the Regional Plan to the grass root level for consultations and decisions. the past had also failed to materialize over the compensation to be paid to the SGPDA in lieu of handing over the market to the Municipality.

The near-decade old SGPDA market is crying for attention since its commissioning with much fanfare for want of maintenance by the authorities. The mega market built under privatization along with the wholesale fish market has been literally struggling on the maintenance front from day one, with attempts to put the market on the track coming a cropper.

A rare species of migratory birds spotted at Caranzalem road side on Sunday.

Clean & green Margao exercise takes off HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, JULY 18

The ambitious exercise to make Margao clean and green got underway at the SGPDA parking lot on Sunday.

Even as Chief Minister Digambar Kamat rooted for planting fruit bearing saplings as part of the tree plantation drive, the Margao Municipal Council along with NGOs Rotary Club and Nisarga has identified around 200 sites within the municipal jurisdiction to grow more trees.

Kamat, while participating in the function, rooted for Chikoo and mango saplings, saying these trees may benefit the public in the long run. “So many trees have been grown over the years, but we hardly find any fruit bearing trees. At least, let the children enjoy plucking fruits from these trees one day,” the chief minister said.

Kamat had an advise or two for the organizers, asking them to take care of the maintenance and nurture the sapling, so that

they grow into trees, but help in the mission to make Margao green.

The Chief Minister said the non-conventional energy park will soon take place opposing the PDA parking lot.

Margao Municipal Chairperson Savio Coutinho said the civic body in association with Nisarga and Rotary Club have identified around 200 sites across the city for tree plantation. “Members of Nisarga and Rotary club have taken pains to identify the site

NSUI trusts CM on police-drug nexus probe Colva locals back HERALD REPORTER PANJIM, JULY 18

After launching tirade demanding handing over drug nexus probe to CBI, the National Students Union of India (NSUI) has now reposed full faith in Chief Minister Digamber Kamat.

“We have full faith in chief minister that he will hand over the drug nexus case to CBI,” NSUI, Goa unit chief Sunil Kawthankar said.

“Kamat has been always working for the benefit of Goans and we feel that he will take the

Pale local injured HERALD CORRESPONDENT BICHOLIM, JULY 18

A 65-year-old man from Pale was injured, after he was hit by an unknown vehicle at Sanquelim on Friday.

Bicholim Police on Sunday registered an offense against an unknown person in connection with the case.

According to reports, Anant Madkar, who was hit by an unknown vehicle at Sanquelim, was shifted to GMC Hospital in Bambolim.

Meanwhile, one Nilesh Mandrekar (35) from Karapur was reported missing since the last four days. According to reports, Mandrekar had gone for fishing in the nearby river. The villagers carried out search operation, but were unable to locate Mandrekar.

matter seriously,” he added.

Briefing media today afternoon, Kawthankar said that a letter accompanied with signature campaign has been addressed to chief minister.

NSUI has launched a massive signature campaign across the state demanding handing over of police-drug peddler nexus case to CBI. Kawthankar has recently visited Delhi to attend the national executive meeting and had met All India Congress Committee, general secretary Rahul Gandhi

with the demand to hand over the case from police to CBI. “We had discussed the issue with Gandhi, who appreciated the signature campaign against drugs. When we explained to him the entire situation, he was shocked to know the facts behind the drug nexus in Goa,” Kawthankar said.

“We even explained to him how police are involved in the drug nexus and how they are trying to suppress our campaign,” he added.

Kawthankar said that Gandhi

has assured to take the matter seriously.

“Secretary in charge of NSUI, Menaxi Natarajan will personally monitor the situation,” he said.

Kawathankar said that the issue was also discussed with the various presidents’ of NSUI’s across the state.

Kawthankar said that we cannot trust over police, who are by and large involved in the drug nexus. “Even if I die, we won’t withdraw our agitation till government handles the situation carefully,” he stated.

Camurlim gram sabha turns stormy over educational project HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, JULY 18

The Camurlim gram sabha turned stormy on Sunday over the construction of an educational institution in the village.

Opposing the project in the village, gram sabha members rejected the proposal outright and asked the panchayat to go on appeal against the order of the deputy Director of Panchayats.

Gram sabha members raised various queries on the project, demanding to know how the project could be approved without the proper conversion sanad. The members pointed out that half the property in question shows it is non-settlement and sought to know how

the authorities could grant conversion for the entire land.

After much discussion, the gram sabha members directed the panchayat not to grant construction licence and decided against forwarding the file for approval.

The garbage issue also figured at the meeting, with gram sabha members demanding to know from the chair the identification of any garbage disposal site.

Sarpanch Basil Dias said the panchayat has not yet identified a garbage disposal site after the Goa State Pollution Control Board rejected the site proposed by the panchayat body.

In this respect, the gram sabha meeting decided to study the garbage disposal system put

in place in Taleigao Panchayat and implement the same in the village.

On the question of State highway passing through the village, agitated members threatened to come onto the streets if the PWD does not take urgent steps to complete the road and construct a retaining wall at Dolawaddo.

Sarpanch Basil later told Herald that the gram sabha members complained that construction of the road has reached a dead end, resulting in water logging. “The gram sabha members demanded that the road should continue. The people also complained of dumping of mud, destroying the paddy fields”, he said.

With eye on polls, BJP forms OBC cell HERALD REPORTER PANJIM, JULY 18

Joining forces with the Other B a c k w a rd C l a s s e s ( O B C ) , Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today formed OBC cell to press for enhancing the registration from 19 per cent to 27 per cent.

“There was a private member resolution adopted by assembly which was moved by BJP legislator Damodar Naik. Despite passing the resolution, the increase in reservation is not implemented,” BJP’s Member of Parliament Shripad Naik said.

He said that the BJP’s OBC cell will take up the issue on priority as it is injustice to the community, who has remained economically backward.

Naik said that consecutive governments, except BJP-led government, have just given a lip service to the cause of OBC community. He recalled that Bhandari community was given a Scheduled Tribe (ST) status by NDA government, the issue which was pending for ages.

He said that the BJP will continue its agitation till OBC gets their dues which are duly recognized by the state legislative assembly.

“Be ready to take on street,” Naik appealed the gathering at

Gomantak Maratha Samaj hall.

Naik feels that development of backward class people will help in the development of the state. “Development of OBCs will translate into the prosperity of the state,” he stated.

BJP state president Laxmikant Parsekar said that it’s only because of BJP that Goa was able to get OBC ministers. “We have 7 out of 14 MLA’s who belong to OBC, whereas congress has only two of its 19,” he stated.

“Only BJP can fight for the rights and development of this section of society,” he added.

Parsekar said that OBC, which includes 19 classes of society are completely ignored by the state government.

Addressing the gathering, Damu Naik said that BPJ is the government of OBC and Schedule Tribe (ST) people. “There is need that the rights of these people are protected. The youths especially the students community needs reservation in different fields, where they can’t approach due to financial problems,” he said.

On this occasion, Naik passed the resolution of enhancing the reservation by 27 percent, which was supported by large section of OBC people and BJP members.

Plans reach out mission HERALD REPORTER PANJIM, JULY 18

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today said that it plans to percolate the section of society which were hitherto not their voter base in Goa. “We will be holding ST convention followed by conventions of Christian and Muslim communities as we want to reach out to everyone with our party policies,” BJP Goa unit chief Laxmikant Parsekar told a gathering today.

Parsekar was speaking during inauguration of BJP OBC cell, which has vowed to force the state government implement the 27 per cent reservation that was passed on the floor of the House.

“BJP President Nitin Gadkari during his Goa visit has adviced us to reach out to the people where we never went and also increase our base in the sections which we are already existing,” he said. He said that the party will hold ST convention next month in the state.

“ST community has been kept away from 12 per cent reservation, a right which is given to them,” Parsekar added.

Photo by Rozario Estibeiro

Taking a dig at family-oriented politics by the Congress party, Parsekar pointed out that Sonia Gandhi led party which had refused ticket to Vishwajit Rane on the basis of ‘one ticket per family' has now taken Junior Rane in its fold. “Congress’ ideology varies within three years,” he said.

Parsekar also mentioned how Alemao family is trying to get their daughter a party ticket despite two brothers already being on the post of profit. “In case of Rane, first father introduced son and now son wants his wife to contest from Sankhalim constituency,” he said.

He also said that both Babus -- Babu Kavlekar and Babu Asgaonkar -- plan to field their wives in Sanguem and Dhargalim constituency respectively.

“Babu Asgaonkar is eyeing for Morjim constituency,” the Morjim legislator said.

Parsekar said that BJP has always given platform for OBC community and that’s why seven out of its 14 legislators are from that community.

“In case of congress, out of 19 only two legislators are OBC,” he pointed

Valanka for polls HERALD REPORTER MARGAO, JULY 18

A group of citizens from Colva led by Cutbona Boat Owners Union President Antonio Rodrigues and Panch member Jose Camilo Silva on Sunday extended their support for the candidature of PWD Minister, Churchill Alemao’s daughter Valanka.

This is the second such delegation from Colva that has extended support for Valanka, who has made her intention clear to contest the next Assembly polls from Benaulim.

Antonio told newsmen after calling on the PWD Minister and Valanak that the boat owners had many problems at the fishing jetty, which will now be resolved by the government. He said the delegation will welcome and support Valanka in the coming hustings.

Panch Jose Camilo Silva said the delegation had called on Churchill Alemao since the villagers faced problems at the Colva creek, besides garbage disposal. He said the delegation will support Valanka in the future since she has assured to study the problems and find a solution.

Valanka later told newsmen that more and more people are extending their support to her candidature ever since she disclosed plans to contest from Benaulim. “We will help to resolve

Goa Foundation complains against govt HERALD REPORTER PANJIM, JULY 18

The Goa Foundation has complained to the Centre that the State government has been taking retrograde actions threatening the extinction of about 1016 sq kms of open forest in the State.

In his letter to Minster for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh, Director of Goa Foundation Dr Claude Alvares said that the extinction of 1016 sq km open forests could even frustrate the implementation of Green India Mission in Goa. Dr Alvares further said that the Green India Mission launched by his ministry may not be executed in Goa due to the retrograde actions already taken by the State government.

A national mission for a Green India was recently announced in view of international commitments. But according to the State government’s criteria any forest below 0.4 per cent canopy density will not be recognized as open forest. By the applying this criterion, all areas categorised by Forest Survey of India (2009 report) as “Open forest” have been simply derecognised.

the problems faced by the people of Colva after inspecting the creek”, she said.

Replying to a question, she said that she is very positive in getting the Congress nomination to contest the Assembly polls from Benaulim.

for tree plantation”, Coutinho said.

In his address, SGPDA Chairman Mauvin Godinho complimented the NGOs for taking up the tree plantation exercise in the PDA parking lot for the pickups. “The Kamat government has taken so many steps to protect the environment. I complement all of you for joining hands to make Margao green,” he said, adding “There is no better way than making a tree our friend by planting more trees.”

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ShOrT TakES Eye check-up camp held

Govt depts told to devise welfare schemes for tribal population HERALD NEWS DESK PANJIM, JULY 18

A doctor examines a patient at a eye checkup camp.

PANJIM (HND): Sesa Goa Ltd, as a part of its CSR initiative, organised a daylong free eye checkup camp at Sirsaim, panchayat building recently, in collaboration with Mukta Opticians.

The camp was aimed at treating and providing free eye-care services to the people of rural areas.

A total of 113 people from various age groups were screened for cataract, vision correction and other eye problems, out of which 82 people required glasses and 16 were detected with cataract.

Present on the occasion were Sirsaim Sarpanch Diksha Kanolkar and other panchayat members. The camp was coordinated by AGM Medical Services, Sesa Goa Dr Sunil Kakodkar and his colleagues Manager Environment Leena Verenkar and CSR officers Carlton Carvalho, Samiuddin Khan and Ashish Pilankar.

Arena Animations’ courses

PANJIM (HND): Admissions are open at Arena Animations Goa for the AAASP and GWD courses.

Arena Animations Academy Specialist Programme (AAASP) comprises of 5 semesters. The first semester covers print media, the second 2D, third 3D Base, 4th 3D advanced and 5th specialisation and demo reel.

Graphic and Web Designing course (GWD) comprises of 2 semesters. The first semester covers graphic design and second semester covers web and interactive design.

A new batch will start from August 9.

For further details contact MGM animations academy, Midas Touch building, 3rd floor, Panjim market square, or call 2225153/ 9423885224/ 9823013484/ 9823611824/9890432246 or email: mgmanimations@gmail.com.

Dr Rekha rewarded

Officiating Chief Secretary Narendra Kumar today advised the government departments having plan budget provisions and which have potential to implement welfare schemes for the tribals to devise schemes for the tribal population.

Kumar was presiding over a meeting of all the departments implementing Tribal Sub Plan and having plan budget provisions in the Conference Hall, Secretariat, Porvorim. The meeting was attended by the Secretaries to the Government and Heads of the Departments.

On the occasion, Kumar said that Scheduled Tribes

cannot be deprived of the schemes that are devised for them by the government. Deliberating on the modalities of enhancing the outlays under tribal sub plan up to 12% of State Plan outlay, he also advised all the departments to share their 12 percent budget allocation under the Tribal Sub-Plan. “If the departments don’t use their budget share towards the Tribal Sub-Plan, the plans for main schemes would not be released by the planning commission,” he remarked.

Kumar advised the Department of Information and Publicity department to come out with a book on the schemes that are meant for the tribal

population. He said that there was need to ensure that each year funds are earmarked and fully utilized for the schemes and programmes under Tribal Sub-Plan.

Earlier, Social Welfare Secretary Rajiv Verma said that it was the responsibility of each State government concerned to implement all programmes meant for improving the lives of Scheduled Tribes. “Each State government therefore, should draw up a focused and integrated Tribal Sub-Plan, which is required to ensure earmarking of funds under Tribal Sub-Plan in a proportion not less than that of the tribal population of the State,” he said and added that the State

Guidelines for BPL schemes relaxed for Goa: Churchill HERALD NEWS DESK PANJIM, JULY 18

Minister for Rural Development and PWD Churchill Alemao said that after getting approval of Union RDA Minister, the BPL norms and guidelines have been relaxed so that more destitute and poor families can get benefits under BPL programmes in the State. He, therefore asked the concerned officials to conduct survey as per new guidelines for inclusion of BPL families in Pernem areas to extend the benefits.

Alemao was speaking at the inauguration of Panchayat Ghar constructed under Rural Development scheme at a function organised at Agarwada-Chopdem in Pernem.

Speaking further, Alemao said under the leadership of UPA President Sonia Gandhi several welfare programmes are launched for the better-

ment of the common people in the country. He said that NREG scheme introduced recently for the benefits of marginal farmers, women and weaker sections in the society is being implemented and urged the people to avail the advantage from such schemes to improve their standard of living.

Alemao also assured to provide free gas connections and other incentives to BPL families in these areas.

Panchayats Minister Babu Azgaonkar urged the people of Pernem to keep aside their political affiliation and remain united in the process of socioeconomic development of the taluka.

Azgaonkar further favoured for setting up of jobs-oriented projects in Pernem for the benefits of youths in Pernem and surrounding areas.

While reviewing the devel-

opment works, Azgaonkar informed that during the last one decade many developmental projects like Chandel Water Treatment Plant, Ozari-Pirna bridge, construction of various roads, community halls have been taken up, besides Tharmas-Ozari bridge is being constructed in Dhargal.

MLA Dayanand Sopte expressed satisfaction over the construction of new Panchayat Ghar and urged the government to take up more development activities to create additional infrastructure in Agarwada-Chopdem areas.

Later, Alemao and Azgaonkar honoured the exSarpanchas of Agarwada-Chopdem panchayat.

Prabhakar Nagvekar Sarpanch welcomed the gathering and Arun Naik compered the function.

Parents urged to send children to school PANJIM (HND): MES College Associate Professor Dr Rekha Ramesh Gaonkar was felicitated with the award of the best teacher at college level at the Goa University on the occasion of valedictory ceremony of silver jubilee celebrations of Goa University.

Dr Rekha Gaonkar was felicitated at the hands of Governor Dr S S Sidhu. CM Digambar Kamat, vice-Chancellor of Goa University Prof Dilip Deobagkar and other dignitaries were present. A special committee consisting of eminent scholars in education field was appointed to select the deserving teacher for the award. The committee recommended Dr Rekha R Gaonkar as the best teacher.

Dr Gaonkar has attended and presented many research papers in many state, national and international level conferences.

Murgaon Education Society Chairman Vasant Joshi, vice Chairman Paresh Joshi, ex-Principal of MES College Prof M S Kamat, Principal Dr R V Hajirnis, vice-Principal Dr Maria Ceu do Rodrigues, faculties and students extended warm congratulations for her success.

General body meeting held

PANJIM (HND): The general body meeting of ex-students association of St Xavier’s Institute was held recently in the school hall at Bandol, Curtorim.

Members of the management spoke to the ex-students.

Many ex-students gave their opinion and expressed their gratitude to their institution, to which they owed much in their life. They mentioned that they were well moulded and given all round development. Others who spoke on the occasion were Wilson Luis, Santano Rodrigues, Dionisio Sardinha, Dr Ernesto Rodrigues, Joseph Monteiro and Theresa Vaz, Headmistress of St Xavier’s Institute High School.

The ad-hoc committee was elected which included Wilson Luis as president, Michael Sequeira as vice-president, Dionisio Sardinha as secretary, Maria Menezes e Mascarenhas as joint secretary and Esmael Rodrigues as treasurer.

The meeting ended with a vote of thanks by Melroy Fernandes, Manager of St Xavier’s Institute high school.

Plant sale organised

Society of St Vincent de Paul sells plants at Calangute.

Photo by Thomas Fernandes

CALANGUTE (HC): The Society of St Vincent de Paul Conference of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception, Calangute, organised a two-day plants sale outside St Alex Church, Calangute, on weekend to generate funds for the Society.

The Society collected funds from the sale of plants to meet its requirements of helping the poor and needy in Calangute.

The Society members were overwhelmed with the response of the villagers for the sale of plants.

HERALD CORRESPONDENT PORVORIM, JULY 18

Former minister Prof Gopalrao Mayekar has stated that education should aim at developing the personality of the student in all dimensions – moral, mental and emotional.

He was speaking at Porvorim after releasing Marathi Book Shikshan – Vata ani Vallne, written by Manohar Korgaonkar.

“The foundation of education should be laid on morality and ethics. Without morality and ethics, no student can be considered to be healthy in mental and physical terms. A person, who is not a moralist and is unable to differentiate between right and wrong, cannot rise to the essential level of true student,” said Prof Mayekar.

“These days, the attention to the teachers is focused on

Penha VP invites forms from SSC, HSSC students

‘Institution’s success depends on parents, teachers, management’

The Penha de Franca panchayat has invited applications from students who have passed the SSC & HSSC examinations of Goa Board in March and April 2010 respectively, with an aggregate of over 60%.

In a press note, Sarpanch Gopal Sawant has stated that cash prizes of Rs 501, Rs 301 and Rs 201 respectively will be awarded to first three students residing in Wards 1 to 6, who have secured the highest marks in the SSC exams and to students from Wards 7 to 11 who have secured the highest marks at the HSSC exams in each faculty of Science, Commerce and Arts.

A special prize of Rs 501 each will be awarded to SSC students from Wards 1 to 6 who have secured the highest marks in English and Konkani subjects. These prizes have been sponsored by Prof Rabindranath J B Pinto in memory of late Caetano S Pinto and late Joao B Pinto.

Similarly, special prizes of Rs 501 each will be awarded to students from Ward 1 to 6 who have scored the highest marks in Maths and Science in the SSC exams. These prizes have been sponsored by Augui D'Mello in memory of his late father Alfred J J D'Mello.

In addition, there are special prizes of Rs 500 each for the disabled students securing highest marks at SSC and HSSC exams and to sportspersons below 19 years who have played for the State at national cricket and football tournaments. These prizes have been sponsored by the Panch Members Rajesh Volvoiker and Subhash Kalangutker.

HERALD CORRESPONDENT MAYEM, JULY 18

North Goa MP Shripad Naik has stated that parents, teachers and management are the three main factors in leading the educational institution towards success.

He was addressing the PTA of Shri Shantadurga High School, Bicholim, during a special meeting at Hirabai Zantye Memorial Hall, Bicholim, on Saturday.

Naik lauded the efforts of Shri Shantadurga High School for achieving success in the field of education, art, sports, music and culture due to efficient governing body.

Vidhyavardhak Mandal President Sadashiv Walaulikar, Vice President and Bicholim MLA Rajesh Patnekar, Headmaster Suresh Ghatwal, PTA President Vishant Vaze, member Arun Salkar, Vijay Sardesai, Arun

North Goa MP Shripad Naik felicitates the students at Bicholim.

Naik, Rajesh Dhond and Golam teacher were present on the occasion.

On the occasion, Naik announced to provide one laptop, five computers and a projector to the school, besides cash Rs 25 lakh for the new school building from the MP Fund.

On the occasion, 22 stu-

Friday Balcao on July 23

PANJIM (HND): Friday Balcao, the fortnightly discussion event to be held on July 23, will focus on how Self Help Groups (SHGs) are making a difference in peoples lives in Goa The discussion, which will cover the the Parra-Verla-Canca experience in Bardez, will be led by Vijaydatta Lotlikar and Sr Edith Dantas. Friday Balcao will be held at the Goa Desc Resource Centre, No. 11, Liberty Apartments Feira Alta, Mapusa from 4 pm to 6 pm and is open to the public. For more information email on goadesc@gmail.com.

Prof Gopalrao Mayekar releases Marathi Book Shikshan – Vata and Vallne, written by Manohar Korgaonkar.

Photo by Anil Shankhwalker

Chief Minister Digamar Kamat highlighted the importance of education and made a plea to parents, especially from weaker section of the society to send their children to school.

Chief Minister was speaking after distributing exercise books to students from weaker section of the society at a function organised by the Margao Block Congress Committee at

HERALD CORRESPONDENT PORVORIM, JULY 18

Musical programme

MAYEM (HC): Sammrat Club, Bicholim, will organise a musical programme ‘Ashadhdhara’ on the eve of Ashadhi Ekadashi at Kelbai Temple, Mulgao, on July 21 at 3.31 pm.

The speciality of the programme is that all the participants, including the comperer and others, besides singers will be the children. Kelbai Devasthan President Shripad Raut and journalist Durgadas Garde will be the guests. Sadashiv Joshi of Marathi Sanskar Kendra will highlight the importance of Ashadhi Ekadashi. Sammrat Club President Nishant Chanekar has called upon the people to attend the programme in large numbers.

‘Education should develop personality of student’

Margao. 7000 books were distributed to about 421 students at the hands of the Chief Minister and other dignitaries.

Speaking further, Kamat said that the government has initiated various schemes to ensure that children are not depended of education. “However parents should also encourage their wards go to schools,” he added.

Kamat then spelt out facilities provided by the government to students to pursue

HERALD NEWS DESK PANJIM, JULY 18

Dr Rekha Gaonkar, Head, Department of Economics, MES College, receives the best college teacher award from Governor Dr S S Sidhu.

their education such as providing uniform, exercise books, scholarships, ‘Bal Rath’ transport, etc.

Margao Block Congress Committee president Vijaya Sheldekar welcomed the CM, Dumu Borkar compered and Avinash Shirodkar proposed the vote of thanks.

Margao Seva Dal’s Radhika Karapurkar, Gopal Naik and councillor Gurunath Lad were amongst those present on the occasion.

government has to provide the funds so earmarked to be spent exclusively for the welfare of the scheduled tribes and also to ensure the implementation of the Tribal SubPlan strategy in letter and spirit.

Rajiv further said that presently there are 17 Sectoral Departments such as Water Resources, PWD, Municipal Administration, Tribal Welfare, Education, Electricity, Sports, Women and Child, Health, Animal Husbandry, Agriculture, Forest, DRDA, Panchayats, Fisheries, Craftsmen Training and Art and Culture which are implementing the Tribal Sub-Plan for the state since 2006-07.

UPCOMING EVENTS

dents were felicitated for meritorious academic career.

Earlier, programme began with welcome song followed by a welcome address by Vishant Vaze. The annual report was presented by Suresh Ghatwal. Teacher Marathe compered the function, while Arun Naik proposed the vote of thanks.

completion of curriculum within the timeframe set by the Education Department and in the process the emotional and spiritual side is neglected entirely,” he added.

“The minds of the children are sensitive and hence the education should give the students confidence, which will prepare them to face the challenges of life in future,” he said.

He claimed that some teachers do not teach the subjects with devotion, due to which students don’t take interest in studies.

“Teachers do not have ‘Astha’. Teaching should be made interesting, then only the students will listen to what the teacher teaches in the classrooms,” said Prof Mayekar.

Speaking on the book, Prof Anil Samant said the book is thought provoking and makes

the reader to ponder on the existing system of education.

“The author suggested that teaching should be based on life experiences. There is no proper communication between students and parents or the teachers. Since both the parents go to work these days, they don’t get time to understand the problems of their children,” said Samant.

“The teachers also do not try to explore the difficulties of the students. The author suggests that teachers and parents should try to understand the problems of the students and solve them,” added Samant.

Earlier, Meghna Khare sang an invocation song. Book author Manohar Korgaonkar welcomed the gathering, Gajanan Mandrekar compered the function, while Mahesh Nagvekar proposed the vote of thanks.

Aleixo’s statement smacks of hidden agenda: SVM HERALD NEWS DESK PANJIM, JULY 18

The SEZ Virodhi Manch (SVM) condemned the reported statements of the Environment Minister Aleixo Sequeira that Centre has said no to SEZs in CRZ areas in Goa. Stating that the State government had scrapped SEZs in Goa and the Chief Minister had made a public statement in this regard, SVM said that the latest statement from the Environment Minister smacks of his hidden agenda and ulterior motives.

Warning Sequeira not to play with the sentiments of the people, SVM warned that Goans will not sit quite if SEZs are allowed anywhere in the State.

Chiding Sequeira’s statement, SVM said that on one hand he is against setting up of

SEZs in CRZ areas and on the other hand he does not mind imposing SEZs on his own constituents who have elected him for the fourth term in Assembly.

SVM further advised Sequeira that instead of batting for SEZs, he should use his good offices to convince the Centre to denotify the three notified SEZs in the State.

SVM also requested the Environment Minister to put some time and efforts to save the environment in his own constituency where various industrial units from the Verna Industrial Estate dump their industrial waste and garbage in adjacent private properties and along the internal roads of Verna and Loutolim, which has led to serious environment damage and caused undue hindrance to the villagers.

A banner with a difference HERALD CORRESPONDENT MAYEM, JULY 18

Cloth banners have now become things of the past, having been replaced by computerized plastic banners.

However, plastic banners become useless once the occasion is over and in order to overcome this wastage, Swami Vivekanand Sanstha from Keri-Sattari has taken keen interest to use environmental resources, which can also be reused.

Swami Vivekanand

Sanstha member Suryakant Gaonkar has created a banner of weaved coconut palms, while the letters stitched over it are made up of shells of the banana tree.

This type of banner was installed during the poetry presentation programme of Pournima Rajendra Kerkar, which became the cynosure of eyes of all the audience.

Earlier, Gaonkar had prepared a Lord Ganesh idol made out of environmental components.

A banner made up of natural components by Suryakant Gaonkar.

Photo by Vishant Vaze

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For milk, Goans trust Goa Dairy M ilk is considered as an ideal and complete food and it contains essential nutrients and provide a quick and easy way of supplying these nutrients to the diet within relatively low calories.

However, one should avoid use of the milk which is not processed as it could be contaminated if not stored properly. This may lead to health problems. All these years Goa Dairy has developed thrust among the consumers by providing fresh & Pure milk to its consumers. Goa Dairy has been awarded mnemonic symbol for providing Quality milk to consumers. Goa Dairy milk before packed undergoes stringent quality tests. Hence majority of Goan trust Goa Dairy milk.

Milk in Sanskrit is called as ‘Ksheera’. Ayurveda – an authentic system of Science has described varieties of milk and its importance in diet. There are varieties of milk from different animals like cow, buffalo, goat, horse, camel, Desi elephant etc. Among all, cow milk seems to have greater medicinal properties. Although Human milk is the most essential diet for infants for their growth and to gain immunity through out their life.

Cow Milk: Cow milk in Sanskrit is ‘Goksheera’. It considered being the best among all.

Cow milk which is sweet in taste; cold in potency, promotes digestion, strength, and

longevity, good for eyes and suitable for all age groups.

Buffalo Milk: Buffalo milk is heavier than Cow milk. Hence it is advised to persons those who have strong digestive power.

Goat’s Milk: Goat’s Milk has the same properties like that of Cow’s milk, still lighter to digest than cow’s milk. Goat’s Milk is lighter to digest as goat eats lots of plant food that has different tastes, does lots of physical exercises like walking and drinks very little quantity of water. It can be used as a substitute in the place of cow’s milk.

Human milk: Human milk is essential for infants. Human milk is sweet and slightly astringent in taste, cold in potency and light to digest. It promotes strength, helps in promoting the growth of the tissues of the body, good for eyes.

Raw milk Or Un-boiled milk: The milk, which is Raw or unboiled, is heavy to digest, reduces one’s digestive power.

All types of milk should be taken only after boiling except human milk, as boiling of human milk is not good. If the milk is kept un-boiled for about 5 hours the original quality of milk changes, if it is kept for about 10 hours it becomes unfit to use.

Effects of intake of milk depending upon time: Morning: Intake of milk is

usually not advised in the morning hours, as it is heavy to digest.

Afternoon: Intake of milk in the afternoon promotes strength in old people, improves agni in children, removes urinary calculi (krichra Asmari chedanam) and also alleviates kapha and pitta.

Evening: Drinking of milk in the evening hours is good for eyes and alleviates vata and pitta.

Night: Drinking of milk at night is ideal. In daytime people happen to exert much and vidahi annam hence drinking of milk after food is essential at night to reduce tiredness and also good for eyes.

Age factor: Baalyavastha (childhood)promotes growth and development of tissues Yuvavastha (youth)- promotes strength Vruddhavastha (old age)provides strength and prevents ageing.

Qualities depending upon storage: Qualities of milk differ depending upon the vessel in which it is stored.

Taamra (copper) – Vatahara Suvarna (gold) – Pittahara Roupya (silver) – Kaphahara Kamsya (brass) – Rakta prasadhanam In pregnancy: Habitual intake of cow’s milk is indicated from the first month pregnancy in ayurvedic

samhitas. Because of the valuable properties, milk is advised to take every day solely or mixed with other food.

Milk, provides the following beneficial nutrients in varying quantities: Calcium - for healthy bones and teeth, phosphorous - for energy release, magnesium for muscle function, protein for growth and repair, vitamin B12 - for production of healthy cells, vitamin A - for good eyesight and immune function, zinc - for immune function, riboflavin - for healthy skin, folate - for production of healthy cells, vitamin C - for formation of healthy connective tissues, iodine - for regulation of the body's rate of metabolism (how quickly the body burns energy) and the rate of growth.

1 glass of milk alone can make a contribution to the daily recommended intake of many important nutrients for all age groups.

It is highly recommended to consume milk and dairy foods as part of a healthy balanced diet.

Consumption Of dairy milk & milk products has been associated with numerous health benefits. Some are mentioned as follows: Bone Health Dairy products provide calcium, which is essential for bone growth and development.

Bone growth is at its highest during childhood and the teenage years and therefore it is important that teenagers consume dairy products.

Optimising bone mass in this age group can help to reduce the risk of osteoporosis (a debilitating, brittle bone disorder) in later life.

Teeth Dairy products contain calcium and other tooth friendly nutrients, which help teeth grow and keep them healthy.

It is the only drink -excluding water which is recommended by dentists to be safe to consume between meals.

Obesity Contrary to popular belief, research has shown that people who consume milk and dairy foods are likely to be slimmer than those who do not.

Milk is also not a high fat product. Whole milk contains 4% fat, semi-skimmed milk contains 1.7% fat, and skimmed milk contains 0.3% fat.

Studies have also found that consuming milk and dairy as part of a calorie controlled diet can help us to lose weight -especially from the abdomen, where fat deposits are associated with the greatest health risks.

Blood Pressure Dairy helps reduce blood

pressure. A diet containing fruit and vegetables, low-fat dairy products and low salt helps reduce blood pressure (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension: DASH diet).

The potassium, magnesium and calcium found in dairy products are all linked to healthy blood pressure.

Cancer Studies have discovered that diets containing milk and dairy products may significantly reduce the risk of certain cancers.

A study in 40,000 Norwegian women discovered that those who drank milk as children and continued to do so throughout adulthood has a significantly lower chance of developing breast cancer.

Cardiovascular disease Consumption of milk and dairy has also been associated with a reduced risk of suffering a heart attack.

Type 2 diabetes Consumption of low fat dairy products has been linked to a reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

In fact studies have found that each extra portion of low fat dairy consumed each day is associated with increasingly lower risk!

Hydration Regular fluid intake throughout the day is essential to be well hydrated. Dietetic experts recommend drinking 6-8 glasses of fluid per day. As milk contains a high percentage of water, it is a useful vehicle for rehydration.

Eating habits People who consume dairy products have better intake of nutrients than people who do not consume dairy products.

Introducing dairy products at an early age helps establish good eating habits for later in life.

National Institute of Nutrition has recommended 300 gm of milk/day for the child age 13 yrs and 250 gm of milk/day for others.

Milk that should be avoided: Milk other than Sweet taste like sour, salt should be avoided. Milk with bad smell, abnormal colour should also be avoided.

S Roy Choudhary, zonal manager, LIC, Western Zone, inaugurates LIC Customer Zone in the presence of Regional Managers (Mktg) - S N Bhattacharya and V Satyakumar. A K Madhankar, Sr Divisional Manager and B Majhi, Marketing Manager LIC, Goa Division are also present.

HE RA LD

INDIA

GOA, MONDAY, 19 JULY, 2010

Pg 7 M’rashtra may have training policy for govt employees PTI

MUMBAI, JULY 18 Maharashtra Government is considering formulation of a new training policy for its officers and employees.

"A quick assessment is necessary to be carried out by each Department of their skill requirements, keeping in view the challenges arising out of the changing domestic and international environment and the modified role of the government," a Mantralaya official told PTI. Accordingly, each department is expected to redesign its manpower and training policies. A centralised training policy and strategy may be adopted by the Pune-based Yashda for imparting periodical continuous compulsory foundation and in-service certified training to all state government officers and employees, he said.

This compulsory training needs to be blended with existing promotion and advance increment policy, he said.

In an effort to reward inno-

vation and encourage in-service higher education, departments would be asked to recognise individuals who have contributed to improving public services through specific projects.

Employees who undertook in-service higher professional education may be given monetary incentives in the form of additional minimum three increments and certificate or an award, the official said.

The government is also reviewing recruitment rules of all cadres and considering a proposal for 50:50 quota for nomination and promotion respectively at all levels, the official said.

Considering availability of well qualified manpower in the market, appropriate upward improvement in essential qualification and experience would be made and candidates with management, law or additional relevant professional qualifications would be preferred.

There is also a plan for grading of officers. Officers must have Annual Performance Plans.

Wherever possible, performance targets must be given by the reporting officer and need to be quantified and assessed.

The officer's performance would be subjected to a midyear review with reference to the Work Plan and new criteria such as implementing new innovative concepts, best practises followed, new initiatives taken, negotiation and general awareness abilities need to be tested.

Introduction of numerical grading (1-10 scale) for assessment of attributes and achievements of an officer is also being considered.

There is also a move to introduce a system of Referral Board (instead of administrative Tribunal) to consider representation against mala-fide remarks in Annual Performance Report by the Reporting and Reviewing Officer/Accepting Authority.

The government would also ensure that best practises of all departments are shared, so that duplication of efforts and costs can be avoided.

Fuel position for indigenous N-plants comfortable: DAE PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

There is progressive improvement in uranium fuel position for operating indigenous Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) with gradual increasing in production from indigenous uranium mills besides the imported fuel, Department of Atomic Energy sources said.

"There is a progressive improvement in the uranium fuel position for the operating nuclear plants and "especially with supply of imported uranium for all the five units of Rajasthan Atomic Power Station (RAPS), Nuclear Power Corporation’s units which are not under international safeguards and improvement in production of indigenous fuel from the new mill at Turamdih. We have reached a comfortable position," DAE officials told PTI. Compared to last two years, when the plants were operating below 50 per cent capacity, at present, they are running at 60 per cent capacity, they said.

"With the improvement in production of indigenous uranium from the new Turamdih mill in Jhakhand and the older mill in Jaduguda, we expect to come back to our old glory of having 90 per cent capacity of all the operating plants in a couple of years," they said.

"The import of fuel has definitely eased the situation in the judicious use of indigenous fuel,"

they said. India pledged RAPS units 5 and 6 under international safeguards as per the agreement with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) last year and RAPS units 3 and 4 early this year.

Under the Separation Plan of the Indo-US deal, India had pledged to keep 14 of its reactors to place under the IAEA safeguards including those reactors which were already under safeguards like first two units of RAPS, units 1 and 2 of Tarapur (Boiling water reactors built by GE) and two units of Russian built plant at Kudankulam.

DAE officials pointed out even the two nuclear plants (220 MW) of Kakrapar in Gujarat which is supposed to be put under IAEA safeguards in 2012, may be placed by the end of this yearalmost two years before the schedule.

This could further make the fuel position easier as the safeguarded plants can start using the imported fuel, they said.

About the two units in Narora Atomic Power Station in Uttar Pradesh, they said, it may be placed under IAEA as per schedule in 2014.

A top official from the Hyderabad-based Nuclear Fuel Complex said the unit two of Narora Atomic Power Station which recently under went complete replacement of its coolant channel is ready and the fabricated indigenous fuel is being supplied

to it and is expected to be operational by the end of August this year.

He said, the fuel position for Indian plants are comfortable and they expect further improvements in the coming days as the new mill in Turamdih in Jharkhand is continuously producing the fuel besides the old mill in Jaduguda.

India has imported uranium for its indigenous plants from France, Russia and Kazhakstan.

Both Russia and Kazakhstan have an agreement with the Department of Atomic Energy to supply 2000 MT of uranium over the next five years and a small portion has already arrived. The French company AREVA has made one time supply of 300 MT last year. Russian fuel is being used for RAPS units 3 to 6 while the French fuel is being used in unit 2 of RAPS. Currently, there are seven nuclear plants in various stages of construction under the stateowned NPCIL, the officials said adding that the two power plants of 1000 MW each in Kudankulam and unit 4 of Kaiga (220 MW) are in advanced stages of construction and even may go critical by the end of this year.

Under another corporation of atomic energy department BHAVINI, a 500 MW Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor is under construction which is expected to go critical in 2012.

Nations pledge to double number of tigers by 2022

PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

To save tigers from extinction, 13 nations which are abode of the endangered big cats have pledged to get their act together to double by the year 2022 the number of the felines from the present 3,200 in the wild.

A decision in this regard was taken at a recent meeting in Bali, Indonesia, by the countries along with the World Bank's Global Tiger Initiative (GTI) to develop a concrete plan to reinvigorate the tiger count.

The plan is expected to serve as a road map for tiger conservation to be adopted by world leaders at the first global summit on tigers this September in St Petersburg, Russia to be attended by Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Indonesia, Cambo-

dia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam besides the host country.

The striped cats, whose count has declined by a whopping 97 per cent from over a lakh in the 20th century, continue to face

threats due to increasing demand for their skin and body parts in the global market.

The officials at the meet agreed to prepare a national action plan comprising a Global Tiger Recovery Programme for adoption at the Tiger Summit, according to a statement from the International Fund for Animal Welfare.

It includes providing skills and equipment to rangers and law enforcement officials to combat poaching and illegal trafficking of tigers.

The global blueprint for tiger protection would be backed by joint commitments to better conserve key tiger habitats across range countries and to step up enforcement to eradicate poaching and end trafficking in tiger body parts.

‘No discrimination against disabled in compensation’

PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

The Delhi High Court has said a disabled person should not be discriminated against by granting him less compensation for injuries suffered in a road accident.

The court set aside the order of a Motor Accident Claim Tribunal which had granted less compensation to a victim whose legs were fractured in a road accident on the ground that his one leg was already polio-afflicted.

"Where the injured had suffered total disability, the compensation should be granted accordingly, irrespective of the fact that his one leg was partially dysfunctional due to polio, even prior to the accident," Justice S

N Dhingra said.

The court increased the amount of compensation from Rs 50,000 awarded by the tribunal to Rs 1.5 lakh to Shahid Ali who legs were fractured in a road accident.

The tribunal had observed that the amount of compensation was sufficient as it was not a case where the injured had suffered permanent disability due to accident and that he was already suffering disability to some extent due to polio on right lower limb.

Disagreeing with the tribunal, the High Court said disability of a person at the time of accident need not be taken into consideration and compensation should be decided by the impact

of the accident on the injured person.

"Tribunal was supposed to see the impact of the accident on the injured. Even if one leg of the injured was already suffering from Post Polio Residual Paralysis, the other leg of the injured was quite healthy and functional with the result that the injured was able to earn his livelihood by working as a Helper," the court said.

"The accident crippled him totally and fractured his right leg, already partially dysfunctional. The left leg, which was healthy, was also made dysfunctional by the accident with the result that the injured lost capacity to work," the court said while increasing the compensation.

OHERALDO

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OPINION

Pg8

www.oheraldo.in

O HERALD O

The Margao-Salcete disconnect

Vol No CX No: 185 Goa, Monday 19 July, 2010

Do ethics and morals not matter to Saxtti voters? Why is their psyche opposite to Margao’s, asks SANDESH PRABHUDESAI

Princess diaries

T

he story of the MV River Princess has been one of unending disaster for the past 10 years. And just as we thought this profound tragedy was finally coming to an end, indications are that there are many more pages still to be written in the Princess diaries.

We have no time to lose. After holding out for years against the elements, the seaward side of the ship − grounded off Candolim Beach − has caved in, causing a part of the deck to subside. Personnel of Jaisu Shipping, the company that was last awarded the contract and did nothing to salvage the ship, asked to be rescued and taken off the vessel, as they felt the ship could break up anytime. Conscious of ongoing litigation, the authorities actually got them to sign a document saying they were leaving the ship at their own volition, before allowing the rescue operation to go ahead. It’s possible that the ship may break up even before this monsoon is through.

In these circumstances, it is shocking that the so-called State Disaster Management Committee, which floated a tender to break up and remove the ship and short-listed two tenderers, is likely to once more award the contract to an untested entity from overseas, in preference to a homegrown salvage outfit that has a sterling track record. Reports indicate that the committee seems impressed with the bid by Singaporebased Titan Salvage, and has asked company representatives to come to Goa and “give some more details” on its offer.

As they say, the devil is in the “details”. Assuming these “details” are large enough in quantity and given to the entire satisfaction of the key people in the committee, the contract, presumably, will go the way of the Singapore party. But will they make the MV River Princess go away? Or will they, like the so-called Crossland Salvage and Jaisu Salvage which bagged the contract earlier, simply put up their feet and let nature do their work for them; letting the ship corrode till it finally vanishes?

What’s wrong with our authorities? Here we have a Goabased company that has salvaged a huge number of ships all over the country and in Goa. It has the best salvage record in India. It has even carried out a remarkably successful salvage operation on the monolithic rock statue of Buddha that sank in Hyderabad’s polluted, zero-visibility Husainsagar lake.

While the Singapore outfit has made no such commitment, the Madgavkars do all their work on a no-cure-no-pay basis.

They’re here. They can’t run and they can’t hide. They’re really good at what they do. But, because of that and also because they are Goan, they have one BIG fault; they don’t pay kickbacks.

In the final analysis, is that what it all comes down to?

Does nobody care about Goa?

T

Necessary?

he arrest and remand of Sonia Torrado, mother of the late Nadia Torrado, seems unnecessary and vindictive.

It is the Crime Branch’s case that Sonia is required in custody to recover vital missing articles in the case. The police say she may “tamper with evidence” if released.

Sonia has been interrogated separately and together with Mickky Pacheco before the latter resigned and disappeared.

Sonia didn’t run. If she really wanted to “tamper with evidence”, she has had more than a month to do so.

If the police were really “trying hard to retrieve” missing items vital importance, why didn’t they do anything about it all this time? If they need to “instil confidence in the minds of the witnesses” to come out of the fear and high handedness of prime accused Mickky Pacheco, how is the detention of a school teacher going to help?

Could this be the cops’ response to a certain complaint made to the Women’s Commission?

M

y last article, ‘Independent members of Congress family’ got diverse reactions.

One was from a senior retired journalist from South Goa. He said the reason for degeneration of the political scene was Goa’s being ‘small’.

He was hinting at Goa’s merger with Maharashtra, which did not happen. I countered: “Sir, the most degenerate are the biggest states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar…“ But in a way, he was right.

There was an explosion of power centres in Goa: 40 MLAs, 12 ministers, 40 Zilla Panchayat members and 186 panchayats for a ‘state’ that is smaller than Maharashtra’s smallest rural district – Sindhudurg.

He was also right when he said the whole society has become corrupt, but we only blame the rulers for it; it could be curbed, if Goa was bigger.

I differed. Even if Benaulim, Navelim and Velim were combined into one constituency, an Alemao or a Pacheco would get elected. Even if the whole of Sattari and Bicholim talukas – five constituencies – were converted into one, or the whole of Tiswadi became one, it would be very difficult to defeat the Vishwajeets and Monserattes. Why? Later, I was discussing with a tiatrist politician from Salcete the possibilities in Benaulim: Mickky, Valanka or Dr Hubert? “Dr Hubert cooks on gas, not our traditional ‘randon’, he said sarcastically, pointing at his elite status. “But why not Valanka?

She is intelligent,” I argued. “That’s the main problem,” he quipped, “our people don’t like intelligent leaders.”

We laughed. But it made me think. What kind of political leaders do Saxttikars like? Corrupt?

Scammers? Smugglers? Goondas? Criminals? But isn’t this everywhere in Goa? Nowadays, money speaks; character simply does not matter.

But Salcete matters. This one taluka elects eight MLAs; one fifth of the state Assembly. The remaining four fifth is divided among 10 talukas.

Nearly half of our cabinet – six ministers (one just resigned) – comes from this taluka. It’s Salcete that decides how Goa is run. It is also a step ahead in throwing ethics and morality in politics to the winds.

Do ethics and morals simply not matter to Saxttikar voters? The more I think, the more I

CLEAR CUT get confused. I also cannot understand why their psyche is almost opposite to that of Margao, Salcete’s taluka town.

Margao has a great ideological history and tradition. This town ignited Goa’s liberation movement with Dr Ram Manohar Lohia’s civil disobedience on 18 June 1946. Margao brought about the great Opinion Poll in 1967, enabling Goa to retain its own identity. This town started the historic students’ movement of Goa. Margao mobilised the ‘real force’ that made Konkani our official language and Goa a state. Its ideological ripples were felt till Quepem, Sanguem and Canacona.

These social and cultural upheavals threw up many activists, writers, artists, intellectuals and even politicians. They are seen today in various fields – education, law, health, literature, culture, journalism – some prominently, but many more silently, sincerely and dedicatedly.

Why haven’t these strong ideological movements stirred up Salcete? Why wasn’t there an ideological explosion of intellect, ethics and morality? The Salcete that created a parliamentarian and ideologue like Dr Francisco Luis Gomes; an intellectual like Dr Tristao Braganza Cunha, a vibrant thinker and journalist like Luis de Menezes Braganza, the great Buddhist scholar Dharmanand Kosambi and his equally great historian son Dr D D Kosambi, a priest like Fr Antonio Pereira and so many more in the past and present; why, in

spite of this, is the alienation between these legends and the masses so palpable in Salcete?

I was born and brought up in Canacona. So many others like me are products of the freedom movement in our border taluka, the educational movement in our villages, the general environment of moral values, the fine role models before us, and the enormous impact of ideology created by one town – Margao.

In Goa’s villages, a school is not just a place for education. It is an institution; a literary forum, a cultural platform, a sports stadium, a reading library, a debating hangout... it provides exposure to everything that a human being needs for ideological upbringing and cultural shaping.

Religion did not matter here. It was the same with Hindus and Christians. In Margao, too, we were inspired by ideologues and intellectuals of all religions. I definitely do not speak of Christian Salcete alone; the Saxttikar belongs to all religions.

Anybody who argues that it is a Hindu-Christian divide is simply wrong.

Margao offers so much. It has reputed schools and institutions. It is a centre for literary activities and political conferences. It has libraries and book shops. National and international personalities deliver lectures, in all languages. It has theatre halls for tiatr, drama and musical concerts.

It has movie halls; even film societies. It has the biggest sports stadiums in the state. It has insti-

tutions that teach music and dance.

That is why so many families from neighbouring talukas like Ponda, Quepem, Sanguem and Canacona are shifting to Margao. The housing problem in Salcete villages bordering Margao owes itself to this ‘inner migration’.

Margao has always been a multipurpose centre for the Saxttikar, not just a market. It’s the first choice for schooling and, of course, higher education. In fact, the privileged ones are those who can enjoy the cultured tradition of Margao, and then go back to eat and sleep in their sylvan villages. We were too far away for that; we had to settle down in Margao to access these privileges.

Why, in spite of this, has Margao’s culture not percolated to the villages of Salcete? Why is it that Saxttikars cannot elect their political leaders on an ideological and ethical basis? Is the perspective missing, or the ethical values?

I have visited and lived in many villages all over Goa during my days in the student movement.

Of all, I simply love Saxttikars. They are sensitive, frank, open-minded and emotional. Is it their simplicity for which they get taken for a ride so easily? Does emotion override their logic? Or is the selfishness in all Goans displayed more prominently (and ‘honestly’) in Salcete?

And has Margao remained pristine, or is that also history? There are three Margaos today – that of the original Madgaokar, that of migrated Goans, and that of migrated non-Goans. Integration between these three still hasn’t taken place.

The once-cultured city is quietly sitting on a timebomb that could explode at any moment into violent communal riots. If that happened, Goa’s celebrated communal harmony would be murdered in its own cultural capital!

Between Margao and Salcete, obviously, the former could not influence the latter. But has Salcete started influencing Margao? Is mammon taking over its morals and ethics? Is de-culturisation triumphing over its culture? If that doesn’t sound like an answer, it’s because I don’t have one. Do you?

(This article first appeared on ‘www.goanews.com’. The writer can be contacted on 9422063000)

Triumph over adversity

Wise counsel

L

ife isn’t fair, and it isn’t unfair, too. Life is neutral. It brings to each person unique opportunities to learn and grow as a result of the events or circumstances that cross their path.

Everyone, regardless of their age, sex, nationality, religion, career status or financial position is a student in life. Some people, upon an outward-in first glance may “have it made”. But do not judge by appearances only. Everyone has inner battles of one kind or another that they are fighting. A story goes like this: once a daughter complained to her father about her life and how things have been so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and she wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling.

It seemed that just as one problem was solved another arose. Her father filled three pots with water and placed the fire on high.

Soon the three pots came to a boil. In one he placed carrots, in the other he placed eggs, and in the last he placed ground coffee beans. He let them boil, without saying a word. The daughter frowned and scorned and impatiently wondered what he was trying to do. She had problems, and he was making this strange concoction.

In half an hour he walked over to the oven and turned down the fire. He pulled the carrots out and placed them in the bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them in the bowl. Then he ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.

Turning to his daughter he asked. “Darling, what do you see?”

Smartly, she replied. “Carrots, eggs, and coffee.” He brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take the egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. Her face frowned from the strength of the coffee. Humbly, she asked. “What does this mean, Father?” He explained. “Each of them faced the same adversity of the boiling water. However each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. But after going through boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg was fragile.

A thin outer shell protected a liquid centre. But after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The coffee beans are unique however. After they were in the boiling water, it became stronger and richer.”

“Which are you,” he asked his daughter? When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean? Are you the carrot that seems hard, but with the smallest amount of pain, adversity and heat you droop and become soft with no strength? Are you the egg, which starts off with a soft heart? A fluid spirit. But after a death, a break-up, a divorce, a layoff you became hardened and stiff. Your shell looks the same,

By Arlette Azavedo

but you are so bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and heart, internally? Or are you like the coffee bean? The bean does not get its peak flavour and tough until it reaches the boiling point. When the water gets the hottest, it just tastes better. When things are there worst, you get better. Indeed, when people talk against you, your praises increase. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavour. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you.

It happens to all of us, we meet with a setback or fail at something, and we’re tempted to give up. We must remember that failing in something is just another opportunity for learning and growth, for finding out what works and what doesn’t. Looked at positively, you’d never learn if you didn’t fail. Or to put it even more strongly, you can’t succeed unless you have failed before.

Probably nobody knows this better than sports celebrities. Their abilities and reputations are put on the line in every game they play. They fail many times in life. And that is why they succeed.

Don’t ever stop believing in yourself for fear of failure. It is a necessary step to success. Finally, when the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate yourself to another level?

Are we a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean, as we handle our adversities, then?

Letters to the Editor Help the teachers Leena Gomes, by email Congratulations Jose Pereira for revealing the truth about private unaided schools in Margao (‘Teachers’ plight’, Herald, 13 July).

All teachers are grateful to you. Teachers are in a pathetic condition. They don’t get even a single day’s leave; if taken, Rs100 is deducted (daily wages) from their meagre salary, and no account is maintained.

Now that the facts are revealed, we hope that Chief Minister Digambar Kamat, Education Minister Babush Monserrate and his department open their eyes, look into the matter, and give us our rights as per the circular of 16 April 2010 on sixth pay scales, pension and retirement benefits, tuition fees, etc.

Fallow fields Name withheld on request The paddy fields at Candolim are lying uncultivated for more than four years, though they are fertile and can be cultivated thrice a year. These fields belong to the comunidade, and were given free to farmers, but

the latter do not bother to cultivate them.

There are two big ponds (‘Nag Tollem’) and five smaller ones, eliminating scarcity of water.

These fields are located below Boscio hospital, on both sides of Nag Tollem. The area is more than 5,000 sq. metres. The Agriculture Department should take charge of these fields and cultivate them.

Premium pricing S Kamat, Alto Betim The decision of the oil marketing companies (OMCs) to deliver LPG cooking gas cylinders on an ‘anytime’ basis by charging a premium of Rs50 is irresponsible. It makes the LPG cylinder a privileged commodity, accessible only to those who can afford to pay a premium.

The number of cylinders to be delivered under this category must be limited, like ‘tatkal’ railway tickets, so that the general delivery of cylinders to regular queuing customers is not affected. Let it not exceed more than 1 per cent of the deliveries on a monthly basis.

SMILE WITH SMITHA

Smitha Bhandare Kamat

Letter of the Day

Mockery of democracy

B V S Priolkar, Margao

A government employee gets suspended when (s)he is behind bars for 48 hours. The pension, salary and other benefits get affected. For a government job, the credentials and integrity of the person are verified.

But for our elected representatives in the Assembly/Parliament, integrity and credentials are unimportant. They get pay, allowances, pension and all other facilities no matter what.

When these MLAs/MPs go to police custody or jail for the offences against them, they lose nothing. They continue to be MLAs or MPs, enjoy pay and pension uninterrupted, and get a police escort to attend the Assembly or Parliament.

This is a sheer mockery of democracy. Are MLAs and MPs not bound by any code of conduct? How can the Speaker entertain such people? The Speaker should disqualify such members, and they should forfeit pay and pension, just like government employees.

Family business?

Augustus Alphonso, Vasco Churchill Alemao’s daughter, Valanka, wants the Congress ticket for Benaulim. Churchill seems to be too eager to get her involved in politics. Politics should not be like a family business. Valanka should stick to social service and not get involved in the dirty game of politics. She would be better off in some other job. Churchill and Joaquim are sufficient for the family in politics. It is not fair for her to ride on her father’s might.

Not by God Constancio Fernandes, Vasco The letter by Tabrez Mahamad ‘Smash Unnecessary walls’ (Herald, 13 July) was very heart breaking. Unfortunately what he says is the reality, not just in India but in the entire world.

The responsibility for this does not wholly lay with society. It is also the responsibility of the leaders of any particular religion to try and be part of the mainstream. We need to start reforming ourselves first. We cannot rely on politicians; they only exploit us for their own benefit.

Giving too much importance to religion narrows our outlook. The point, as Tabrez says, is that we are Indians first and then Muslims, Christians, Hindus or Sikhs. The basic purpose of religion is to do good to others. But, unfortunately, religion has be-

come the main cause of violence in the world. Let us all remember that all religions are made by men, not by God.

Crocodile tears Vincy Menezes, Margao The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) did a nice job of shedding crocodile tears in Mickky’s case. Mickky made a big blunder by disappearing from the scene, being scared of arrest. The NCP watched the tamasha silently. Once the humiliation process was complete, they brought out their political balm to ‘soothe’ Mickky’s wounds.

The NCP, being in the government, could have easily arranged for Mickky’s interrogation without arrest. But they had an axe to grind with Mickky for staging the most spectacular NCP convention at Betalbatim.

Mickky’s supporters raised slogans against the Congress outside the court. Instead, they should have been directed against the NCP!

Gutless Sena

road congestion. They should ensure that government employees do not have private businesses.

On 12 July, people from all over Bardez gathered at the Mamlatdar’s office to get their election cards rectified or make new ones, but the mamlatdar did not attend duty, even though the Election Commission had advertised in newspapers. The Shiv Sainiks should have marched there and made noise. But do they have the guts?

Stone-Age Sattari Freddy Agnelo Fernandes, Dubai The news item ‘Man-made wooden bridge posing threat at Keri’ (Herald , 14 July) makes me wonder whether we are still in the Stone Age. A bridge made of bamboos and coconut tree trunks still operates in the constituency of former Chief Minister and present Speaker Pratapsingh Rane! Is this the ‘development’ he has done in his constituency?

With the number of decades he has been the MLA, he should have made Sattari a paradise on earth. It is a shame that he has failed so miserably to provide the basic requirements to his people.

Rupee in big league Pachu Menon, Margao The Indian rupee now has a distinct identity.

The new symbol retains our national character with an international flavour. Designed

by IIT-ian D Uday Kumar, it “captures the Indian ethos and culture”.

The Rupee joins the exclusive club of the US Dollar, the British Pound, the Japanese Yen and the European Euro. It can no longer be confused with the ‘rupee’ and ‘rupaiah’ of small neighbouring countries like Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Indonesia.

Till the symbol is encoded, the government should ask the banking sector, industries and the media to use it and promote its use.

Jyoti Shetgaonkar, Morjim The Shiv Sena marching to the Mapuca Municipality was a waste of time. Who is interested in having a name plate in Marathi?

Whether the language of the name plate, everyone knows that it is the useless Mapusa Municipality.

I would be pleased if the Shiv Sainiks had fought to demolish illegal constructions, or

Paths of Wisdom

Letters should be 150 words or less in length, and should have the writer’s name, address and telephone number. The editor reserves the right to edit letters for size and readability, and to delete any personal attacks or libellous /objectionable matter.

The Tiger and the Fox

by Massud Farzan A fox who lived in the deep forest of long ago had lost its front legs. No one knew how: perhaps escaping from a trap. A man who lived on the edge of the forest, seeing the fox from time to time, wondered how in the world it managed to get its food. One day when the fox was not far from him he had to hide himself quickly because a tiger was approaching. The tiger had fresh game in its claws. Lying down on the ground, it ate its fill, leaving the rest for the fox.

Again the next day the great Provider of this world sent provisions to the fox by this same tiger. The man began to think: “If this fox is taken care of in this mysterious way, its food sent by some unseen Higher Power, why don’t I just rest in a corner and have my daily meal provided for me?”

Because he had a lot of faith, he let the days pass, waiting for food. Nothing happened. He just went on losing weight and strength until he was nearly a skeleton. Close to losing consciousness, he heard a Voice which said: “O you, who have mistaken the way, see now the Truth! You should have followed the example of that tiger instead of imitating the disabled fox.”

(Source : Spiritual short stories.com)

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OPinionated The Games Politicians Play

By S KAmAT The techniques used by politicians to assuage certain concerns expressed by the people or public outcry, seems to be two fold. One of the techniques used is the assurances given to us of good times to come or of the prosperity that development will bring. That good thing will happen very soon, and in fact it is just around the corner.

A politician rarely associates any meaning to these statements or gives weight to his commitments. For him/her it is just a method to get out of the present predicament or embarrassment and postpone facing the issue head-on and live another day.

Thus you will see with regards to the price rise issue that has plagued our economy for the last 18 months or so, every minister in the incumbent UPA Government concerned with the matter, has been saying that prices will decrease and it is just a matter of months, some say three, some six, but in fact even after 18 months or more the trend is just the opposite and prices are up, up and away! Here again there is sometimes, a complete lack of co-ordination between the ministers or else, how can there be different time schedules on their estimates on the same issue?

Even in terms of an appreciation of certain basic realities, there seems to be a lack of cohesion at the topmost levels of this UPA-2 Government, or else when petrol prices were decontrolled and diesel was not, why was the PM, on his way back from the G-20 summit, saying that diesel would also be de-controlled soon?

This, when we all know that the upward inflationary spiral will get more impetus once diesel prices are set to soar, adding to the woes of the aam admi from soaring prices? . While the PM was making this statement, his Finance Minister was saying that the petrol price de-control would result in higher inflation which could be expected to settle down in about six months!

While the young Minister of State in the Oil Ministry was saying that support prices to farmers could be increased to cover the rise in fuel prices. This, our Agriculture Minister had already announced the same. In this vexed scenario, you see everyone is trying to push the problem off his slate or working on his own agendas. But unfortunately the buck stops with the aam admi, who has to bear the brunt of rising prices and the costs of these irresponsible decisions whether he likes it or not.

The concern therefore for those who govern, is not the problems or the well-being of the aam admi but to save their own skin. Thus, it is time now for the aam admi to hold the politicians responsible for their statements and note down each time schedule, deadline or verbal commitment they have made in relation to every constituency or matters in general, and act on it by writing in the papers or participating in community groups within their locality or inform an active and responsible NGO in their constituency so that there is a groundswell of opinion which the politicians will have to address and cannot ignore.

We have as time goes by proven wrong the saying that public memory is short. The other technique used by politicians is stonewalling to prevent anyone from getting to the truth.

This could be in relation to their responsibilities, personal lives or the scandals that they are more often than wont to get into. The mechanics of this process starts with outright denial, then a small admission, than depending on how persistent the chaser is - complete admission, then remorse and profuse apologies.

On these matters, the explosion of media particularly the TV channels has given the aam admi an additional weapon in that they can publicly expose and highlight any issue and bring it the lay public attention. We have seen in the celebrated murder cases of Jessica Lall and Kataria, and also the accident case of Admiral Nanda’s nephew where people sleeping on the pavement in Delhi were mowed down and killed, how the media brought back the cases into judicial focus and the guilty were punished more than what they would otherwise have been.

This is what the aam admi has to do and bring the matter up to the media and public limelight so that the issue can be chased to its logical conclusion.

Yeddyurappa rules out removal of Reddy brothers PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

The BJP today appeared to have decided to brazen it out in the fight with the opposition with Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa giving a clean chit to the Reddy brothers facing allegations of illegal mining and ruling out their dismissal from the cabinet.

"101 percent. There is no charge against them. There is no evidence against them. Let them (opposition) approach the high court," Yeddyurappa told reporters here when asked if he was giving a clean chit to the Reddy brothers G Janardhan Reddy and G Karunakar Reddy.

The Chief Minister's remarks came after the Reddy brothers held a breakfast meeting with Yeddyurappa who is under opposition pressure to remove them on charges of illegal mining and excessive export of iron ore.

"The question of taking action against the Reddy brothers does not arise. There is no proof," the Chief Minister said to a query whether there would not be action against the duo who also met the Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj today to give their version.

Recalling his meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram to discuss the issue of illegal mining in the state, Yeddyurappa said "in no way,

Karnataka Revenue Minister G Karunkara Reddy addressing mediapersons in New Delhi on Sunday.

Reddys meet CM, Sushma PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

Facing allegations of illegal mining, Karnataka ministers and powerful brothers G Janardhan Reddy and G Karuanakar Reddy today met senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj, considered close to them and Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa who is under mounting pressure to sack them.

The meeting between the Reddy brothers and the Chief Minister at the Karnataka Bhawan here came a day after Yeddyurappa held a series of meetings with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Home Minister P Chidambaram, senior BJP leaders L K Advani and Nitin Gadkari.

Janardhan Reddy said he and his brother also met senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj, who is considered close to them, here today. The BJP leadership is caught in the horns of dilemma of saving its government in Karnataka and at the same time ensuring that its image, in the face of the charges made against the Reddy brothers is not sullied.

Senior BJP leader L K Advani has asked the Karnataka party unit to make all efforts to save its first government in the South in case the party has to act against Tourism Minister G Janardhan Reddy and Revenue Minister G Karunakar Reddy in the wake of stepped up opposition to their continuance in government. Sources said Swaraj may indicate to the Reddy brothers that it would be better for them to resign on their own and await the report of the Lokayukta on the issue of illegal mining. They may come back if they come out unscathed on the issue, sources said. But there was no official word from the party on any such move yet.

Belgaum bandh peaceful, shops remain closed HERALD CORRESPONDENT BELGAUM, JULY 18

The Belgaum Bandh declared by Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES) and Shiv Sena on Sunday was peaceful and partial, except for few scattered incidents of minor stone pelting on city buses.

The business establishments in the city remained closed, while auto rickshaws and city buses were plying throughout the day. Both MES and Shiv Sena had called for a Bandh on Sunday as a sign of protest against the burning of the Bhagwa (saffron) flag by the activists of the Karnataka Rakshan Vedike (KRV).

Protesting against the MES and the incident of the attack on a KRV activist at Kolhapur on Friday, the KRV during a protest rally had burnt the effigy of Shiv Sena Supremo Bal Thakrey and burnt the Bhagwa flag.

However, there was no public rally on Sunday as the district administration has imposed prohibitory orders under Section

Goa made holiday destination Fed up by the weeklong tension in the city and the Bandh declared by MES and Shiv Sena in Belgaum on Sunday, a large number of workers working in shops and showrooms, who are least bothered of the border dispute, have made Goa as their holiday destination since Saturday.

While Rakaskoppa water reservoir, 17 kms away from Belgaum was preferred by a few on Sunday, it is understood that a large number of employees working in shops, showrooms and other business organisations including many shop owners have left for Goa on Saturday and Sunday for a ‘Sushegaad’ and ‘high’ weekend on Goan beaches.

“Whether Karnataka or Maharashtra, for us our livelihood is a priority,” an angry worker working for a showroom on daily wages remarked expressing the feelings of the thousands of others in his class.

144 in Belgaum from June 17 night to June 21 night.

Belgaum SP Sonia Narang, known for her no nonsense attitude, has issued strict warning to the leaders of both factions not to resort to activities which could create law and order prob-

Bishop Machado inaugurates Kala Sangam at Belgaum

HERALD CORRESPONDENT BELGAUM, JULY 18

Kala Sangam, a centre to nourish and nurture culture at the diocesan level, was inaugurated on Thursday at Belgaum.

Belgaum Bishop Rev Dr Peter Machado inaugurated the Centre at a function organized at St Anthony’s School Hall at Camp. Kala Sangam Director Fr Irudaya Raj presented Bharat Natyam dance on the occasion.

This if for the first time such a centre has been started at diocesan level.

Speaking on the occasion, Bishop Machado highlighted upon the need for the children and youngsters to remain abreast of extra-curricular activities that have become the part of the modern life.

“Belgaum city is well known for its diverse culture, hence the diocese of Belgaum which com-

Bishop Peter Machado inaugurates Kala Sangam in the presence of Fr Lucio Mascarenhas, Fr Fidelino Araujo, Fr Irudaya Raj and Fr Freddy Raj.

prises five districts of north Karnataka took an initiative to start Kala Sangam that would nourish and nurture young talent by offering wider opportunity for the children and youngsters here,”

he said.

Fr Irudaya Raj from Bangalore, an exponent of Bharat Natyam and a renowned mimicry artiste, is the director of this centre. He has suc-

cessfully worked for three years among the blind children at Athani before coming to Belgaum and has formed a ‘Blind Cultural Troupe’ of the blind and differently able children who have won accolades at different levels.

He has also been presenting Gospel in the form of Indian folk dance and mimicry. “ We w i l l b e i m p a r t i n g training in Bharat Natyam, Western Dance, guitar, keyboard and other instruments at Kala Sangam,” he informed.

Vicar General of Diocese of Belgaum Fr Lucio Mascarenhas, Fr Freddy Raj, Fr Fidelino Araujo, Fr Peter Viegas, Fr George Lopez, Fr Framiot Vaz, priests and nuns, members of Belgaum Cantonment Board Dr Madan Dongre, Dr Rahela Shaikh and Savadi were present for the inaugural function.

lems.

She has banned public speeches, movement of people in a group and said the people forcibly closing the shops and business establishments would face action.

Despite heavy police deploy-

Storytelling, the traditional Indian source of entertainment, which had been sidelined with the advent of televisions and cinemas, is now slowly being brought back into the public realm by a small dedicated group of professionals.

At schools, educational institutions and literary festivals, these new-age story tellers are reviving practices such as Dastangois and Kathas- which have their roots in ancient epics but were lost in the pages of history due to neglect.

"For some time in between the practice of Katha had died off. There is an interest now in these traditions," says Nupoor Awasthi, a professional story-

teller who visits various schools, educational institutes and literary festivals narrating stories.

Even though knowledge of katha is prevalent, many professionals feel it is disregarded because people are still unable to grasp its importance.

"People have started taking story-telling as a profession, although they still do not comprehend it fully," says Bindu Bajaj, a storyteller who has been working with Katha, a Delhibased NGO, for the past six months.

Dastangoi, the ancient Islamic tradition of oral storytelling, brought to India around 16th century and traditionally, performed by a single performer or dastango, is now performed in duets or in a group.

Although it boasted famous patrons like Mirza Ghalib and Mir Baqar Ali, the art got marginalised in the Indian society and its revival took a long time.

"It has been five years since we started giving performances and it has been fruitful," says Danish Hussain, a dastango who is trying to bring alive the longforgotten style of narration.

Made up of two Persian words Dastan and goi meaning 'to tell an epic', dastangois are often based on early adventures of Amir Hamza known as 'Dastane Amir Hamza'.

However, now these new-age dastangos have begun creating their own stories or 'dastans'.

"Besides Dastan-e Amir Hamza, we have created our own stories on events such as the partition

of India," Hussain told PTI. "We conduct workshops and help people in getting trained in genre. We had a workshop in Mumbai and the five people who attended it are already performing at shows," he adds.

These dastangos do not have the luxury of sponsors for their shows, they say adding they do not feel the need for it.

"We perform only when we are invited. We do not feel the need for sponsors. We perform for literary festivals, educational institutions, etc," says Mahmood Farooqui, one of India's leading dastangos.

Farooqui says the audience comprises not only those who understand Urdu but also those who do not.

"When we had our show in

PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

Taking a serious view of the fact that a person in the "rowdy list" was appointed as a district judge, the Supreme Court has directed all High Courts to henceforth ensure that police verification was carried out before making appointments to the judiciary.

A Bench of Justices B S Chauhan and Swatanter Kumar also ruled that it would be mandatory for the High Courts to maintain the annual confidential reports (ACRs) of the judges to ensure transparency and also provide fair treatment to the incumbents.

"It is a matter of concern, as we are of the considered view, that timely action on behalf of the High Court would have avoided this uncalled for litigation as it would have been a matter of great doubt whether the appellant could at all be inducted into the service in face of the admitted position that the name of the appellant was stated to be on rowdy list at the relevant time," the Bench observed.

The apex court passed the judgement while dismissing the appeal of Khazia Mohammed Muzammil who challenged the Karnataka High Court's decision to discharge him from service as he was found "unsuitable" for the post.

Muzammil had joined the Karnataka Higher Judicial Service on May 15, 1996 on probation.

After three years in service, he was discharged for being "unsuitable" for the post. Aggrieved,

ment in all the sensitive areas, a Karnataka Road Transport bus was stoned by the miscreants at Tilakwadi late Saturday evening. However, there was no violence reported till late Sunday evening.

According to sources, fearing arrest, leaders of both Kannada and Marathi factions in the city went underground late Saturday.

As a precautionary measure, the police are hunting for some of the leaders from either side, while no arrests were reported until late Saturday night.

Meanwhile, tension in Belgaum city prevailed throughout the week since the MES rally on July 12 when about 5,000 Marathi-speaking people from Belgaum and neighbouring border areas condemning the Center for its controversial affidavit filed in the Supreme Court earlier.

Tension prevailed in the city, as three MES activists received major injuries during police lathi charge on the occasion.

PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

Climbing up the Bollywood ladder, Actor Omi Vaidya, popularly known as Chatur Ramalingam in '3 Idiots', is changing gears from comedy to romantic to action.

Appreciated for his role in Aamir Khan starrer '3 Idiots', Omi, is leaving no stone unturned to please the audiences and is been choosy in signing films.

"After '3 Idiots' there are lot of expectations from me so I have to work double now at the same time ensure that I am doing good work. Next, I will be seen in romantic and action films. I want to be part of good projects…so I am choosy," Omi told PTI here.

"Life after '3 Idiots' is wonderful. It's great to get that recognition and it gives you great joy when people complement you for your work. Expectations are high so I have to

New York, there were people in the audience who could not understand the language. But they still came and enjoyed it," said Farooqui.

"They later told me how much they wish the language could have been more simpler," added Farooqui. Many famous names are linked with Dasatangoi like that of Bollywood actor Naseeruddin Shah.

"We were very glad that he took such keen interest in this.

We have done some 5-6 shows together. It has been a good experience," says Farooqui. The journey for the revival of these ancient traditions of storytelling is long and hard. "It's still new. Ask me after five years and then I will tell you how far we have come," says Farooqui.

he appealed in the apex court.

However, the apex court after pursuing the records expressed shock at the Karnataka High Court's decision to appoint Muzammil on probation despite his name being in the "rowdy list" of police. It noted that the same High Court had earlier in 2000 refused to delete his name from the list.

According to the police record, Muzammil was General Secretary of an organisation called Majlis-Isa-o-Tanzim and had allegedly harboured criminals involved in serious crimes like murder and communal riots.

There was a specific charge against him for delivering provocative communal speeches, which allegedly contributed to aggravating communal disturbance in Bhatkal in the year 1993.

"Normally, the person, with such antecedents, will hardly be permitted to join service of the Government and, particularly, the post of a judge.

"The High Court on the administrative side also appears to have dealt with the matter in a very casual manner. It was a matter of serious concern for the High Court as he was being appointed as an Additional District and Sessions Judge and would have remained as such for a number of years. It was expected of the Government as well as the High Court to have the character verification report before the appointment letter was issued," the apex court observed.

Transport services suffer huge losses HERALD CORRESPONDENT BELGAUM, JULY 18

The border dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra has caused huge losses to the Maharasthra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) and North West Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) due to suspension of bus services between parts of Karnataka and Maharashtra for the last three days.

Besides facing huge financial losses, a large number of employees are idle without any work. The NWKRTC is yet to workout on the total losses which it is suffering on daily basis due to the suspension of bus service, which is estimated in crores.

The NWKRTC is not in a position to risk the lives of passengers by resuming the bus service as tension continues to prevail in the region around Kolhapur and its adjoining areas in Belgaum district.

Several employees and buses

Omi Vaidya’s next flicks to be action, romance

Kathas and dastangois - the forgotten art of storytelling PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

they (Reddy brothers) are responsible for illegal mining."

Yeddyurappa, who also met senior party leaders L K Advani, Nitin Gadkari and Sushma Swaraj, refused to divulge to the media "whatever suggestions given by them".

Asked if BJP central leaders had asked the Reddy brothers to clear their name in the wake of charges of illegal mining, the Chief Minister said the Reddy brothers were "capable of tackling things themselves".

"The Reddy brothers are going to clarify their stand and how Congress and JD(S) are targetting them unnecessarily without documents or any charges," Yeddyurappa said.

The Bellary mining barons said they would hold a press conference in Bangalore tomorrow when they will respond to the charges against them.

Yeddyurappa said he would write to Karnataka Lok Ayukta Santosh Hegde tomorrow to investigate all cases of illegal mining from 2002-03 till date.

However, he said he could not fix a time frame for the Lok Ayukta to complete his investigations.

The Reddy brothers paid an unscheduled visit to Delhi and met Swaraj, who is considered close to them, and Yeddyurappa, after which Janardhan Reddy dismissed all the charges against them.

The meeting between the

Police verification of judges mandatory: SC

work double to satisfy audience," he said.

The actor has signed two films - Madhur Bhandarkar's 'Dil Toh Bacha Hai Ji' and Abbas-Mustan's remake of the Hollywood film, 'The Italian Job'.

"I am looking forward to these films. It is altogether a different genre," Omi said.

In Madhur's film, Omi will share screen with Ajay Devgn, Emraan Hashmi and in Abbas

Mastan's film he will be starring alongside Abhishek Bachchan and Neil Nitin Mukesh.

On his upcoming films, Omi said, "Madhur's film is about different stages of dating and relationships in the metros and how people cope with love and heartbreaks. About Abbas Mastan's film, I don't have much idea apart from the fact that it is going to be action." Omi, will also been on television as a host of musical show, 'Chote Ustad'.

"The message of this show is interesting. It is not about competing between India and Pakistan. It is bringing them together through children and their songs."

The actor also said, "I enjoy hosting because you get instant gratification. When you look at the audience, they immediately laugh. You don't have to wait for six months for the audience to laugh."

Court grants bail in ragging case PTI DHARAMSALA (HP), JULY 18

A fast track court here granted bail to four accused arrested in connection with the ragging of MBBS student Aman Kachroo who died after being allegedly beaten up by his seniors.

Judge Purinder Vaidya yesterday granted bail to Ajay Verma, Naveen Verma, Abhinav Verma and Mukul Sharma, who were charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder, on bond of Rs 50,000.

The judge said since the statements of the witnesses have been recorded and material evidence taken into account, the accused were given bail. Aman Kachroo (19), a first year MBBS student at Rajindra Prasad Govt

Medical College, Tanda (Kangra), was allegedly thrsahed by his seniors.

of the corporation are already stranded on the other side of the border since July 12 evening, the officials of the Corporation informed, while the service has just begun to limp back to normalcy.

Thousands of people who shuttle between various parts of Maharashtra and Karnataka for jobs are inconvenienced.

Belgaum police department informed that the situation on the border is by and large peaceful and assured that government buses will be given security on the border, if needed.

However, NWKRTC is keeping a tab on the developments and waiting for the situation to turn to normalcy.

Meanwhile on Thursday, Karnataka Rakshna Vedike (KRV) President Narayangouda took part in a protest against the false information being given by Maharashtra government to the Centre on the boundar y dispute between the two states.

Imran to portray role of JNU student leader PTI BHOPAL, JULY 18

Imran Zahid, a 30-year-old youngster who lives in New Delhi is all set to make his debut as a hero in a film on the life and times of Chandrashekhar who was twice president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Students Union.

The budding actor who had come on a short visit to Bhopal told PTI that noted film personality Mahesh Bhatt was the creative consultant for his proposed movie which has been titled "Chandu."

What adds poignancy to the film is the sad and stark fact that Chandrashekhar was murdered on March 31,1997 while he was addressing a gathering at Siwan in Bihar.

The actor said that the film will be directed by Ajay Kanchan and added that it will be released by the middle of the next year.

Imran said that they would try to bring to reel life something what had happened in real life and pointed out that there were many instances like this in the past.

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Pak’s ISI detains doctor for attack on hospital PTI LAHORE, JULY 18

Pakistan’s spy agency ISI has detained a doctor, suspected to have links with the outlawed Jamaat-ud-Dawah, in connection with a terrorist attack on a hospital here nearly two months ago.

A group of terrorists attacked Jinnah Hospital on May 31 to kill or free a militant named Moaz alias Amir Muavia, who was part of a group that attacked two Ahmedi mosques in Lahore. Moaz was captured in an injured condition and was being treated at the hospital.

ISI operatives started monitoring doctors whom they suspected might have facilitated the terrorists who attacked the hospital. Ali Abdullah, the junior doctor detained by the ISI, had gained access to Moaz inside the intensive care unit because of his alleged connections with the Jamaat-ud-Dawah and the Islami Jamiat Tulba, The Express Tribune newspaper quoted its sources as saying.

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33 die in coal mine mishap, shipyard explosion in China PTI BEIJING, JULY 18

At least 33 people, including 28 mine workers, were killed when an electric cable caught fire inside a coal shaft and an explosion rocked a shipyard in two separate incidents in China’s northwest and east.

The underground cable caught fire at 8:10 pm local time last night at Xiaonangou coal mine at Sangshuping Township of Hancheng City, the official Xinhua news agency reported today.

All the 28 people working in the mine in northwest China’s Shaanxi province were killed in the accident, it said.

Rescuers retrieved remains of five miners today, the report said. Mine accidents have become a routine in energy hungry-China due to poor safety standards.

According to official data, a total of 2,631 miners were killed in China last year but independent labour groups say the actual figure could be much higher.

In another incident, five workers were killed in an explosion at a shipyard in east China’s Jiangxi Province yesterday. One worker was still missing.

The accident happened around 2:10 am local time at the Tongfang Jiangxin Shipbuilding Co.

n The underground cable caught fire at 8:10 pm local time last night at Xiaonangou coal mine at Sangshuping Township of Hancheng City, the official Xinhua news agency reported today.

All the 28 people working in the mine in northwest China’s Shaanxi province were killed in the accident, it said. shipyard in Hukou County, local safety authorities said.

The cause of the accident is not yet known, Xinhua reported.

The accident victims were workers from Jingcheng Industrial Co., a subcontractor that paints and decorates ships.

Founded in 1966, the shipyard earlier used to be a state-owned firm under China State Shipbuilding Corporation.

Beijing-based Tsinghua Tongfang became the shipyard’s owner after reforms in 2006.

A car drives past a wave caused by Typhoon Conson in Vietnam's northern Hai Phong city. At least seven people were missing as the typhoon weakened to a tropical storm and made landfall in northern Vietnam after crossing the Chinese island of Hainan where two people died.

Foreign forces to quit Afghanistan by 2014: media PTI LONDON, JULY 18

The US-led international forces fighting in Afghanistan are likely to withdraw from the war-torn nation by 2014 in a phased manner, a British media report said on Sunday.

The phased security transfer of the battle-plagued country to the Afghan National Security Forces will begin this year, a leaked communiqué, circulated ahead of the International Conference on Afghanistan to be held in Kabul on Tuesday, said.

“The international community expressed its support for the President of Afghanistan’s objective that the ANSF should lead and conduct military operations in all provinces by the end of 2014,” it said.

The report based on the communiqué, published in The Independent, reveals that

n The phased security transfer of the battleplagued country to the Afghan National Security Forces will begin this year, a leaked communiqué, circulated ahead of the International Conference on Afghanistan to be held in Kabul on Tuesday, said.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai will announce the timetable for a “conditions-based and phased transition” at the Kabul conference on Tuesday.

The Tuesday meeting, which is likely to draw a roadmap for the way ahead for Kabul, will be attended by the Indian Minister for External Affairs S M Krishna, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, British Foreign Secretary William Hague and foreign ministers from more 70 countries.

An agreed version of the document, marked “not for circulation”, was given to sen-

ior diplomats on Saturday by United Nations Special Representative in Afghanistan Staffan de Mistura.

The statement promises that the countries involved in resurrecting Afghanistan will continue to “provide the support necessary to increase security during this time and the continued support in training, equipping and providing interim financing to the ANSF at every level to take on the task of securing their country”.

The document further says that the Afghan government and the international community “agreed to jointly assess provinces, with

the aim of announcing by the end of 2010 that the process of transition is under way.”

The decision by the international forces was expected as the US has already announced to pullout by the summer 2011 and Hague recently saying that he would be “very surprised” if Afghan forces do not take over security by 2014, while UK Prime Minister David Camero wanting his troops home by 2015.

The document also outlines short-term goals for coalition troops that include combating the opium trade by maintaining the provinces which are free from its cultivation and increasing the number of p o p p y - f re e p ro v i n c e s i n Afghanistan to 24 within 12 months. It also describes lucid elections in future as a matter of paramount importance, the newspaper said.

3 civilians killed in Kabul AP KABUL, JULY 18

A suicide bombing in eastern Kabul killed three civilians today, two days before an international conference that will host representatives from about 60 nations, an Afghan official said.

Police official Abdul Ghafor Sayedzada said the bomber was on foot and his target was unclear. Other officials said earlier that the attacker was on a bicycle.

Hospitals reported three civilians killed, including a child, plus 23 people wounded, public health official Kabir Amiri said.

University student Tamim Ahmad said he saw a man on foot run up to a passing convoy of international troops and detonate an explosives-laden vest. However, Afghan authorities and NATO said no troops were operating in the area.

S Korea sceptic over North’s overtures AFP SEOUL, JULY 18

Newly ordained novices with lotus flowers walk around temple during a Buddhist ordination ceremony at Wat Benchamabophit, also known as the Marble temple, in Bangkok, Thailand, Sunday. Some of the 245 young hill tribe men are being ordained as monks at the temple to mark beginning of the three-month Buddhist Lent or Khao Pansa which this year begins on July 27. In Thailand every Buddhist man is expected to become a monk during some period of his life.

Cheryl Cole is banned from sex AGENCIES LONDON, JULY 18

Malaria-stricken Cheryl Cole has been banned by doctors from having sex. The frail Girls Aloud singer survived a horror spell in intensive care and finally returned to her Surrey home on Wednesday.

Cheryl with her mother Joan Callaghan and dancer friend Derek Hough had a good laugh when she found out that her high blood pressure meant that she had to keep away from alcohol and sex. “Cheryl managed to summon enough energy for a giggle when she was given the news about a sex ban. It's the last thing on her mind right now,” the Sun quoted a source as saying.

“She has also been told to avoid alcohol for the coming weeks,” the source added.

Meanwhile, Black Eyed Peas lead singer Will.I.Am has been sending Cheryl huge bouquets and also been calling Joan and Derek

South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-Hwan on Sunday expressed scepticism about North Korea’s recent overtures to resume stalled six-party talks on its nuclear disarmament. Pyongyang was just trying to deflect away pressure after being blamed by Seoul and its allies for sinking a South Korean warship in March, Yu told state television.

“It is very regrettable that (North Korea) is trying to abuse the six-party talks to make an excuse to shun the global attention to the Cheonan incident,” Yu told KTV. The North said on July 10 that it was willing in principle to return to nuclear disarmament talks after the United Nations failed directly to blame it for the deadly attack on the Cheonan, which left 46 sailors dead.

The talks — grouping the two Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia — have been stalled since North Korea quit them in April 2009.

Britain not to ban Muslims from wearing burqa PTI LONDON, JULY 18

Britain has said that it would not follow France in banning Muslim women from wearing ‘burqa’ in public as such a move would run contrary to the conventions of a “tolerant and respectful society”.

Immigration Minister Damian Green told ‘The Sunday Telegraph’ that the move to ban women from wearing veils would be “rather un-British”, despite a recent opinion poll showing widespread public support for such an action.

Claiming it would be “undesirable” for Parliament to vote on a burqa ban in Britain similar to that approved in France, he said: “Telling people what they can and can’t wear, if they are just walking down the street, is rather un-British thing to do. We’re a tolerant and mutually respectful society.

“There are times, clearly, when you’ve got to be able to identify yourself, and people have got to be able to see your face, but I

US wanted to ‘swap Iranian scientist for hikers’ AFP TEHRAN, JULY 18

An Iranian scientist, who returned home last week charging he had been held by US agents for more than a year, has said that they had pressed him to agree to be exchanged in a “spy” swap for three US hikers in custody in Tehran.

In a lengthy interview aired by state television late on Saturday, Shahram Amiri claimed that the US agents had acknowledged that the three Americans, detained on the Iran-Iraq border in July last year, were indeed “spies”.

Challenged by the interviewer about the agents’ description of the trio, who have consistently maintained that they were on a hiking holiday, Amiri insisted: “That is the term they used.”

Washington has repeatedly called on Tehran to release Shane Bauer, 27, Sarah Shourd, 31, and Josh Fattal, 27, insisting that they were holidaymakers who had innocently strayed across an unmarked border.

US media have questioned whether the three were even

South Africans, world celebrate Mandela Day

AP JOHANNESBURG, JULY 18

to get her health updates.

“Will has been phoning Joan and Derek non-stop to find out how Cheryl is,” said a source. “He’s also sent the most beautiful bunches of

flowers. He's been desperate to see her but she hasn't been up to having visitors. As soon as Joan said she was a lot better, he wasted no time arranging a visit,” the source added.

Thousands of South Africans on Sunday devoted time to helping their fellow citizens in honour of former President and national hero Nelson Mandela’s 92nd birthday as the world celebrated Nelson Mandela International Day on Sunday.

The statesman had appealed for his birthday to be used for good. Scores of businesses and public institutions mobilised their staff to devote at least 67 minutes representing the 67 years Mandela devoted to politics — to a good cause.

According to local media reports, numerous people on Sunday fed street children, repaired decaying infrastructure or dedicated time to other humanitarian deeds. Sunday also marked the 12th anniversary of his marriage to his third wife, Graca Machel.

Former South African President Nelson Mandela with his youngest daughter Zindzi at his home in Johannesburg on Saturday.

A day earlier, 95 children from Mr. Mandela’s birthplace, Mvezo, and the village where he grew up, Qunu, were flown to Johannesburg to celebrate with him.

Mandela has curtailed his public appearances due to his

think it’s very unlikely and it would be undesirable for the British Parliament to try and pass a law dictating what people wore.

“Very few women in France actually wear the burqa. They (the French parliament) are doing it for demonstration effects. The French political culture is very different. They are an aggressively secular state. They can ban the burqa; they ban crucifixes in schools and things like that.

“We have schools run explicitly by religions.

I think there’s absolutely no read-across to immigration policy from what the French are doing about the burqa.”

The Minister’s comments will dismay the growing number of British supporters of such a ban — a ‘YouGov’ survey found last week that 67 per cent of respondents wanted the wearing of full-face veils to be made illegal.

His comments also came after the new head of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) told the newspaper that the UK was the most welcoming country in Europe for Muslims.

health. He did, however, attend part of the World Cup’s closing ceremony on July 11, where a star-struck crowd of more than 84,000 spectators cheered him as he was driven around the pitch in a golf cart with Ms. Machel.

in Iranian territory at the time of their arrest.

Iranian officials have raised the possibility of trying the trio for espionage, but no official charges have been announced, and the affair has become an added irritant to already tense US-Iranian relations.

Amiri returned to Tehran on Thursday just over a year after he mysteriously disappeared from the Saudi city of Medina while on a pilgrimage.

He had resurfaced at the Iranian interests section in the Pakistani embassy in Washington maintaining that he had been kidnapped by US agents and held against his will.

Amiri said in the interview that the “spy swap” offer emerged after US agents holding him discovered he had been in touch with Iranian

agents while in the United States.

“They (US agents) wanted me to say that ‘I was an Iranian intelligence agent infiltrating the CIA’”, Amiri said.

“If I said this, they said I could be part of a spy exchange programme, whereby I could be handed over to Iran in return for the three American spies arrested near the Iraqi border.”

In previous inter views Amiri has said he was kidnapped at gunpoint by two Farsi speaking agents of the US Central Intelligence Agency in Medina.

US officials have repeatedly denied that Amiri was abducted, insisting he was in the United States of his own free will while acknowledging that Washington “had been in contact with him” during his stay.

OHERALDO

Biz12_SUNDAY-Pg-12 7/18/2010 6:20 PM Page 1

BIZ

Pg12

GOA, MONDAY, 19 JULY, 2010

Lord Paul recalls how he made it big in UK

PTI LONDON, JULY 18

Forty-four years after he came to Britain, NRI industrialist Lord Swraj Paul has recalled how he broke the jealously guarded old boy's network to become one of the leading businessmen in this country.

Lord Paul, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Lords, the upper house of the British Parliament, reminisced his experience as a struggling industrialist in Britain in late 1960s and the difficulties he had to overcome in getting a firm foothold in the British industry.

Asked how difficult it was for him to deal with the protectionist environment, he said that initially it was not easy but finally what mattered was perseverance and skill.

In an interview to arabicknowledge@wharton, the

Mutual Fund Scheme Name A

journal of the Wharton Business School, Lord Paul recounted an episode on how he was made to wait for over two years for an order from a British company which he eventually bought over.

"I chased one company for two years for an order. Every

Key to abbreviations: R Price: Repurchase Price; S Price: Sale Price; (D): Dividend; (G): Growth NAVs (Rs)

A

AIG India Equity Fund - Regular Plan (D) India Equity Fund - Regular Plan (G) Infrastructure and Economic Reform - Regular (D) Infrastructure and Economic Reform - Regular (G) Axis Equity Fund (D) Equity Fund (G) Tax Saver Fund (D) Tax Saver Fund (G)

12.34 12.34 9.42 9.42 10.97 10.97 11.64 11.64

B

Baroda Pioneer ELSS 96 25.28 Growth Fund (D) 28.74 Growth Fund (G) 51.02 Infrastructure Fund (D) 10.08 Infrastructure Fund (G) 10.08 Bharti AXA Equity Fund - Eco Plan (Bonus) 17.67 'Equity Fund - Eco Plan (D) 12.43 Equity Fund - Eco Plan (G) 17.67 Equity Fund - Eco Plan (QD) 13.58 Equity Fund - Retail Plan (Bonus) 17.59 Equity Fund - Retail Plan (D) 12.39 Equity Fund - Retail Plan (G) 17.59 Equity Fund - Retail Plan (QD) 13.52 Focused Infrastructure Fund (D) 10.56 Focused Infrastructure Fund (G) 10.56 Focused Infrastructure Fund (QD) 10.56 Tax Advantage Fund - Eco Plan (D) 12.41 Tax Advantage Fund - Eco Plan (G) 22.79 Tax Advantage Fund - Retail Plan (D) 12.39 Tax Advantage Fund - Retail Plan (G) 22.72 Birla Sun Life Advantage Fund (D) 93.09 Advantage Fund (G) 159.06 Commodity Equities - Global Agri Plan - Retail (D) 13.66 Commodity Equities - Global Agri Plan - Retail (G) 13.66 Commodity Equities - Global Commodity - RP (D) 11.60 Commodity Equities - Global Commodity - RP (G) 11.60 Commodity Equities - Global Metals -RP (D) 12.54 Commodity Equities - Global Metals Plan -RP (G) 12.54 Dividend Yield Plus (D) 14.62 Dividend Yield Plus (G) 81.79 Equity Fund (D) 74.55 Equity Fund (G) 265.13 Frontline Equity Fund - Plan A (D) 22.72 Frontline Equity Fund - Plan A (G) 84.28 Frontline Equity Fund - Plan B (D) 12.74 Frontline Equity Fund - Plan B (G) 12.74 India GenNext Fund (D) 14.97 India GenNext Fund (G) 23.03 India Opportunities Fund - Plan A (D) 19.51 India Opportunities Fund - Plan B (G) 53.56 India Reforms Fund (D) 10.42 India Reforms Fund (G) 10.42 Infrastructure Fund - Plan A (D) 12.87 Infrastructure Fund - Plan A (G) 17.53 Infrastructure Fund - Plan B (D) 12.58 Infrastructure Fund - Plan B (G) 13.11 International Equity Fund - Plan A (D) 8.31 International Equity Fund - Plan A (G) 8.31 International Equity Fund - Plan B (D) 9.03 International Equity Fund - Plan B (G) 9.03 Long Term Advantage Fund (D) 12.96 Long Term Advantage Fund (G) 14.03 Long Term Advantage Fund - Series 1(D) 12.66 Long Term Advantage Fund - Series 1(G) 12.66 Midcap Fund - Plan A (D) 26.01 Midcap Fund - Plan A (G) 110.88 Midcap Fund - Plan B (D) 14.00 Midcap Fund - Plan B (G) 14.00 MNC Fund (D) 85.91 MNC Fund (G) 199.63 New Millennium (D) 13.66 New Millennium (G) 19.66 Pure Value Fund (D) 16.15 Pure Value Fund (G) 17.23 Special Situations Fund (D) 10.02 Special Situations Fund (G) 10.02 Tax Plan (D) 46.20 Tax Plan (G) 13.17 Tax Relief 96 (D) 85.52 Tax Relief 96 (G) 11.54 Top 100 Fund (D) 14.84 Top 100 Fund (G) 21.38

C

Canara Robeco Emerging Equities (Bonus) Emerging Equities (D) Emerging Equities (G) Equity Diversified (Bonus) Equity Diversified (D) Equity Diversified (G) Equity Tax Saver (D) Equity Tax Saver (G) F.O.R.C.E Fund - Retail Plan (D) F.O.R.C.E Fund - Retail Plan (G) Infrastructure (D)

year, they promised me (business).

Even then, I used to sit on the bench, not even a comfortable chair, waiting for an appointment, and they purposely made me wait," he said.

"As luck would have it, two years later, I ended up acquiring the group that owned that company.

When I went to visit the (managing director), he said to me, 'I know we thoroughly misbehaved. If you want me to resign, I'll do so'," the 79-year-old British peer recalled.

"I said, 'No, you stay right

18.60 15.34 22.23 24.40 24.36 53.57 20.79 25.25 12.89 12.89 17.90

Infrastructure (G) Multicap (D) Multicap (G)

22.47 14.25 15.36

D

DWS Alpha Equity Fund - Regular Plan (D) Alpha Equity Fund - Regular Plan (G) Alpha Equity Fund - Wealth Plan (D) Alpha Equity Fund - Wealth Plan (G) Investment Opportunity Fund - Regular Plan (D) Investment Opportunity Fund - Regular Plan (G) Investment Opportunity Fund - Wealth Plan (D) Investment Opportunity Fund - Wealth Plan (G) Tax Saving Fund (D) Tax Saving Fund (G) DSP BlackRock Equity Fund - Regular Plan (D) Equity Fund - Regular Plan (G) Focus 25 Fund (D) Focus 25 Fund (G) India T.I.G.E.R. Fund - Regular Plan (D) India T.I.G.E.R. Fund - Regular Plan (G) Micro Cap Fund - Regular Plan (G) Natural Resources and New Energy - Regular (D) Natural Resources and New Energy - Regular (G) Opportunities Fund - Regular Plan (D) Opportunities Fund - Regular Plan (G) Small and Mid Cap Fund (D) Small and Mid Cap Fund (G) Tax Saver Fund (D) Tax Saver Fund (G) Technology.Com - Regular Plan (D) Technology.Com - Regular Plan (G) Top 100 Equity Fund - Regular Plan (D) Top 100 Equity Fund - Regular Plan (G)

16.65 76.50 13.32 15.93 26.30 37.96 13.14 17.19 12.97 13.87 50.32 15.92 10.47 10.47 19.54 47.92 16.43 13.78 13.78 29.14 83.59 15.84 17.27 12.67 17.02 24.61 33.70 21.40 95.20

E

Edelweiss Absolute Return Equity Fund (D) Absolute Return Equity Fund (G) Diversified Growth Equity Fund - Plan A (D) Diversified Growth Equity Fund - Plan A (G) Diversified Growth Equity Fund - Plan B (D) Diversified Growth Equity Fund - Plan B (G) Diversified Growth Equity Fund - Plan C (D) Diversified Growth Equity Fund - Plan C (G) ELSS Fund (D) ELSS Fund (G) Nifty Enhancer Fund - Plan A (D) Nifty Enhancer Fund - Plan A (G) Nifty Enhancer Fund - plan B (D) Nifty Enhancer Fund - Plan B (G) Nifty Enhancer Fund - Plan C (D) Escorts Growth Plan (D) Growth Plan (G) High Yield Equity Plan (Bonus) High Yield Equity Plan (D) High Yield Equity Plan (G) Infrastructure Fund (D) Infrastructure Fund (G) Leading Sectors Fund (D) Leading Sectors Fund (G) Power and Energy Fund (D) Power and Energy Fund (G) Tax Plan (D) Tax Plan (G)

10.87 10.87 13.59 13.59 13.63 13.64 13.67 13.67 18.85 18.85 11.15 12.23 12.14 12.14 10.82 12.82 77.49 13.58 11.93 13.55 8.93 8.92 11.38 11.38 14.23 17.74 11.69 49.84

F

Fidelity Equity Fund (D) Equity Fund (G) India Growth Fund (D) India Growth Fund (G) India Special Situations Fund (D) India Special Situations Fund (G) India Value Fund (D) India Value Fund (G) International Opportunities Fund (D) International Opportunities Fund (G) Tax Advantage Fund (D) Tax Advantage Fund (G) Fortis China-India Fund (D) China-India Fund (G) Dividend Yield Fund (D) Dividend Yield Fund (G) Equity Fund (D) Equity Fund (G) Future Leaders Fund (D) Future Leaders Fund (G) Opportunities Fund (D) Opportunities Fund (G) Sustainable Development Fund (D) Sustainable Development Fund (G) Tax Advantage Plan (ELSS) (D) Tax Advantage Plan (ELSS) (G) Franklin Asian Equity Fund (D) Asian Equity Fund (G) Build India Fund (D) Build India Fund (G) FMCG Fund (D)

21.52 34.00 11.75 11.75 16.23 17.90 11.00 11.00 12.80 12.80 18.91 21.07 8.63 8.63 12.02 17.28 10.91 32.26 9.53 9.57 9.93 19.09 11.44 12.57 11.00 13.81 10.06 10.06 12.14 12.14 39.33

there .... (But) as long as you're working in my group, don't be so ridiculous to anybody.' He turned out to be a very good manager," he said.

In Britain since 1966, Lord Paul recalled how British industrialists, who were not doing too well at the time, looked at him with scepticism when he broached his idea of setting up a small steel plant.

"But I found (what) was lacking in Britain in industry at that time: A consistency in quality and on-time delivery.

"I saw the gap and said, 'I am going to make sure that I deliver something that is consistent with what I promised. I don't want to build a Rolls Royce, but whatever I want to build, it must be consistent.'

Second, on-time delivery was rare," Lord Paul, the first Asian to be appointed Deputy

FMCG Fund (G) India Bluechip Fund (D) India Bluechip Fund (G) India Flexi Cap Fund (D) India Flexi Cap Fund (G) India High Growth Companies Fund (D) India High Growth Companies Fund (G) India Opportunities Fund (D) India Opportunities Fund (G) India Prima Fund (D) India Prima Fund (G) India Prima Plus Fund (D) India Prima Plus Fund (G) India Smaller Companies Fund (D) India Smaller Companies Fund (G) India Tax Shield (D) India Tax Shield (G) Infotech Fund (D) Infotech Fund (G) Pharma Fund (D) Pharma Fund (G) Templeton India Equity Income Fund (D) Templeton India Equity Income Fund (G) Templeton India Growth Fund (D) Templeton India Growth Fund (G)

62.66 40.16 200.62 15.57 30.74 12.52 12.52 14.64 30.46 42.65 273.71 27.82 207.21 13.30 14.36 31.95 194.37 19.75 58.03 31.46 59.45 14.39 18.53 54.25 115.33

H

HDFC Capital Builder Fund (D) Capital Builder Fund (G) Core & Satellite Fund (D) Core & Satellite Fund (G) Equity Fund (D) Equity Fund (G) Growth Fund (D) Growth Fund (G) Infrastructure Fund (D) Infrastructure Fund (G) Long Term Advantage Fund (D) Long Term Advantage Fund (G) Long Term Equity Fund (D) Long Term Equity Fund (G) Mid-Cap Opportunities Fund (D) Mid-Cap Opportunities Fund (G) Premier Multi-Cap Fund (D) Premier Multi-Cap Fund (G) Tax Saver (D) Tax Saver (G) Top 200 Fund (D) Top 200 Fund (G) HSBC Dynamic Fund (D) Dynamic Fund (G) Emerging Markets Fund (D) Emerging Markets Fund (G) Equity Fund (D) Equity Fund (G) India Opportunities Fund (D) India Opportunities Fund (G) Midcap Equity Fund (D) Midcap Equity Fund (G) Progressive Themes Fund (D) Progressive Themes Fund (G) Tax Saver Equity Fund (D) Tax Saver Equity Fund (G) Unique Opportunities Fund (D) Unique Opportunities Fund (G)

25.80 106.49 22.10 38.87 47.82 260.20 32.30 82.48 12.15 12.15 37.90 129.48 12.77 15.43 14.74 14.74 16.01 28.24 62.96 224.10 46.89 198.39 9.88 9.88 8.94 8.94 26.85 99.46 16.66 33.42 14.25 23.21 11.59 13.62 13.34 14.47 10.60 10.60

I

ICICI Pru Banking & Financial Services - Retail Plan (D) Banking & Financial Services - Retail Plan (G) Discovery Fund (D) Discovery Fund (G) Dynamic Plan (D) Dynamic Plan (G) Emerging S.T.A.R. Fund (D) Emerging S.T.A.R. Fund (G) Equity Opportunities Fund (D) Equity Opportunities Fund (G) FMCG Fund (D) FMCG Fund (G) Focused Bluechip Equity Fund (D) Focused Bluechip Equity Fund (G) Fusion Fund (D) Fusion Fund (G) Fusion Fund Series - III Retail Plan (D) Fusion Fund Series - III Retail Plan (G) Growth Plan (D) Growth Plan (G) Indo Asia Equity Fund - Retail Plan (D) Indo Asia Equity Fund - Retail Plan (G) Infrastructure Fund - Retail Plan (D) Infrastructure Fund - Retail Plan (G) Power (D) Power (G) Services Industries Fund (D) Services Industries Fund (G) Target Returns Fund - Retail Plan (D) Target Returns Fund - Retail Plan (G) Tax Plan (D) Tax Plan (G) Technology Fund (D) Technology Fund (G) R.I.G.H.T. Fund (D) R.I.G.H.T. Fund (G) IDFC Classic Equity Fund - Plan A (D) Classic Equity Fund - Plan A (G) Enterprise Equity Fund - Plan A (D)

16.73 16.73 20.32 46.89 19.02 100.92 17.25 34.65 11.96 12.82 35.11 61.40 15.01 15.01 13.72 14.56 12.50 12.50 18.29 127.81 9.94 9.94 12.41 29.58 17.05 108.87 12.88 17.13 13.29 13.29 20.17 135.29 15.91 15.91 11.72 11.72 14.89 20.57 12.57

Speaker of the House of Lords, said.

The founder of the one billion-euro Caparo Group recounted his initial days when he told his customer to try him out as a second source.

"Why don't you try me as a second source? You give them 90 per cent of your order; all I am looking for is 10 per cent," Lord Paul remembered.

"Once you are able to step in, performance matters," he pointed out.

Lord Paul, who had made takeover bids on Escorts and DCM in the 1980s, said that he also deserves credit for forcing the Indian economy to change.

"Nobody should get the credit for forcing India's economy to change except Swraj Paul (alluding to his acquisitions in the 1980s). But Indians are very poor at giving credit.

Enterprise Equity Fund - Plan A (G) Enterprise Equity Fund - Plan B (D) Enterprise Equity Fund - Plan B (G) Imperial Equity Fund - Plan A (D) Imperial Equity Fund - Plan A (G) India GDP Growth Fund (D) India GDP Growth Fund (G) Premier Equity Fund - Plan A (D) Premier Equity Fund - Plan A (G) Small & Midcap Equity Fund (D) Small & Midcap Equity Fund (G) Strategic Sector (50-50) Equity Fund - Plan A (D) Strategic Sector (50-50) Equity Fund - Plan A (G) Tax Advantage (ELSS) Fund (D) Tax Advantage (ELSS) Fund (G) Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund (D) Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund (G) ING C.U.B. Fund (Bonus) C.U.B. Fund (D) C.U.B. Fund (G) Contra Fund (B) Contra Fund (D) Contra Fund (G) Core Equity Fund (D) Core Equity Fund (G) Dividend Yield Fund (D) Dividend Yield Fund (G) Domestic Opportunities Fund (D) Domestic Opportunities Fund (G) Midcap Fund (D) Midcap Fund (G) OptiMix Multi Manager Equity Fund - Plan A (D) OptiMix Multi Manager Equity Fund - Plan A (G) OptiMix Multi Manager Equity Fund - Plan B (G) OptiMix Retireinvest Fund - Series I (D) OptiMix Retireinvest Fund - Series I (G) Tax Saving Fund (Bonus) Tax Saving Fund (D) Tax Saving Fund (G)

15.32 10.57 12.59 15.45 18.69 13.95 16.15 25.05 30.92 14.82 17.96 13.67 13.82 15.38 19.21 14.29 14.29 17.38 12.69 17.38 16.35 13.95 16.35 19.46 36.77 20.45 22.50 13.84 36.67 16.99 21.39 10.81 10.81 11.03 12.32 12.32 28.61 14.09 28.57

J

JM Agri & Infra Fund (D) Agri & Infra Fund (G) Basic Fund (D) Basic Fund (G) Contra Fund (D) Contra Fund (G) Emerging Leaders Fund (D) Emerging Leaders Fund (G) Equity Fund (D) Equity Fund (G) Financial Services Sector Fund (D) Financial Services Sector Fund (G) HI FI Fund (D) HI FI Fund (G) Large Cap Fund (D) Large Cap Fund (G) Mid Cap Fund (D) Mid Cap Fund (G) Multi Strategy Fund (D) Multi Strategy Fund (G) Small & Mid-Cap Fund - Regular Plan (D) Small & Mid-Cap Fund - Regular Plan (G) Tax Gain Fund (D) Tax Gain Fund (G) Telecom Sector Fund (D) Telecom Sector Fund (G) JP Morgan India Tax Advantage Fund (D) Tax Advantage Fund (G) JPMorgan India Equity Fund (D) JPMorgan India Equity Fund (G) JPMorgan India Smaller Companies Fund (D) JPMorgan India Smaller Companies Fund (G)

3.06 3.06 12.56 17.98 5.86 5.86 8.65 8.63 15.03 36.91 9.88 9.88 5.95 5.95 13.71 18.65 18.37 26.82 14.05 15.11 6.13 6.13 7.63 7.63 8.01 8.01 14.24 17.58 11.84 12.75 7.71 7.71

K

Kotak 30 (D) 30 (G) Contra (D) Contra (G) Emerging Equity Scheme (D) Emerging Equity Scheme (G) Global Emerging Market Fund (D) Global Emerging Market Fund (G) Indo World Infrastructure Fund (D) Indo World Infrastructure Fund (G) Lifestyle Fund (D) Lifestyle Fund (G) Midcap Fund (D) Midcap Fund (G) Opportunities Fund (D) Opportunities Fund (G) Select Focus Fund (D) Select Focus Fund (G) Tax Saver (D) Tax Saver (G)

31.60 100.19 18.99 21.69 12.12 12.12 8.83 8.83 7.31 7.31 11.31 13.06 17.62 25.33 14.63 45.23 11.47 11.47 11.09 18.12

L

L&T Contra Fund (D) Contra Fund (G) Global Advantage Fund (D) Global Advantage Fund (G) Growth Fund (D) Growth Fund (G) Hedged Equity Fund (D) Hedged Equity Fund (G)

10.36 10.36 7.25 10.45 17.48 37.00 9.56 13.47

They only know how to praise the government in power irrespective of the power, irrespective of the government. They will only give credit to them," he said.

Lord Paul, who had maintained that there was no transparency about the way Indian corporates were run, said that things have improved and he too had a role in bringing about the change.

"India is still not as transparent as one would like it to be, but it is certainly far more transparent now and I do think I deserve some credit for that," he added.

The founder of steel-to-hotels conglomerate said he bought shares of Escorts and DCM when he found that Rajan Nanda (of Escorts) and Bharat Ram (of DCM) went "around the world asking people to in-

Infrastructure Fund (D) Infrastructure Fund (G) Midcap Fund (D) Midcap Fund (G) Multi-Cap Fund (D) Multi-Cap Fund (G) Opportunities Fund (D) Opportunities Fund (G) Small Cap Fund (D) Small Cap Fund (G) Tax Advantage Fund - Series I (D) Tax Advantage Fund - Series I (G) Tax Saver Fund (D) Tax Saver Fund (G) LIC Infrastructure Fund Series 1 (D) Infrastructure Fund Series 1 (G) MF Equity Fund (D) MF Equity Fund (G) MF Growth Fund (D) MF Growth Fund (G) MF India Vision Fund (D) MF India Vision Fund (G) MF Opportunities Fund (D) MF Opportunities Fund (G) MF Tax Plan (D) MF Tax Plan (G) MF Top 100 Fund (D) MF Top 100 Fund (G)

7.75 7.75 22.93 39.74 14.90 18.69 19.30 44.06 6.00 6.00 15.74 21.42 14.57 15.68 9.59 9.59 10.24 25.99 11.19 12.62 8.93 8.93 10.32 18.13 10.22 28.54 8.25 8.25

M

Mirae Asset Emerging Bluechip Fund (D) Emerging Bluechip Fund (G) Global Commodity Stock Fund - Regular Plan (D) Global Commodity Stock Fund - Regular Plan (G) India Opportunities Fund - Regular Plan (D) India Opportunities Fund - Regular Plan (G) Morgan Stanley A.C.E. Fund (Across Capitalisations Equity) (D) A.C.E. Fund (Across Capitalisations Equity) (G) Growth Fund (D) Growth Fund (G)

10.19 10.19 10.89 10.89 14.26 15.37 14.59 14.59 20.13 61.78

P

Principal Dividend Yield Fund (D) Dividend Yield Fund (G) Emerging Bluechip Fund (D) Emerging Bluechip Fund (G) Global Opportunities Fund (D) Global Opportunities Fund (G) Growth Fund (D) Growth Fund (G) Large Cap Fund (D) Large Cap Fund (G) Personal Tax Saver Fund PNB Long Term Equity Fund - 3 yrs - Series 1 (D) PNB Long Term Equity Fund - 3 yrs - Series 1 (G) PNB Long Term Equity Fund - 3 yrs - Series II (D) PNB Long Term Equity Fund - 3 yrs - Series II (G) Resurgent India Equity Fund (D) Resurgent India Equity Fund (G) Services Industries Fund (D) Services Industries Fund (G) Tax Savings Fund

16.64 22.55 24.58 31.06 15.72 15.72 23.90 52.74 18.98 27.70 95.85 11.66 11.66 11.92 11.92 12.78 89.95 12.73 14.36 76.19

Q

Quantum Long-Term Equity Fund (D) Long-Term Equity Fund (G) Tax Saving Fund (D) Tax Saving Fund (G)

R

21.04 20.87 20.85 20.86

Reliance Banking Fund (Bonus) 92.67 Banking Fund (D) 36.98 Banking Fund (G) 92.67 Diversified Power Sector Fund - Retail (Bonus) 83.07 Diversified Power Sector Fund - Retail Plan (D) 49.03 Diversified Power Sector Fund - Retail Plan (G) 83.07 Equity Advantage Fund - Retail Plan (B) 12.49 Equity Advantage Fund - Retail Plan (D) 12.49 Equity Advantage Fund - Retail Plan (G) 12.49 Equity Fund - Retail Plan (Bonus) 15.21 Equity Fund - Retail Plan (D) 15.21 Equity Fund - Retail Plan (G) 15.21 Equity Linked Saving Fund - Series I (D) 14.71 Equity Linked Saving Fund - Series I (G) 14.71 Equity Opportunities Fund - Retail Plan (Bonus) 34.65 Equity Opportunities Fund - Retail Plan (D) 24.47 Equity Opportunities Fund - Retail Plan (G) 34.65 Growth Fund - Retail Plan (Bonus) 77.96 Growth Fund - Retail Plan (D) 57.61 Growth Fund - Retail Plan (G) 469.97 Infrastructure Fund - Retail Plan (Bonus) 11.62 Infrastructure Fund - Retail Plan (D) 11.62 Infrastructure Fund - Retail Plan (G) 11.62 Long Term Equity Fund (D) 15.71 Long Term Equity Fund (G) 15.71 Media & Entertainment Fund (Bonus) 28.71 Media & Entertainment Fund (D) 20.64 Media & Entertainment Fund (G) 28.71 Natural Resources Fund (Bonus) 9.89 Natural Resources Fund (D) 9.89 Natural Resources Fund (G) 9.89 NRI Equity Fund (Bonus) 38.14 NRI Equity Fund (D) 22.69

BOARD MEETINGS

vest in their companies".

Nanda had less than 5 per cent of Escorts and Ram less than 10 per cent in DCM. "I ended up buying 7.5 per cent of Escorts and 13 per cent of DCM, so I held more shares than them".

Lord Paul could not gain control of the Escorts and DCM in the 1980s but brought about takeover battles in the Indian industry.

He said his takeover attempt on the two Indian companies revealed abuse of balancesheets by the promoters.

"If you studied their balance sheets, there was so much of abuse the promoters felt threatened and tried to stop me," Paul recalled and added that they even went to the Prime Minister and "to other politicians etc and I ended up losing money."

NRI Equity Fund (G) Pharma Fund (Bonus) Pharma Fund (D) Pharma Fund (G) Quant Plus Fund - Retail Plan (B) Quant Plus Fund - Retail Plan (D) Quant Plus Fund - Retail Plan (G) Regular Savings Fund - Equity Option (D) Regular Savings Fund - Equity Option (G) Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund (D) Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund (G) Vision Fund - Retail Plan (Bonus) Vision Fund - Retail Plan (D) Vision Fund - Retail Plan (G) Religare AGILE Fund (D) AGILE Fund (G) AGILE Tax Fund (D) AGILE Tax Fund (G) Banking Fund - Regular Plan (D) Banking Fund - Regular Plan (G) Business Leaders Fund (D) Business Leaders Fund (G) Contra Fund (D) Contra Fund (G) Equity Fund (D) Equity Fund (G) Growth Fund (D) Growth Fund (G) Infrastructure Fund (D) Infrastructure Fund (G) Mid Cap Fund (D) Mid Cap Fund (G) Mid N Small Cap Fund (D) Mid N Small Cap Fund (G) PSU Equity Fund (D) PSU Equity Fund (G) Tax Plan (D) Tax Plan (G)

38.14 53.79 40.12 53.79 12.44 12.44 12.44 23.62 30.30 16.09 20.64 45.61 44.30 271.56 5.98 5.97 6.83 6.83 14.38 18.55 11.98 11.98 12.44 16.09 12.34 12.34 12.18 12.18 8.57 8.56 13.84 13.84 13.68 13.68 10.94 10.94 14.07 16.99

S

Sahara Banking and Financial Services Fund (D) Banking and Financial Services Fund (G) Growth Fund (D) Growth Fund (G) Infrastructure - Fixed Pricing Option (D) Infrastructure - Fixed Pricing Option (G) Infrastructure -Variable Pricing Option (D) Infrastructure -Variable Pricing Option (G) Midcap Fund (Bonus) Midcap Fund (D) Midcap Fund (G) Midcap Fund (Growth Auto Payout) Power & Natural Resources Fund (D) Power & Natural Resources Fund (G) Star Value Fund (D) Star Value Fund (G) Super 20 Fund (D) Super 20 Fund (G) Tax Gain (D) Tax Gain (G) Wealth Plus - Variable Pricing Option (D) Wealth Plus - Variable Pricing Option (G) Wealth Plus Fund - Fixed Pricing Option (D) Wealth Plus Fund - Fixed Pricing Option (G) SBI Blue Chip Fund (D) Blue Chip Fund (G) Infrastructure Fund - Series I (D) Infrastructure Fund - Series I (G) Magnum Comma Fund (D) Magnum Comma Fund (G) Magnum Contra Fund (D) Magnum Contra Fund (G) Magnum Emerging Businesses Fund (D) Magnum Emerging Businesses Fund (G) Magnum Equity Fund (D) Magnum Equity Fund (G) Magnum FMCG Fund Magnum Global Fund (D) Magnum Global Fund (G) Magnum IT Fund Magnum Midcap Fund (D) Magnum Midcap Fund (G) Magnum Multicap Fund (D) Magnum Multicap Fund (G) Magnum Multiplier Plus (D) Magnum Multiplier Plus (G) Magnum NRI - Flexiasset Plan (D) Magnum NRI - Flexiasset Plan (G) Magnum Pharma Fund (D) Magnum Pharma Fund (G) Magnum Tax Gain Scheme (D) Magnum Tax Gain Scheme (G) One India Fund (D) One India Fund (G) PSU Fund (D) PSU Fund (G) Shinsei Industry Leaders Fund (D) Industry Leaders Fund (G) Sundaram BNP Paribas Capex Opportunities Fund (D) Capex Opportunities Fund (G) Equity Multiplier Fund (D) Equity Multiplier Fund (G) Financial Services Opportunities - Retail Plan (D) Financial Services Opportunities - Retail Plan (G) Growth Fund - Regular Plan (D) Growth Fund - Regular Plan (G)

18.06 28.54 29.69 79.19 12.54 17.15 12.99 17.68 31.01 16.59 31.01 31.01 13.43 13.43 12.32 12.33 11.19 11.19 16.20 36.35 21.25 21.25 20.54 20.54 12.66 14.52 10.38 10.38 16.21 24.00 26.38 57.49 16.91 38.12 31.72 42.04 27.10 30.74 54.98 21.22 17.59 22.94 13.80 18.16 58.40 82.25 28.27 28.17 34.77 42.07 41.09 60.27 11.15 11.15 10.01 10.01 11.03 11.03 13.48 25.60 11.39 13.96 14.61 18.38 12.00 89.86

Atul Everonn Aventis Pharma Excel Inds Sesa Goa Balaji Tele HDFC Bank Shree Ram Mills Bayer Crop Indowind Ener SIL Investments Biopac India Jindal Saw Container Corp Sterling Tools Crompton Greav Mindtree Sunflag Iron Triveni Engr PTC India Whirlpool Escorts Zylog Systems ETC Networks Source: Indiainfoline.com

India Leadership Fund - Regular Plan (D) India Leadership Fund - Regular Plan (G) Media & Entertainment Opportunities - Retail (D) Media & Entertainment Opportunities - Retail (G) PSU Opportunities Fund (D) PSU Opportunities Fund (G) Rural India Fund (D) Rural India Fund (G) S.M.I.L.E Fund - Regular Plan (D) S.M.I.L.E Fund - Regular Plan (G) Select Focus - Retail Plan (D) Select Focus - Retail Plan (G) Select Midcap - Regular Plan (D) Select Midcap - Regular Plan (G) Select Small Cap Fund (D) Select Small Cap Fund (G) Select Thematic Energy Opportunities Funds (D) Select Thematic Energy Opportunities Funds (G) Tax Saver (OE) (D) Tax Saver (OE) (G)

12.36 40.30 12.03 15.24 10.61 10.61 13.34 14.65 13.09 33.67 11.24 86.79 18.43 147.50 13.22 13.22 8.44 8.44 11.63 43.40

T

Tata Capital Builder Fund (D) Capital Builder Fund (G) Contra Fund (D) Contra Fund (G) Dividend Yield Fund (D) Dividend Yield Fund (G) Equity Management Fund (D) Equity Management Fund (G) Equity Opportunities Fund - Plan A (D) Equity Opportunities Fund - Plan B (G) Equity P/E Fund (G) Equity P/E Fund - Trigger Option A 5% (D) Equity P/E Fund - Trigger Option B 10% (D) Growing Economies Infrastructure - Plan A (D) Growing Economies Infrastructure - Plan A (G) Growing Economies Infrastructure - Plan B (D) Growing Economies Infrastructure - Plan B (G) Growth Fund (Bonus) Growth Fund (D) Growth Fund (G) Infrastructure Fund (D) Infrastructure Fund (G) Infrastructure Tax Saving Fund (D) Infrastructure Tax Saving Fund (G) Life Sciences & Technology Fund (D) Life Sciences & Technology Fund (G) Mid Cap Fund (D) Mid Cap Fund (G) Pure Equity Fund (D) Pure Equity Fund (G) Select Equity Fund (D) Select Equity Fund (G) Service Industries Fund (D) Service Industries Fund (G) Tax Advantage Fund - 1 (D) Tax Advantage Fund - 1 (G) Tax Saving Fund Taurus Bonanza Fund (D) Bonanza Fund (G) Discovery Fund (D) Discovery Fund (G) Ethical Fund (Bonus) Ethical Fund (D) Ethical Fund (G) Infrastructure Fund (D) Infrastructure Fund (G) Star Share (D) Star Share (G) Tax Shield (D) Tax Shield (G)

14.38 15.41 14.82 16.85 22.40 31.47 13.63 14.69 22.28 81.51 46.36 40.63 41.08 11.17 11.17 11.96 11.96 40.65 17.90 44.74 22.78 34.60 17.32 17.32 36.32 68.20 17.03 18.09 36.50 97.02 45.13 62.91 20.13 25.09 15.44 15.44 44.23 41.73 41.46 15.93 15.91 23.29 17.46 23.30 14.64 14.60 38.50 54.68 20.35 34.32

U

UTI Banking Sector Fund (D) Banking Sector Fund (G) Contra Fund (D) Contra Fund (G) Dividend Yield Fund (D) Dividend Yield Fund (G) Energy Fund (D) Energy Fund (G) Equity Fund (D) Equity Fund (G) Equity Tax Savings Plan (D) Equity Tax Savings Plan (G) India Lifestyle Fund(D) India Lifestyle Fund(G) Infrastructure Advantage Fund - Series I (D) Infrastructure Advantage Fund - Series I (G) Infrastructure Fund (D) Infrastructure Fund (G) Leadership Equity Fund (D) Leadership Equity Fund (G) Long Term Advantage Fund (D) Long Term Advantage Fund (G) Long Term Advantage Fund - Series II (D) Long Term Advantage Fund - Series II (G) Master Equity Plan Unit Scheme Master Plus Unit Scheme (D) Master Plus Unit Scheme (G) Master Value Fund (D) Master Value Fund (G) Mastershare (D) Mastershare (G) Mid Cap Fund (D) Mid Cap Fund (G)

22.73 39.13 12.89 13.96 14.86 29.96 13.07 11.54 45.06 50.99 16.45 38.69 11.12 11.12 9.15 9.15 20.32 35.68 14.03 15.13 12.77 12.77 13.86 13.86 47.08 57.15 79.27 23.51 51.24 30.24 51.21 23.85 32.05

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GOA, MONDAY, 19 JULY, 2010

‘11th Plan growth may exceed 8.1%’ PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

The Planning Commission has expressed the optimism that the average economic growth during the 11th Plan (2007-12) could exceed 8.1% against the 7.7% recorded during the previous Plan. "We will end the 11th Plan period with 8.1% growth, perhaps a little more," Planning Commission Dy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said.

The National Development Council (NDC) meeting is scheduled for July 24 to approve the mid-term appraisal (MTA) document. Although the 11th Plan will not be able to achieve the original target of 9% growth due to the impact of the global economic crisis during 2008-09 and 2009-10, the average growth of over 8.1% would be much higher than 7.7 per cent achieved during the 10th Plan, he said.

Mindlance eyes acquisitions PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

Bangalore-headquartered IT major, Mindlance, plans to invest around USD 100 million in India over the next two to three years besides eyeing acquisitions in the infrastructure management space, a senior company official said.

"We plan to invest USD 100 million over the next two to three years, mainly for scalingup our infrastructure, setting up more offices and delivery centres across the country and ramping-up our headcount," Mindlance's CIO and Business Unit Head-IT Infrastructure, Kamal Sharma, said.

Mindlance, a New Jerseybased IT infrastructure serviceprovider entered the Indian market in 2003 and presently has five sales and delivery centres here -- three in Bangalore and one each in Mumbai and Delhi.

India to soon surpass US in DTH subscribers base PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

The strongly growing domestic direct-to-home broadcast market (DTH) may soon catapult India into the number one position globally in terms of the country with largest DTH subscribers base, ahead of the US, an industry official said.

As at June 30 this year, India had 23.5 million DTH subscribers.

"As at June-end, the DTH subscriber base in India stood at 23.5 million, which is equivalent to the size of the markets in other countries. By this yearend, we will leave the US behind, which has got 32 million subscribers base, making us the largest DTH country," Bharat Business Channel Limited (BBCL) Chief Executive Officer, Anil Khera, said.

BBCL is the DTH broadcast arm of the multi-billion Videocon Group.

There are currently seven DTH broadcast service providers in the country with a combined revenue of around USD two billion.

The industry is clocking an 18 per cent growth this year as compared to last year, Khera said, adding, "every month around 8.50 lakh new customers are coming in across the DTH platform."

The industry expects to register around 11-12 million new customers in this year, Khera said.

"We are quite hopeful that once the festival season sets in with Onam in August followed

by Ganesh Chaturthi Durga Puja, Diwali and Christmas, we will definitely see 12 million new customers coming in this year," Khera said.

Last month itself, close to one million, precisely 9.55 lakh subscribers were added in the market, he said.

M&M eyeing healthy growth in tractor sales PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

Tractor major, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), is eyeing a significant increase in its marketshare this fiscal on the back of an enhanced demand for its products, a senior company executive said.

"Our current (tractor) marketshare of both Mahindra & Mahindra (tractor division) and Swaraj stands at 42 per cent.

We plan to increase it (share) by selling more products through new marketing strategies," Mahindra & Mahindra's Senior Vice-President (Marketing & AppliTrac), Sanjeev Goyle said.

He, however, declined to mention the marketshare the company was targeting to achieve this fiscal.

The company clocked a 31 per cent growth in FY 10 and

Barista to up number of outlets to 300 PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

Barista Coffee Company is planning to increase its outlets to 300 from the existing 225 by 2012, a company official said.

Currently, the company has around 225 Barista Lavazza Espresso Bars and Barista Lavazza Crèmes in over 30 cities across India.

"We want to increase the number of outlets to 300 by 2012," the company's Vice-President, Supply Chain Management and Commissary, Sandeep Sharma, said.

However, the growth would be more consolidation-driven than expansion, he added.

The cafe market is currently worth over Rs 5,000 crore in which Café Coffee Day (CCD) is a major player with a 60% share followed by Barista with 30%.

"There is a huge potential for the market to grow in the near future. We want to take advantage of this and make certain corrections in our strategy by adopting the consolidation method. Increasing the number of outlets would also be a part of the consolidation phase," he said.

16 per cent in the first quarter of this year, Goyle said adding, "we expect to beat the industry estimates by achieving a higher growth."

The domestic tractor industry reported a robust volume growth of around 28.3 per cent during 2009-10 on the back of strong rural liquidity, increasing farm mechanisation due to enhanced alternative employment opportunities and a higher use of tractors for nonagricultural uses.

"We are growing and will continue to grow in the domestic market. Our products have been farmer-friendly over the years. We will lead the domestic market in the coming days," Goyle said.

In its bid to penetrate deeper into the rural market, Mahindra and Mahindra has evolved a strong marketing

strategy, Goyle said.

As a part of this strategy, the company plans to deliver farm tech prosperity (FTP) to 10 million farmers by 2020 by offering technological prosperity to the farmers and transforming its dealerships into Samriddhi centres.

"We are now focusing more on Samriddhi centres which will help us in increasing our sales," Goyle said.

A Samriddhi centre is a transformed tractor dealership which offers innovative farming technologies to the farming community in order to support them to increase productivity.

"Samriddhi centres aim at enhancing rural prosperity by educating farmers and enlightening them about total farming solutions and optimum utilisation of farm mechanisation," he said.

At least 15 per cent of this growth is understood to have come from football aficionados as the mega-sporting event was also seen in places such as Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore apart from the traditional football bastions of the east, northeast and Kerala, Khera said.

Videocon, which presently has one million DTH subscribers, plans to add 2.5 million connections this year to its network, Khera said, adding, "around 55-60 per cent of this will come from the rural market."

"The growth will come from across cities and regions. But we are now focusing on 6,000 towns activation," he said.

Besides, the company was eyeing the cable-dry market such as North east and other hilly regions to expand its network, he said, adding, "We are looking at a 21 per cent growth in its DTH business this year.

Jet passenger traffic up 31% in June

A global task force which tracks money laundering and terrorist financing across national borders, has raised doubts about the efficacy of India's laws in combating this dual menace.

The multi-national Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an inter-governmental organisation founded in 1989 by the G7 (Group of seven industrialised nations) to develop policies to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.

FATF, which admitted India as its the 34th member last month, has in its report identified fund transfers from foreign Non Profit Organisations (NPOs), counterfeiting of currency, drug trafficking and extortion as "major sources for terrorist financing" in the country.

"India does not maintain a unified database for NPOs... statistics on the number of registered NPOs under the various statutes are not generally avail-

Jet Airways has flown 3.65 lakh passengers on its international routes in June, registering a 31 per cent rise over the year-ago period. During the same month, the airline recorded a seat occupancy of over 82 per cent in its international flights, according to the figures released by the Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

In June, the overall domestic passenger traffic stood at 45.04 lakh, the DGCA figures showed, out of which Jet and JetLite combine flew about 12 lakh and maintained their lead with a combined market share of 26.5 per cent.

The seat occupancy factor for Jet''s domestic operations stood at 80.5 per cent, a marked improvement by over 13 per cent during the the same period last year.

JetLite, the no-frills carrier from the Jet stable, clocked a seat factor of 83.7 per cent in the reporting month.

PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

In order to further augment its presence in the highly-regulated British market, BSE-listed Bafna Pharmaceuticals is close to acquiring a company in the UK having approvals to sell generic drugs, a source close to the development said.

The Chennai-headquartered company already has approvals from authorities to sell 11 molecules in the UK and the target company's kitty of 96 molecules will help the company immensely, the source, who did not wish to be identified said.

Bafna, which had clocked a

turnover of Rs 75 crore in FY 10, has already "sounded people" for raising debt and equity infusion through the private equity route to complete the acquisition, the source said, refusing to divulge the deal size.

"Negotiations are in the advanced stages," he said.

When contacted, the company's CMD, Chand Mahaveer Bafna, refused to comment on the impending deal.

The company is also targeting reducing the share of the low-margins contract manufacturing and generic drugs business in its pie and is all set to launch a brand in the lifestyle-

PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

related product segment in August.

Courtesy the foray into selfowned brands, the company is expecting the margins to double to eight per cent and the turnover to touch Rs 100 crore in FY 11.

"It would be a line of 27 prescription-based maintenance and oral products. By 2015, it is estimated that every fourth person in India will have lifestyle ailments. We plan to launch the product in West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu initially," Bafna said.

The pharma company has hired 52 people to market the

products and will be primarily focusing on under-serviced segments comprising of lower rung consultants and Tier-II and III cities to push its lifestyle products line.

The company plans to manufacture the products at a new manufacturing facility which went up-stream recently while efforts are also on from the R&D team to come up with newer formulations, Bafna said.

It is also consolidating its share in the Sri Lankan market, which contributes a third of its overall revenues by selling 76 generic drugs, he added.

SEBI for simple, short IPO forms PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

As part of efforts to attract more retail investors to the stock market, regulator SEBI is considering making applications forms simpler and shorter for public offers, including IPOs. Concerned over the lukewarm and ever-falling retail response to the primary market, SEBI is mulling over ways to win over small investors in this segment and one of the steps under consideration is a simpler investment process.

According to sources, the application forms currently being used for bidding in initial and follow-on public offers are unnecessarily long and ask the investors to fill in some details that can be done away with.

Besides, these forms run into 15-20 pages in most cases, although there are only 2-3 pages where particulars need to be filled in by the investors and the rest of the pages contain instructions, information about the company and the issue and details about bankers, registrars and bidding centres.

The various proposals currently being discussed by SEBI''s Primary Market Advisory Committee include removing from these forms the details already available in the investors'' demat and bank accounts.

Mumbai-based All Indian Origin Chemists and Distributors Ltd (AIOCD) plans to invest Rs 35 crore to prepare private label pharma products, a top company official said.

"We have launched 'Private Label' products JAVA in the Indian market. In the first stage, the company has started distribution in 15 states with 100 products. The product range will be increased as per the demand of pharma dealers," AIOCD's chairman, Shinde, said.

The company has invested Rs 11 crore in the initial stage and envisages a total investment of Rs 35 crore in two years, Shinde said.

"The company hopes to clock a turnover of Rs 50 crore in FY 11 and Rs 120 crore in FY 12 from the private label products," he said.

Mittal putting more in education PTI NEW DELHI, JULY 18

Africa.

"Figo's success has exceeded expectation in terms of sales and target markets. Our debut compact car offering is being very well received by a widerange of customers in India," he said, adding "Figo will help us to increase our marketshare in the coming days."

Boneham said the company's Figo has helped drive growth in Tier I, II and III destinations.

"Fifty per cent of our Figo sales comes from Tier I cities and the remaining from Tier II and Tier III cities," Boneham added.

doubts about the effectiveness of laws like the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) in existence since 2001 and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, in force from 2005 in the country but there being a "total absence" of any money laundering convictions in these cases till date.

"In addition, given India's vulnerability to terrorism and the large number of actual terrorist attacks per year, the number of terrorist related Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) also appears to be extremely low, raising further questions about the implementation and effectiveness of the STR reporting obligation," the report added.

Banks and financial institutions submit STRs to the Finance Ministry's Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) which forwards to other investigative agencies all reports suspected to involve terror funding and money laundering.

Bafna close to sealing UK buy

PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

units in three shifts per annum, he said.

When asked for how long the company would maintain the price of the Figo in the backdrop of rising input costs, Boneham said, "Yes, we are under pressure, but we will continue to keep the same price."

The company had launched its much anticipated global small car Figo at Rs 3.5-4.48 lakh in March to take on the likes of Maruti Swift, Hyundai i20 and Polo from Volkswagen.

The company has already started exporting Figo to South

able in India. However, by government estimates, there are approximately two million foreign and domestic NPOs operating in India.

"India has not yet undertaken a review of its NPO sector, as envisaged by the FATF standards. There has been no effective outreach to the NPO sector by the Government of India or by state governments in relation to risks and vulnerabilities of the sector to terrorist financing abuse," the report says.

In a scathing indictment of the effectiveness of the Indian laws to monitor and counter terror funds and money laundering, the report said, "except under the Income Tax Act and the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, the NPO sector is subject to limited or no monitoring and supervision, but the NPOs registered under these Acts only account for a small number of entities within the sector."

The FATF also expressed

AIOCD to invest for private labels

Ford to clear backlog of up to 7k units by end-July Car-maker Ford India expects to clear a backlog of about 6,000-7,000 units of its small car Figo by this month-end following an enhanced production at its Chennai plant, a top company official said.

The company had received a total booking of 25,000 units since the launch of the small car in March 2010.

"Presently, we have a backlog of about 6,000-7,000 units of Figo. We hope to deliver these by end-July," Ford India President and Managing Director, Michael Boneham said.

The company has started a second shift at its Maraimalainagar plant in Chennai from last month to cater to the overwhelming demand for its Figo.

"We have increased our Chennai facility's production capacity from one lakh units to 1.40 lakh units per annum with the addition of the second shift. We are confident of catering to demand for the Figo," Boneham said.

The Chennai facility could manufacture up to two lakh

Laws in India cannot counter terror-funding: G7

Having helped with the transformation of India through the power of communication, Sunil Mittal, the founder of the country''s largest mobile phone operator, is channeling his wealth towards education for poor children that has the power to change their destiny.

Right now, Mittal''s philanthropy through the Bharti Foundation has touched the lives of 30,000 underprivileged children and the telecom czar has pledged to put more money aside to expand this number to at least 100,000.

In 2000, when the telecom sector was in the midst of a revolution, Mittal realised that connecting communities in small towns and villages through mobiles was not enough. They needed the power of education.

Omnitech plans 2 new units PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

BSE-listed IT major, Omnitech Infosolutions, has earmarked a Rs 25 crore investment to set up two more disaster recovery and business continuity (DRBC) centres by end-next year, a top company official said.

"We plan to set up two DRBC centres by end-2011. One would be in the NCR and the other in Bangalore," Omnitech Infosolutions' Managing Director, Atul Hemani, said.

The company presently has two such centres at Hyderabad and Navi Mumbai.

The investment in the two new centres will be through internal accruals, he said.

"Disaster recovery and business continuity will continue to be a thrust area for us along with infrastructure management services and applications management services," he said.

These centres would help the company further leverage

its core business offering of managed IT services and going forward, in cloud computing as well, he said.

The company has also entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Mauritius company to set up a joint venture DRBC centre on the go-to-market model.

"We will provide the technology and execution while the Mauritius company will do the marketing," Hemani said, declining to identify the company.

This strategic alliance will cater to the Mauritius and African markets, he said.

"After evaluating the business for around six-months, we will decide whether to get into a structured joint venture agreement," he said.

Asked about any proposed additions to its present headcount of 1,000, Hemani said that the company planned to hire around 250 personnel this fiscal.

These include the name of the investor''s father or husband (depending on whether the investor is male or female), addresses, fax number and other contact details.

The move could cut down the columns needed to be filled by almost half, sources said. Besides regulation and development of the primary market, this committee also advises SEBI on changes required to make the systems and procedures simpler and transparent.

To make the forms shorter and simpler, the committee is also considering dividing them into two parts -- one comprising the particulars needed to be filled in and the other with the details of the issue. Sources said that a proposal is also underway to make it mandatory in all public offers to give the investors the option to bid online, possibly through the stock exchanges themselves, where the forms could be much simpler and shorter.

SEBI has already asked the bourses to make a simpler form available online for IPO bidding through the ASBA (Applications Supported by Blocked Amount) process. Under ASBA, bid money remains in the investor''s bank account during the bidding process and get released after share allotment.

KS Oils to invest Rs 220 cr PTI MUMBAI, JULY 18

Madhya Pradesh-based edible oils manufacturer, KS Oils, plans to invest Rs 220 crore this fiscal to expand its business in both domestic and overseas markets, a top company official said.

"We are growing...our company's brands in mustard oil, soybean and sunflower oil are household names pan-India.

We will invest Rs 220 crore this fiscal to expand our business in both the domestic and global markets," KS Oils' MD, Sanjay Agarwal, said.

Out of this, Rs 150 crore will be spent for overseas business and the remaining for the Indian market, Agarwal said.

The BSE-listed company has lined-up a total capex of Rs 1,000 crore for its Indonesia project over the next three years and has already invested Rs 200 crore there.

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Critically Writing - II T

his week, we will begin looking at the most common areas of a critic’s work.

Movies

Anyone can write about the highs and lows of a Hollywood or Bollywood offering, but to perfect the art of criticism takes

a deeper understanding of the process of filmmaking, the industry and the genre of and movie in particular. There is something very exciting about watching movies for free (usually before they are released), letting people know your opinion, and then being paid to do it. Movie reviewers influence a lot more people with their opinions. It’s no wonder movie reviewers have rare access to the stars.

Celebrities depend on the media, so many of them are just as happy to meet you as you are to meet them. “I wouldn’t be able to afford my habit,” said film critic Dan Kimmel. He sees more than 300 movies a year.

The flicks are free, and come with all-you-can-eat popcorn and occasional interviews with top-end celebrities.

Plus, he gets paid for writing about what he’s seen. “Why should someone pay for my opinion? Because I can write in an eloquent manner; it’s a coherent essay,” Kimmel said.

Music

If you have a passion for music and you like to communicate

about it to others, you might enjoy being a music critic.

A music critic can attend concerts and get recordings for free.

He will be able to meet musicians and others in the music business and hear the latest news before others. A widely read critic can drive the public toward or away from a concert or recording. A positive review can help give a new artist confidence or revive a flagging career. A negative one might help a stagnant musician move in a new direction, but it might also raise doubts in a musician’s mind.

A music critic informs, analyzes and gives an opinion on music. He may specialize in one narrow area or cover a broad range of styles. He can start by learning all he can about as many areas of music as possible.

Learn to play an instrument.

Read whatever you can find, especially music criticism. Listen to recordings of the same piece by different artists and compare and contrast them. A music critic should have deep knowledge of the style of music that he is covering, and preferably, of a wide range of music. This includes the history of that form of music, what it stemmed from and major figures in composition and performance. A critic who is also a musician can use that knowledge to deepen his criticism.

The usual tasks of a music critic include writing reviews of newly released cd’s and records and conducting interviews with musicians, performers, bands, etc. A music critic should not only be a good writer but should also be a good communicator and interviewer, be familiar with various types of music, have ample knowledge of music history and notable musicians whether past or present, always be updated on upcoming artists and newly released songs. In addition to reviewing music performances, a critic may interview musicians and may write or speak on broader topics such as year-end reviews or new

trends in music or the music industry.

Tip: A critic can share his knowledge of music to deepen the public’s understanding of a performer, a particular work or a style of music Write some practice reviews, thinking about what you want to say and how to organize it.

Think about the effect of your words on others, especially for a negative review. Get a job (even a volunteer one) writing reviews for the school or local paper, or write

a music blog and let people know about it. And one more thing: Since music is meant to be enjoyed, have fun with it.

Food

If you enjoy tasting a wide variety of food and wines and love to write, this could be the perfect career for you. Food Critics visit food joints and restaurant to give their comments on food and beverages that’s being served. It is a demanding and competitive job with travel and new exciting experiences as the

reward. Imagine being paid to eat a fabulous meal at one of the world’s finest restaurants, and all you have to do in return is give your opinion about it.

Welcome to the delicious world of the food critic.

By Maria de Lima Pereira Food is one way to become more familiar with other cultures. Enjoy the fact that you will spend hours poring over

menus from all over the world; food is one way to become more familiar with other cultures.

Tips: Research other food critics and chefs; the finest, latest, rarest and most delicious incredible culinary knowledge.

Read the cookbooks from all the great master chefs from all around the world. You should be obsessive in your search for new food trends and ideas.

Travel to food and wine festivals, from first class to the obscure.

Study the art of cooking. This is imperative. Become familiar

Why Seducing Your Boss Is a Bad Idea

T

hinking about seducing your boss? No matter how hot he may be, seducing your boss is bound to be a bad idea. Check out these reasons to find someone else to think about.

Don’t Get Your Honey Where You Get Your Money

Your boss determines your salary, bonuses, raises and status in the company. If you start a relationship with your boss, you immediately stick your boss with a conflict of interest. If the relationship goes well, he will feel like he wants to reward you financially, but will fear accusations of favoring you or “paying” you for your services. If the relationship sours, he may be vengeful or guilty, and neither puts you in a good position. You will put your job and your financial well being at risk if you seduce your boss.

Don’t Give Them Something to Talk About

Office gossip can be brutal. If

your co-workers suspect you are sleeping with your boss, you may become the victim of jealousy, mistrust and anger. Coworkers will assume you are receiving other benefits such as better pay, better assignments

Set Yourself up Right

and better reviews. Office gossip can make everyday work experiences unbearable or it may simply subtract from your coworkers’ ability to work cooperatively and with high morale.

You don’t want to work with people who feel you are gaining an unfair advantage.

Won’t you feel hurt and wonder if she respects you and values your contributions? Your job issues will leak into your personal relationship with her, even if you try to keep your personal and professional issues separate.

If she does give you the promotion, you’ll always wonder if she really thought you were qualified or if she was just rewarding you for your relationship. Do you really want to feel like you are getting ahead because of a relationship and not your merits as a worker? This can taint how you feel about her as a person, harming the emotional side of your relationship.

If you really are falling for your boss, look for a new job and initiate a relationship after you’ve given your two-week notice. Then you can enjoy the relationship with a clear conscience.

Big Brother May Be Watching You

Many companies have policies that prohibit workplace relationships. You may end up losing your job over the relationship if human resources finds out.

Much as you think you can keep the relationship under wraps, you may not be able to keep it secret.

It might feel exciting now, but you’ll regret seducing your boss when you are filing for unemployment and hoping for interviews.

* Do you have an opinion on important issues affecting Goa, India and the world ? Are aged between 18-30 years? Have your say.

Help make a difference. Send in your articles within 500 to 900 words to

Youth Voice

C/o Education & Careers Herald Publications Pvt. Ltd. Rua Sao Tome Panjim Goa 403001 Email: junioryouth @herald-goa.com

If you date your boss while she’s still your boss, you’re putting both of you in an awkward position. What if a promotion opportunity comes up and she gives the job to someone else?

* Those interested in sending queries on careers can write to:

career Quest

C/o Education & Careers Herald Publications Pvt. Ltd. Rua Sao Tome Panjim Goa 403001 Email: junioryouth @herald-goa.com

Y

with the restaurant business. A good appreciation of wine is crucial. Knowing how to taste wine can also develop your palate.

Test the limits of your palate.

To be a food critic, you must have an incredible and adventurous palate. Expand your curiosity and be prepared to try every kind of food and drink. You might have to be brave at times and go way out of your comfort zone. Build your culinary vocabulary. Also pay attention to the ambiance and service. Have

some understanding of how a restaurant kitchen works, and know how mass production affects food. A food writer knows as much about good writing as he does about the ingredients of the fanciest meals. . Describe the meal in detail; what does it look, smell and taste like?

Give an in-depth picture of the entire meal, including descriptions of the restaurant and its decor. Detail how all aspects of the restaurant and the service contribute to the dining experience.

G

ossip is all around—read in scandal blogs on the Internet, heard from family over dinner, discussed by friends, and passed around in hushed tones at the water cooler and around office cubicles. However, one place one should deliberately and assertively avoid gossip is the office.

Avoiding gossip means more than not passing it on. It also means not being the subject of gossip, and not even listening to gossip. Office gossip is dangerous to your career, and the careers of your colleagues. If people are talking about you, your reputation and credibility are at stake. Even an untrue rumour can make people look at you in a judgmental way, weighing your appearance, words and actions against the content of the rumour. Then, they may continue to talk and share how what they observed confirms the rumour.

If you are the one spreading the gossip, people will stop telling you things, afraid you will talk about them next. Once you earn a reputation as an office gossip, people will view you as untrustworthy, and others in your workplace won’t believe in your ability to keep office confidences.

Finally, as a bystander or listener to gossip, you become associated with those who participated in the discussion, again putting your reputation as a trustworthy person at stake.

Whether people are talking to you or about you, you can still avoid getting involved, and you can keep people from involving you.

If You’re the Bystander

If you are in a group when a person bringing the latest rumor joins in and starts to dish, politely excuse yourself and leave.

All you need to do is say you need to get back to work. Definitely don’t listen, comment or agree. By engaging in the conversation, you could be remembered as passing the information along, even if you weren’t. If the conversation is brought to you in your office or work space,

tell the other person that you are too busy to talk, and continue with your work. Or, you can change the subject entirely and discuss weekend plans instead. Finally, if the person doesn’t get the message, a direct statement that you are not comfortable discussing someone else’s business will end the conversation.

If You’re the Gossip

You may be tempted to pass along juicy information that others may not know. As the holder of information, you will be in a position of power. You also get attention when the audience is raptly taking in what you’re saying. On the downside, the subject of the rumour is vulnerable to the judgment of others. Try to remember that gossip destroys the reputation of the gossiper and the subject of the gossip. It also can destroy friendships and relationships. You

want to be part of a healthy office environment with open communication. Gossip and rumour-mongering add secrecy and suspicion to the office and derail trust, making the office atmosphere tense and uncomfortable.

If You’re the Subject

The best way to avoid being the subject of office gossip is to behave responsibly and follow basic office etiquette. The gossip spreaders won’t have anything to talk about. If you do find yourself the subject of office gossip, you have to quash it immediately. Go to the person you

heard was talking about you and say, “I heard you were saying about me. I would appreciate you coming to me with any stories you hear so I can verify them in person. I would also appreciate if you hear others talking about me, that you ask them to do the same.” If you must do this, keep the conversation between you and the gossip. Having an audience might inflame emotions and make the situation worse.

If the Subject Is Serious

In some cases, you do need to get involved. A person in your office may confide in you about a work-related matter, such as an ethical violation or sexual harassment. Listen to your colleague and give advice.

Encourage your colleague to go straight to the human resources department if you have one.

Most companies have large HR departments and give guides to

employees explaining how to handle these situations. If you do not have an HR department, guide your co-worker to the person who handles your benefits and legal matters or to a trustworthy supervisor. Be supportive to your co-worker and help where you can, but do not spread the information beyond your conversation, whether it is true or not, as your co-worker may face repercussion.

Staying away from office gossip can help your career and preserve friendships. Showing that you are a trustworthy and upfront person will help you achieve success.

Why Everyone Prefers Male Bosses

ou know, you’re not a man, Akio Morita, Sony’s co-founder and former chairman of the board said to one of the firm’s senior female executives over dinner one night.

“Nope, that’s absolutely true,” the woman, a single mother divorced with three children, replied.

“But you’re not a woman.”

“Uh, OK. What am I?” “You’re in a third category.”

Right, she’s a woman boss.

It was some two decades ago that Barbara Annis, now of Barbara Annis & Associates, a firm that advises blue-chip companies on gender diversity and inclusiveness, had that conversation. But not a lot has changed in terms of how we view female leaders.

The real surprise came when the Forbes Woman Facebook community canvassed: “Would you rather work for a man or a woman?” The majority replied, “A man any day of the week,” to use the words of Stephanie Rovengo.

Are men actually better bosses? Are women doing something wrong?

It’s not just anecdotal that male bosses are perceived to be better at their jobs. “It’s a general cultural phenomenon, the preference for men leaders and bosses.

In the most recent Gallup data, 34per cent of men preferred a male boss while 10per cent preferred a female boss, while 40per cent of women preferred a male boss and 26per cent preferred a female boss. (The remaining respondents of both genders had no preference.)

One explanation for the across-the-board preference of male leaders may be deeply instilled gender stereotypes held by both men and women.

“The cultural model of a leader is masculine. “Leaders are thought to be people who are dominant and competitive

and take charge and are confident. Those kinds of qualities are ascribed to men far more than women. Women are ascribed to be nice. We are, above all, nice.”

As a result, many executive women have adopted male personality traits. This is what Annis, who is chair of the Women’s Leadership Board at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, did in the early 1980s as she worked her way up the corporate ladder at Sony. “They thought I wasn’t assertive, and so they sent me for assertiveness training for women, called ‘guerrilla war tactics for women in business,’” she says, recalling how they taught to lower and project her voice.

Twenty years later, through her firm’s work, she still notices women distancing themselves from their female identities, just trying to be one of the guys. But when women take on male characteristics, they are viewed

more negatively than a man doing the exact same thing, says Robin Ely, Ph.D., a professor of organisational behaviour at Harvard Business School.

Be careful not to take on the worst characteristics of other male bosses and become overly competitive, overly individualistic, overly warrior-like in trying to prove yourself and to fit in. In an experiment where M.B.A. stu-

dents were asked to evaluate the likeability, style, competence and hiring appeal of the main characters in two case studies.

The results were striking.

Even though the two case studies were exactly the same except for the gender of the main character, the male character was found to be more likable and more likely to be hired. The woman was considered power hungry, and the more aggressive students perceived her, the more they disliked her. It’s tired but true: Executive women are damned if they act like men, and damned if they don’t.

The better bet? Authenticity inspires people and forms solid relationships with others. Good male leaders are authentic. They talk about being a Marine; they talk about their maleness. “Being a woman doesn’t have to be a big deal, it’s just a part of who

you are. You don’t have to hide it.

As a leader, it’s critical that you provide your employees with clear and precise feedback and declare your intentions as a boss. Directly tell your subordinates, “I really want you to experience me as a source of empowerment and support in getting your job done. Now here’s what you need to do to make that happen.”

To complicate things further, female boss-female sub-

ordinate relationships can be particularly prickly, especially in firms with few women at the top. In the male-dominated professional service firms Ely has studied female executives universally condemned the most senior women. “They described them as poor role models; they felt no ability to identify with them on the basis of shared gender.

But in firms with partnerships composed of 15per cent to 20per cent women, the women leaders were universally applauded. This phenomenon in part is attributed to the stress of being a token.

“You’re always going to experience heightened performance pressure. You’re going to be a lot more visible ... I think the junior women look up, and [their] expectation is that these women

need to be everything.” In addition, female leaders in a male-dominated firm may not be comfortable lobbying for gender equality out of fear it could compromise their own success.

When there are fewer women at the top this communicates to lower-level women that only a small percentage of the opportunity in the firm is available to them.

This heightens the competition between women as they all fight for the same few spots. Therefore there is the

need to connect with other women lower down on the totem poll. These women can be sources of Intel, constructive feedback and emotional strength. “Every good woman needs an ‘atta-girl’ group.”

Annis adds: If you’re a pioneer woman who has paved the road to the top, be sure to allow others to travel on it.

Just because one woman had to scratch and claw her way to the top doesn’t mean the rest of the women on your team or company should have to.

None of this, though, means women are actually worse bosses than men. And they just might be better. The January 2009 issue of the Harvard Business Review looked at how female and male leaders were rated in 360-degree feedback reviews on leadership competencies. The eight competencies were envisioning, energising, designing and aligning, rewarding and feedback, team building, outside orientation, tenacity and emotional intelligence. It ends up female leaders were rated higher on every dimension but one—envisioning, “the ability to recognise new opportunities and trends in the environment and develop a new strategic direction for an enterprise.”

It’s well worth noting that the leadership competencies measured in the study were not traditional masculine-associated traits such as competitiveness, self-confidence and dominance. This could be an example of a new trend.

There is some evidence that the “cultural model of leadership is becoming more androgynous ... the old top-down style, commandand-control is no longer as popular.” The bottom line is women don’t necessarily make worse bosses.

junior herald _Layout 1 7/15/2010 3:15 AM Page 1

OHERALDO

Pg15

Goa Monday 19 July 2010

www.oheraldo.in

an unlikely hero

FARMING: The Ancient Goan Method

By Caetano de Abreu

I

was the cluster of humankind living en the fertile valleys of some ancient Civilizations of the Middle East, namely Egypt, who became the first people to herd cattle and farm the land, and to trade the excess of theirs produce for the essential necessities. With

'turning it up; the "Dantto" or Harrow, which consisted of an heavy frame with mordant tooth gear, which was used to break up and level the ploughed land; the "Divlo" or the breaker of Clods; the "Olloi" or the leveler of ground to befit the cultivation; "Khorrem" or the Spade;

Photo by Joegoauk

farming becoming a way of life through variegated circumstances reliant on atmospheric conditions, it gave an impetus the world over to "Sow the Seeds and collect the harvest".

It was discerned that the Implements were crude and grotesque in appearance, however it served its purpose to do the needful and thus to bring the food on the table.

While the world was bringing about the sea of changes within the available contingencies and perhaps more, Goa devised its own implements of farming emulating what was conceived by the World with ethnic nuances which did not over cast any aspersion, the methodology however it was a welcome sight and yet still an beaming endeavour towards theirs own sustenance. Thus primarily theirs farming implements were: "Nangor" or the Plough which was an appliance with a cutting blade fixed in a frame drawn by a set of Pack-animals for cutting furrows in the soil and

"Moqui Kuddol ," or the sharp-pointed weeding hoe; the "Pan-Kuddoi" or the weeding hoe with large extremity; "Khuradd" or the pickaxe; and eventually the "Khoitto" which is a sharp breaking tool.

The entire "Kamisponn" or rather the tilling of the fields were executed with these simple although defective equipment. It can be accounted that the whole of

A Footballer Velister Savio Vaz (14), Std IX, Perpetual Succour Convent HS., Navelim

A Diver Qwantia Marques , Std V, The Rosary HS., Miramar

A Desert Sanyal Rodrigues (11), Std VI, Chubby Cheeks Spring Valley HS., Porvorim

ENTRY FORM MONGINIS Creative Me NAME: STD:

dertaking the hauling. b. The Plough-tail and the Handle is the rear extremity of the yoked pair where the "Casso" or the farmer steers and reins the Plough. c. And the "Boughi" or the gear-tooth which strips the land for farming.

These were the portions that, shaped the agricultural machinery through the ancient methods. The Plough was bereft of Earth-board nor any Coulter.

The "Cassos" or the Farm hands never used the innocuous animals as they used to limit themselves to shout hoarsely and to twist the tails of the animals. In lieu of castigating the animals with prickly tools the Goan farmers used to avail of a branch of any slender twig which were used to serve loosely either to excite the animals or to shake off the insects which used to pester those tractable animals.

With modernity the laziness sets in and where our forefathers toiled to bring in the food the modern generation "Soddtta aitem" (freeloaders), thus the pertinent question could be what's the future in store for us?

Photo by Joegoauk

Yummy Ice-Cream Luella Colaco , Std VI, Our Lady of Lourdes HS., Utorda

AGE:

tillage was accomplished with the above mentioned "Nangor" which was fabricated at the region of the toil and used to produce results which were to a certain extent rudimentary in context.

However, it must be expressed that in those days, Goa with a limited population the end results thrown in was in plenty to be relished regally. In addition I must contribute that in those days, before the evangelization, the farm labour was mainly undertaken by the Hindu Community who applied diligently to till the land towards posterity. As such, this husbandry contraption was basically H1ndu in essence and it was fabricated with locally available wood begetting distinctly a tip of tooth-gear denominated as "Boughui" and the "Zogol" which was a Ploughshare lined with triangular Iron blades. According to Antonio Lopes Mendes it consisted chiefly of three sections which were: a. "Guntho" - the Shaft of an plough which fastens the "zum" or, the yoke of pack animals and where it adjoins the "Zott" or rather the yoked pack animals which were un-

Phone:

SCHOOL: HOME ADDRESS:

MONGINIS TWO BEST CREATIVE ME ENTRIES

Sanyal Rodrigues (11), Std

ď ‘ VI, Chubby Cheeks Spring

Valley HS., Porvorim wins a gift voucher of Monginis worth Rs. 125/-

Jessica Fernandes (8), Std II,

ď ‘ Babyland Primary School,

Candolim Panjim wins a gift voucher of Monginis worth Rs. 75/-

By Vanessa Lobo erry was a happy-go-lucky boy of 14 years. His parents were well off and when Jerry wanted something, they always gave it to him. He wasn't used to hardships of any kind. He had a group of friends who were just like him.

One day Jerry's teacher said "Today a new boy has joined school Please help him in an way you can as he has joined us in the middle of the term."

Turning to the boy she said "Son why don't you say hello to your classmates? " He looked at so many pairs of eyes staring at him and shook his head. "Come on, they are all your new friends " said the teacher. He hesitated and then picking up courage said "Hi I'm Ssss..Sonny. " "Hahaha" everyone laughed. The teacher said "Quiet children, it is not polite to laugh at someone.' But outside the classroom, many of the boys from Jerry's group made fun of him. Jerry too would join in.

Whenever Sonny passed by they would shout "Hey Sss..ssSonny, do you want to come and pp..pp play? " Sonny never got angry with them for teasing him because he stammered while speaking. He would just ignore them and quietly continue on his way.

Months passed and Jerry and his gang continued to make fun of Sonny. They wouldn't play with him and never helped him even if they could. Soon the exams were over and Jerry said to his friends "We have a long vacation ahead of us. Let's make plans and decide how to spend our vacation. " So each one thought of some run ways to spend the holidays.

A river flowed by, not far from Jerry's house. One day during the holidays Jerry said

J

to his friends "Hey! Let's go on a picnic. We can go and spend the day by the riverside. That way we can also go for a swim to try and beat this October heat!" "Thai's a great idea and it's a perfect picnic spot. " said his best friend Ronit.

So that day they went down to the river. As they reached there, they saw that Sonny too had decided to spend the day there along with his younger siblings and cousins.

The boys didn't miss the opportunity to taunt him. "Hey Sss..ssSonny! Why don't you come and play football instead of babysitting those kids? " shouted Jerry. But Sonny kept silent. All the boys laughed and Ronit shouted "Come on boys let's go and play football. " They ran to play football on the grassy banks of the river.

"Enough of this game of football let's take a dip in the water!" said one of the boys from the group, after a while.

The river was shallow towards the banks and deeper

towards the middle. The boys continued to play with the ball in the water. Jerry was a good swimmer and went deeper into the water alone.

One of the boys threw the ball to Jerry and it fell towards the middle of the river.

He swam towards the ball to get it, Suddenly he shouted in pain "Aaah my leg". Hp panicked as he felt a sharp, shooting pain in his leg. He thrashed his hands about desperately, trying to head back to the shallow water.

But he was exhausted after the game, the pain was terrible and he just couldn't swim.

"Help me, Ronit " he shouted even louder as gasped for breath. He knew he would drown if he didn't get help fast. All the boys froze with fear as they realized what was happening. No one dared venture out to save him, not even Ronit. Suddenly they saw some one dash into the water and swim with confident strokes towards Jerry. It was Sonny! "Hold on Jerry, I'm coming" he shouted. He

reached Jerry and grabbed him by his T-shirt. Slowly he swam back to the river bank with him. All the boys helped pull Jerry onto the grass. He gratefully took deep gulps of air as he struggled to catch his breath. Sonny rubbed Jerry's leg until the pain subsided.

"Thank you Sonny for risking your life to save me. I'm ashamed of the way -we treated you. I'm sorry. I've learnt my lesson. I'll be humble and never look down on anyone ever again " Said Jerry. All the boys crowded round Sonny, patting him on the back and shouting "Wow! That was great Sonny", "Well done Sonny!" Sonny beamed happily, quite overwhelmed with all the praise. He was quite a hero in school after that. No one teased or taunted him anymore. Jerry and his gang made sure of that!

Moral: Do for others what you want them to do for you.

(MAT 7:12) God blesses the person who never ridicules another's weakness but seeks to help him instead.

Playing In The Rain Ansley M Rodrigues (10), Std V, Fr. Agnel Multipurpose HS., Verna

A Horse Ride Jessica Fernandes (8), Std II, Babyland Primary School, Candolim

Trip To Space Sairaj A Ghadge (13), Std VII, Our Lady of Lourdes HS., Utorda

Colour Me

Pg16

SPORTS GOA, Monday, 19 July, 2010

Fluent win for HC Arpora vagator py soccer HERALD CORRESPONDENT CALANGUTE, JULY 18

Holiday Club Arpora trounced

hosts Vagator Parish Youth 3-0 to move into the semi-finals of Vagator Parish Youth Trophy Inter-Village football tournament at Ozrant ground, Vagator on Sunday.

After a goalless first half, Ar-

pora shot into lead in the 48th minute through Sunil Nanodkar off a L awrence Rodrigues move.

Down by a goal, Vagator tried to bounce back but failed to score.

Arpora doubled the lead through Lawrence Rodrigues

off a deflection from Vagator defender in the 52nd minute.

Lawrence scored again in the 60th minute off a combined move by Saish Palyekar and Raghuvir to make the issue safe for Arpora.

Vagator made efforts to reduce the margin but in vain.

Triple crown for Anura; Sharmad, Rahul bag double

The winners at Dhond Memorial All-Goa Major Ranking Badminton Tournament alongwith Sripad Naik, MP, Richard De Souza, Narahar Thakur, Gaurish Dhond.

HERALD SPORTS DESK PANJIM, JULY 18

Anura Prabhudesai won a triple crown at Dhond Memorial AllGoa Major Ranking Badminton Tournament organised by Goa Badminton Association at Indoor Stadium, Campal, here on Sunday.

Sharmad Mahajan and Rahul Chandrashekar won a double crown each.

Sharmad lost the first set 1621 to Aniket Shenai but came back strongly to win the next two 21-15, 21-16 to clinch the under-19 boys title. Then part-

nering Aniket Shenai, Sharmad bagged his double crown as the duo went on to score a thumping 21-8, 21- 19 win over Chinmay Kamat and Rahul Chandrashekar in the under- 19 doubles event, thereby extracting sweet revenge for their loss to the same opponents in the previous tournament.

Anura put up a stupendous performance throughout. In the under- 13 girls finals, she smashed her way past her opponent Emilia Silveira winning 21-4, 21-3 and later outplayed Pranjal Chimulkar 21-8, 21-16

to win the under-16 girls crown.

Anura bagged her triple as Anushka Kuvelkar who was suffering from fever conceded the under-19 girls singles crown.

In the under-13 boys category, top seed Dhruv Angle fought hard before beating a resolute Tejan Fallary 21-17, 2117.

In the other matches, Rahul C h a n d r a s h e ka r, w h o h a d knocked out top seed Chinmay Kamat in the semis, carried forward his impressive run of form into the finals. He outplayed talented youngster Pranav Sil-

imkhan 21-10, 21-8 to emerge winner in the under-16 boys event.

Rahul later teamed up with Chinmay to score a convincing 21-16, 21-16 win over Shashank Desai and Pranav Silimkhan and emerge victorious in the under16 doubles event.

Sripad Naik, MP was the chief guest and distributed the prizes in the presence of guest of honour Richard De Souza, BAI joint secretary and GBA secretary, Narahar Thakur. Gaurish Dhond welcomed. Pradosh Silimkhan compered.

Navelim outclass Candolim, move into semis Vagator Parish Youth soccer quarters: Football Club of Siolim v. Nuvem Parish Youth, Ozrant ground, Vagator, 4.30 p.m.

St Andrew interward soccer: Pilar Seminary v. Queen of Angel, PAP ground, Goa Velha, 4.30 p.m.

custodio memorial soccer HERALD SPORTS DESK PANJIM, JULY 18

Navelim Sporting prevailed over Candolim Sports Club 3-1 to enter the semi-finals of 39th Custodio Memorial Football Tournament at Raia ground on Sunday.

Candolim had anxious moments right from the kick-off with Navelim Sporting making frequent raids.

Candolim goalkeeper Bharat Morje rushed out of his charge to contain a Navelim striker when the entire defense was beaten. However, a long range

scorcher by Sydney Colaco in the 6th minute entered the net courtesy Candolim defender Stanlely Silva, who in his attempt to kick the ball out, saw it deflecting into his own goal.

Navelim boys were a better organised lot and kept the ball moving from wing to wing rattling the Candolim defence time and again. Poor finishing by Navelim and good defence by Candolim kept the score just at 1-0.

Navelim earned a penalty when Franky was brought down in the area. The referee pointed to the dreaded spot. Morje kept his cool and did not even attempt to move, when the kick was taken. It went straight into the gloves of the keeper.

In the second half Candolim organised their defence and the halves moved close to the forwards. They were desperate for an equaliser. They cleverly laid the off-side trap to keep the fast roving forwards of Navelim in check.

Navelim fell back and pulled the defence of Candolim into their own half and then made some sneaky runs down the flank. In one such move, Jaison Pereira floated to Sanford who anticipated well to slot the ball into the goal to take Navelim up 2-0 in the 44th minute.

Candolim reduced the margin in the 48th minute.

Navelim came back strongly to increase the lead to 3-1 through Vikas.

Seven students of Allwin’s Taekwondo Club, affiliated to World Taekwondo South Korea, who have been awarded black belt - Rofern L. Fernandes, Nadia T Dias, Aaron Fernandes, Garry Fernandes, Stanislaus Alemao, Mahesh Juvekar, Hussain Golandas. They were trained by Allwin’s Taekwondo Club instructor and National referee Agostinho Fernandes.

Riya Sawant, winner of silver in U-10 girls Asian Youth Championship in Beijing and Rishab Naik who secured the 10th position in U-12 open category in Beijing with GCA secretary Arvind Mhamal, treasurer Kishor Bandekar and Sivaswamy.

Pg 17:Layout 1 7/18/2010 11:59 PM Page 1

Pg17 SPORTS GFA adopts new Constitution a la FIFA GOA, Monday, 19 July, 2010

lChanges come into effect immediately lFresh elections in October lInter-village transfer system scrapped HERALD SPORTS REPORTER MAPUSA, JULY 18

With the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) adopting the new GFA Constitution (Statutes), the elections to the new Executive Committee will be finalised

by October 31 this year, thus curtailing the present tenure of the committee by a year.

Goa thus earned the credit of being the first State in India to adopt a constitution on the lines of FIFA, AFC and AIFF. “The Constitution has come into immediate effect,” stated Tonito Botelho at a press conference in Panjim on Sunday.

Under the new constitution, the Executive Committee will consist of an elected president, two elected vice-presidents, one from North Goa and from South Goa district. There will be seven executive members in the North consisting of 4 from Bardez and 3 from Ilhas. In the South, 4 will come from Salcete and the remaining 3 from Mormugao.

There will also be two nominated members, one an inactive referee who had attained at least Class One and one women member representing women’s foot-

GFA secretary Savio Messias, vice-president Peter Vaz, Tonito Botelho as the GFA press conference in Panjim on Sunday. Photo: Aldrid Da Costa

ball. The term of the Executive Committee will be four years.

Two amendments have been passed. Article 19 has been changed so that club members will have until 30th April 2011 to elect their executive committee and provide a procedure for election of its members. Under Article 22, three scrutineers will be appointed to check the minutes instead of three members.

The deadline for the present Executive Committee is October 31, when elections will be finalised.

The secretary will no longer

be part of the Executive Committee as he will be a full-time paid employee in charge of administration. The announcement will be made shortly by the Executive Committee, it is learnt. The treasurer's position has been replaced by a professional accountant.

The Jury of Appeals will now be appointed by the Executive Committee. This was recommended by the AFC on their visit last year to prevent members canvassing for votes.

There will be 12 Standing Committees – disciplinary, fi-

GFA’s AGM for Sporting’s retention in I-League lAIFF

asked to follow precedents

HERALD SPORTS REPORTER PANJIM, JULY 18

The General Body Meeting of GFA today unanimously resolved that the matter of retaining Sporting Clube de Goa in the I-League should be taken up immediately with the AIFF authorities.

The members in one voice felt that the AIFF should go by the previous procedures adopted and Sporting retained and not demoted, since Mahindra United had withdrawn from the I-League.

GFA chief, Joaquim Alemao, who is also the AIFF vice-president, promised to

take up the matter at the next meeting to be held on August 4 and has asked general secretary, Savio Messias to prepare the case to be presented before the AIFF authorities.

All members strongly opined that the AIFF should go by previous precedents adopted in similar cases.

A resolution was passed congratulating Elvis Gomes, Tonito Botelho, Savio Messias for inking the deal with the Australian authorities for the ambitious grassroot programme. The members reposed full faith in GFA in

implementing the programme, the first of its kind in India. The resolution was moved by Dr Jawaharlal Henriques of Siolim Sodiem.

To a question raised by three club members whether any member of the Executive Committee, who did not attend four consecutive meetings stood disqualified as per the rules, the answer was in the negative although there were five members who had remained absent.

The report of activities and audited statement of accounts were approved by the members.

GCA inspects Fatorda stadium lODI

HERALD SPORTS REPORTER PANJIM, JULY 18

The Executive Committee of Goa Cricket Association (GCA) inspected the Nehru Stadium, Fatorda on Sunday in preparation for the India-Australia ODI match on October 24.

All 18 members were present,

match on October 24 stated GCA secretary Prasad Fat a r p e ka r. G C A p re s i d e n t , Dayanand Narvekar, MLA took stock of the infrastructure and other facilities, giving priority for the work on the pitch which is expected to start on August 1, under the supervision of Suryakant Naik.

The stadium is expected to be handed over to GCA in the next few days, disclosed Fatarpekar after the Government has agreed to GCA’s request.

So also, the committees for the smooth conduct of the event will be finalised, he added.

Dayanand Narvekar and members of the GCA Executive Committee at Neuru Stadium, Fatorda on Sunday.

Photo: Third Eye

Coca-Cola Nat sub-jr football AGENCIES NEW DELHI, JULY 18

Adding to the fervour of FIFA World Cup 2010, Coca-Cola India in partnership with the All India Football Federation (AIFF) announced the launch of 33rd Sub-junior National Football Championship for Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy (MIHT).

The grassroots level championship is being organised to discover the most promising young footballers for the under16 Indian football team for 2011.

The Under-16 tournament is being organised across 75 cities tapping over 40,000 young footballers from 1500 schools.

To kick off the tournament, the first match was played between Coast Guard and Shrinathji School at DMC football ground, Moti Daman, Daman & Diu. The initiative takes forward Coca-Cola India’s commitment to not only create a sporting culture but also promote healthy

active living in the country through association with various sports.

According to Alberto Colaco, AIFF general secretary, “There was an overwhelming response for the Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy tournament in 2009 and we are proud to take the initiative to the next level b y o rg a n i z i n g i t i n 1 5 0 0

n The Under-16 tournament is being organised across 75 cities tapping over 40,000 young footballers from 1500 schools.

The programme is open to all young footballers in the age group of 12-15 years.

schools across 75 cities this year. We are delighted to have Coca-Cola India as our partners and want to thank them for their support in making this grassroot football tournament a big success. This partnership for football in India will not just encourage young football talent in the country but also play a key role in encouraging youngsters to adopt football as their preferred sport.”

The programme is open to all young footballers in the age group of 12-15 years.

According to Atul Singh, President & CEO, Coca-Cola India & South West Asia, “Coca-Cola India has always believed in promoting a healthy, active lifestyle through sports. Our partnership with AIFF is an extension of the company’s worldwide focus on football. The Coca-Cola Company has been the official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup since 1978.”

nance, internal audit, media, marketing and TV advisory, official competitions, planning and development, player’s status, referees and assistant referees, sports medical, technical and coaching, women’s football and women’s competitions, youth development. The chairmen shall preferably be members of the Executive Committee with the exception of those for the disciplinary, appeal and internal audit who will not belong to the Executive Committee. The members will be designated by the Executive Committee.

The Appeal Committee shall consist of a chairman, a deputy chairman and three members. The chairman and deputy chairman shall have to be practicing advocates. The function shall be governed by the FIFA disciplinary code as applicable to the association.

There is also a provision for Arbitration Tribunal, as an independent judicial authority, consisting of five independent arbitrators, at least one of whom shall be a retired judge or a practicing advocate with ten years standing.

Recourse to ordinary court of

law has been prohibited under the constitution. Clubs will now have to insert a clause in their statutes stipulating that they voluntarily agree not to take disputes to courts of law, and are required to submit any disagreement to the jurisdiction of the association.

At the AGM, the GFA decided to scrap the inter-village transfer system and has set a deadline of January 18, 2011 for players to revert back to their original village, if they wish. This has been carried out because, in recent years, there was a misuse of changing ration cards to attract star players from smaller villages. Players will now have to submit a ration card and voter card as proof of residence of at least three years. Minors will have to brandish a copy of their parent’s ration and voter’s card.

It was announced that ProLeague and First Division clubs will be allowed to have a second team in the 3rd division made up of their U-18 and U-20 squads to give them more exposure.

These clubs will not be able to be promoted if they qualify for the Second Division.

12 STANDING COMMITTEES

F Disciplinary FFinance FInternal audit FMedia, Marketing and TV Advisory FOfficial Competitions FPlanning and Development FPlayer’s Status FReferees and Assistant Referees FSports Medical FTechnical and Coaching FWomen’s football and Women’s Competitions FYouth Development This issue was brought up as Salgaocar Sports club who wanted to field a second side in the GFA Third Division next season. Dempo Sports Club and Sesa Football Academy currently have a second team operating in the Second Division and they will be allowed to continue but after the 2011-12 season, if they are relegated the same rules will apply to them.

The players will now have a se-

parete coloured card for inter-village and another one for the League.

Earlier, a minute’s silence was observed for member of Jury of Appeals, late Noel Da Lima Leitao. The GFA decided to pay tribute to Noel by naming an award or trophy after him.

Advocate Cleofato Coutinho chaired the meeting. GFA president, Joaquim Alemao alongwith the Executive Committee members attended the meeting.

Goa girls play Kerala HERALD SPORTS REPORTER MAPUSA, JULY 18

The Goa U-19 girls face Kerala in their final group match in Junior National girls football championship at Punjab Engineering college, Chandigarh on Monday.

Goa currently lead the group on goal average after defeating Himachal Pradesh 24-0 and playing a 1-1 draw against Sikkim to give them four points from two matches.

Sikkim have also accumulated 4 points from two matches. Kerala have 3 points from their solitary win over Himachal Pradesh. Himachal Pradesh are still searching for their first point.

Goa U-19 probable line-up: Astrid Pereira, Malvita Mascarenhas, Mayola Fernandes, Hazel Dias, Nagima Shaikh, Stessi Cardoza(capt), Michel Castanha, Ayesha Alvares, Valerie Carvalho, Angel Braganza, Cassandra Fernandes.

TT calendar HERALD SPORTS DESK PANJIM, JULY 18

The Goa table tennis season will start with the Angleys Cup team championship from July 19 to 25 at Campal, here.

The TT calendar – July 19 to 25: Mangeshi TT, Mangeshi (junior). August 9 to 15 – LESA TT, Margao (junior). August 16 to 22 – BPS TT, Margao (junior). August 23 to 29 – Rudreshwar Club TT (junior and senior). August 30 to September 5 – Cortalim Club TT (junior and senior). September 6 to 9 – Panjim Gymkhana TT (junior). September 13 to 19 – Panjim TT Club (junior). September 27 to October 3 – YMCA TT (junior and senior).

October 4 to 10 – Cansaulim Youth Club TT (junior). October 11 to 17 – Youth Club of Colvale (junior and senior). October 18 to 24 – Club Vasco TT (senior). November 1 to 7 – Lions Club TT (junior and senior). November 8 to 14 – Don Bosco Oratory TT (junior and senior). November 15 to 21 – State championship (junior and senior).

Joe Colaco stars in PY Nuvem’s win HERALD SPORTS DESK PANJIM, JULY 18

Hosts Parish Youth of Nuvem scored a 6-1 victory over St Rock Sports Club of Majorda to move into the semi-finals of all-Goa 16th Muriel Faleiro rolling trophy football tournament at Nuvem church ground on Sunday.

Joe Colaco broke the deadlock soon after the kick off as he picked up a pass from Alphon. Joe then scored two more to register his hat-trick.

Joe scored his team’s fourth goal after the break off Richard Colaco and thereafter Alphon netted a brace.

St Rock reduced the marg i n t h r o u g h P r e s t o n Ro drigues.

Joe Colaco was awarded the man-of-the match prize sponsored by Anoshka Restaurant, Ambora.

Espaniol, St. Cruz beat Sebastian Boys, Goa Velha in the finals of 3-a-side tie-breaker organised by St. Agostinho Boys of St. Cruz at St Cruz.

Espaniol won Rs 6,000 and St Agostinho Boys Rs 4,000. Clayson was awarded best goalkeeper prize and Platino best shooter. Victor Gonsalves, the chief guest, giving away the prize to captain Avilon in the presence of Clayson, Savio and organisers Brito and Gilbert. In all, 64 teams participated.

Friends Sporting meet Bela Vista HERALD SPORTS DESK PANJIM, JULY 18

Hosts Friends Sporting Club, Carambolim defeated Sunshine SC, Carambolim 4-2 in an exciting match of Friends Sporting League Club organised by Friends Sporting Club

at Carambolim panchayat ground. The score was 2-1 at half time.

Friends went ahead in the 3rd minute when Shamni Sharma’s powerful try found the net.

Sunshine SC equalized in the

15th minute through Diniz D’Costa while Durgadas snatched the lead for Sunshine.

In the second half, Friends Sporting Club entered with renewed vigour and equalized through Clyde.

Friends played possession

football and stretched Sunshine defence with Frankie Mascarenhas scoring a brace to seal the fate of Sunshine SC. In another match, Bela Vista SC defeated Small Boys Club, Carambolim 5-4 via the tiebreaker.

Punjab record second win in Santosh AGENCIES KOLKATA, JULY 18

Punjab brightened their chances of making the pre-quarterfinals of the 64th Senior National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy after scoring a 1-0 win over Nagaland on Sunday.

In a Cluster III match at Khardah Stadium, Punjab scored the only goal through Balwant Singh in the ninth minute and though Nagaland threatened to

score with quite a few chances being created, they held on for the remainder of the match to record their second consecutive win.

Having suffered a humiliating 0-7 defeat against Punjab in their opening encounter, Puducherry dished out a much better performance to edge past Gujarat 2-1 at Barasat Stadium.

Vinod Kumar gave Puducherry an 18th minute lead

and looked good for more goals.

Gujarat though then found the equaliser through Dipesh Pun five minutes befor the break.

With the match hanging in the balance, Manikandon turned out to be the hero for Puducherry when he found the winner in the 73rd minute to help his team earn maximum points.

But the win might not be enough for Puducherry with

Bolt blasts Powell in Paris

AGENCIES PARIS, JULY 18

World record holder Usain Bolt beat his fellow Jamaican Asafa Powell to win the 100m at the Diamond League event in Paris in a time of 9.84 seconds.

World and Olympic champion Bolt recovered from a poor start to easily outsprint Powell (9.91), with another Jamaican Yohan Blake (9.95) in third.

"I didn't feel as powerful as I wanted to out of the blocks," said Bolt. "I need to go home and work on that."

David Oliver ran the third fastest 110m hurdles time ever to win in 12.89.

American Oliver's stunning performance was two hundredths of a second outside the world record, set by Cuba's Dayron Robles in 2008. Britain's Andy Turner was sixth in 13.37.

"It's excellent, I broke the US record and became the third ever under 12.90 sec," reflected Oliver, bronze medallist at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

"Records will come when they should - I'm not thinking about that too much."

It was a disappointing night for British athletes, with world champion Phillips Idowu coming fourth in the triple jump, only 10 days before the start of the European Championships in Barcelona.

Idowu, who struck gold at the World Championships in Berlin in 2009, recorded a best distance of 17.20m to finish 29cms behind winner David Girat from Cuba.

Bolt and Powell came into the 100m race sharing the fastest time in the world in 2010 of 9.82 seconds.

Bolt set his mark in Lausanne last week in his first appearance since May 27 after an Achilles tendon injury.

Powell, who was the last man to beat Bolt in the 100m in Stockholm in 2008, said he was disappointed with his performance in Paris but vowed to close the ground on his rival.

"I'll get him next time around,"

Powell stated. "It was just a bad race tonight but it will get better."

The only British triumph of the night came in the 4x100m relay as Mark Lewis-Francis anchored the team to victory ahead of Italy and Poland.

Lisa Dobriskey put in an impressive performance to come fourth in the women's 1500m in a time of three minutes, 59.79 seconds.

Jo Pavey, still feeling her way back to form after the birth of her son Jacob, came a disappointing 13th in the 5000m, won

by Vivian Cheruiyot of Kenya.

In the men's 400m, 2004 Olympic champion Jeremy Wariner of the United States ran 44.50 seconds - the fastest time of the world this year - to beat Jermaine Gonzales of Jamaica, with Michael Bingham of Great Britain in fourth.

Elsewhere, American Allyson Felix underlined her supremacy in the women's 200m with a sprint of 22.15 seconds ahead of her compatriot Shalonda Simpson.

Punjab still favourites to make the last 16 stage due to an inferior goal difference as a result of their opening match loss.

In a Cluster IV match, Rahul Gurjar scored a late goal with seven minutes to go in the game to help Rajasthan come back from their opening match humiliation and beat Jammu and Kashmir at the Howrah Stadium. |Rajasthan had lost 0-13 to Manipur in their opening match.

In National junior girls football, Orissa blanked Karnataka 9-0, Chattisgarh beat Delhi 3-0, Uttarakhand lost 0-11 to Maharashtra, Punjab beat Rajasthan 1-0 and Tripura and West Bengal were locked ina goalless draw.

Pg 18:Layout 1 7/18/2010 11:46 PM Page 1

SPORTS

Triple crown for Anura; Sharmad, Rahul bag double Pg 16

GOA, MONDAY, 19 JULY, 2010 www.oheraldo.in

GFA adopts new Constitution a la FIFA Pg 17

Pg 18

Day 1: Lanka in command

Rahul Dravid congratulates Muttiah Muralitharan ahead of the Sri Lankan off spinner's final Test match.

Kirsten refuses to give up hope AGENCIES GALLE, JULY 18

Kumar Sangakkara of Sri Lanka celebrates his 22nd Test century on the opening day of first Test against India at Galle, Sri Lanka, on Sunday. (RIGHT) Abhimanyu Mithun appeals unsuccessfully for an lbw against Tillakaratne Dilshan.

PTI GALLE (Sri Lanka), JULY 18

Captain Kumar Sangakkara and Tharanga Paranavitana struck centuries as Sri Lanka laid the foundation for a mammoth first innings total in the first cricket Test against a lacklustre India here today.

Sangakkara (103) notched up his 22nd century while Paranavitana (110 batting) scored his maiden ton as the hosts exposed India's toothless bowling attack to pile up a comfortable 256 for two at close on a rain-truncated opening day.

Electing to bat, the Sri Lankan batsmen capitalised on easy batting conditions at the Galle International Stadium to take control of the match which is star spinner Muttiah Muralitharan's swansong Test.

Paranavitana and Mahela Jayawardene (8) were at the crease when play was called off shortly after the tea break because of rain.

It turned out to be a miserable day for the Indians with a depleted bowling attack struggling to make any impact on the Sri Lankan batsmen who scored at a brisk pace. The hosts could have been in a far more comfortable position had bad light and rain not deprived them off 21 overs during the day.

Sangakkara and Paranavitana captalised on a solid start of 91 for one at lunch and the duo treated the hapless Indian bowling attack with disdain by shar-

ing 181 runs for the second wicket in exactly 51 overs to take the game away from the visitors.

India removed Sangakkara early in the final session, holing out to Sachin Tendulkar off parttimer Virender Sehwag at Sri Lankan score of 236 for two but Jayawardene and Paranavitana ensured that they did not lose any more wickets.

Tillakaratne Dilshan (25) was the only Sri Lankan batsman who fell in the morning session to Abhimanyu Mithun, his first Test scalp.

Sangaakkara's 103 came from 145 balls with the help of 12 fours and it was his fourth century against India. He also went p a s t We s t I n d i a n G o rd o n Gneenidge and Englishman Colin Cowdrey to become the 23rd most prolific batsman.

The Indian attack without strike bowler Zaheer Khan and S Sreesanth due to injuries, were at the receiving end of a solid Sri Lankan batting display and went wicketless in the whole of the extended second session.

They conceded 137 runs in 38 overs bowled in the session.

To compound the matters for India, their most experienced bowler Harbhajan Singh suffered from after effects of a bout of flu and apparently a hamstring problem. He went off the field mid-way into the post-lunch session but returned after about

Sri Lanka 1st innings: Tharanga Paranavitana batting 110, Tillakaratne Dilshan c Dhoni b Mithun 25, Kumar Sangakkara c Tendulkar b Sehwag 103, Mahela Jayawardene batting 8.

Extras: 10. Total: 256 for 2. Overs: 68. Fall of wickets: 1-55, 2-236. Bowling: Ishant Sharma 14-3-79-0, Abhimanyu Mithun 13-2-41-1, Harbhajan Singh 17-3-41-0, Pragyan Ojha 17-166-0, Virender Sehwag 7-0-23-1.

failing to pouch an edge.

Opener Paranavitana was more circumspect initially waiting for bad balls but he opened up after reaching his fifty, fifth in 11 Tests.

India also missed a half chance to remove Paranavitana when on 51 with a forward diving Yuvraj failing to reach the ball after the Sri Lankan opener cut uppishly a Sehwag delivery.

Those couple of chances were all the Indians had as the bowlers lacked penetration and consistency to trouble the Sri Lankans.

Paranavitana went on to score his best Test score in his 11th match, his earlier best being 73 against Pakistan in Colombo last year.

Harbhajan got the drift and a bit of turn in both the sessions but that was not enough to get

Sangakkara looks to pile pressure on Day 2 AGENCIES GALLE, JULY 18

Sri Lanka would look to accelerate in the first two sessions on Monday to score a big total and put pressure on the Indians in the first Test in Galle, Sri Lanka, Captain Kumar Sangakkara said on Sunday.

"All in all we had a good day today. We are looking to dominate in the first two sessions tomorrow and post a big total. If we do that we are going to put pressure on the Indians," Sangakkara said after the day's play.

Sangakkara said it was a no brainer to elect to bat after winning the toss as the side which had done so won in the previous 4-5 matches at the Galle International Stadium.

"The pitch was a bit soft (after rains). We discussed this before the match. But the side which elected to bat had won in the previous 4-5 matches, including against Pakistan and New Zealand,"

he reasoned.

Sangakkara heaved praised on Tharanga Paranavitana for his maiden century.

"I am happy that I scored a century in the first Test of this series but Para (Paranavitana) batted fantastic and we had a big partnership," the home team captain said.

"Para has been performing well in the domestic circuit in the last four-five years and today's century was a reward for his consistent performance. I knew he needed just one innings to start making an impact in the international scene. I hope he kick starts his international career from here," he said.

Asked about Muttiah Muralitharan's retirement after this Test, Saangakkara said, "Well, we are going to miss him. There was a bit of turn on the wicket on the first day today. So we are hoping he would bow out with a fine performance."

any wicket while left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha was also expensive though he extracted some turn.

Pacer Ishant Sharma gave away just two runs in his first two overs of the second session before conceding 19 in his next two and his captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni took him off.

Fielding one of the weakest bowling attacks in a long time, luck also did not favour India as Dhoni lost the toss after the start of the match was delayed for 30 minutes due to wet outfield.

With the depleted Indian bowlers failing to take the advantage of the moisture after heavy overnight rains, the Sri Lankan openers Paranavitana and Dilshan were off to a quick start, sharing 55 runs for the first wicket in 11 overs.

The Sri Lankan duo targeted Ishant, who bled 41 runs in his five overs in the morning, as Paranavitana struck him for a four in the first ball of the innings and then repeated it with another boundary in the opening over.

Ishant was again punished for another couple of fours in his second over by Paranavitana.

Dilshan also joined the party with five fours off Ishant in two overs.

Mithun made an impressive start in his debut Test conceding 41 runs from his 12 overs and with the wicket of dangerous Dilshan, his maiden Test scalp.

Indian attack was not weak, pitch was good: Paranavitana

Riblon wins 14th leg; Schleck keeps yellow

AGENCIES GALLE, JULY 18

AP AX-3 DOMAINES (France), JULY 18

Christophe Riblon of France won the Tour de France’s first stage in the Pyrenees on Sunday, while Andy Schleck fended off challenges from Alberto Contador to remain the race’s overall leader.

Riblon finished in 4 hours, 52 minutes, 42 seconds—54 seconds ahead of Denis Menchov of Russia and Samuel Sanchez of Spain.

Schleck was 1:08 behind in fourth, in a group that also included defending champion Contador. The pair stuck together throughout the 114.7mile 14th stage from Revel, with the Luxembourg rider matching the Spaniard’s accelerations on the final climb to the ski resort of Ax-3 Domaines.

Schleck’s advantage over Contador remained at 31 seconds, with Sanchez now 2:31 back. Menchov was fourth at 2:44.

Riblon earned his first Tour de France stage victory, and fourth for France this year.

Part of a group that broke away in the first 19 miles of the race, he was alone in front near the top of the major climb of the day, the Port de Pailheres.

He held his lead over the summit, down the long descent and then up the climb to Ax-3 Domaines.

20 minutes. Sangakkara and Paranavitana, who were on 25 and 35 at lunch break, played sensible innings as they mixed caution with aggression to deny any success to the Indians.

Sangakkara, the more aggressive of the two, was in fine touch punishing the Indian bowlers whenever they erred in line and length.

The Sri Lankan captain was dropped when on 65 off parttimer Virender Sehwag, who was introduced midway in the second session, with his counterpart and wicket-keeper Dhoni

An ecstatic Tharanga Paranavitana savours his first Test century.

India cut a sorry figure on the opening day of first Test but Sri Lanka opener Tharanga Paranavitana refused to label their bowling as weak, saying the conditions were favourable for batting on Sunday.

"Indian bowling was not weak but the wicket was good to bat on. Only the odd ball turned.

Otherwise there is no problem playing (on the pitch). If bowlers can bowl in the right areas they can get something from the wicket," Paranavitana, who remained unbeaten on 110, said.

"I am happy to get a century as I have got some 50s in Test matches. I am happy to get a hundred on home soil against India," he said.

‘Big names pull-out won’t affect CWG’ lPull-outs a blow: Gill AGENCIES NEW DELHI, JULY 18

The government is worried about the pull out of star players from the Commonwealth Games the Organising Committee (OC) says one or two withdrawals would not make any difference.

The Sports Ministry and the OC came out with completely contrasting viewpoints as Olympic Champions Usain Bolt, Shelly-Ann Fraser and Chris Hoy announced that they will skip the October 3-14 Games.

Sports Minister M S Gill feels the Games would lose sheen if star players like Bolt would not

compete but OC Chairman Suresh Kalmadi says it makes no difference if one or two players decide to miss it.

"We have read in paper this one is not coming, that one is not coming. Let me tell you that the biggest squad ever is coming from every country. Australia has confirmed 700 entries and England 500 which is highest ever.

"If one or two do not come, it does not matter. The Games will go on, the best of theworld are coming and new champions will be created," Kalmadi said at the inauguration of the Swimming Complex.

However, Gill was very disap-

pointed with the decision of the athletes and said he would ask CWG President Mike Fennell to bring those players to Games and would also raise the matter at the meeting of the Sports Ministers of the Commonwealth nations on October 4.

"Star athletes have slowly drifted away from the Games. It's not at all good. I want to tell Mr Fennell that don't bring your officials here but bring stars like Bolt, Fraser, Hoy and others with you.

"I'll raise this issue before them definitely. If these stars failed to turn up, then all our efforts stand waste. People would say that if only you and Suresh (Kalmadi) were to run then why you spent so much," Gill said.

The opening batsman said once he reached his fifty he told himself to concentrate more to get a century.

"From experience in domestic cricket I knew I had to concentrate more to get a hundred. I wanted to have the right mindset to get a hundred today. My plan was to get the fifty first and then maintain my focus to get a hundred. I am happy I did that," he said.

"I also spoke to senior players about scoring big and their advice has helped," he added.

Paranavitana is hoping that rain does not play spoilsport as Sri Lanka has been placed in a strong position after reaching 256 for two on the opening day on Sunday.

"I think if we can score 400 it will be a substantial total. I hope there is no interruption due to rain after we get into a winning situation. That will hamper our

progress," he said.

Asked about debutant Indian pacer Abhimanyu Mithun, Paranavitana said, "He is good.

With experience he will get better."

n Indian bowling was not weak but the wicket was good to bat on.

Only the odd ball turned. Otherwise there is no problem playing (on the pitch). If bowlers can bowl in the right areas they can get something from the wicket.

-- Tharanga Paranavitana

Sri Lanka may have reached a strong position in the first Test after a good show by their batsmen on the opening day but India coach Gary Kirsten is hopeful of bouncing back.

Kirtsen said it was not all over for India and that weather will play an important role in the match.

"Sri Lanka have not taken a stranglehold on the match. We will be looking to get a couple of early wickets tomorrow. And this match could be affected by rains," Kirsten told reporters at a press conference.

The Indian coach also backed Ishant Sharma despite an ordinary show by the gangly paceman. He leaked 79 runs in 14 overs he bowled in different spells and went wicketless.

"Ishant was a bit unlucky. In the first session he bowled some good deliveries which went down to the third man for fours.

That can happen to any bowler.

We should not judge him in a warm up game and in one innings of the Test match.

"Let us give him a bit of run and let us see how it goes.”

"We want to back him as much as we can. I think may be he has lost a little bit of confidence in the last season and that takes a bit of time to get back," he said adding that the team badly missed injured pacer Zaheen Khan.

The South African also revealed that spinner Harbhajan Singh played despite not being fully fit.

"We had to play Harbhajan today though he is still recovering from flu. He is not in full fitness yet but you know we need him in the team. If he had not played we would have been really inexperienced. He is a gutsy cricketer. He said he wanted to play," he said.

The seasoned spinner had also missed the only warm up game before the Test match.

n Sri Lanka have not taken a stranglehold on the match. We will be looking to get a couple of early wickets tomorrow. And this match could be affected by rains.

-- India coach Gary Kirsten

Irfan’s inconsistent bowling cost him place: Kirsten AGENCIES GALLE, JULY 18

India cricket coach Gary Kirsten on Sunday said the team wanted Irfan Pathan to play as an allrounder in the 2011 ODI World Cup but had to drop the plan because of his inability to take wickets consistently.

Pathan has been out of the team for more than a year now.

He played his last ODI in February 2009 and it is more than two years since he figured in a Test match.

Kirsten said since Pathan could not perform up to expectation, the number six spot in the ODI side was still up for grabs.

"We are looking for an all-rounder for the World Cup. We were looking at Irfan

Pathan to fill that role. Probably he lacked a bit. We are looking for an all-rounder who can come in the top six of the batting order during the World Cup. "We can't have a guy who is bowling 115 kms and holding up an end and getting one wicket every five matches. He should be able to make a positive contribution. Irfan was the person whom we had earmarked but probably he lacked on the bowling side," Kirsten said.

In 107 ODIs Pathan took 157 wickets and claimed 100 w i c ke t s i n 2 9 Tests.

He played for Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League.