Team Herald
PANJIM: Goa Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai informed the State Assembly on Thursday that 43 individuals have been arrested in connection with the job scam that surfaced in
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last year.
Addressing the House, the Governor stated, “My government has taken decisive action against individuals posing as agents for government jobs.” He added that all complaints received have been promptly converted into First Information Reports (FIRs). However, the Opposition did not seem convinced by the assurances in the Governor’s speech, and many of them walked out in protest, annoyed that he was not addressing any of the issues they had raised.
“Police have arrested 43 accused so far, and properties such as vehicles, gold ornaments, bank accounts, and other assets have been seized. Three of these cases have been charge-sheeted and are currently pending trial in court,” Pillai said “The police have been given a free hand to work with relevant agencies such as the Enforcement Directorate and the Financial Intelligence Unit. Information has been shared with these agencies in 16 cases,”
he noted.
The Governor also highlighted the government’s efforts to improve road safety, with special drives to address issues like drunken driving and over-speeding. A total of 4,91,796 traffic violations under the Motor Vehicles Act have been registered, resulting in a fine collection of Rs 29.28 crore as of November 2024.
Additionally, he reported that the construction of new police station buildings at Quepem, Fatorda, Maina-Curtorim, and an annex to the Coastal Security Police Station at Tiracol is underway at an estimated cost of Rs 36.23 crore. A new IRBn Camp has also been established near Canacona Police Station.
On women’s safety, the Governor shared that the Pink Force has responded to 5,387 calls related to women in distress and other emergencies. He also mentioned that a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed with IIT Goa and BITS Pilani, Goa, to strengthen law enforcement and cybersecurity efforts.
Pillai further noted that the Goa Staff Selection Commission has been set up to ensure a transparent and merit-based recruitment process for government jobs, thereby preventing fraudulent individuals from posing as government
job agents.
In education, the Governor outlined that the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) will be completed by 2027-28. The next two years will focus on forming clusters and restructuring institutions where necessary to meet this goal. He also mentioned that in the current year, the implementation of NEP-2020 has continued for Balvatika – II in the Foundational Stage and Grade IX in the Secondary Stage.
CM slams Yuri for apparent disrespect to the House
PORVORIM: Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday objected to Leader of the Opposition Yuri Alemao not accompanying him when the Governor was leaving the House, claiming that this was the first time such a thing had happened in the Goa Assembly. “Sanctity of the House should be maintained,” he said.
Minister for Legislative Affairs Aleixo Sequeira said, “There is another session in the month of March. It is not that the Assembly is getting over in two days. This session has been approved by everybody in the Business Advisory Committee (BAC). It has been a unanimous decision. If the MLAs were not happy, they should have expressed their views in the BAC. The Opposition members staged a walkout because they wanted to show to the people that they are not happy.”
WRD Minister Subhash Shirodkar said,” The two-day session was called based on the deliberations done by Chief Minister and the Speaker.”
