Panaji Feb 24 PTI The mythological King Momo was not a part of the traditional Goa Carnival festivities and the character came into existence much later when float parades became an integral part of the popular event according to a cultural expert The concept of float parades was started by the Goa tourism department in 1970s when the character of King Momo was also formally introduced a tourism department official said The four-day carnival will begin in Goa on Saturday when the first float parade would be held in the state capital Panaji The festivities are held every year before the 40-day lent period of the Christian community The Goa tourism department invites applications from people who desire to be King Momo and conducts auditions before making the final selection For this years celebration South Goa resident Emiliano Dias will be King Momo to lead the float parade There was no King Momo earlier it was more of peoples participation there was no theme as such People used to enjoy by putting colour on each other throwing water and different entertainment activities were held Goas noted cultural expert Maendra Alvares said The traditional carnival was all about peoples participation he said During the Portuguese era before 1961 the floats never existed People used to go around on bullock carts he said This later took the shape of floats and various commercial establishments started sponsoring the event said Alvares The traditional carnival was marked by theatre art form Khel which was a kind of satirical play It used to be a humorous depiction of what was happening in the political field he said The play was staged in different places like a church square or an area in front of someones house he recalled People used to sit in a circular pattern and watch the play It was up to the artists to use their talent and creative imagination to generate interest among the people he added PTI RPS GK GK

Panaji Feb 22 PTI Goa Trinamool Congress TMC chief Kiran Kandolkar has claimed that their political consultant I-PAC abandoned the party candidates after the state Assembly polls held last week Talking to reporters here on Monday Kandolkar also said he was not quitting as TMCs Goa unit chief but was upset with I-PAC head Prashant Kishor and his team There have been speculations since some time about a rift between the TMC and I-PAC Indian Political Action Committee which had helped the Mamata Banerjee-led party during the West Bengal Assembly polls The TMC contested the Goa Assembly elections in alliance with the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party MGP Polling was held on February 14 and the counting of votes will be done on March 10 Kandolkar had contested the election from Aldona Assembly seat while his wife Kavita contested from Thivim on TMCs ticket He claimed that most of the TMC candidates in Goa felt they were abandoned by the I-PAC after the polls All candidates fielded by the TMC have some or the other issues with the I-PAC When the candidates told me about their issues with Prashant Kishor and his I-PAC team I discussed the matter with my party workers who advised me to quit as the TMC Goa president he said I am not quitting as TMC Goa head but I am upset with Prashant Kishor and the I-PAC team he said A meeting of all party candidates has been called on Tuesday to discuss the polling in their respective Assembly constituencies he added PTI RPS GK GK

Panaji Feb 21 PTI Schools in Goa resumed physical sessions for all classes on Monday with students appearing happy and excited to be back on campus after the coronavirus-induced break Most of the schools reported good attendance in the morning state education director Bhushan Savaikar told PTI The educational institutions have been asked to strictly follow the standard operating procedures and COVID-19 appropriate behaviour he said The schools in the coastal state had moved to the online mode after the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020 On Monday the schools resumed offline sessions for Classes 1 to 12 as well as the pre-primary ones Sawaikar said There is enthusiasm among students as they are returning to physical classes after such a gap he said In the wake of a decline in COVID-19 cases in Goa the state education department had last week issued a circular for the resumption of offline classes from Monday The education department had also instructed schools to conduct the exams in offline mode only and not to make uniforms mandatory for students It had also said that timing concession if required may be given to students in initial days On Sunday Goa reported 40 new COVID-19 cases and three fatalities raising the infection tally in the state to 244713 and the death toll to 3792 as per official figures PTI RPS GK GK

Panaji Dec 29 PTI The Goa government will make it mandatory for people to be fully vaccinated or carry a COVID-19 negative report to attend parties or enter restaurants in the coastal state Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said on Wednesday Speaking to reporters Sawant said district administrations will issue a notification to this effect by Wednesday evening He said organisers of various events in the state would have to ensure that the guests carry these certificates The Goa government on Tuesday decided not to impose night curfew in the coastal state for now so that the tourism business amid the Christmas-New Year festival season is not affected Sawant had said his government was monitoring the COVID-19 positivity rate and stringent decisions would be taken during the meeting of the task force scheduled to be held on January 3 in case this rate rises Ahead of the New Year celebration there is currently about 90 per cent occupancy in hotels in the state while beaches are already overcrowded with revellers tourism industry stakeholder said Chartered flights from the UK have already started arriving in the state after a nearly year-long gap due to the COVID-19 pandemic Travel and Tourism Association of Goa TTAG president Nilesh Shah said there have been five to seven per cent cancellations in hotel bookings but the season is overall good The end of the year has always been a good season for the tourism industry The hotel occupancy is around 90 per cent during these days which will increase by the New Year Shah told PTI It is a good sign that we are getting back to normalcy Shah said adding that the tourism industry has learnt to do business with COVID-19 protocols in place He said the commencement of the chartered flights has provided work to musicians other artists and tourist guides in the state during the current tourist season On Tuesday Goa reported a sudden spike in coronavirus cases with 112 people testing positive for the infection the state health department said On Monday the coastal state had recorded 67 cases The caseload on Tuesday rose to 180229 while the death toll reached 3520 with one patient dying due to the infection as per official data PTI RPS GK GK

Panaji Dec 27 PTI An eight-year-old boy who arrived in Goa from the United Kingdom has been found infected with Omicron making it the first case of the new coronavirus variant in the coastal state State Health Minister Vishwajit Rane told PTI on Monday that the boy who travelled from the UK on December 17 2021 was confirmed to be infected with Omicron as per his test report received from the National Institute of Virology in Pune Rane said the state government will take steps according to the central governments protocol and also adopt stringent measures as required Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has already asked the tourism stakeholders to stay alert and ensure there is no spread of COVID-19 during festivities in the wake of the upcoming New Year celebrations On Sunday Goa reported 25 new cases of coronavirus taking the states infection count to 180050 while the death toll remained constant at 3519 as per official data PTI RPS GK GK

Panaji Dec 21 PTI Four passengers from the United Kingdom tested positive for coronavirus after arriving in Goa on Tuesday state Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said In the wake of scare regarding the Omicron variant of the coronavirus the Goa government has set up a special facility at a primary health centre PHC at Cansaulim in South Goa district where COVID-19 patients are kept while their samples are sent for genome sequencing to ascertain if they are infected with the new variant The coastal state has so far not reported any case of the Omicron variant Rane in a tweet on Tuesday said All passengers who arrived from UK today morning were tested on arrival Four travellers have been tested positive They have been isolated at PHC Cansaulim The passengers had arrived here by a flight being operated under the governments Vande Bharat Mission VBM The Goa Airport in a tweet said Today morning 103rd VBM flight arrived from London HeathrowAirport at Goa Airport Intl Arrival pax undergo thermal screening and complete exit formalities upon arrival Team Goa resolved to provide safe and smooth arrivals of pax Goa on Monday reported 27 new cases of coronavirus raising the infection tally in the state to 179769 while the death toll remained unchanged at 3485 an official earlier said PTI RPS GK GK

Panaji Oct 25 PTI Trinamool Congress leader Babul Supriyo on Monday expressed confidence that his party will do very well in the Goa Assembly elections due early next year Several TMC leaders including Supriyo and party MPs Mahua Moitra and Saugata Roy have arrived in Goa ahead of West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC head Mamata Banerjees visit to the state scheduled on October 28 The TMC has already announced its decision to contest the Assembly elections in Goa The forthcoming Goa Assembly poll is an important election and the TMC will do very well in it Supriyo told reporters This Goa is one place in India which should see a lot of development to make it more tourist-friendly said Supriyo who joined the TMC last month after quitting the BJP He said Goa is known for its culture tradition music and wonderful beaches A lot more can be done here he added Last month former Goa chief minister Luizinho Faleiro joined the TMC while state Independent MLA Prasad Gaonkar has also extended support to the Mamata Banerjee-led party The TMC last week appointed Faleiro as its vice president The party has been inducting several local leaders in its fold ever since it announced its intention to contest the Goa Assembly polls Elections to the 40-member House in the state are due in February 2022 PTI RPS GK GK

Panaji Sep 30 PTI Physical sessions for classes 9 to 12 which have been shut in Goa since the outbreak of COVID-19 last year may resume before the Diwali festival Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has said An expert committee of doctors has given its go ahead for the resumption of these classes in a phased manner Sawant told reporters on Wednesday The decision of the expert committee would be placed before the state COVID-19 Task Force which will take a final call on it he said Once the task force gives its approval the state education department would be informed and it will start the classes step-by-step the CM said These classes may resume before Diwali he said Sawant said classes 10 and 12 whose students have to appear for board exams could resume first followed by classes 9 and 11 Depending on the infrastructure of schools the classes will begin for classes 9 to 12 by following all COVID-19 protocols and norms he added On Wednesday Goa reported 83 new coronavirus infections which took its caseload to 176318 while four fatalities raised the death toll to 3312 a health department official earlier said The number of recovered patients in the state rose to 172176 on Wednesday and there were 830 active COVID-19 cases in the coastal state he said PTI RPS GK GK

Panaji Sep 26 PTI A ward boy of a government-run hospital in Goa was arrested on Sunday for allegedly molesting two minor siblings in a lift of the medical facility a police official said The incident took place between September 23 and 25 when the two sisters aged 13 and 14 were frequently visiting the North Goa District Hospital in Mapusa town around 10 km from here where their mother was admitted he said The ward boy used to follow them in the lift and allegedly molested them over the last couple of days the official said quoting a complaint filed by family members of the victims Based on the complaint the 47-year-old accused was arrested and a case was registered against him under various Indian Penal Code Sections including 354 assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences POCSO Act he said Besides the police have also registered a case against a Mapusa-based doctor for allegedly molesting a woman patient in his clinic on September 22 the official said In her police complaint the woman alleged that the doctor behaved inappropriately with her during her checkup he said The doctor has moved a local court seeking anticipatory bail in the case he added PTI RPS GK GK