GOA

IT firms, startups hope for time-bound implementation of govts new policy

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The needs to implement the Goa Startup Policy 2021 in a time-bound manner with clear guidelines and clarity on the rollout of the incentives, said startups and entrepreneurs.

Stakeholders and beneficiaries of the policy incentives point out that while the department of Information and Technologys claims that startup scheme applications will be processed in 45 days, most applications under the earlier policy, which lapsed in September, were pending for 12-18 months.

Startups and IT firms let out a sigh of relief after the state government cleared the long delayed Goa Startup Policy 2021, but said that a sluggish implementation of the scheme and its incentives will prove to be a dampener.

Goa slides sharply in Centre’s school education performance index

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In the Union Education ministry’s annual performance grading index (PGI) to evaluate the quality ofschool educationoffered in states and UTs, Goa has slid from the 750-800 points bracket to the 521-580 bracket (out of a total 1,000 points) in the latest assessment for 2021-22 released.

Daksh’ is the highest level to be attained in the PGI, reserved for those who score between 941 to 1000 points, but no states have made it to the first five categories of the index.
Chandigarh and Punjab have the highest score in the range of 641-700, making it to the ‘Prachesta-2’ level, which is the fifth-best category.

Goa scored best on teacher training, edu
Goa found itself in the eighth category in the index of Akankshi1, in which category 12 other states have also been placed.
Goa was placed in the sixth category last year, but the order of levels to be attained has been altered this year due to some changes.

Goa scored 555.8 points out of a 1,000, with the state scoring the lowest on the parameter of Learning outcome and quality. For this parameter, the data was drawn from the national achievement survey, 2021, conducted by NCERT. Goa scored a mere 61.4 out of 240 on this parameter. In the survey, the states students performance was found wanting in mathematics and science.Goa scored the best on the parameter of teacher training and education, with 74.4 points out of 100. The state also did well in access and parameters, with a score of 66.3 out of 80 and 220.7 out of 260, respectively.

The objective of the recently-introduced PGI is to get states and UTs to undertake interventions to achieve better education outcomes in terms of improving quality. The index is also to motivate states and UTs to adopt the best practices followed by the top performing regions.
The new parameter of teacher education and training was added for the first time this year.

Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Haryana, and Sikkim were some of the other states which were in the same category as Goa.

Govt committed to enhancing green cover, says CM Pramod Sawant

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In the wake of the recent fire incidents in the forests of the state, chief ministerPramod Sawanton Friday said that the is committed to enhancement of forest cover and strengthening Biodiversity in the state.

The Indian State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2021 denotes an increase of 7sqkm of forest cover in Goa compared to ISFR 2019, Sawant said.
Goa is committed to implementing various programmes to enhance forest cover and strengthen biodiversity in the state. As much as 60.6% of the land in Goa is under forest cover and with the implementation of CAMPA (Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority) scheme and various initiatives of the state government, it is increasing consistently, the chief minister said.

The state government has estimated that around 418 hectares have been affected in the recent forest fires fromSattarito Canacona.

Govt to tie up with agency for stroke-related cases

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With the state witnessing an increase in strokecases, the cabinet has granted permission to collaborate with HLL Lifecare Limited, a government of India enterprise, to develop a hub and spoke model at various primary Health centres (PHCs), community health centres (CHCs) and the super specialty block of Goa Medical College (GMC) and Hospital for the required treatment.

The health minister said that the has written to the chief electoral officer to relieve health workers from election duty, for which the commission has agreed. Health workers cannot work during Elections when there is an ongoing pandemic, he said.
Rane said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi cleared the proposal to increase the number of doctors at South Goa district hospital.

Centre OKs Karnatakas DPR on Kalasa-Bhandura canal

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Months before the Karnataka polls, the Centre has approved a modified detailed project report (DPR) of the Kalasa-Bhandura (canal) drinking water project, which was one of the key poll promises made by BJP in Karnataka during the 2018 assembly . The DPR, which was approved despite objections from Goa, comes as a setback to Goas efforts to stop Karnataka from diverting Mhadei water.

While Goa CM Pramod Sawant tried to make Light of the latest development, his political opponents and environmentalists see the development as a fresh hurdle in the states efforts to contain the neighbouring states claim on the Mhadei.

According to Bommai, 1.72tmcft of water will be diverted from Kalasa stream and 2.18tmcft from Bhandura stream. The project will end the water crisis in Dharwad, Belagavi, Gadag and Bagalkot districts in North Karnataka.

Karnataka accordingly submitted the pre-feasibility report of the Kalasa and Bhandura diversion schemes on June 17, 2022, to the Cwc for technical appraisal. The DPR of the Kalasa project was submitted on November 23 and that of the Bhandura project on November 28, 2022.

Goa: Now, section of Zuari bridge may open only in February next year

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The had announced early this year that one four-lane section of the newZuaribridge will be ready for use by commuters by mid-December, in time to mark the 60th year celebrations of Goas Liberation. However, officials said that they are struggling to get a visa for the Chinese consultants to travel to India, even after interventions by Union minister for road transport and highways, Nitin Gadkari.

The Chinese consultants are required to oversee the assembly of the cable-stay section of the superstructure of the bridge. Officials said that the contractors for the new Zuari bridge work,DilipBuildcon, are now expected to ready the first section for use only by end of February 2022.

The new eight-lane Zuari bridge has been designed by French bridge specialist Erwan Vicat of Ingerop, Paris, in association with Infinite Civil solutions, India. Dewei Chan of Tongji University, Shanghai, China, is acting as design consultant.

The pandemic brought with it yet more hurdles in 2020, as it hit availability of construction material as well as labour. The government then set an April 2021 deadline for one-lane section of the bridge to be ready, but, having failed to meet that deadline too, had said that the section will be opened for Goas 60th Liberation year celebrations in December 2021.

Global Expo India aims to promote exports from Goa

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The three-dayGlobal Expo Indiaconference began with with representatives from across the country coming together to discuss ways to promote exports, foreign direct Investment and the potential for manufacturing units in Goa.

The event, which was supposed to be attended by finance ministerNirmala Sitharaman, also saw the launch of the Goa chapter of the Global Expo. Global Expo India is affiliated with theIndia Trade Promotion Organisation, a unit of the Centre’s commerce department.

Global Expo India claims to focus on export development through events and conferences, and the Goa chapter has been started in order to promote exports from Goa.

Linked to National Education Policy, research foundation in Goa soon

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The state cabinet approved a bill to establish aGoa state research foundation.
The bill, which will be introduced in the current monsoon session, will have a financial implication of over Rs 25 crore.

The aim of the foundation is to promote a culture of research and innovation in Goa.

In 2020, the Union Education ministry notified theNational Education Policy, (NEP) 2020, which focuses on research, innovation and linkage, along with other aspects.

The National Education Policy, states that research not only provides solutions to societal problems but also contributes to the spiritual, intellectual and creative upliftment of the country, and is therefore extremely important for the progress and enlightenment of any state or nation.

In Goa, one in six primary schools has just one teacher: Unesco

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After Arunachal Pradeshs 18.2%, Goa has the second-highest Percentage of single teacher schools in the country, at 16%. As per Unescos State of the Education report for India 2021, Goa has 239 single-teacher schools. The number of such schools in the state are up from 230 last year, which was pointed out by data of the Union education ministry.

To blame for this scenario in Goa is an age-old norm followed by the state directorate of education (DoE), which makes primary schools eligible for a second teacher only if they have an enrolment of 24 or more students.

This has taken a toll on government primary schools in the state, which are grappling with low student numbers. Government primary schools are pushed into a vicious cycle as having a single teacher means fewer children are motivated to join the school, and fewer children means not being eligible for a second teacher, as per state norms.

Of the 1,486 schools in Goa, 239 are single-teacher schools, states the Unesco report. At one point, the number of such schools in Goa stood at nearly 350.

History, geography, language syllabus in Goa may get state-specific focus

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As the NationalEducationPolicy (NEP) 2020 has called for an overhaul of the curriculum and a local context in thesyllabus, the state council for educational research and training (SCERT) has framed committees which will review the school syllabi. Based on a national framework to be provided by the Union Education ministry, HISTORY, Geography and language syllabi for school students may undergo revision soon.

NCERT will be giving states a broad framework to work with. As NEP has said that syllabus can have content specific to a state, we have an opportunity now to revise our syllabus to include state-related content whenever required, if found necessary by the committees.

The NEP states that one of the principles it is based on is to bring in a respect for diversity and respect for the local context in all curriculum, pedagogy, and policy. This NEP aims at building a global-best education system rooted in Indian ethos, states the document.