DOPE ON DRUGS‘Over 250 drug dealers in Goa’

DOPE ON DRUGS
‘Over 250 drug dealers in Goa’
Preetu Nair | TNN

Panaji: David Driham aka Dudu, picked up by the Mumbai cops on September 20 from Anjuna, has revealed that there are more than 250 people dealing in narcotics in the state.
“During interrogations, Dudu revealed that there is a gang of about 250 people dealing in drugs and all of them are operating from Goa. However, he has not revealed from where and how the narcotic
drugs come to Goa,” said investigating officer PI Anil Jadhav from the Mumbai police’s anti-narcotic cell.
PI Jadhav said that they got to know of Dudu’s activities after they arrested an agent from Goa, Nana, in Mumbai while attempting to distribute 500 ecstasy tablets and 400 LSD tablets in Mumbai pubs and discotheques earlier this month. “He revealed that he had got his supply from an Israeli named Dudu from Anjuna. Based on this information, we raided his house and brought him to Mumbai for further investigations.”
Dudu has been booked under section 8 (interstate movement of narcotics), section 22 (possession of drugs) and section 29 (abettment and participation in a criminal conspiracy) under the NPDS Act.
Dudu has been living in Goa for a few years. According to documents submitted by him before the Adhoc Additional District judge, Panaji in a civil suit filed by him against the state government for serving him a deportation order in 2006, Dudu said that he had come to Goa for the first time in November 2003 and set up a company — Dudu Division Import Export Private Limited — along with his Israeli wife Ronit Harel and Goan partner Sagar Adelkar in 2004.
He also informed the court that he had come to Goa on a business visa from Bangkok and was staying in a rented house at Gaonkarwaddo, Anjuna since 2004. His company, formed with the objective of buying, selling, importing, exporting, general trading in textiles and garments, was registered as a private limited company on April 23, 2004, with its office at Gaonkarwaddo.
Dudu had been under police scrutiny in Goa and the state government had made two attempts to deport him. “We had strong suspicions that he was dealing in drugs. We had raided his house twice, but it didn’t yield any results,” said SP (ANC) Omprakash Kudtarkar.
In an attempt in 2006, the home department on February 15, 2006 had issued a deportation order asking him to leave the country within 15 days. However, Dudu challenged the order in the Adhoc Additional District court, Panaji, stating that the visa granted by the Indian embassy in Bangkok, extended up to October 26, 2006 and had not yet expired.
Dudu continued to stay in the country even after his visa expired and on October 28, 2006, the Anjuna police booked him for overstaying. The state government issued a “Leave India Notice” to him on November 2, 2006, soon after Dudu wrote to the Home department requesting an extension of stay in India for him and his wife, which was denied. “As the matter is still pending in court, he continues to stay in Goa,” added SP Fernandes.

September 30.2008, The Times of India, Goa edition

AC at Goa Medical College ICU not working for one month

ACs at GMC ICU not working for one month
Preetu Nair | TNN

Panaji: The air conditioner at GMC’s intensive care unit has not been working for the last one month. And the ACs at coronary care unit and intermediate intensive care unit have been out for a week.
Doctors say such facilities—they being closed areas and patients being in critical condition—24x7 functioning ACs are essential. “The functioning of ACs is a must to maintain sterility, circulation of air and a comfortable ambient temperature for patients,” said Dr Rufino Monteiro, who also works with the ICU at Vintage Hospital, Panaji.
“If the AC doesn’t function 24x7, the room temperature will rise, causing discomfort to patients, disturb their metabolism and deteriorate their condition, besides increasing the risk of infection,” he said.
GMC’s medical superintendent, Rajan Kunkolienkar, said, “For the last two-three weeks there has been trouble as the main transformer has some snag. We have informed Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation and they are in the process of getting replacements. Though the AC is functioning periodically, the effect is not perfect.”
Doctors fear this could increase the risk of infections among patients and also lead to the damage of expensive equipment, like the machine monitoring cardiovascular parameters, respiratory, renal and nervous system functioning.
GSIDC electrical manager N R Vhaval said, “There is a problem with the transformer, but the AC plant works either with the help of the transformer or generator. We don’t know whether the AC is in operation in the rooms as the operating contract is not with us. Even if the AC plant is working but the air handling unit maintained by GMC is not started in the respective rooms, there won’t be any cooling.” Kunkolienkar also said GMC had purchased a new transformer, which arrived on Saturday and would be installed soon. GSIDC confirmed this.
While patients affected by life threatening conditions like acute respiratory failure, cardiac failure, deep coma or major trauma patients are admitted to the ICU, patients with cardiac arrest and blood pressure problems are admitted at the CCU. GMC’s ICU has eight beds, CCU has seven beds and the ICCU has 18 beds.

September 30, 2008, The Times of India, Goa edition