Foreign students under scanner
Preetu Nair | TNN
Panaji: The Goa police have decided to conduct a fresh survey of foreigners studying in the state to verify their antecedents and have sought the state government’s permission to be allowed to conduct surprise raids on institutions where foreign students are enrolled.
The police—who are alarmed by the increasing number of natives from West Asia studying in private institutes in the state—said investigations have revealed that foreigners with student visas to study in institutes in other states have enrolled in private institutes in Goa and do not attend classes regularly. In one case, it was found that at times students disappear for months together from the state on sick leave. The police said licences of the institutes should be cancelled in case of any violations and the students bunking classes should be deported.
The police proposal to the state government also said a weekly attendance sheet of the students should be sent to the Foreigners Registration Office (FRO). The proposal comes on the heels of the alleged revelations by Amir Kasab Azam, arrested during the Mumbai terror attack, that he and eight others had made a reconnaissance trip to Mumbai, posing as Malaysian students.
The police suggested bringing such private institutions under the control of the education department and the forwarding of details of all foreign students to the collector and the FRO. “From the security point of view it is important to have a check on people who arrive on the pretext of studying. It is a grey area and if immediate steps are not taken, it may prove detrimental to national security,” said SP (North) Bosco George. 11 institutes not affiliated to any varsity
Panaji: The Goa police in a proposal to the state government has suggested bringing private education institutions in the state under the control of the education department.
The Goa police are also conducting a survey to verify the credentials of foreigners studying in the state.
Police investigations have revealed 11 institutes not recognized or affiliated to any university. Six of them function from Panaji. The institutes mainly cater to foreign students, with about 150 students from West Asia attending courses in English, business administration, computer science and office management. Yemenese nationals top the list, followed by students from Sudan, Afghanistan and Nigeria.
Most of the institutes have trade licenses from the respective municipal council or corporation.
SP (Intelligence) A V Deshpande said, “After conducting a survey of private institutions enrolling foreign students, we learnt that foreign students were using loopholes in the system to be in Goa. Things need to be in place to ensure that subversive elements dont enter the state posing as students.”
December 4, 2008, The Times of India, Goa edition
Friday, December 05, 2008
8,500 fishermen in Goa but only 474 ID cards
8,500 fishermen in Goa but only 474 ID cards
Preetu Nair | TNN
Panaji: In yet another example of the government’s lackadaisical attitude towards maritime security, the Goa government has issued identity cards to only 474 of the approximately 8,500 fishermen operating in the state. The drive to issue ID cards had started in April 2007.
Acting director of fisheries Nandkishore Verlekar said, “Information is being collected by the coastal police but it’s a difficult task as about 95% of the labour is from outside the state. Though information is collected and sent to the police station of their origin for verification, there is hardly any response. Due to this there has been a delay in issuing ID cards.” However, in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks, the government has decided to act swiftly to secure the coasts.
Over 80 persons held in South Goa
In an intensive drive against job seekers from outside the state, the South Goa police rounded up nine Lamanis along the coastal belt and some 80 persons from different parts of Cuncolim on Wednesday. Police also undertook verification of around 150 Kashmiris engaged in trading activities. In another operation in Calangute on Tuesday night, police arrested 55 persons from the Aradiband slums. Police said that those arrested had no documents and were moving around the area in a suspicious manner. TNN P 3 Govt mulls colour code for trawlers, IDs for crew
Panaji: The Goa government is contemplating a colour code for trawlers besides bar coded identification cards for fishermen to ensure that unwanted elements don’t penetrate into the state via the sea.
“ID cards would make it easier to verify the antecedents of fishermen operating in Goa and a colour code for trawlers would help check on their movement,” said SP (North) Bosco George. There are about 815 trawlers operating in the state, with some 1,657 trawlers registered with the fisheries department.
Responsibility for verification remains with the state police, while the procedure for application and issuing of cards is managed by the fisheries department.
The police claim “lack of cooperation, illiteracy and absence of documents to prove proof of residence and incomplete or incorrect addresses” make verification difficult, leading to a consequent delay in issuing ID cards.
“We have been regularly checking those employed by
the trawlers. But trawler owners need to maintain proper records of their employees and cooperate with the police,” said DySP (coastal police) Naresh Mhamal.
“Police have been collecting details of the people employed with us, but so far we have not been issued a single ID card,” said Elvis Gomes, a trawler owner from Betul.
Added Mandovi Fishermen Marketing Cooperative Society chairman Sitakant Parab, “Hardly 25% of the fishermen have identity cards. Verification takes a long time and by that time many would have shifted to a different job or left the state. It is really difficult to issue identity cards as a majority of the workers are from Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa or West Bengal and are here for short periods.”
The cards contain the photograph of the person, identification details, work profile and the association the fisherman is affiliated to. The card was meant to help patrolling agencies keep a check on activities of fishermen and to allow an alert to be raised in case of suspicious activity.
December 4, 2008, The Times of India, Goa edition
Preetu Nair | TNN
Panaji: In yet another example of the government’s lackadaisical attitude towards maritime security, the Goa government has issued identity cards to only 474 of the approximately 8,500 fishermen operating in the state. The drive to issue ID cards had started in April 2007.
Acting director of fisheries Nandkishore Verlekar said, “Information is being collected by the coastal police but it’s a difficult task as about 95% of the labour is from outside the state. Though information is collected and sent to the police station of their origin for verification, there is hardly any response. Due to this there has been a delay in issuing ID cards.” However, in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks, the government has decided to act swiftly to secure the coasts.
Over 80 persons held in South Goa
In an intensive drive against job seekers from outside the state, the South Goa police rounded up nine Lamanis along the coastal belt and some 80 persons from different parts of Cuncolim on Wednesday. Police also undertook verification of around 150 Kashmiris engaged in trading activities. In another operation in Calangute on Tuesday night, police arrested 55 persons from the Aradiband slums. Police said that those arrested had no documents and were moving around the area in a suspicious manner. TNN P 3 Govt mulls colour code for trawlers, IDs for crew
Panaji: The Goa government is contemplating a colour code for trawlers besides bar coded identification cards for fishermen to ensure that unwanted elements don’t penetrate into the state via the sea.
“ID cards would make it easier to verify the antecedents of fishermen operating in Goa and a colour code for trawlers would help check on their movement,” said SP (North) Bosco George. There are about 815 trawlers operating in the state, with some 1,657 trawlers registered with the fisheries department.
Responsibility for verification remains with the state police, while the procedure for application and issuing of cards is managed by the fisheries department.
The police claim “lack of cooperation, illiteracy and absence of documents to prove proof of residence and incomplete or incorrect addresses” make verification difficult, leading to a consequent delay in issuing ID cards.
“We have been regularly checking those employed by
the trawlers. But trawler owners need to maintain proper records of their employees and cooperate with the police,” said DySP (coastal police) Naresh Mhamal.
“Police have been collecting details of the people employed with us, but so far we have not been issued a single ID card,” said Elvis Gomes, a trawler owner from Betul.
Added Mandovi Fishermen Marketing Cooperative Society chairman Sitakant Parab, “Hardly 25% of the fishermen have identity cards. Verification takes a long time and by that time many would have shifted to a different job or left the state. It is really difficult to issue identity cards as a majority of the workers are from Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa or West Bengal and are here for short periods.”
The cards contain the photograph of the person, identification details, work profile and the association the fisherman is affiliated to. The card was meant to help patrolling agencies keep a check on activities of fishermen and to allow an alert to be raised in case of suspicious activity.
December 4, 2008, The Times of India, Goa edition
In Goa 38% of HIV hit are women
38% of HIV hit are women
Preetu Nair | TNN
Panaji: A woman, cheated into a marriage with an HIV positive man, filed for divorce as soon as she learned about his HIV status as she didn’t wish to live the rest of her life with the man who kept her in the dark about the same. Women’s liberation has touched a new high in Goa, with few women daring to put the lid on the unhappy marriages.
The latest trend, noticed over the past one year, has seen more than four women apply for either divorce or separation as their partners had hidden their HIV status at the time of marriage. “We have registered number of cases of women who are married to HIV positive men, who either didn’t know their HIV status or didn’t disclose it before marriage. In 4 cases, the women after they knew of their spouse’s HIV status, wanted either divorce or separation. One of them was tested HIV positive,” said Goa State AIDS Control Society chairperson Dr Pramod Salgaocar.
Dr Salgaocar added, “Most of the women are from Goan middle class families, who are in their early twenties. Once they know of their spouse’s HIV status, they feel cheated and betrayed. While some ask for separation, few opt for divorce. But many continue to live with the spouse and try to adjust with what fate has to offer.”
The surveillance data prepared by Goa State AIDS Control Society (GSACS) shows that of the estimated 12000 HIV positive individuals in the state, 38% are women and more than 85% are in the 15 to 29 age group. Besides, the proportion of HIV positive women has alarmingly increased from 12% in 1998 to 38% in 2008. Infact, 1 of every 3 HIV positive case detected in Goa is a woman.
“We have come across cases in which men have hidden their HIV status from their spouses at the time of marriage. Once the wife comes to know of the husband’s HIV status, hell breaks lose. If they are economically independent, then the women either walks out of the marriage or asks for separation.
Even if a woman tries to adjust, it is not easy as the blame game starts,” said Positive Lives Foundation president Jaffar Inamdar.
Sophia from Rishta said, “In majority of cases we have seen that by the time a woman learns about her husband’s HIV status, its too late as by then the woman is also tested HIV positive. So majority of women are left with no option but to support each other, till death parts them.”
“The only option that can help the couples is to make counselling mandatory and testing voluntary before marriage” added Dr Salgaocar.
December 2, 2008, The Times of India, Goa edition
Preetu Nair | TNN
Panaji: A woman, cheated into a marriage with an HIV positive man, filed for divorce as soon as she learned about his HIV status as she didn’t wish to live the rest of her life with the man who kept her in the dark about the same. Women’s liberation has touched a new high in Goa, with few women daring to put the lid on the unhappy marriages.
The latest trend, noticed over the past one year, has seen more than four women apply for either divorce or separation as their partners had hidden their HIV status at the time of marriage. “We have registered number of cases of women who are married to HIV positive men, who either didn’t know their HIV status or didn’t disclose it before marriage. In 4 cases, the women after they knew of their spouse’s HIV status, wanted either divorce or separation. One of them was tested HIV positive,” said Goa State AIDS Control Society chairperson Dr Pramod Salgaocar.
Dr Salgaocar added, “Most of the women are from Goan middle class families, who are in their early twenties. Once they know of their spouse’s HIV status, they feel cheated and betrayed. While some ask for separation, few opt for divorce. But many continue to live with the spouse and try to adjust with what fate has to offer.”
The surveillance data prepared by Goa State AIDS Control Society (GSACS) shows that of the estimated 12000 HIV positive individuals in the state, 38% are women and more than 85% are in the 15 to 29 age group. Besides, the proportion of HIV positive women has alarmingly increased from 12% in 1998 to 38% in 2008. Infact, 1 of every 3 HIV positive case detected in Goa is a woman.
“We have come across cases in which men have hidden their HIV status from their spouses at the time of marriage. Once the wife comes to know of the husband’s HIV status, hell breaks lose. If they are economically independent, then the women either walks out of the marriage or asks for separation.
Even if a woman tries to adjust, it is not easy as the blame game starts,” said Positive Lives Foundation president Jaffar Inamdar.
Sophia from Rishta said, “In majority of cases we have seen that by the time a woman learns about her husband’s HIV status, its too late as by then the woman is also tested HIV positive. So majority of women are left with no option but to support each other, till death parts them.”
“The only option that can help the couples is to make counselling mandatory and testing voluntary before marriage” added Dr Salgaocar.
December 2, 2008, The Times of India, Goa edition
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