Goa Sulks For Being Left Out
PANAJI, Apr 6: The decision of the Congress high command and the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, not to induct any of the Goan members of Parliament in the cabinet during the reshuffle of the Union cabinet carried out today in New Delhi has taken the state Congress by surprise. The Congressmen had been expecting either of the two Goan MPs to be include in the cabinet but the decision of the party leadership to ignore the claim of the state has surprised them. [NT]

Britons Drown At Goan Resort
http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5gkUzTpW3edrAcd2mujxvs9zC6c3A
A British man and woman have drowned off the coast of Goa.

Stanley Horne and Liesel Smith died on Sunday (April 6, 2008) at the resort of Morjim.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We can confirm that two British nationals drowned at Morjim beach in Goa on April 6." The pair, who were both from Dover, Kent, were close friends who had met when they worked as nurses in the same hospital.

Mr Horne, 70, who was also a trained hospital engineer, had been living in Goa for the past four years, and Ms Smith, 37, had been on holiday visiting him when the tragedy occurred.

Mr Horne's daughter-in-law, Heather, said the pair had drowned after Ms Smith had got into difficulty as she swam in the water and he had tried to rescue her. She said there were several witnesses on the beach who had seen what had happened. "The sea was rough, it was an accident that could have happened anywhere," she said.

Mrs Horne, who is married to Mr Horne's eldest son, David, described him as a, "quiet, gentle man" who had fallen in love with India the first time he had gone there. Ms Smith is believed to be divorced with a son.

Post mortems are due to be carried out today and the bodies are then expected to be flown back to the UK.

The Caste System in Goa
By Vinayak Khedekar

Understanding the castes, sub-castes and inner groups of Goan society in Hindu fold is a complicated task. In ancient times the divisions where based on traditional occupation. But in a course of history it changed and was based on birth into a particular family. Once it adhered, is continued forever. The field study has discovered at least fifty castes and a number of sub-castes, based on hereditary occupation, that exist in Goa traditionally.The Vedic and mythological sources describes a four-fold system, that is Brahman- knowledge, Kshtriya-bravery, Vaishya-economy and Shudra-the toiling mass.
http://www.navhindtimes.com/articles.php?Story_ID=040615

Pomburpa Summer Camp takes off with a bang
POMBURPA: Known for its famed "Pomburpechem fest" and the ideal picnic spot - Pomburpa spring - the east Bardez village seems to have turned a new leaf, and it has begun the refreshing process with the 'Serula: Son of the Soil Project" for children. It is a summer camp meant for the students of St Elizabeth High School but one with a vast difference in the sense that within a couple of days of its commencement, the enthusiastic students have already returned the Pomburpa spring area to its pristine beauty and clean surroundings, which even the tourism department had failed for do for nearly a decade.

On Saturday, they had a famed guest too - popular singer Rita Rose - who was feted and honoured by the students, teachers and parents, while popular cartoonist Alexyz presented her with two lovely caricatures - Alfie and Rita. [GoaNewsClips]

Leopards on the prowl in Chandor, Paroda
CHANDOR: Leopards are once again on the prowl in the hills bordering the villages of Chandor and Paroda. In the latest incident, a pedigree dog was rescued by a youngster from the jaws of the leopard. Parkash Ooli from Nepal, working for John Douglas Coutinho in Chandor, had taken the five Weimaraner dogs for their regular exercise on the hillock, when a leopard lurking in the bushes grabbed one of the dogs. The young Prakash pelted stoned at the leopard and subsequently hit it with a wooden staff. [GT]

Parish priest assaulted, Quepem explodes
MARGAO: Tilamol-Quepem was tense, following an alleged assault on the local parish priest by two siblings from Kusmon-Quepem on April 4 morning. The incident triggered a spontaneous rasta-roko by the locals whose ire was roused following reports of an assault on the parish priest Fr Lucio Dias. The villagers were also incensed over the considerable delay by the police in arresting the accused duo of Evangelicio D'Costa and his brother Joe. The accused run a photo-copy-cum-STD booth at the local church Fabrica building in Tilamol. The shop had been leased by the Fabrica to Adelina Cardozo from Zambaulim, who in turn had illegally sublet it to Evangelicio. Fr Dias claimed that Cardozo had failed to renew the contract with the Fabrica despite constant reminders. This had forced Fr Dias, who is the Fabrica president, to paste a note on the shutter of the shop asking Evangelicio to contact him and at the same time, locked the shutter early in the week hours of April 4.

As soon as locals heard about the incident, a crowd of approximately 500 persons gathered at the site and ransacked the shop, destroying the telecommunications equipment, photocopier, chairs and set the rest ablaze. A Bajaj Pulsar motorcycle belonging to the D'Costa brothers was also gutted in the fire. [GT]

Noted writer Zito no more
MARGAO, Apr 4: Well-known writer and author Zito Almeida passed away in a city hospital here after a brief illness. He was 70 and is survived by his wife, three daughters and a son. Hailing from Banda, Assolna, Almeida was a highly respected writer for around five decades. He was honoured with Dalgado Konkani Academy award instituted in the name of Fr Freddy D'Costa, for excellence in journalism in 2006. He also received the Konkani Bhasha Mandal and Goa Konkani Academy awards for his rich contribution to Konkani language. [H]

Alive in the ancestry of faith
Curtorim has been a fortress of faith for many years. Initially, the village refused to accept Christianity. But an Italian Jesuit priest, Fr Vespesiano Bonamici, is said to have fortified the faith in Curtorim. Curtorim was probably one of the last villages to have adopted Christianity, but it is definitely a pioneer in generosity since the church was the first to be built with public contribution. The first Christians of the village are said to be the three Poi brothers. The priest, who baptised them, gave them his own family name. Ha Poi was christened Emmanuel da Costa and his wife was named Maria. St Alex Church is one of the oldest churches to have been built in Goa. The church was built in 1597 and rebuilt in 1647. [Colin Savio Coelho, GT]

TSKK SILVER JUBILEE CLOSING CEREMONY
PORVORIM: The Closing Ceremony of the Silver Jubilee Year of Thomas Stephens Konknni Kendr (TSKK) was held at TSKK premises on 28 March evening. Archbishop Felipe Neri Ferrão of Goa Archdiocese was the chief guest, and Premanand Lotlikar, President of Dalgado Konknni Akademi; Purnanand Chari, President of Konknni Bhasha Mandal, Margão; Wilson Mazarello convenor of Roman Lipi Action Front; Eric Ozario, President of Karnataka Konkani Sahitya Academy and Fr Anthony da Silva, S.J. the Jesuit Provincial of Goa Province, were guests of honour.

The function started with a procession from the entrance receiving the Chief Guest Archbishop Felipe Neri Ferrão along with all the guests of honor. Goan traditional musicians led the procession followed by the traditional ‘Vojem’ consisting all the local seasonal fruits and flowers of Goa. Chief Guest Archbishop Felipe Neri Ferrão was escorted with the traditional umbrella used during the Hindu religious functions, followed by brass band. Fr Pratap Naik welcomed the guests after the bhajan presented by Fr. Simon Fernandes, S.J. Archbishop conferred Fr Antonio Pereira Konknni Puroskar on Yusuf Sheikh, the 18th recipient of this puroskar. The award consisted of a shawl, memento and a cheque of Rs. 25,000/-. Archbishop also felicitated Eric Ozario, the Gurkar of Mandd Sobhann and the President of Karnataka Konkani Sahitya Academy, for making the Guinness Book of World Records by singing in Konknni for 40 hours.

PICTURE FOR TODAY
Traditional Goan mansions get another admirable dimension in the beautiful paintings of Akeru Barros-Pereira. Her ongoing exhibition (April 2-6) titled "Houses of Goa 2", held at the Kala Academy's art gallery, depicts a number of traditional Goan houses from Cansaulim in South Goa. The Japanese writer of comics claims that she desired to do something for her husband's ancestral village. The theme she chose aptly for her enchanting paintings has been inspired by local houses which are nestled in lusty greenery.