Goan Voice Newsletter: Thursday 14 Jan. 2021
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Swindon: Dikson Fernandes: Why the case against nightclub 'knifeman' was dismissed
13 Jan: Swindon Advertiser. A Judge threw out the case against an alleged knifeman, calling evidence presented by the Crown “incomplete and unsafe”. Dikson Fernandes, 20, was said by prosecutors to have pulled out a knife as two rival groups skirmished outside The Tree nightclub in Swindon’s Old Town in the early hours of July 28, 2019. However, just hours into his trial at Swindon Crown Court yesterday it emerged that no identity parade had been carried out by police despite the club manager telling officers he had had the alleged knifeman in his sights for more than four minutes… And the description given by two members of staff at the club was generic: male, Asian, scruffy facial hair, either 5ft or 5ft 5ins, a short back and sides haircut, ripped blue jeans and a black jacket… The jury formally returned a not guilty verdict on the knife allegation. Fernandes was fined £20 for possession of cannabis, which he had admitted at an earlier hearing. Earlier, the court heard Fernandes was said to have been outside The Tree nightclub between groups of Asian and Black men, between whom there had been trouble inside the club… Fernandes, of Ponting Street, Broadgreen, denied being in possession of the blade… 601 words. click here
13 Jan: Swindon Advertiser. Swindon Great Western Hospital declares critical incident as number of Covid patients soars. The hospital is currently treating 159 Covid patients - up from 145 yesterday - and has warned that these numbers are continuing to climb…
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UK: Are you surprised that GPs are having to convince Asian patients to take the Covid vaccine?
13 Jan: BBC Radio - Asian Network's Big Debate. Qasa wants your thoughts on GPs having to convince patients to take the Covid-19 vaccine. After that we hear from midwife, Ratna Alom, who received a vaccine after falling into one of the top priority groups… Phone in starts at approx. 8min into the programme. click here
13 Jan: Evening Standard (London). Alarm at poor take-up of Covid vaccine in Newham, one of London’s virus hot spots… A study released by the Royal Society for Public Health last month found that 57 per cent of people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds were likely to accept a Covid-19 vaccine, compared to 79 per cent of white respondents …
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13 Jan: BBC. Clinics urge South Asian community to take up vaccine. Doctors are targeting the South Asian community in a bid to encourage take up of the Covid-19 vaccine. There has been concern about a low uptake of the vaccine among the community after a study found they were targeted with anti-vaccine messages...
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Goa: COVID Headlines
14 Jan: Navhind Times. The state’s tally of confirmed COVID-19 cases crossed the 52,000-mark with 96 fresh cases of dreaded infections detected on Wednesday. The COVID death count rose to 750 with one more patient losing the battle against the virus. Around 78 patients recovered from the disease in the last 24 hours… click here
14 Jan: Herald. First consignment of COVID vaccines arrives. Health workers, senior citizens in line for first dose on January 16 …
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13 Jan: Hindustan Times.com. The number of people infected with the new UK variant of SARS-CoV-2 in India has crossed 100 and reached 102 at present, the Union health ministry confirmed on Wednesday. On Monday, the number was 96…
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Indian partying hotspot Goa counts losses, braces for change
13 Jan: Associated Press. The unspoken fear of the coronavirus is sapping Goa’s vibrant beach shacks and noisy bars of their lifeblood… In 2019, more than 8 million tourists visited Goa, including more than 930,000 foreign tourists… An official report on the impact of COVID-19 on Goa released in December estimated a loss of nearly $1 billion for the tourism industry due to the lockdown in April-May… Goa has accounted for over 51,000 of India’s more than 10 million reported coronavirus cases, with 749 deaths… Months after the lockdown began to ease, Goa is showing signs of life. Domestic tourist arrivals surged during the year-end holidays. Casinos have been reopened and visitors are no longer required to show negative coronavirus test reports, unlike in most other Indian states. But things are hardly back to normal… 1713 words... click here
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Goans rally against Modi plan to turn tourist magnet into coal hub
13 Jan: Financial Times (UK). … There is growing anger in Goa against a government plan to turn the coastal state into a hub for the transport of coal through seaside villages and dense forests en route to large steel and power plants inland. Companies are using Goa’s Mormugao Port to import about 10m tons of coal from Australia and South Africa. But Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party government is pushing for a massive expansion of the port’s coal-handling capacity to at least 41m tonnes a year by 2035. To haul this huge quantity of coal from the port to industrial sites, authorities want to widen a highway and lay another track alongside the 153-year-old Portuguese-built railway line. The track runs through sensitive wildlife areas in the Western Ghats, mountains that have been recognised as significant biodiversity hotspots. The existing line makes a steep climb through Bhagwan Mahaveer Sanctuary and Mollem National Park, passing in front of the Mandovi River’s spectacular 320m Dudhsagar Falls… click here
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Reinventing Goa, India's hedonistic beach hideaway
13 Jan: CNN. In July, as the threat of Covid-19 ebbed, the Goa government declared the popular Indian state open to domestic tourism following months of lockdown.
Since then, thousands of travelers have flocked to this safe beach haven. Daytime traffic jams are back and decibel levels have risen at local nightclubs as the party returns to Goa.
But has this destination once associated with untrammelled hedonism and rampant commercial tourism reverted to its old ways, with no thought to the negative economic, environmental and social impact? Fortunately, there is reason to believe otherwise, thanks to the efforts of the Responsible Tourism Collective of Goa (RTCG). Formed in 2018, this group of 20-odd tourism businesses is committed to practicing and promoting responsible and sustainable travel. Here, we take a deeper look at the offerings of several of those businesses and find out how they're working to reinvent Goa for the better… 2118 words. click here
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New rum in town: Makazai hits Goa’s shores
12 Jan: Conde Nast Traveller. A banker at Standard Chartered for 16 years, Kasturi Banerjee has always had a head for numbers. And that certainly came to use when she quit her job in 2018 to begin measuring pegs and calculating cocktail portions. The combined effort of her studies, research, training and travels across the country over the past few years has finally born fruit in the form of Makazai, India’s newest premium rum brand, from the house of Stilldistilling Spirits… “Maka zai translates to ‘I want’ from Konkani. The rum is a fully made-in-India product and we wanted that aspect to stand out in our offering,” explains Banerjee… Makazai is available in two variants: Bartender’s Edition is the white rum offering and the Tribute Edition is the gold rum option… Makazai is available in Goa only. Rs1,000 for The Bartender’s Edition and Rs1,300 for the Tribute Edition. click here
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UK: TV & RADIO HIGHLIGHTS By Lira Fernandes
FILM: The Nun's Story. BBC 2. Sat. 16th Jan. 13:15 to 15:40. An independent-minded
woman enters a convent and develops a gift for medicine, while struggling to
curb her rebellious nature. She is sent to the Congo to assist a doctor in his
work, but suffers a crisis of faith at the outbreak of the Second World War.
Drama, based on Kathryn C Hulme's novel, starring Audrey Hepburn.
COMEDY: Beta Female. BBC Radio 4 Extra (Freeview 708). Tues. 19th Jan. 17:30
to 18:00. The Accent. Sitcom by Amna Saleem, starring Kiran Sonia Sawar as a
young Asian woman struggling to have her cultural differences acknowledged,
but to be treated the same as everyone else. (Series 1, Episode 1)
Tues. 19th Jan. 18:30 to 19:00. The Nanny Flat. Amna is forced to visit her
cousin to have her relative poverty rubbed in her face. (Series 1, episode 2.)
For the programme website see https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0007rt8
ENTERTAINMENT: Whose Truth Is It Anyway? Al Jazeera English (Freeview 235).
Tues. 19th Jan. 22:30 to 23:00. Kenya: Africa Uncensored. Africa Check's investigative
journalists uncover incompetence and corruption in a multi-million dollar health
care system scam.
SPECIAL INTEREST: The Repair Shop. BBC 1. Wed. 20th Jan. 20:00 to 21:00. Jay
Blades and the team bring four family heirlooms back to life. Dominic Chinea
undertakes the challenging restoration of a Carrom board, a traditional Asian
board game.
FILM: Victoria & Abdul. BBC Four. Wed. 20th Jan. 21:00 to 22:45. Abdul
Karim is whisked from his clerk's job to present a ceremonial coin to Queen
Victoria for her golden jubilee. The monarch, who is tired of her fawning courtiers,
takes a liking to the young man and promotes him to become her Munshi, or spiritual
teacher - much to the resentment of her family and household. Period drama,
starring Judi Dench, Ali Fazal, Tim Pigott-Smith, Eddie Izzard, Judi Dench,
Adeel Akhtar Director: Stephen Frears
FILM: Slumdog Millionaire. Film4. Wed. 20th Jan. 23:20 to 01:40. Dev Patel
is the boy from the slums whose life story leads to the jackpot question on
India's Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? Vibrant, Oscar-winning drama from Danny
Boyle. Starring: Dev Patel and Freida Pinto
DOCUMENTARY: Three Pounds in My Pocket. BBC Radio 4 FM) Freeview 704). Fri.
22nd Jan. 11:00 to 11:30. First-generation Indian immigrants talk of their experiences
of arriving in Britain in the 1950s, with little more than small change in their
pockets.
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