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WEEKEND UPDATES

April 11- April 17, 2026, WEEKEND UPDATES April 10, 2026 , by

MATCH FIXING IN PONDA

THE by-elections in Ponda scheduled for Friday, April 9 was cancelled by the Goa bench of the high court on Wednesday, April 7 —  24 hours before polling was to start. The campaigning involving candidates of the BJP, the Congress and AAP, had ended. The polling booths were ready and waiting for voters. The polling staff were on their way.

What happened? Two voters from Ponda had moved the high court pointing out that under the People’s Representatives Act an elected candidate should have a minimum of one year tenure in the assembly. With results due to be announced only on May 3 and the swearing in probably even later the new Ponda MLA would not have even a six month tenure, as the Goa assembly is due to be dissolved by February 2027 next year to make way for new elections.

The curious part is that the advocate general appointed by the Pramod Sawant government supported the petitioners and agreed that the notification for by-election in Ponda was illegal. This is surprising since the advocate general takes his orders from the chief minister. In the first place the election commission waited for almost five months to announce the date of the by-election in Ponda to make sure that the BJP would win the election through manipulation of the SIR.

The BJP controlled Election Commission announced the by-election just before the six month period ended. The Election Commission decided not to appeal against the order of the high court and cancelled the Ponda by —elections. Which leads to the suspicion that the BJP government colluded with the Election Commission to call off the election as intelligence reports showed that the Congress candidate Ketan Bhatikar was winning the election by a huge margin.

AT THE CAMPAL RIVEIRA

AN impromptu first visit of the much talked about Panjim’s Campal riveira by the Mandovi riverside brought home to us how much of a favorite riverside it has become for grandparents and their grandchildren. The riverside promenade or esplanade has become a cool sundowner place even without the benefit of a glass of wine or niro!  Although there are cut fruit thela wallahs with slices of mango, melon and pineapple being retailed in cups…

Clearly, all those who make it here by the riverside get a high watching the sunset over the Arabian sea in the distance. There are mothers with children in strollers and some very colorful walkers. Senior citizens try to walk briskly without being distracted with their better halves…teenagers wizz past on roller skates, young couples may be seen billing and cooing. It is as if all the world is here by the Mandovi riviera come 5pm in the evening. WE have to thank the Magsons’ Maganlal family for providing some of the promenade furniture here where folk like to sit and chat, sometimes play with their pedigreed pets.

THE PERFECT CUP

THE only old time cafeteria still functioning in the complex of the old Miramar GTDC Residence is the Perfect Cup cafeteria, part of a chain owned by Dr Pramod Salgaocar. Originally, it was an open air cafeteria offering primarily tea, coffee and cake, as  Dr Pramod Salgaocar’s daughter-in-law has a patisserie and bakery outlet.

We assumed that we would get the perfect cup of coffee at the Perfect Cup, the so called American expresso coffee but this was a total scalding disaster for Rs200. Equally irritating are the coffee shots being offered nowadays at the upmarket cafes . In a mini glass they offer you black concentrate coffees flavored or not flavored and these are supposed to be knocked back like a vodka shot, or so we are told. The best place to get traditional real coffee is in the south Indian Udipi cafes if you can find them down town Panjim. For example, Kamat Hotel near the main Panjim Church.

`STRAIT’ GOAN HUMOR

CECIL  Pinto who has a funny bone has posted on Facebook,  “I have no difficulty negotiating the Strait of Hormuz but I am stuck in Porvorim for the last few days. This is not a joke and in fact Goans are going to be struck in the strait of Porvorim for another six months. Rohan Khaunte has admitted that the overpass being built will take another six months to be completed.”

`TOTO – A RESCUED LOVE’

 Selected for AI Zone International AI Film Festival

THE AI-generated short film “Toto – A Rescued Love” created by Goan filmmaker Saisma Naik, has been selected for the AI Zone International AI Film Festival, to be held online on April 10, 2026. The festival focuses exclusively on films created using artificial intelligence and serves as a global platform for AI-driven cinema.

Saisma Naik is a 21-year-old filmmaker from Ponda, Goa and a mass communication graduate from Don Bosco College, Panjim. The film was independently conceptualized and produced by her using various AI tools, reflecting the increasing use of artificial intelligence in creative practices. The project also marks a significant milestone, as it is the first AI-generated film created by a woman filmmaker in Goa.

“Toto – A Rescued Love” follows the story of Toto, a stray dog who was once cared for but later abandoned, and now struggles to survive on the streets. The narrative captures his longing for companionship, often shown through his observations of puppies in a pet shop. His life changes when a woman rescues him and takes him to a shelter, where he is eventually adopted by a young boy named Max. The film explores themes of abandonment, care, and companionship.

The AI Zone International AI Film Festival features a range of works, including fully AI-generated films as well as hybrid projects that combine traditional filmmaking with artificial intelligence technologies. The selection of “Toto – A Rescued Love” reflects the growing presence of AI-assisted filmmaking and highlights how emerging creators are incorporating new technologies into storytelling.

GOA ADVANCES AI MISSION

GOA is progressing steadily towards finalising its Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy, with the draft being further refined based on stakeholder consultations. On Tuesday, April 7, 2026 the Department of Information Technology, Electronics & Communications (DITE&C), along with representatives from the Goa Technology Association (GTA) deliberated on the revised draft during a meeting held at Paryatan Bhavan, Panaji.

The meeting was chaired by Kabir Shirgaonkar (director, DITE&C) in the presence of Dr Milind Sakhardande (joint director, DITE&C), DS Prashant (CEO, Startup & IT Promotion Cell), Dr Kavita Asnani (associate Professor, State Higher Education Council, DHE), Mangirish Salelkar (president, GTA) and other members of GTA. During the meeting, the revised draft policy was presented with a detailed overview of its objectives, key pillars and sectoral applications. The GTA members also interacted with Minister for Information Technology, Electronics & Communications Rohan Khaunte to sum up the discussion and presented a copy of their inputs.

At the previous budgetary session Mr Khaunte indicated that the policy is expected to be finalised within 100 days. The state has since been fast-tracking efforts to shape an inclusive, ethical and impact-driven AI roadmap. The Department of IT,E&C had initiated the process with a high-level stakeholder meeting in March where the initial draft of the policy was circulated for feedback from key stakeholders. A total of 57 suggestions were received from stakeholders and incorporated into the draft. These inputs were gathered from industry bodies and institutions including GTA, ASSOCHAM (Goa), GEL, GCCI, the Education Department and IndiaAI.

The recommendations broadly focused on accelerating AI adoption through strategic partnerships, ensuring time-bound implementation, enhancing citizen-centric service delivery, strengthening AI education and skilling through curriculum alignment and sector-specific applications relevant to Goa. Spearheaded by the minister the Goa AI Mission 2027 is driving the state’s AI vision through a range of focused initiatives. These include the “AI for Governance & Social Impact” workshop, the rollout of an AI chatbot for citizen services and the launch of the Goa AI Hackathon.

The mission places strong emphasis on education and skilling, with plans to introduce AI in schools and colleges, set up AI labs and train teachers. Efforts to make AI more accessible include a partnership with Bhashini to develop a Konkani LLM. In addition, DITE&C is working on the AI Kosh project, an AI Readiness Index for departments and plans to establish an AI Centre of Excellence in Goa.

The Department of Information Technology, Electronics & Communications is taking into consideration the perspectives and needs of all stakeholders. Through this collaborative approach, Goa aims to build a forward-looking, inclusive and implementation-driven AI ecosystem that delivers tangible outcomes across governance, education and industry.

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