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Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
Goa operators have to provide ₹25L insurance for aero sports
PANAJI: Operators of paragliding, paramotoring, hot air balloons, and drone flights in Goa must now provide accident insurance of Rs 25 lakh for every pilot and passenger, with fines of up to Rs 2 lakh and arrest possible for safety violations. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The draft Goa Aero Sports Rules, 2025, notified this week, also make registration with the tourism department mandatory. The move follows the death of a 27-year-old tourist and her instructor in a paragliding crash at Keri plateau earlier this year. Insurance coverage must include accidental death, disability, medical expenses, and Rs 5 lakh for equipment. Paragliders & paramotors must carry annual safety certificates, and paramotor engines must be DGCA-approved. A technical panel will certify pilots, and regulate flying sites. Flights will be allowed only in daylight.
Time of India
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Chillar portfolios, yet I deliver': Goa minister Phal Dessai defends cabinet spot; counters exit talks
PANAJI: Amid speculation by Marathi newspapers that social welfare minister Subhash Phal Dessai is under pressure to quit the cabinet to make way for a reshuffle, the Sanguem MLA said that even after having 'chillar' portfolios, he is a performing minister in chief minister Pramod Sawant's cabinet. Phal Dessai said that neither the party nor the chief minister informed him that he would have to quit as a minister. 'I have been a faithful soldier of the party for the past 25 years. During my tenure, I served in various posts in the party, from booth member to mandal president several times,' he said, responding to questions on whether he was under pressure to quit. Responding to rumours that he may be appointed speaker, he said, 'If I was appointed as speaker, how would the organisation benefit, and why would somebody do such a thing? This time, I may be a junior minister, but I have the capacity to perform. I am ready to work further, and I have been continuously working. If such a person is asked to sit in an ornamental position, don't you think it would be a loss for the party?' He also said that he started his political career as a panchayat member, then became a zilla panchayat member, and then MLA. He said that during this tenure, he was made a minister. 'All this while, I worked on both fronts—party organisation and political front. This is the first time I was made a minister, and I have not got any lucrative portfolios. Even if I was given 'chillar' portfolios, you can see my performance in all the portfolios, including social welfare, navigation, and archives and archaeology,' he said. Phal Dessai said that he also worked for the party organisation and remained outside Goa for almost three months to campaign for elections in other states. 'I don't think I will be dropped from the cabinet as a reward for working for the organisation. I am confident that I will not be removed from the cabinet. I come to know about such things from the media,' he said. He also said that he worked across South Goa during the Lok Sabha election. Former art and culture minister Govind Gaude on Sunday said that the narrative set by the media about the allegations of corruption in the tribal welfare department under the chief minister turned out to be true, and that is the reason he was sacked from the cabinet for speaking the truth. Last week, Sawant dropped Gaude from his cabinet.
