PENPRICKS AWARDS ON JANUARY 31

Guys, the Penpricks' OUTSTANDING PRICK OF THE YEAR awards will be announced on the night of January 31st, right here on this computer screen before you.
So log on to http://www.penpricks.blogspot.com for the results then on. The results will be spaced out over three days.
The winner of each of these these categories will be awarded this fabulous metaphoric prize (image on the right). We will dispatch this trophy to the winner's mailboxes where we have the email ids handy. In case we do have em, we request the viewers of this blog to convey the news of their triumph to victors... We have incorporated some of the suggestions we received from our readers while finalising the list of categories. The media section has the longest list of categories cause it closest to our hearts... Here's the final list of the OUTSTANDING PRICK OF THE YEAR awards categories

1) POLITICS
a) Foresight
c) Loyalty
d) Grooming

2) ADMINISTRATION 3) POLICE
4) SOCIAL WORK
5) SPORTS
6) TYCOONS
7) JUDICIARY
8) EDUCATION*
9) CELEBRITY*

10) MEDIA
a) Editors
b) Reporters
c) Baron
Special awards in the media category
Dead prick award
Innovative prick award

(late insertions)

17 GREEDY MEN, 1 MISSING KID

It was the 1998 FIFA World Cup and that amazing match between England and Argentina. When a 10 men England toiled for almost half the game, after David Beckham in a rush of blood tripped Argentine mid-fielder Diego Simeone that earned him a red card. Argentina finally won in a penalty shootout.
Oh... what a match...
The reason we have rambled on like this, is a tremendous header which appeared in one of the Brit tabloids the following day. We really don't seem to recall which one was it.
There isn't a phrase 'One sentence is worth a thousand pictures', but it bloody well should have been invented that day.
We still recall the blown up photograph on the front page. 10 tired English players. Even with their backs to the screen, their body-language showed that they were crestfallen. The header was above the picture in a thick font. '10 BRAVE LIONS, ONE STUPID BOY'
Well, the header we've written above, surely is no match for the one that appeared in the tabloid then. But we just wanted to tell you guys what inspired us to 'fabricate' this one.
Anyway that's another story... But look at this one guys... A kidnapped kid is rescued and 17 grown ups including a home minister (Ravi Naik), an MLA (Francis Silveira) the state DGP and the Goa Police top brass grab the photo opportunity.
And then to top it all we have this story-of-a-kind which appeared in The Navhind Times which is 'supposed to have' a human interest peg.
Its probably written by Jamal... One thing we just dont understand... a story can make you feel its written by so and so person. But does it really have to reek of the guy who writes it?
The story is more a 'quirky spiritual', than human interest. What do the subs do when they read Jamal's copies? Faint?
Guys who read the blog have said earlier that we target Jamal, but we'd like to take this opportunity to state that there is no personal grudge here. But Jamal is a good person, but a very very bad journalist. And this is his story.

http://www.navhindtimes.com/articles.php?Story_ID=011559
Almighty united us, say Maraya’s parents
NT Staff Reporter
Panaji, Jan 14 : Though our baby is with us today by the grace of God, yet the fear of insecurity is at the back of our minds, said the parents of kidnapped child, Ms Maraya De Souza.
“My child is everything to me. She is in my lap now -- safe and secure,’’ her mother added.
Speaking to The Navhind Times, Ms D’Souza said, “Now we have lost faith in everyone. We used to be friendly with any Tom, Dick and Harry. Even our child was lovable and likable in the whole neighbourhood.’’
“She is to wave her hands to anybody and speak a word or two with fisherwomen who used to pass-by from of our house. But now we have learnt a lesson from this episode,’’ she said.
Goa is changing rapidly and it is not what it used to be. We would be more cautious in future, she added.
“The maid-servant had joined just eight months ago. She was like second mother to the child. Both had become close friends. So she was very friendly and comfortable with her,’’ said her father, who works in Yemen.
Upon asking how they managed to get the maid, she said one of her hotel colleagues introduced her when their previous servant left the job.
Ms De Souza disclosed that when she returned from her duty at around 10.15 p.m. on January 11, she was surprised to find her mother-in-law, Ms Lydia De Souza tied to a chair. She was more shocked and almost fainted after discovering her child missing besides the servant.
“I raised an alarm and called the neighbours. Everyone gathered within minutes and soon a police complaint was lodged,’’ she said.
The timings of the servant and Ms De Souza were set in such a way that upon her arrival she used to leave the house.
She further said, the maid confessed to having done this for the sake of money.
Child’s father said, “I believe in Almighty creator. He united us.”
“When the friends in the neighbourhood came to know about the missing child, they all rushed to the churches and chapels and offered prayers. It is God that helped us.’’
On the fateful day, when the doorbell rang, the servant pretending as if she was engrossed in her work, told the grandmother to open the backdoor. From there, two masked men entered the house and started attacking the old woman while the servant did not retaliate.
After stealing the gold jewellery and some cash from the house, they disappeared with the child along with the maid in the bushes, leaving a note behind demanding Rs 50 lakh as ransom from the mother after tying her mother-in-law.
The police stated that Sanzad Ali reached the house diabolically and pretended to console and help the traumatized family. He had planned to collect the booty by staying back, they said.
When the NT reporter reached the house of the child, she was seen playing with the parents.
Meanwhile, the Home Minster, Mr Ravi Naik has complemented the team which traced the kidnappers of 18-month-old child, Ms Maraya De Souza from Candolim.
Mr Naik had a word of praise for the DGP, IGP, SP (north), Mr Neeraj Kumar and the team comprising SPs messrs Mangaldas Desai, Om Prakash Kurtarkar, Dy SPs Messrs Raikar, Mahesh Gaonkar, Shamba Sawant, and PI, Mr CL Patil and others.
Mr Naik said the the government would suitably reward the team members for tracking down the culprits and restoring the kidnapped child to her parents.
The IGP, Mr Kishan Kumar said the accused were produced before the court and were remanded to 5-day police custody.
The police are yet to recover the stolen jewellery and cash from the accused.

CRUTCHES NEEDED FOR HERALD'S HANDICAPPED DESK

Here's another pic from a batch of scans one of our readers sent us. Allow us to thank this chum for his help... May your breed increase.
Look guys, there are a couple of funny things here. There's not many times when you get to see mistakes which have some sort of a co-relation? We are pretty fortunate to have one here. You see the header there? The mistakes so obvious ain't it? And its such a thick font that even Sergio through his soda bottle lenses should have spotted this one.
Once you've seen this. Just dip your sight a bit. The second line in the caption. See how the word Brail is written? Give these guys some upwards perforated keyboards... Guys, who cant 'see', cant be expected to write BRAILLE, now would they?

HERALD 'SQUASHES' THE KARATE KID

Guys check out this one... its a funny one. This scan dates to November last year... A reader sent it over to us sometime back, but seems like we hadn't used it yet.
You know a computer spell check can be pretty merciless at times, especially when it comes to names. Remember the time when Director of Information Menino Peres was once misspelled as 'Mention Peers' in The Asian Age. And Rajya Sabha MP Shantaram Naik -- the only constituency this guy appears to represent is perhaps a 'press note' -- was so whose name was so hilariously rejigged by the spell check as 'Tantrum Nails'. Barring the spelling, the software wasn't much off the mark in this particular case.
Anyway, poor Suyash has had to bear the brunt of some sub on the Herald's sports desk... Imagine the boys plight when his folks buy the newspaper in glee, only to find that his name's been misspelled 'Squash'.

SEA-SICK

Portside no no no... Broadside, is what these top deckhands in the Gomantak Times either must have or ought to receive for being unable to keep their editorial shipshape.
This particular editorial titled PORT SIDE was first published in the GT first on January 9 and was repeated a few days later on January 12.
Gomantak Times taking a fancy for the brine and surf again... Umaji Chowgule* would have been pleased wouldn't he?

* Umaji was one of the youngest of the Chowgule's who owned Gomantak group of newspapers in the recent past. Umaji was in charge of the day to day operations of both -- Marathi and English -- editions at the time it was sold off to the Pawars. It is believed (Gomantak employees certainly did believe) that he never gave up his passion for the seas (he loved yatching) and even when both the newspaper were sinking, especially the money spinner Gomantak under Tarun Bharat's onslaught.
Strange... check this link out looks like he also tried his hand at blogging sometime back. Check this link out...

BATTLEGROUND HERALD ROUND I -- FILIPINO FIRE v/s ASHWIN COMBAT

Hi, guys we've been away for a while haven't we? Allow us to confide in you folks, things have been tough for a while now. Herald editor Robin's exit has made life pretty tough for us. The bugger had made updating this blog so easy for us. Its not that we hated Robin...
Look it was like this.
You could pick up any edition of the Herald at the time when Robin was in charge and pin it up against a wall, say about five metres from you. Then you could have hunted around for bit of cloth, long enough to go around your face once, with enough give for a simple knot. But before this, you had better made sure you guys had a throwing knife handy. You know the one that doesn't wobble much when you hurl it at the target.
The irony was that you don't even need to take a deep breath, the way these magicians do on the telly or at the circus. Just throw the goddamn blade and chances were that the very point at which it sinks into the newspaper is either a misplaced comma, fullstop or a mispelt word say for example 'vegatabel'.
And we aren't even considering the possibility, that if you've thrown the knife hard enough, there was every likelihood of you having a mutilated plagiarised editorial on your hands.
We thought things may have changed with Ashwin's taking over. But when this story slipped into Herald's pages a couple of days ago, we were convinced that Ashwin would not only have to deal with Herald's rampaging printer's devil, but also the ghost of Robin Abreu which still seems to be lingering about.
This is the story we are talking about.

HCN team covers Delhi developments
BY HERALD REPORTER
PANJIM, JAN 19 — HCN, Goa’s popular channel, has sent its team of reporters and cameramen to New Delhi, to provide latest and in-depth coverage of the current political situation that has engulfed the State and New Delhi.
Special news programmes of events in New Delhi will be featured in addition to HCN’s ongoing coverage of political events in the State.
Within a short span of less than a year, HCN has already attracted a growing number of viewers in the State with its extensive coverage of news, analysis, entertainment and feature programmes.
HCN uses the latest technology and has an experienced team to present its viewers with the best of programmes round the clock.

'Cross branding' is a tricky thing and if enough thought isn't applied, it could be as embarrasing as a GSB Mhamai-Kamat would feel his teenaged son takes a sudden fancy to cross-dressing instead of the Hanuman chalisa. The last time this newspaper tried it, was a couple of years ago, when Herald 'expanded' it's business interests from word-smithery to fancy carpentary.
This hilarious story appeared as a Page 1 single. Only, its owner Raul Fernandes had just been swept away with his love for Philippines.
The story we have reproduced above is a also manifestation of Raul's love for the SE Asian nation. It is Raul's girl-friend and her fellow Filipinos mates who head Herald Cable News' top management.
The story of how this miserable and sad self promotional (its actually pitiable) bit slipped into the newspaper would actually be interesting, if there were someone to tell it. Imagine a news report that informs you of a team that is going to cover news.
And we have a small disclosure to make here... A team of one reporter and one cameraman was dispatched by HCN and not a team of reporters as they have claimed. And the latest technology which the story lays claim to is 'YOUTUBE'...

ANOTHER EXCELLENT VOICE ON THE CNN-IBN AWARDS ISSUE

VOTE FOR DR OSCAR REBELLO AS INDIAN OF THE YEAR?-- A DIFFERENT VIEWPOINT
Dr Oscar Rebello nominated as Indian of the Year in the public service category awards of CNN-IBN?. Bah! Gimme a break guys CNN, Penpricks et al. I didn't vote for Oscar as Indian of the year. If I did vote my choice would be E. Sreedharan.
Don't get me wrong guys. I've no axe to grind against Oscar. I wouldn't vote for Oscar as Indian of the year. Ill justify my stance with a few reasons.
What Oscar did ,in preventing landsharks from usurping Goan soil by galvanising public opinion, is nothing pioneering or new. Oscar has certainly contributed to a cause, but it definitely wasn't a singular achievement.Oscar didn't discover the DNA code or calculate how to make the atom bomb lighter.
There was Medha Patkar of the Narmada Bachao Andolan before Oscar.It was Patkar who On March 28,2006 started a hunger-strike to protest against the decision of the authorities to raise the height of the Narmada Dam. Oscar is a brilliant physician. Medha too is an intellectual being a former member of the Indian Institute of Social Sciences. What Medha did had worldwide implications. That too much before the ruckus caused by the Regional Plan in Goa. Medha has won a couple of awards but nobody ,not even CNN-IBN, has ever dreamt of bestowing on her an Indian of the Year award.
oscar and Medha are social activists. But there is nevertheless a difference, albeit a subtle one. Unlike Medha who on her own initiated peasant movements in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, Oscar did not initiate the anti-regional plan campaign on his own. It wasn't he who sought the Goa Bachao Andolan, but the GBA who sought him. The GBA-Oscar relationship was a mutual one. Neither could do with the other. Each minus the other would total a cipher.The GBA needed Oscar as its mascot because he was a prominent social figure being a highly respected city doctor. Surely the well-heeled would have taken notice. Like him or not Oscar is certainly more civil and more persuasive than the warmonger social activist Aires Rodrigues. Oscar's is a soft, gentle approach.But much as I admire Oscar for his suave mannerisms,I do not think that Oscar alone could have stopped the Regional Plan in its tracks. Even if he wanted to do a solo performance, he wouldn't be able. He needed the GBA to reach the grassroots, to goad the underdogs.
Oscar is not too comfortable in speaking the language of the downtrodden.He definitely understands Konkani but he is more at ease resorting to making a speech in English to make a point. With a communication malfunction like this, it would be difficult for Oscar alone to garner mass support without the GBA. Unlike Mathany Saldanha, Oscar neither has the skills to communicate with the lower rungs of society, nor does he hobnob with them to elicite their views. Oscar is a social activist but not such an engaged one as to be able to rouse mass opinion on his own like Mathany.
So if Oscar's isn't a singular achievement why bestow him with a singular award. The award says Indian of the year. It doesn't say Indians of the year. Oscar has only been the mascot of the GBA, he's not the GBA's substance, if you get my drift.
The award should have been aptly titled 'Indian body of the year' and given to all GBA activists and their associates who tirelessly worked against the Regional Plan. Not just Oscar alone.
Aswhin Tombat has argued that an award for Oscar would mean an award for every Goan who stood against the RP. But that's a quaint argument for its tantamount to saying that an award for Bill Gates for writing the first Windows programming language is equivalent to honouring the achievements of all Microsoft employees. Bill Gates spent sleepless nights to write the Windows programme alone. No one else could or would. He built the wagon and rode it himself.Dr Oscar Rebello did not start the public campaign of the RP. He did not build the wagon, he just rode it. But so could anyone else if he was prominent and politically unattached. Charles Correia would probably.
Mr Tombat if and when Oscar recieves the award, millions of viewers within and without the country are going to see only Oscar receiving the award.At that precise moment everybody is going to think that it is Oscar's solo achievement cause it proclaims boldly 'Indian of the Year', not 'Indians of the year.'They are going to say "Hey hats off to Oscar for what he's done." An award for Oscar translating as an award for other diehard is symbolic rant I don't subscribe to. The limelight is and will certainly be on Oscar the day is award is presented to him. But what about the activists and others for their ceaseless endeavours on whom not even the shadows will fall? Will Oscar receiving the award bring them into focus Mr Tombat? People, universally see what is infront of them, not what's beneath or behind anything. No one notices the unsung heroes. It is to these anonymous persons that my deepest respects and salutations go to. Oscar led the GBA movement as its convenor, but he isn't its founder or its soul. An organism with only a head, but no body is no organism at all.
If you know of anyone who has contributed to the cause as much as Oscar, vote for him or her with your conscience and congratulate that person. Even if you cannot send an SMS. I know of one person who deserves equal mention as Oscar. Patricia Pinto is her name. There could be many more to whom we Goans should owe our gratitude, They need not be outstanding physicians or IITians.Most Goans seem to have this misconception that only doctors and engineers are intelligent or brilliant people. Gary Kasparov, a chessplayer for instance, has an IQ higher than most average doctors or engineers.
An Indian of the Year award shouldn't be given to someone only because he is the first Goan or the first Keralite to get it but it should rest solely on merit and on singular achievements from which the entire nation benefits. I am thoroughly appreciative for Oscar lending a hand to ease the common man's plight but he shouldn't accept the award, simply because it would mean that he is taking credit for the battle won.

COMING UP... OUTSTANDING PRICK OF THE YEAR AWARD

Guys, we just tweaked the name a bit, but with this post Penpricks formally presents to you the 'OUTSTANDING GOAN PRICK 2008' award and this ladies and gentlemen is prize that would go along with it...

The awards will be announced by the end of the month.
Here are the categories...
1) POLITICS
a) Foresight
c) Loyalty
d) Grooming

2) ADMINISTRATION
3) POLICE
4) SOCIAL WORK
5) SPORTS
6) TYCOONS

7) MEDIA
a) Editors
b) Reporters
c) Desk
d) Innovation

Hey guys... this list is a bit unconvential, but that's the way its been with us... Give us a chance to explain why the categories have been devised the way they are. The categories MEDIA and the POLITICS have sub sections, cause we can surely visualise more than one candidate for the trophy already. We will finalise the list of categories taking into account any suggestions you guys pitch in with which we could pick from. We'll do this by say by Monday.
So guys keep writing with your suggestions about candidates and the categories... Tell us how you like the prize too...Either comment here or write to us on penpricks@gmail.com...
Other posts will continue

AND THE OSCAR GOES TO... AN ALTERNATIVE VOICE WORTH HEARING

You can't escape the hype that CNN-IBN has managed to generate for its Indian of the Year awards.
But you can certainly escape contributing to the kitty of television and telecom companies.
Award ceremonies that require the public to vote are revenue generating business ideas.
They are high premium sms and call based services that play upon the emotional sentiments of people to generate mass voting hysteria.
The result is revenue sharing between the channel/advertiser/organiser and the telecom service provider at the cost of the gullible sms voter.
Have we forgotten the hype created over the marketing gimmick that made suckers of thousands of Indians to vote the Taj Mahal as a modern wonder?
Now we have a leading Goan daily, which earlier used its front page blatantly to hail political candidates, heralding the need to vote for Dr Oscar Rebello on its editorial space and even carrying the sms number.
I'm presume the editor is doing it out of genuine support for Dr Oscar Rebello.
Otherwise I would award the advertising agency of CNN-IBN next years "innovative use of media award" for having got its advertisment placed in the editorial with the "money making" call to action planted as well.
Dr Oscar Rebello does not need the sms/e-votes of a small english speaking segment of society.
He has the support of all right-minded Goans and lovers of the soil.
So spread the word that if you wish to "donate" send the money instead to support the GBA or Mother Teresa's Home in Panjim or any other place other than a commercial revenue generating award campaign.
With awareness,
Cajetan Vaz

CNN-IBN'S INDIAN OF THE YEAR -- BUT MAANN... WHY DO HIS ARMPITS SMELL?

First, it was the summit or conclaves. Now the media appears to have caught on the awards thing pretty well now. Its good money. The beefed up SMS charges, the sponsors pooling money, the publicity and hey... all for a good cause. We however do not have a good feeling about the CNN-IBN Indian of the year awards for two reasons. While Anil Ambani is one of the candidates for the Indian of the Year in the business category, ADAG (Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group) is the chief presenter (read... look man we've put in a lot of money for this fiesta) of the CNN-IBN Indian of the year awards. Anil Ambani owns ADAG. More, BIG FM (also owned by ADAG) and Reliance World are media and broadband 'partners' for these awards. Whether Anil wins the award or not, the CNN-IBN has queered the ethical pitch by seeking advertising bucks from one of the nominees. Another example if choosing Kingfisher airlines as the airline 'partner', when it's owner Vijay Mallya is nominated candidate in the money-bags category. Whether these particular sponsorships can guarantee a victory or not, a question could surely be raised whether sponsorship for the awards has resulted in the candidates being nominated for the particular categories in the first place. Not very classy Rajdeep ji. You have chosen to behave like our own Rajan Narayan out here. Cheap... very cheap... But a trend is a trend and we cannot but help emulate the 'great' newsman Rajdeep. Hence, we have also decided to latch on to the awards bandwagon... On January 31, Penpricks will announce the 'GOAN PRICK OF THE YEAR' award... We will give the details of the categories and the prizes in a post tomorrow. Suggestions from you guys are welcome... The more the better.... Keep writing in.

AND THE OSCAR GOES TO.... CNN-IBN INDIAN OF THE YEAR... A PITCH

Hi all... The dye is on our fingernails... We are just done voting for Dr Oscar Rebello at the CNN-IBN Indian of the year awards. And our boxing gloves are off for these few minutes we'd spend punching this email.
We formally thank the doctor for lending his face to the angst, agony, disgust and rage, that we as individuals simply could not give vent to. More, the doctor went ahead and actually DID, what we all only dream of doing. There are other guys in this category -- the category with the least likelihood of a rigging -- also appear deserving, but then its home we are talking about. When Goa's elected political bandits were about to literally pull the ground from under your feet, Oscar's voice (later amplified by the ever swelling mass of protesters) managed to scare them off, at least for a while.
Vote for the doc if you can guys
Penpricks

THE PINK PANTHER SPEAKS TO THE WOLVES...

The Goa archbishop addresses the sort of wolves, who give a damn for sheepskin.
Effectively this is a politico-religious trade-off in progress at the Bishop's house Altinho in form of the Christmas address...
If not here, then there is always the scamsters who own mutts all over Goa, ready to endorse these blackguards. Be it media barons, polticians or builder-friendly bureaucrats on the occasion of Diwali or Ganesh Chaturthi.
We have picked these pictures taken by Rajtilak Naik from www.daijiworld.com... Poor chap has really tried hard to get his patrao's picture even though his face was blocked by the M K Sheikh's (is it Sheikh or a lookalike?) cotton candy like hair. And there Pallavi Dempo too... Oh you can spot her from a mile off...

DUH NAVHIND TIMES -- 'LUG'... A 'DUGGED' ROAD

CAPTION: Road is seen dugged and left unrepaired infront of the Junta House at Panaji. This Government level act is now turning out to be a growing problem for vehicle parking. Rajtilak Naik

The hazards of a photographer punching in his own caption perhaps. But why blame poor Rajtilak alone. Some sub in DUH NAVHIND TIMES ought to have 'lugged' at the text before clearing it.

COMMENT FROM A READER

LIFE-CYCLE OF THE SUCCESSFUL GOAN JOURNO
Phase 1...He starts of as a bumbling, apologetic backbencher trying to latch onto the Celebrity (politician mostly)
Phase 2...He then takes the extra mile to feature his Celebrity everywhere (the Creativity is so pungent that You can see a womaniser in a family planning camp to..)
Phase 3...See him as the favourite quote-wallah of the celebrity
Phase 4...He is with the Celebrity's select group sitting cuddled near to him alongwith similar kins patronised by him ready to hijack the PC (Parrikar Days were notorious for this)
Phase 5...The Brave Journalist...he now takes on a Politician or another Celebrity whose stars are fading...beating the Dead. Lo, he is the new Star (vanquishing the already dead...he'll never attack the strong, mind You!)
Phase 6...The Successful Journalist (my personal favourite) You won't miss their starched clothes, often second hand cars, expert opinions.
Phase 7...Those-were-the-days Expert...government doles, plots tucked away somewhere, children in right places
Hi Pricks, I guess we need to do a sting on our own kins. BTW, the newshound says that Robin is out of even Oh, Herald, Ohhhh! just yesterday. Give us more dope on that.

FROM 'ANTI-ESTABLISHMENT' JOURNOS TO GOVERNMENT'S ALTAR BOYS

The guys on your screen chaps... The two with the faces circled are Raju Nayak and Sandesh Prabhudesai. Yes... you are right... The same guys... Anti-establishment, firebrand... I mean so fire-brand were they, that Datta Naik (the guy at the centre with the striped white shirt. Datta runs the Monginis cakes and confectionary business in Goa. We will turn to this 'epitome of intellect' in a later post) made them hug his Monginis furnace, when the power conked off at the Verna industrial estate... Anyway that's a different matter...
The reason why we have put up this photo here is to tell you guys about how the so called anti-establishment journalists of yesterday are now the altar boys of this government.
Raju Nayak -- former editor of the Sunaparant and currently reporting for Loksatta and The Indian Express -- is a very misuderstood man. Dunno if we could help to clear the air a bit.
Raju is a very very obvious pro-Congress reporter. People often mistake his clearly partisan, pro Congress vehemently anti BJP reportage for his secular valor. He doesn't mind that.
Raju has even contested on the Congress ticket some time back. But here, it is necessary to make this particular distinction. You see, Raju is a touch shy of being his usual scathing self when it comes to the Congressmen and those interests, to whom his Congressman brother-in-law Vijay Sardessai is pandering to, at a given point of time. And since Digu is in power and Churchill is a minister in the Digu led govt and Vijay is close to Churchill, Raju will cut ribbons, organise secular seminars, attend book release functions and make sure his cultural organisation gets a grant or two from the ministry of culture which is perceivably close to Digu boy's heart.
But then, in typical Guilherma Almeida fashion, 'ONE MAY ASK' how then has he secured his credentials as an anti-establishment journo? Guys, even when the BJP government was in power, his reporting was more of the 'axe to grind against you arse' variety, with a Sicilian vendetta sort of way. His stories, though factually bankrupt, were merely editorial twists which can very well be wrangled on your keyboard.
But raju is a part of the same gang of shallow and "pick-pocket intellectuals'' like Rajan Narayan, Datta Naik, Arvind Bhatikar, who for the last few years are in such a back scratching mood, that if you ask one of them to take their shirts off, you'd see their backs worn down by a couple of inches.
And what of Sandesh... poor chap... ironically for the former student leader, the Goa University was his Waterloo, when in the BJP regime along with Prakash Kamat, Sandesh he too ran after a biscuit thrown by Parrikar, in form of the controversially allotted long distance education programme at the Univ.
Since then, he just hasn't had a chance to use his vocal chords much. An altar boy, doesn't need to shout does he? All he needs to do, is join the chorus...

'SURAJ' KA SAATVA GHODA -- WHEN NEWSPAPER'S LIE

The Navhind Times and Herald editions today have lied to you.
They have concealed/tampered information which was available to them and tried to mislead their readers to protect one of their own.
To cut a long story short, the Hyundai Accent car which knocked down the notorious Babani Sheikh was owned by a reporter working for the Herald newspaper Chotu alias Suraj Nandrekar from Taleigao.
Both The Navhind Times and the Herald have taken pains to ensure that the real/full name does not get carried in their editions. While The Navhind Times has tampered with the name and has scrambled the real name Suraj Nandrekar to 'Suraj Nandesh'. The newspaper has described him as an employee of a 'private firm' in the city. While Herald on the other hand
has jumbled up Suraj Nandrekar as 'S Nandrekar'.
Suraj currently is employed with the Herald as a reporter. He was former with the Gomantak Times, which is the only English language daily to have reported the name correctly.
Compare this fact-tampering with the outrage and barrage in the Sushant Naik hit and run case. Journos held dharnas and what not to ensure that the cops tracked down the car which knocked Sushant down. And in this case, when a vehicle owned by a journos knocks down a man (oh...a proclaimed goonda in this case) these two newspaper have tried to hide the trail from the readers.
Its really ugly. It would have been so much simpler had the newspaper interviewed Suraj on the issue. The issue ought to be taken seriously, cause Suraj has in the past been unabashed supporter Babush alias Atanasio Monserrate, which considering the nature of this particular incident does no really bode well.
If you are convinced with what we’ve written out here, do call these newspapers up and speak your mind to them. Ask them why they have tampered with facts? Place your protest on record. Or you could also call them, if you want to listen to their side of the story... here are their numbers...
Arun Sinha: Editor, The Navhind Times -- 0832-6651120 and 0832-6651123 (direct line) or 09823026348
Robin Abreu: Editor Herald 09822122325 and 0832-2433373 (direct line)
Raul Fernandes: Owner Herald 9822100188
Herald board numbers: 0091-832-2224202,2224460,2228083
Suraj Nandrekar: 9970185988

PMK ON A PMS

Meet Mr Pramod M Khandeparkar... He is one of those never vanishing breed of 'old school' Goan journos...
Say, we must inform you, when we use the phrase 'Old School', what we are really trying to say is that these buggers were actually Pratapsing Rane's pet pupils, hence the reference to 'school' (damn sometimes we just cant get this humour bit right) .
Look at this article here, doesn't it seem like PMK hasn't forgotten the taste of the candy he suckled on to, during Rane's repeated regimes.
Look how PMK pauses generously to mention Rane's merits.
There's one more thing we wish to say here. You see, PMK served as Pratapsing Rane's chief minister's media advisor in Rane's last stint as chief minister. This time the chief minister ensured that the government paid him 'officially' for 'services' offered to him.
Keeping this in mind, its really necessary for both the print and the television media to mention the writer's background alongwith the article. You can't have 'the writer is a senior jouralist' tag against these perversely BJP oriented guys like Swapan Dasgupta or Balbir Punj. Same is the case with guys who have been elected to the Rajy Sabha on a Congress ticket.
Similar is the case with PMK, who has so obviously mortgaged their objectivity and sense to politicians, like Rane in PMK's case. Readers need to know where such writers are coming from.

THE LAST RITES -- ADIEU ABREU

Hi guys… looks like a lot of our readers have already carved out fancy tombstones for us in our absense. But these guys will have to hold on to these slabs yet... We are not done just yet chaps... A few days chums, we were just easing ourselves out for a few days. But a lot has happened since we last pecked at our key board na.
Like a lot of you guys have said, Herald editor Robin Abreu is indeed in bad shape and it’s nothing to do with Christmas sweet-meats. Robin has indeed been asked to ‘handle’ Herald's mysterious Belgaum edition.
This Belgaum edition (among other notorious open-range transfers) which Herald is notorious for, is quite like the Auschwitz of Goan journalism. If you do go to there, you disappear. If you don’t, you disappear anyway.
This is how.
Remember when former Herald deputy chief reporter Ashley Do Rosario was dispatched to the ‘newly opened’ Canacona bureau (for the uninitiated, that’s one of the southernmost region on Goa. For us Goans, Antarctica is just a few miles off Canacona) the intention was to make sure the bugger quits out of frustration. They tried it again with Agnelo Periera.
This time, it was Robin who used the ruse to target Agnelo, showing him the way to Belgaum and the mysterious bureau.
Now his own medicine appears to have turned against Robin. As he seems to be faced with the same proposition of either making an embarrassing shift to Belgaum or quit the organisation.
There’s another bit of information here. There are reports that another of Robin’s chums, Joseph Zuzarte who was in charge of the Herald Cable News has been shown the door too. In Zuzarte’s case, the reason for his ouster is a bit serious and we would not like to mention it here, until we get some sort of documentary evidence to prove it. And of course former Gomantak Times editor Ashwin Tombat is already a few days in the organisation ‘acclimatising’ to it.
Ashwin surely has his task cut out.
a) Get hold of a good pest control guy get rid of em pests.
b) Studiously ignore the owner Raul and shun his idiotic ideas.
c) Cleanse Herald of the superfluous Filipinos.
d) Lay down a hierarchy (which was completely destroyed by Robin) and fix responsibility at each level.
In the meantime at our office… folks are trying to adjust… The deputy news editor Joel Afonso is conspicuous by his absence. Joel is the sort of guy, you’d always find around whenever there’s an upheaval around. The farthest distance between Joel’s mouth and the managing director’s ear is 5 milimeters in times such as these.
And Melvyn the bureau in-charge… poor chaps doing what he can best. Robin’s baldish idol is off his altar and its been substituted by a Tombat Totem. He didn’t waste time making the switch… not a whit.
One thing we’d like to clarify guys. If Robin is finally ousted from the Herald (the newspaper still carries his name on the printline) we don't aim to notch out guns here. Raul is too insensitive and callous a guy to oust his editor for crimes like 'mere' sale of editorials (he’ll probably pin a medal on him for this one) or say... plagiarism.
What we suspect is that Robin ruffled some Filipino feathers in the Herald. One of those who were reportedly upset by Robin, was Raul’s Filipino girlfriend who is one of those at the helm of affairs in the Herald, while Raul is busy with his furniture…. Oh… furnitiure business i.e. hehe.