COMMUNITY NEWS

Leanne Fernandes, aged 10, a pupil at Modern High School, Dubai, is suffering from Leukaemia and is currently receiving treatment at the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London. The cost of the medication has been estimated at £150,000 and her parents, who hail from Colva, appealed for help. The school in Dubai swung into action and within days they closed the appeal after having received around £200,000. Late news: Her condition is serious. Your prayers are solicited. Check http://www.modernhighschool.com/ for updates.

25 Mar. Ilford Recorder. “Our young players demonstrated great character, especially Darren Cheesman and Warren D'Souza, who both played some of their best hockey of the season. We need to learn from today” Warren has just been selected to represent England U18's at Eindhoven, Holland during the Easter holidays. For details check the link. Warren is the son of Roger (Nanyuki, Kenya) & Nicolette and grandson of Richard & Theresa (Nairobi and Machakos). http://www.worldclasshockey.co.uk/programmes/age_group.php

24 Mar. The Gazette (Montreal, Quebec): Potatoes in their prime: Pashmina potatoes. This spicy potato recipe was sent in by Cheryl Braganza [ex-UK], of Kirkland who named this recipe for her collection of pashmina scarves. Of Indian heritage, Braganza suggest sprinkling the potatoes with a teaspoon (5 ml) of dried fenugreek leaves (sold in Indian grocery stores as "methee") along with the green chilies during cooking to add a unique and distinctive flavour to the dish, which she recommends serving with grilled fish, lamb chops, or baked chicken.

[Cheryl Braganza’s home page is at: http://www.picturetrail.com/cherylbraganza Her moving account of racism in Canada at http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/view?p=999&gid=579382&uid=441674]

27 Mar. Gomantak Times. It was an emotional homecoming for Petty Officer Elvis Carvalho, a sailor on board the Royal Navy Warship "HMS Gloucester" which called at Mormugao on March 26. This Goan, who is originally from Carmona and has served the Royal Navy for 16 years, was eagerly awaiting the vessel's visit to the State. Carvalho, who obliged a section of the media with an interview about his induction into the Royal Navy in fluent Konkani with a British accent.

27 Mar. Leicester Mercury. MP Keith Vaz is visiting India to find out more about their fight against tuberculosis. Mr Vaz, who represents Leicester East, will spend five days in New Delhi and Andhra Pradesh, learning about the Indian TB control programme, which is sponsored by the British Government.

DEATHS

27 Mar. Canacona, Goa. KAMLABAI VITOBA DESSAI. Mother of Dr Purushottam, Vitoba/Dr Vijayalaxmi (London), Smt Sarojini/Kashinath Mashelkar, Sharada/Umesh Fal Desai, Dr Seema/Chandrakant Parab.

24 Mar. Harrow Weald, Middlesex, UK. LEO (Lalush) DESOUZA (born 1947, ex Nairobi South B). Husband of Florence. Father of Lynsey, Lawrence and Lillian. Son of Vera and Late Lawrence. Brother of Daniel (Danny) Francis (Dede) and Blanche.
Funeral Service on Friday 2 Apr. 10.00 am at St Joseph Church, 191 High Road, Harrow Wealdstone, Middx. Followed by a Cremation service at 11.15am at Ruislip Crematorium, Breakspear Road, Ruislip Middx. Condolences to dededesouza@hotmail.com Because of the cremation, the family have requested no flowers. However a donation can be made to the family’s favourite charity to be announced on the day itself.

18 Mar: Vasco, Goa. CYPRIANO NEGREDO. Husband of Manuelina (Ex Navy). Father of Augusto/Fatima, Isabela/Eusebio (London), Fatima/Apolinario and Milton.

10 Mar. Mississauga, Canada. LINDA MARIA D'SOUZA (R.N. Retired - Toronto Western Hospital, ex-Nairobi). Wife of Capt. Angelo Martin D'Souza. Mother of Liana and Dieter Schill, Sandra and Neil Pereira, Nina and Stephen Coutts and Michelle and Dr. Shekhar Pandey. Daughter of the late Angela and Joseph D'Souza.

FLIGHT INFORMATION

1 Apr. The Telegraph. Ryanair advert offers free flights for children but only today and only "for as long as they can hang on". The picture shows a bespectacled child clinging desperately to the cockpit window of a jet coming in to land. See: http://www.ryanair.com/

GOA NEWS HEADLINES

26 Mar. Express Hotelier and Caterer. Heritage Village Club Goa, a 100-room hotel has departed from conventional models and draws its design inspirations from the rich traditional heritage of Goa. Text and photographs at the link below.
http://www.expresshotelierandcaterer.com/20040329/hoteldesign01.shtml

27 Mar. Herald. Goa’s current electoral register is at www.electionsgoa.nic.in [Information includes age and next of kin. You can print the entire voters list for your village or vaddo]

28 Mar. Deccan Herald. A circular issued by Goa’s new Archbishop Filip Neri Ferrao is suggestive of which way the Goa Church could lean in this election. And it is obvious it is unlikely to support the ruling BJP, whose policies it is highly critical of.
http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/mar282004/n5.asp

28 Mar. Indian Express. Sonu Chhina goes in search of a secret beach - the cognoscenti have named it ‘‘Butterfly Beach’’. He finds it, Sue Carpenter
(http://www.travelintelligence.net/wsd/writers/writ_9.html) a writer with The Guardian, and her photographer also happen to be there. He writes, “we know where Butterfly Beach is but we are not going to tell you.” [Can you locate it is from the clues?]
http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=43782

30 Mar. Times of India. Goa is getting ready for the International Film Festival.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/589568.cms

30 Mar. Navhind Times. Mapusa bus stand area used as an open-air toilet.
http://www.navhindtimes.com/stories.php?part=news&Story_ID=033010

IN THE NEWS

25 Mar. The Gazette (Montreal, Quebec): Immigrant journalists face tough hurdles. For Full text click here.

25 Mar. Birmingham Evening Mail. Jenny Watts, a college inspector, flew out to Goa to help out at Sister Valentina's Little Heaven which cares for around 50 orphans. Jenny has decided to spend three weeks at the orphanage, boosted with £800 raised by students and staff of Sandwell College.

25 Mar. FACTS (Switzerland). Text in German. [Marco Pitta, a professional footballer who had signed up as trainer of the Churchill Brothers team 10 months ago is thoroughly disillusioned. He talks of dusty everyday life… delayed payments of salary … lack of order and punctuality… the waste everywhere … bribery and corruption… lack of enthusiasm among Goans for football. However, he hopes to sign up with another team in Goa for the next season.] 639 words.

26 Mar. West Lothian Courier (Scotland). Kathleen Blyth, weekend cook at a sheltered housing complex in Livingston is heading off to Goa to visit nine-year-old Pravin Bhaidkar who she sponsors and is cared for in the El-Shaddai home in Goa. Residents and staff of the sheltered housing complex hope to raise around £400 for Kathleen to take with her to Goa. For Full text click here.

27 Mar. Sydney Morning Herald. Creative Cruising has a traditional crossing from Australia to England in March next year. This 36-night cruise on the Funchal will depart Fremantle on March 19 for Singapore, Phuket, Mormugao (Goa), Safaga, the Suez Canal, Piraeus (Athens), Lisbon and Liverpool. Between India and Egypt passengers will spend seven nights at sea. Tickets start at $4323 a person. See www.creativecruising.com.au

27 Mar. The Independent – London. Chowki. This ITV London Restaurant Award-winning Indian diner serves special meals from a rota of different regions. Next month it's Lucknow and Goa. A complete meal is only £10.95. 2-3 Denman Street, London W1 (020-7439 1330

28 Mar. New York Daily News. Excerpts: With the proliferation of restaurants featuring the regional cuisines of India, it becomes clearer how unique the food really is. "There are 28 states in India and each state has its own cuisine," says Floyd Cardoz, executive chef of Tabla and one of this year's James Beard Foundation nominees for best New York City chef. Different religions, climates and geography affected the food as each area built its cuisine on what was available, he says. "In the Moghul cuisine of the north" says Cardoz, "they use cream, but they generally don't use it in the south. And in my family's state, Goa, they eat beef and pork and use alcohol in food. In many other areas, they don't." http://www.nydailynews.com/city_life/story/177615p-154576c.html

29 Mar. The Daily Telegraph. For many years, Glastonbury Festival was the epicentre of British pop culture, but the arrival of wretched weather and low-cost airlines has seen it shift beyond the mud-strewn confines of the UK itself to more glamorous locations such as Goa.

30 Mar. Hindustan Times. An Indian doctor has won a record sum of £1 million in damages for racial discrimination. Rajendra Chaudhury, a surgeon claims his career was stalled because he is an Indian. The British Medical Association (BMA) was ordered to pay Chaudhury the record sum after refusing to represent him in a case against the NHS.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/5983_649457,00430005.htm

30 Mar. China Daily. India “grabbed Goa back from the Portuguese in 1975 [sic] simply by marching into the city without so much as saying hello.”
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-03/30/content_319164.htm

30 Mar. Manchester Evening News. Brian Robertson, 42, who created a cannabis "farm" in a terraced house claimed he was earning money to help homeless children in Goa. Robertson's crop was worth up to £42,000. He was jailed for two years. Judge Martin Henshell told him: "It is said you were growing cannabis for the most altruistic of motives - to alleviate suffering in India. Giving what weight one can to it, courts cannot condone what you did, even for charitable purposes.” Mark Rhind, defending, said Robertson had helped build and support orphanages - one for 40 boys and girls - and was now determined to settle in Goa. By cultivating a considerable amount of cannabis here, he made money and all of it went to buy land and meet initial construction costs. http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/news/stories/Detail_LinkStory=85813.html

31 Mar. Globe & Mail (Toronto). Excerpts: Aaron Pereira is 23 years old and he wants to start a bank for charities called the Community Bank. If all goes well, the Community Bank will open next year. It has been embraced by charities, the private sector and government. Pereira says, “I thought there would be a lot more people saying, ‘No, no. This isn't possible.' Where in fact what we have encountered is a very positive reaction.”Mr. Pereira is well placed to help start the Community Bank having established CanadaHelps, an on-line service that funnels donations to registered charities.

Full text, 829 words click here. For an account of the setting up of CanadaHelps see page 3 of http://www.navantis.com/english/pdf/NavantisSolutionsInActionCanadaHelps.pdf

1 Apr. International Travel News. Event to be held in Lisbon in 2004: "Goa and the Grand Mongol," Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon (June 3-Sept. 5)--exhibition on the first contacts between the Portuguese and the mongols. Spanning from 1570 to the first half of the 18th century. On display are books, paintings, jewelry, textiles, porcelain and furniture. Visit www.gulbenkian.pt

1 Apr. The Guardian has a full-page advert which claims that new technology from BMW means drivers can now cook their dinners from their car as they drive home from work. See: http://www.anewwaytocook.co.uk/shef/index.htm

FORTHCOMING

See http://www.lanfranc.com/publications/location/directions.htm for help in locating Archbishop Lanfranc School, Croydon

Thur. 1 Apr. 6.30 - 8.30pm, SOAS, Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London WC1. South Asia Solidarity Group meeting. Shabana Azmi, actor, social activist and ex-MP will discuss the struggle to defend cultural freedom from the onslaught of the stormtroopers of far-right Hindutva. Javed Akhtar, acclaimed Urdu poet and lyricist and activist will discuss his anti-communal work with children and young people across India. Details: 0207 267 0923, sasg@southasiasolidarity.org [Forwarded by Mario Mascarenhas, Saligao, Goa]

Thu. 1 Apr. 20:40 (50 mins). BBC Radio 3. Performance on 3, part 2. Dvorak: Piano Quintet in A, Op 81. Ralph de Souza and Dong Suk Kang (violins), Joji Hattori (viola), Raphael Wallfisch (cello), Gordon Back (piano). Live Broadcast.

Fri. 2 Apr. 7.30 pm. Passion in Music. A Concert with Patricia Rozario, Soprano, Mark Troop, Piano and others. St Mary Magdalen’s Church, Peter Avenue, Willesden Green. London. Proceeds to the Church Rebuilding Fund.

Sat. 3 Apr. 15:45 (135 mins). Channel 4. Film: Sea Wolves. Factually based World War II action drama about a mission to knock out a German radio transmitter aboard a ship docked in neutral Goa which is devastating Allied shipping in the Indian Ocean. Starring: David Niven, Gregory Peck, Roger Moore,Trevor Howard etc. 1980.

Fri. 9 Apr, 19:30 (30 mins). TV Programme. UK Food. Rick Stein's Fruits of the Sea. Seafood cuisine. Rick makes a spicy Goan seafood curry for all his staff.

Mon. 12 Apr. 3 pm. Konkani Dramatic Association presents a Musical Show "Ekvott". Play written by Albert de Varca and music written by Tony D'Mello. First Performance, Saint Monica's Hall, Palmers Green, North London. For Tickets and further information contact: Judy Fernandez – 0208763 2606, Domacian Moniz - 02083761609.

Sat. 17 Apr. 8-2am. Goanparty.com Calling all young goan clubbers! @ E-Bar 20 South End, South Croydon. Dress code smart/Casual (no caps) 18+ Entry £6 in advance. DJ's Mixbreed, 2Face and Sparkz playing R'N'B, Hip-Hop, Old-skool and Goan Rare Groove! Contact: Darren 07956 117 703; Aaron 07956 953 311; Leon 07956 923 689; Louise 07958 376872 www.goanparty.com

Sat. 24 Apr. 6.30pm till late. 'Viva Goa' presents Gala Spring Dance at Collier's Wood Community Centre, 66-72 High Street, Colliers Wood, SW19 2BY. Featuring Live Band 'Low Level' performing Konkani, Portuguese, Spanish, English tunes. Also Goan folk dances by 'Goan Waves' led by Aldrin Viegas. Tickets £8,children £4.Dress formal/Smart. Please bring your own food and drinks. Tickets Contact Aldrin 07904923566, Celeste 02086489015 Book early to avoid disappointment. Limited Tickets.

SOLD OUT. Sun. 25 Apr. Ex-students Reunion. Nairobi Catholic Parochial and St Teresa's Schools. SOLD OUT!

Sun 25 Apr. 4pm - The Asian Chaplaincy. Konkani Mass. Our Lady & St Christopher's Catholic Church, 32 High Street, Cranford, Middlesex.

Mon. 3 May. 3 pm. Konkani Dramatic Association presents a Musical Show "Ekvott". Play written by Albert de Varca and music written by Tony D'Mello. Second Performance. Archbishop's Lanfranc School Hall, Mitcham Road, Croydon. For Tickets and further information contact: Judy Fernandez - 02087632606, Domacian Moniz - 02083761609.

Sun. 9 May 1pm - 8pm. Assolna, Velim & Cuncolim Union (AVC) Annual Feast at Bishop Thomas Grant School, Streatham. Dancing to Mariano & his band + Disco & great Goan cusine. Contact Uniece Barros 020 8672 0807, Alba Fernandes 020 8656 3305 or Colin Almeida 020 8687 1470 calmeida@lycos.co.uk

FOR LATER EVENTS SEE http://www.goanvoice.org.uk