Panchayat decides to close Goa's Betalbatim beach at night
Panaji, June 1: More than a week after a 20-year-old woman was gang raped at Betalbatim beach in South Goa, a local panchayat has decided to prohibit the entry of visitors to the beach stretch after evening.
"All panchayat members are unanimous about prohibiting the entry of visitors to the beach after 7.30 p.m. Gates will be installed on the road leading to the beach which will be closed after evening. We will put up signboards to the effect soon," sarpanch Constancio Miranda said on Friday.
On May 25, three tourists from Madhya Pradesh allegedly raped a 20-year-old girl at Betalbatim beach in front of her 22-year-old male friend, while also filming the act, in order to blackmail the couple subsequently into shelling out more money.
The accused were arrested within 24 hours of the incident and are currently in police custody.
Goa is one of the top beach tourism destinations in the country and attracts more than six million tourists every year.
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Efforts of party cadres will be rewarded on May 4: DMK chief Stalin
Chennai (PTI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Friday said that the efforts made by his party cadres during the Assembly elections would be rewarded on May 4.
The counting of votes for the Assembly elections held on April 23 will be taken up on May 4.
"We are set to reap the rewards of the hard work put in by our party cadres on the coming fourth (May 4 counting day). There is absolutely no change in this and not even the slightest deviation," Stalin said at a May Day event here.
"There is no need for anyone to assume that I am speaking merely on the basis of exit polls," he added.
Stalin, who is also DMK chief, said that "good news" would come for those eagerly waiting for the election results.
Stating that the DMK governance is based on philosophy and principles, Stalin said, "This will continue."
He recalled the pivotal role of the then Chief Minister C N Annadurai, who first declared May Day as a government holiday, and subsequently, late CM M Karunanidhi, who was instrumental in extending it as a paid holiday across the nation.
"Responding to the request of Kalaingnar (Karunanidhi), the then Prime Minister V P Singh accepted the plea and declared it (May 1) a paid government holiday not merely for Tamil Nadu, but for the entire nation," Stalin said.
