The 3rd Edition of Ideas Unleashed, an essay competition for college and university students in Goa, jointly organised by ICG and Goa University is here. The first was organized in 2014 and the second in 2016. This edition’s topic — Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): The challenges for Goa — is of substantial and immediate relevance to Goa.
Students from across the state are being encouraged to engage with the issue of sustainable development, highlight and discuss the key challenges Goa faces in realizing these goals, and make viable recommendations.
What steps can the state government and civil society take to address the shortcomings in achieving the SDGs?
What role must the state and civil society – including the private sector and especially business groups – play in this regard, especially considering that the SDGs themselves emerged from a consultative process involving both national governments and millions of citizens from across the world?
RULES
The essay competition is open to students currently enrolled with Goa University, colleges affiliated to Goa University, Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS)-Goa, Goa Institute of Management (GIM), the National Institute of Technology (NIT)-Goa and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Goa up to the age of 25 years.
The essay should not exceed 2,500 words and must be typed for submission purposes.
The essay, along with the ‘Personal Information Form’ and a copy of college/ university/ institute identity card should be sent by email to prog@incentgoa.com with “Ideas Unleashed 2018” in the subject line. A printed copy of the same should be sent to The Director, The International Centre Goa, Dr. E Borges Road, Dona Paula, Goa 403004.
The deadline for the submission of the essay is on or before 25th October 2018.
The essay should be original and must not have been submitted to any other essay competition(s) or otherwise published. All entries are checked for plagiarism. Participants will not be allowed to make any revisions to the essay, once it has been submitted.
A student may participate in either English or Konkani category and not in both categories.
The participant will be required to declare any assistance received during the writing of the essay. Sources/ references used in writing the essay should be duly acknowledged in the essay.
The participant will be required to submit personal information along with the essay. The personal information form, available on the website, pertains to the name, address, contact details, age and college particulars of the participant.
A Screening Committee constituted by The International Centre Goa (ICG) and Goa University will first review the essays received. The selected essays will then be submitted to a panel of judges for final review. The panel of judges will be selected by ICG and Goa University. The decision of the screening committee and the panel of judges will be final and binding on the participant.
In the English category, the top three ranked essays will receive cash prizes as follows: First `25,000; Second `20,000; Third `15,000.
In the Konkani category, the best entry will receive a cash prize of `25,000.
The winners of the competition will be contacted at the email address mentioned in the personal information form.
Prize winners will have to submit identity proof.
All the essays will become the joint property of ICG & Goa University. Each participant automatically grants ICG & Goa University the right to reproduce, publish, transmit or otherwise communicate to the public their entry, in whole or in part, or using any media for any purpose without permission or payment.
Persons who have written prize-winning essays will be felicitated at a function at ICG.
Names of the persons who have written the prize winning essays will be informed to local media by press release, and will be displayed on ICG and Goa University website.
Every effort will be made to publish the prize-winning essays in local media, but this should not be construed as a commitment from ICG and Goa University.
ICG and Goa University reserve the final right, where necessary, to make amendments to the above rules and to select the winners of the competition.

PARRIKAR FORCED TO REST

The doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi treating Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar have put restrictions on visitors meeting him, and prescribed total rest for the Chief Minister. Parrikar, who was admitted to AIIMS last week, is continuing with the treatment prescribed to him by the New York-based health facility, where he was earlier treated for his pancreatic ailment.

CONGRESS CONFUSED

A Congress observer, Mr Chellakumar, is in Goa to monitor political developments following Mr Parrikar’s hospitalisation and the subsequent doubts over the stability of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition government.
The Congress is claiming that it is in touch with disgruntled non-BJP MLAs, who Mr Chellakumar said, are keen on a switch over. However, Mr Chellakumar is hedging his bets, insisting that the Congress is not in a hurry to form a government in Goa. This is hard to swallow given the fact that both the BJP and the Congress MLAs have always shown their willingness to do practically anything (except give up control of the CM’s kodel) to be in power.
The Congress position is complicated by the fact that two of their MLAs — Jennifer Monserrate and Filipe Neri Rodrigues — left for China and Europe respectively, amid media reports that several Congress leaders were willing to switch over to the BJP.
State Congress President Girish Chodankar, however, said “Rodrigues and Monserrate have gone out of the station with the knowledge of the party as per pre-scheduled programmes. They will be in Goa at 48-hour notice whenever the party needs them.”