As the four-yearly football fest draws to a thrilling finale, Goans are burning more than the midnight oil following the fortunes of their favourites in far-away France. Angered by frequent power-cuts, which rob them of their fix, angry viewers have been jamming telephone lines of the Power Department's complaint centres ever since the tournament began.

Now with government officials keeping telephones off the hook, fans in the state are looking for other scapegoats to vent their ire on.

Last week, a Congress Member of the Legislative Assembly, Fatima D'Sa, told the Goa Assembly that the power failed a record 36 times one match night and she had to field some 40 angry callers.

She even went on to invite Chief Minister Pratapsinh Rane, ``but not the power minister'' (Mauvin Godinho) to stay in Porvorim, from where the power cuts were reported, for just 12 if not 24 hours.

If only the CM takes up his party colleague's offer, one can imagine the number of invitees he would receivein the run-up to the finals - just so his hosts can watch the climax sans interruption.

Water babies

Move over Rupali Repale, Goa has thrown up some potential challengers to India's youngest swimmer who conquered the English Channel. Nine-year-old Dhruv Vegaonkar, hailing from a family of Goan lawyers, swam across the famous Mandovi river at Panaji in just 13 minutes on June 21. Swimming alongside was friend Nilay Ravindra Thaly, aged 12.

Thanks to the guidance from their coach Michael Fernandes from the Customs Department, the duo could take to the water even though the rains had set in and the river was turbulent.

The boys will now try to take on the busy Zuari river. And, their tryst with the English Channel? Watch this space.

Spouse Exposes Scam

Thanks to a domestic quarrel, the Goa police has managed to nip in the bud a fake Secondary School Certificate (SSC) scam in the state. According to Goa police officials, one Santosh Prabhu was arrested for selling fake SSC certificatesto students after his wife who walked out on him following a quarrel complained to the police. Subsequently, police officials recovered a 100-page book containing printed SSC certificates made out in the name of local schools, police officials say only four to five certificates from the book were `issued' and the remaining were intact. Efforts are on to trace the `certificate-holders'.

High-Tension

It may not be able to solve the state's problems, but thanks to its tiny size, Goa's rulers promptly get an earful from the public when something goes wrong in their respective departments.

Addressing a seminar on electricity supply recently, Power Minister Mauvin Godinho admitted to be at the receiving end every time there is a power failure in the state. ``My wife, who picks up the phone has to often handle angry callers,'' Godinho cribbed. A report in a local newspaper about a young boy who grabbed a live high-tension wire but survived with minor burns as the voltage was poor, carried the followingheadline: `Mauvin Godinho saves two-year old. Touche!