Goa, Oct. 26 -- GORDON PIRES

Goa's taxpayer-funded infrastructure is being left vulnerable to theft, with construction materials and valuable utility assets lying unguarded at worksites and along public roads. Re peated thefts threaten to push up project costs and compound the waste of public money. The pattern has emerged through a series of incidents in recent weeks. On October 22, unidentified persons al legedly stole construction material from a project site at Dabolim. On September 24, nine persons were ar rested in connection with the theft of industrial BSNL ca bles and copper scrap, with the stolen material valued at approximately Rs 1.15 lakh, according to Sanjay Velip, Presiding Officer at Margao Police Station. A separate thef...