Goan Observer - Weekly News Portal

Story of an Egg

goanobserver — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:47:54 +0000

By Nida Sayed

A baby is waiting to be born to keep her "Maa" warm…

HOW DO you want your eggs?" asks Asha, "fried or scrambled?"
"Scrambled I guess." says Maa, "But avoid the yolk, I feel like puking."
I had been hearing these voices for a few weeks. Though my ears hadn’t developed then, I could figure out who said what. The vibrations of people’s voices and their movements taught me a lot of things. On my own, I had managed to learn a lot of words and expressions. Who am I? Well, my name is… I don’t know yet.
Asha was the maid. I knew that because I often heard people scream Asha this… Asha that… "This maid is good for nothing." While the others’ voice vibrations reached me faintly, Maa’s were strong. When I first came into being, it was all so dark; I was scared. But the warmth of Maa’s blood made me want to stay. Then, I tried to know the name. Most people of the outside sack said Chhotti Bahu, the youngest daughter-in-law. Every night, someone slept beside her who said "arre sunn" which means "Hey, listen". They were all very cold. But I often felt three different warmths around me. They didn’t touch me directly, yet I felt a connection with them. They said Maa. I felt so should I. So, now their Maa is my Maa too.
Today I feel an unknown stroke touch me, or rather touched Maa. It appears to be a very experienced stroke. "It is an embryo." The voice of this unknown very experienced stroke vibrates. I guess that’s my name: Em-bree-yo.
"How big is it Dr Shilpa?" Maa is asking. So this unknown very experienced stroke’s name is Dr Shilpa.
"You will have to wait for the final reports, but I believe it is around twenty to twenty-five days since fertilisation. The body of the embryo is developing, the head and trunk and tiny arm and leg buds have begun to form. Other internal organs are present in simple form and functioning as they grow."
Maa is caressingly stroking me now, "My baby" she says. I wonder if that is also my name.
The people of the outside sack are very happy as Maa tells them that she is carrying me. I can now hear her tell the one who sleeps beside her every night, "You are going to be a Papa again." That someone is happy too; I can feel the positive vibes coming from its body as it comes closer to Maa. I have decided to call it Papa. After all, that is what Maa had mentioned, isn’t it? And the three different warmths that were usually around me, I heard them tell Maa some time ago, "We will take care of the baby when it comes Maa; we will be the world’s best elder sisters." It is then that I realised, they were my older sisters, born before me. I want to see them too but I don’t know how long that will take.
Now I can sense that the people of the outside sack are taking extra care of Maa. I hear Papa brings many ‘fruits’ everyday and Asha accompanies her during what they call ‘evening walks’. When Maa returns, I hear her taking my sisters’ lessons. Maa teaches one sister time and days and months of the year. She teaches another difficult words and she teaches my eldest sister The Human Body and its Functions. I am learning too. I also have a faint idea of what people outside the sack look like. Will I also look the same?
It has been some days, now I can clearly hear every word that is spoken around me. My ears have developed. I no longer have to depend on vibrations to hear. Though blurred, I can slightly see too. A thumping noise always came from within me; I guess that is what Dr Shilpa meant when she said, "…internal organs are… functioning as they grow." There is this long thread-like thing on my lower-self from where I get all the nourishment. My eldest sister’s lessons didn’t seem to mention it so I tried to study this thread for some days. Then I realised that whatever Maa consumed travelled to me through this thread.
A few more weeks have passed, I feel stronger. I learn a new word almost every day; or is it every hour? Anyway, I am happily learning and discovering new things about the people outside the sack. One of which is that unlike me, they called their sack ‘the house’. I am eager to know how the house is different from my sack.
I can hear Dr Shilpa now, "The body is essentially complete. There are spontaneous movements, it is responding to touch and I am also receiving brain waves. It is a foetus now; no longer an embryo." So is this my new name? Fee-tuss?
The woman who most yelled at Asha was called "Granny" by my sisters and "Maa" by my Maa. So many weeks in the sack taught me that she was Papa’s Maa, not Maa’s Maa, yet my Maa called her Maa. I already have a Maa, so I guess I should be calling her Granny. I can hear Granny say to Maa, "Look, Chhotti Bahu I don’t want to disappointment this time. You have brought Goddess Lakshmi to this house three times already. It is high time you give us a boy. Look at all your older sisters-in-law, each of them have 2-3 sons. You are the only one with three daughters. When are you giving my son an heir?"
"This time surely Maa." says my Maa.
"I hope so Chhotti Bahu. I want a grandson from you this time or else you know what was done to Vimla’s girl child last year.
Vimla was Maa’s second eldest sister-in-law. I always heard people in the house say her name unlike Maa’s. Through conversations between the housemates I had learnt that Vimla had three sons and three daughters. Last year she had the fourth daughter and something was done to it. I don’t know what but people in the sack speak of that something in a very matter-of-fact way. Only my Maa seems to not like it, her blood turns cold at its mention. Right now as Granny speaks, Maa is turning cold again. "We have been very kind to you Chhotti Bahu. You should be grateful to be in a house like ours. Your father gave us a good dowry due to which we have tolerated three daughters from you. This time if it is not a boy, then your baby shall see the same fate as Vimla’s last daughter."
"But Maa, what control do I have over the gender of the child?"
"Shut up! How dare you speak like that? Are you a woman or no?"
"But if my baby turns out to be a girl, how can I let it suffer the same fate as Vimla’s child?"
"I gave this house five sons. I am the pride of the entire village. Don’t you think it cuts like a knife when the villagers say things like, ‘The last son of that house seems heirless’. I will not tolerate you here if you don’t give a boy. Hear me Chhotti Bahu, if you don’t bear a son, you will leave this house with your little urchins and never come back on our threshold."
"But Vimla was allowed to stay."
"Yes, for two reasons. One, she already had blessed this house with three sons. Two, she let us decide the fate of the fourth newly born wretch. Reason one, does not apply to you and reason two, you do not want to comply to. So the only option you have is to leave this house. "
"Please Maa, don’t be so harsh. Think about your son."
"My son has always done what I have commanded. If I tell him to leave you, he will do so. Then I will get him remarried. When he sows his seed into a greener pasture, his heir will take birth. Then I shall distribute sweets in the entire village and mock at the villagers for having considered my son heirless."
"No Maa, don’t say such things. Please, I shall do whatever you say."
"Then go and get a Sonography done."
"An Ultrasound?"
"Yes, yes, same thing, I can’t wait so many months to see if it is a boy or girl. We wasted so much money on Vimla when she was expecting. All the exotic food, rich milk products, medical bills and hospital charges… all for what? A wretched girl? This time there shall be no wastage of money. Phone Dr. Shilpa and tell her now."
Since my inception, I had heard and understood different words, various conversations and learnt to decipher them overtime. But this conversation, something didn’t seem right about it. But right now, that is not my concern. It is Maa. I have realised that Maa has no companions, like me, she is all alone. So, I have decided that when I enter the world, I will never ever let Maa feel alone, I will always be with her. Always!
Today, the walls of the sack appear dark and gloomy. A new feeling is mingling around me to which I’m cringing. I don’t know what this is. I know happiness, Maa becomes warm. I know fear, Maa becomes cold, but I don’t know what this is. Papa is asking Maa, "Why are you so sad?"
Sad. A new word I learnt today. Though small, it’s such a powerful word. It is so easy to say ‘sad’, but I didn’t know that sad could make everything so dull and dim in my sack. I cringe more as I feel fluids from Maa’s body spilling out. Though there is ample of water around me, I feel very dry and cheerless. Indeed, sad is very powerful. I don’t like this ‘sad’; fear is still better. It gets cold in here, but it is still much better than sad. Now I have decided that when I come out, I will never let Maa feel sad.
I’m so sleepy today but the touch of a familiar stroke wakes me. I know I am near Dr Shilpa. I am excited to know what Dr Shilpa says about me this time. "So had you thought of a name?" Dr Shilpa is asking Maa.
"I thought of Astitva."
"Astitva? It means Identity, no?"
"Yes,"
Yippee… now I know my name, it is Astitva. Neither Em-bree-yo nor Fee-tuss. I am Astitva.
"It is a girl." I hear Dr Shilpa say.
Maa’s blood is turning cold, I can sense fear. Now the walls are turning gloomy, Maa is sad again, "Then you know what to do Dr Shilpa." I don’t understand what Maa means.
"Tomorrow," Dr Shilpa is saying.
In the house, everyone sounds very cold to Maa. Papa is saying that she was doing the right thing. I still don’t understand what she is going to do. I know it is night, but Maa doesn’t seem to get sleep. I usually play when Maa sleeps but today I cannot. It is still cold and gloomy here.
Yawn… I am so drowsy today. "Dr Shilpa is busy with a delivery. It is almost done. Wait a while." This voice sounds unfamiliar and delivery of what I wonder.
Dhak-dhak; Dhak-dhak; Dhak-dhak… Maa’s internal organ is beating fast, I can hear it. Dr Shilpa has come, and is telling Maa to lie down. I am suddenly feeling uncomfortable. Something is literally touching me; I can really feel it. But I don’t like its touch and I can sense that nor does Maa. Now it is pulling me. I am wriggling my arms and legs to protest, but it doesn’t seem to stop. I am trying to scream but cannot. It hurts… it hurts… help me please. I don’t like this. I can’t… I can’t… I feel weak… numb… darkness… save me… Maa… I am your… Astitva… let me……………………

Art… with a helping hand

goanobserver — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:46:29 +0000

By Neeta Omprakash

TEACHING and learning art can be an arduous task for someone who is concerned about the complexities and intricacies involved in the process, mainly due to the ambiguity surrounding the definition of art itself.
Vasudev Shetye and Praveen Naik held a duo show of their paintings titled ‘Unbearable lightness of being’ at Kala Academy’s Art Gallery from May 7-11. These two mid-career, appreciably skilled and established, artists were chosen for mentoring by ‘Bija’, an arts initiative by Apurva Kulkarni and Nayna Bandekar. Both these artists were guided by Apurva for a period of 17 months to create art works with the theme ‘Life in Goa today’. The existential questions raised by writer Milan Kundera in his novel The unbearable lightness of being have inspired this group to focus on their own motherland, Goa.

Vasudev and Praveen were venturing into new horizons on their own, facing challenges at conceptual as well as formal level, after their graduation till this new project of mentoring materialised. The mentoring project intended to make them aware about several socio-political and environmental hazards of contemporary times by way of interdisciplinary discussions to create issue-based art works. The themes dealt with in their works are new to the artists. While trespassing beyond the borders of untraveled land, at times, they have stumbled down the ravines while climbing mountain peaks.

ANCIENT MYTHS

BOTH artists have attempted to re-contextualise ancient Greek and Indian myths in the present context. Certain figures are immediately reminiscent of great European Renaissance masters; Vasudev’s ‘Schism II’ is reminiscent of Botticelli’s ‘Birth of Venus’ where as Praveen’s ‘Rome of East’ echoes Michelangelo’s ‘Creation of Adam’. There is reference to Indian miniatures in the image of Shiva in Praveen’s ‘In the City’. Re-contextualising historical art material has been a trend in contemporary Indian art over the past decade. Art history is a treasure trove of visual imagery and creative energy. So far, in Goan the art scene, not many artists have ventured in this area.

Use of mythical images from art history increases the complexity of an art work. For instance, Praveen’s image of Shiva painted in an Indian miniature style stands with the surrealistic image of Panaji city as a backdrop. This hybrid product of myth and reality, ancient Indian art and modern Western art gives rise to certain questions. Most ancient myths have a cause and effect pattern woven in the actions of the protagonist. The question that could be asked in the context of Praveen’s painting is, ‘what is the purpose of Shiva’s arrival in Panaji’? What is the reaction to Shiva’s descent into Panaji? The myth of the creation of Goa refers to the descent of Parashuram, Vishnu’s incarnation and not to Shiva. Shiva symbolises destruction in the trinity aspect; does the artist suggest that he has arrived to destroy the deserted and haunted city? But Shiva appears to be baffled and tense standing at the crossroad and not in his ‘rudra’ form. Similarly, in Vasudev’s paintings of ‘Matsyagandha’ and ‘River Princes’ (grounded off Candolim beach for years causing an environmental hazard), cause and effect 01are lacking. He imagines Matsyagandha of Mahabharat arriving in Goa. Matsyagandha of Mahabharat was a dynamic fisherwoman carrying the seed of the future disaster of the entire Kuru clan. Vasudev’s Matsyagandha appears to be a helpless sober fisherwoman symbolised by a cat. He (and also Praveen) imagined the ‘River Princess’ transforming into a woman. Artistic imagination needs to be pulled out from the sands surrounding the grounded River Princesv and ridden in various directions in a speed boat. Vasudev’s paintings have always revolved around women in different emotional states and eroticism finds best expression through his creative hand, but reacting to socio-political- environmental issues is not his natural forte.

DUALITY

PRAVEEN’S persona of himself as a king, god, centaur or a visionary sarcastically points at the duality. Most of the works in the exhibition are critical of the concrete jungle created in the name of development. Vasudev has used the image of Siamese twins to symbolise the integrity of Goan culture where as the same concept is used by Praveen to show the hypocrisy in human nature.

Vasudev is at ease with creating the effect of vastness in a smaller space which is unconsciously inherited from Indian miniatures. He has always been in a dilemma when it comes to use of large space, which he shares with many of his contemporaries. He has taken this challenge of expressing his ideas on a grand scale, letting his feminine figures grow along with the size of the canvas (most of them are still either half or three-quarters in size). His confrontation with the empty space surrounding the protagonist in the foreground has left him baffled. The magical effect of monumentality present in the smaller works could not be achieved on the larger pictorial surface. The virtual illusion created on the surface of the canvas is neither directly nor inversely proportional to the surface. It is entirely subjective and can defy any set norm challenging the artistic potential.

The exhibition makes one dwell on the subject of the process of teaching and learning art. It is obvious that though a teacher may impart the same knowledge to several artists, the works created by them will differ. This is attributed to the fact that art is a reflection of the inner self. The seriousness of this very understanding is sometimes rarely realised, even by artists.

A serious project of mentoring two mid career artists supported by NRB group where Nayana Bandeker was pivotal in giving complete freedom to mentor Apurva Kulkarni must have certainly benefited the artists in widening their field of awareness. It is a commendable, collaborative effort by Nayana and Apurva. Learning is a never-ending process for someone willing to widen their horizons. A teacher is a catalyst creating a suitable atmosphere for chemicals to react and the scientist chooses the right catalyst required for an expected reaction of chemicals.

Make it a mangolicious season!

goanobserver — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:42:23 +0000

By Tara Narayan

LOOKS LIKE the khaas aadmi of Goa has run away from Goa’s sweltering summer heat …gone to Thailand, gone to Vietnam, gone to Malaysia and Singapore, or may be Switzerland, Austria, New York, London, where they’re probably feasting on choice mangoes imported from India! Like we’re eating apples from New Zealand, Chile, South Africa, Washington and China, here in summer time in India when we should be eating our very own national fruit - the mango! Mangoes from Goa are more expensive than apples from New Zealand!

How do you like that? I don’t. This is to say I finally bought my first mangoes of the season at the new Panaji market, Sunday early morning pavement market… you have to get there by 7 am. I wasn’t even looking at mankurad, but got half-a-dozen of the humble pairi for Rs 100; and further down a fruiter offered a dozen small pairi for another Rs 100. So for lunch on Sunday I made Guju rotli and mango ras (spiked with a pinch of soont or ginger powder and salt as its traditional to do so in Gujarat, but I skip the helping of liquid desi ghee). Pairi is ideal for juicing but for a thicker mango puree, it’s good to combine pairi with afoos. Mango ras-puri are also a favourite combo, with jeera aloo sabzi garnished with lots of fresh green coriander on the side!

The Panaji new market is flooded with mangoes green and ripe these days and folk are buying them for anything from Rs 200 to Rs 400 per dozen, depending on whether it’s Goa’s mankurad or Ratnagiri’s alphonso. Some families buy in bulk and a friend complained of being cheated, "It’s so easy to get cheated in Goa! There are good and bad mangoes in the lot of mankurad my son bought in wholesale at Rs 1,500 for five dozen… some mangoes are stringy and I had to juice them, can’t eat them sliced!" Unlike Ratnagiri’s afoos or alphonso which is usually a fine table mango, that is one may skin thinly, dice and serve chilled. Mankurad varieties can be fibrous and one may not serve them as cut mango, otherwise one ends up eating too much fibre!

So it’s easy to get cheated when buying mankurad and to be honest I find mankurad too cloyingly sweet. Give me Gujarat’s kesar or pairi or the Devgad alphonso any day. Of course, there’re mangoes and mangoes in India north, south, east and west. If you can find totapuri, make the Malaysian street side tangy item number of rojak. Rojak is really a Malaysian chaat offering of diced/cubed/chunked firmly ripe mango, pineapple, guava, star fruit, yam bean, cucumber, sweet onion, etcetera, laced in a tangy dark tamarind-tamari-gula Melaka (palm jaggery) sauce…with a scattering of belachan (dry prawn crumble) and a very lightly roasted sesame seeds and peanut crumble.

You may make single fruit rojak too, of course, and it’s my favourite fruit salad although come to think of it, one may toss it equally brilliantly in a good minty chaat masala… check it out and invite me to eat only!

WHICH reminds me, the five-stars are all promoting mango mania festivals currently. If you’re a mangoholic you might want to freak out on a long list of mango offerings. There’s the Grand Hyatt or Cidade de Goa or the Marriott Resort where it’s gala mango time right through May or till the rains arrive and bugs get into the mangoes because they love mangoes too. They’re going all out to please at the Grand Hyatt’s Dining Room and Chulha and Bay View Lounge and Confeitaria and The Verandah…not to forget the Capiz Bar…where you may want to find a high in mango colada, mango margarita, mango caparisio?

Elsewhere, Chef Ila Nicole, in charge of all the sweet somethings department, has mango charlotte, ginger mango chocolate cake, mango jam, mango pudding, mango shakes, and other mango temptations. They’re on a real mango roll at the Grand Hyatt for I learned from Executive Chef Mark Hagan that they don’t need to buy mangoes. They have climbed up all their seven or eight mango trees on the property and harvested their own in-house mangoes. Each mango tree yields something like 700 mangoes!

Together they have harvested may be 4,000 mangoes of mankurad, alphonso, totapuri and other mangoes. So these days their chefs are busy making green mango pickles, jams, murabbas, even aam papad… drying out mango puree in sheets in the sunshine, to be used later in the rainy days. There’s a cocktail samosa with mango papad tucked in it but I didn’t’ taste that… there’s just so much of sweet mango one may eat and for some reason I don’t care much for the idea of mango ripe in curries, especially prawn or fish curries, it’s just one of my biases I suppose.

Where else? At Cidade de Goa’s Taverna or Docaria or Café Azul or Laranja you may opt for aam ka panna/ mango power punch and starters like crab meat and mango salad/mango muhammara with pita (this sounds exciting!)…and curried mango and shrimp soup, mango minestrone, char grilled chicken kebab with mango or raw mango prawn curry or paneer aam makhani. Ditto at the Marriott Resort’s restaurants I dare say…and yes, at Café Mangii there’s kairi panna, mango riser, alphonso smoothie, raw mango salad, alphonso cheesecake (eggless), mango sabayon, mango mousse, seasonal fresh mango, mango tarts, mango flavoured baked yoghurt…..each at Rs 200 plus, plus rates! Whhy didn’t find mango sorbet and mango frugart anywhere?

If you’re a mangoholic or mango lover, make the most of the mango month of May. Go on a hopping spree of eating mango item numbers here, there and everywhere where the good life makes sense on a blistering hot summer weekend. It’s okay to play at being khaas aadmi once in a way! It’s very educative. At aam aadmi level, here’s hoping they’ll be selling mangoes at generous wholesale rates at the Botanical Society of Goa’s Konkan Fruit Fest which Panaji mayor Vaidehi Naik inaugurated on Friday, May 11, at 10.30 am, at the Children’s Park down the Campal promenade, as usual…the fruit fiesta is always full of interesting fruit and action, so be sure to catch some of it during the weekend!

A rudraksha tree… At the Selaulim Dam botanical garden!

goanobserver — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:40:27 +0000

By Tara Narayan

I COULDN’T believe my eyes. A rudraksha tree in Goa? A tree most precious to mahadeo, Lord Shiva, the seeds of which are popularly revered as the ‘tears’ the good lord shed over something or another! Hindu mythological lore, generally speaking, has it that Lord Shiva is as emotional and sentimental a god, as tempestuous when he angry … but this is about this most beautiful lush green rudraksha tree growing in the landscaped gardens adjoining the Selaulim Dam in Sanguem taluka.

I couldn’t take my eyes of the tree as its branches swayed in the late evening breeze and I asked if the tree has already started bearing flowers, fruit and the much sort marble-sized dark nutty wrinkled seeds or beads, but couldn’t get a satisfying answer. You know, it’s hard to get to see a rudraksha tree outside Nepal or Indonesia…or Hardwar!

There are all kinds of other trees, of course, mango, jackfruit, tamarind, teak; not to forget flower beds, a gazebo walkway covered over with exquisite fragrant clematis and what do you know, a real rose garden to fill the senses with delight, their scent infusing the cool evening air. Doting couples sit in seclusion here and there, tucked away between trees. Elsewhere children have a riotous time with the butterflies…the green lawns are as enticing as the water cascade rushing down a rock garden.

Drop in at the pavilion with its collection of cacti and succulents; one species is sporting such a huge purplish flower that we are all drawn to it bemused and intrigued - have you ever seen such a large cactus flower? No! Cameras click.

Hey, I remember this place as nothing but a mega junkyard when I saw it last years ago, but all that has changed and much of the dam rabble has gone into creating the garden landscaping over something like eight hectares. Today there’s a cool, green treat of a retreat for sore city eyes and, of course, a home for birdlife and butterflies. Locals and a few visitors turn up although the word hasn’t spread yet that there is such a garden of paradise here!

They have recently imposed an entry fee of Rs 10, but spending a few hours here in the botanical gardens soothes the senses and makes one feel that perhaps life is worth living! For don’t we all look for gardens to stay sane in the so called merry month of May when the sun is at its blistering best, ready to burn anything to cinders given the smallest chance. It’s not easy to burn down a garden though which is attended to with so much tender loving care.

I was reisiting Selaulim Dam’s gardens after many years and this too courtesy Richard D’Souza who recently returned as chief forest conservator. He was all set for one of his rounds of Goa’s wild places and I said, May I come along? Sure. The idea of creating this botanical gardens out of a junkyard came up in 1982 during Pratapsingh Rane’s time, but it was Manohar Parrikar who sanctioned the initial Rs 2.7 crore when he first took over as chief minister in 2003. With Mr Parrikar as chief minister anew, there’s no doubt that the gardens will get a further impetus to grow into dream gardens to offer Goans a green refuge for picnics and weekend outings to beat the summer heat.

The second phase of development, says Richard D’Souza, is the development of the flora of the Western Ghats and the emphasis will be on endangered and threatened species. This phase includes a medicinal plants section, bamboosetum, butterfly park, orchidarium, fernarium and an interpretation centre with library facilities. Work has already commenced and needless to say he takes a special interest in it for here is a forester with a true blue green soul!

The Botanical Garden & Eco-Recreational Park at Selaulim Dam is all set to go places and like many others I keep my fingers crossed for its continuous welfare. It’s Goa’s very own botanical garden although it still has a long way to go to considered on par with say the botanical gardens of Singapore, but one may dream on.
Doesn’t the human mind constantly seeks a garden of paradise to commune with Mother Earth? And isn’t it communion with Mother Earth which keeps each one of us rooted to where we are coming from and where we feel a sense of belonging? Mother Earth is our primary home! All other homes are secondary, tertiary or…irrelevant.

The woes of Dicarpale

goanobserver — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:34:28 +0000

By Pachu Menon

It is by now a standard procedure in the state for both the ruling and the opposition alike to strive equally hard to make its presence felt in the local bodies.

THE GOA government has notified May 16, 2012, as the date for elections to 185 of the 189 village panchayats in the state. However, amidst allegations of the delimitation and reservation of wards having been carried out in a very arbitrary manner by the Directorate of Panchayats, there has been a call for the postponement of the panchayat elections from various quarters.

Rather than be bogged down by the bogey of the ‘illegal Panchayat councils elected legally’, CM Parrikar expressed his helplessness in this matter citing reasons of Constitutional obligations and chose to attribute all the irregularities committed to the powers of delimitation and ward reservations invested on the Directorate of Panchayats.

MLA CLOUT

IT is by now a standard procedure in the state for both the ruling and the opposition alike to strive equally hard to make its presence felt in the local bodies. It is a deep-rooted feeling that control of various panchayats under one’s ‘jurisdiction’ as an MLA of the constituency speaks for the clout enjoyed by the local legislator.

The Constitution visualises panchayats as institutions of self-governance, although most of the financial powers and authorities to be endowed on panchayats have been left to the discretion of the concerned state legislatures. Hence, there is always a political suggestion to the panchayat polls.

Hence, the insinuation that all the ‘fraud’ in the matter of delimitation and reservation of wards was committed by the BDOs, panchayat secretaries and talathis in collusion with the village-level politicians gains more weight. Nevertheless, it is all the more dismaying to note that the government admits the ‘deceptive scheme’ played out on the unwary villagers and is inadvertently endorsing the scam.

A sleepy hamlet that boasts of a higher proportion of migrants than the original settlers, the village of Dicarpale, is predominantly made up of those belonging to the SC/ST and OBCs. However, considering that reservation for weaker castes and tribes have to be provided at all levels in proportion to their population in the panchayats as envisaged in the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, ironically it has been people from these communities who have managed to get themselves elected to the panchayat.

But if there is anything at all to show for this, it is the sorry state of neglect that is evident all around. Illiteracy and unemployment coupled with a sense of haplessness on the face of years of political exploitation has just about ravaged the whole village.

NON-ENTITY

AS things stand today, Dicarpale village is a ‘non-entity’ when thought of in any context and would have receded into oblivion if not for the devastating landslide that shot it to temporary limelight, for the most obvious reason of course-the apathy shown by the village authorities towards illegal encroachments and overlooking all safety measures to be taken while coping with a fragile eco-system brought about by the presence of an army firing range in the close vicinity!

And over and above all, this is its ‘token’ representation in the village panchayat! Maybe the population statistics decide thus, but the logics of such a ‘symbolism’ is beyond one’s comprehension!

No wonder the Davorlim-Dicarpale village panchayat in Salcete formed way back in the 70s is rated as one of the worst performing panchayats in Goa! If a village governing body continues its disastrous performance for decades together without showing any signs of improvement and yet justifies its present existence as a ‘cocktail of wards’ from two different assembly constituencies, it is time the state government woke up to the startling fact that the very concept of people’s participation in the government envisaged at the grass-root level is in serious threat of obliteration.

Maybe there are precedents, but the practice of having village representatives from two different constituencies converging under one roof to thrash out civic issues may not be in the interest of the villagers. Davorlim is a part of Navelim constituency; whereas Dicarpale, post the assembly segments delimitation exercise, is one of the three villages along with Sao Jose de Areal and Sarzora, which have been added to the Velim constituency.

PROXIMITY

THOUGH the villages of and Sarzora have their own independent panchayats, it is interesting to note that the Dicarpale representation in the Davorlim panchayat is just limited to three wards. Now that Davorlim and Dicarpale are represented by two different MLAs in the assembly, wouldn’t it be more prudent to have the "Davorlim bench" constituted in the Sao Jose de Areal Panchayat, considering their close proximity to each other and the fact that both are a part of the Velim constituency?

At least by giving a better platform, the villagers could voice their concerns without hop-stepping and jumping between different constituencies! Or are the villagers content now that they are being tended to by two MLAs?

Moreover, the manner in which the Panchayat authorities went about the delimitation of Panchayat wards in the village in clear violation of the rules in force has invited the ire of the prospective candidates contesting the forthcoming Panchayat elections. What has irked the villagers is the crisscrossing of areas without any geographical propinquity that has resulted in the insensible alignment of various wards.

Garbage menace and the inflow of migrants is a problem common to almost all the villages in Goa and if the government is not to come out with a blue-print to tackle these issues at the earliest, the entire state will continue to be dogged by these unresolved matters. As with other villages and the urban cities in the state, Dicarpale has also learnt to live in peace with these tremendous shortcomings.

One sincerely feels that the village of Dicarpale deserves to be given its due. It is up to the independent legislator from Velim to ensure that rather than view it as secure vote-bank, he brings in the development promised and gives Dicarpale an identity of its own.

Prudent move or political vendetta?

goanobserver — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:30:12 +0000

Is the 108 ambulance service necessary? Is the new Health Minister Laxmikant Parsekar’s statement that he could discontinue the EMRI 108 ambulance services in the state a move of political vendetta against former health minister Vishwajit Rane?

KIM MIRANDA, social activist, Orlim: I think the 108 ambulance is necessary. In fact, they must be stationed at junction points and the drivers given training in the locality and roads as they very often take forever to get to the accident site. The need of the hour is to add more in remote areas so that accident victims and the very sick can be transported immediately, besides which based on the information given at the time of reporting the accident, the medical attendant should be well prepared on reaching the site to give immediate attention. Life in India and Goa has become very cheap. If we are a forward-thinking society, this is one on the basic requirements and a necessity. Instead of doing away with it, the services must be enhanced and number of ambulances increased. It will not be prudent on the part of the minister to do away with the 108 ambulance service unless he has a better alternative, in which case it must be put in place before withdrawing this.

MONICA DIAS, former president Goa Pradesh Mahila Congress Committee (GPMCC): A very efficient service system is required in Goa, whether in the form of 108 or under some other label. Presently, the 108 ambulance service has saved many lives and if such a service is discontinued then the government has a duty to replace it equally or by a more efficient ambulance service system.

COLIN SAVIO COELHO, freelance journalist, Margao: An ambulance service is surely required in Goa. Whether it is EMRI 108 or any other, that is a point that needs to be looked after by the administration. The exorbitant cost that one trip of the ambulance comes with is not really conducive to the exchequer. We have got the service free of cost and never understood its implications. It is a woeful waste of taxpayers’ money. Nevertheless, an efficient ambulance service is required in Goa. If the figures given are correct, then whether it is vendetta or not, the opposition to it is justified. We are given to understand that it costs the exchequer around Rs 3,500 per trip. Well, we get the service ‘free’ or do we? But the figure is too exorbitant. But I must say that EMRI 108 has been known as a very efficient service, more often than not.

DANUSKA D’GAMA, lecturer, Panaji: Most Goans, be it the lower class or higher class, have made use of the 108 ambulance services which saved a number of lives. However, the cost per trip of some Rs 3,250 seems to be unrealistic for which the government should find means to tackle it. Discontinuing EMRI 108 is not an answer or solution to the problem. People from remote areas are able to get some healthcare and treatment on time because of the 108 ambulance services.

JOSE MARIA MIRANDA, social activist, Margao: In my humble view, the proposed discontinuance of 108 ambulance service may not be a case of political vendetta and I sincerely hope it is not. We cannot have good schemes and projects being introduced by one government and undone by the other. If there is a scam in the scheme and this possibility cannot be ruled out, let the new government look into it and punish the guilty or rectify the errors committed. The scheme has certainly saved many lives and was appreciated by the people in general. There may have been a few lapses here and there, but 108 ambulance services have done yeoman service to the people of Goa.

Perhaps, it has been at an exorbitant cost, as is alleged, but then there was hardly any scheme or project initiated by the previous government where the costs were not unduly high or the work not substandard. And let us not believe in the present zero tolerance for corruption either. We already have illegal mining continuing and Mopa, and we don’t know whose interests this government is serving.

The 108 ambulance services should not be discontinued under any circumstances, particularly as we are experiencing more and more road accidents every day. Any attempt to discontinue this service should be opposed tooth and nail. It is much more important than the populist doles the government is trying to dish out.

ROLAND MARTINS, consumer activist, Mapusa: In most cases when a service is offered free by a government to its citizens, there is hardly a discussion about its financial viability. How free indeed is the service? How much is the tax payer shelling out? So, it is not surprising that the issue of political vendetta is being raised when the current health minister is calling for a review of the cost of the EMRI 108 ambulance service and talking of taking a decision to discontinue it. How many voters have, for that matter, discussed what the Rs 11 reduction in the cost of petrol by the withdrawal of VAT is going to actually cost the voter as a tax-payer?
The EMRI 108 ambulance is a good concept, very desirable for every citizen of this country, but can it be provided to the general public at whatever price is quoted by the service provider? Any service offered by the government must follow a tender process, call for quotes must take place and then the best offer (which is beneficial to the government coffers and not the politicians’ pockets) must be accepted.

If the 108 ambulance service must carry on in Goa, the state government must find the money to pay for it. But it must be done after a thorough cost benefit analysis. We cannot allow a scheme or service to carry on just because it is good, where the taxpayer is supposed to bear the cost only for the bread but eventually the cost, includes cream and butter which goes to the service provider and his politician friends.

In fact, the 108 ambulance service is the subject of cases in the Supreme Court wherein health action groups from other states have challenged their respective state governments who are using the funds from the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), a central government scheme which is meant for health services to people in rural areas while the ambulance service is only provided to people in the urban towns and cities of their respective States.

ERWIN FONSECA, journalist, Mapusa: The 108 ambulance service was haphazardly introduced. It is a good concept but not introduced well. In my opinion, all primary health centres (PHCs) should be equipped with the 108 ambulance services. Goa, being a tourist destination, requires such emergency services. But this should also be complimented with upgraded health facilities in the nearby PHCs or government hospitals. The Siolim PHC, until recently, was not equipped with the 108 service. So I think if the present health minister wants to withdraw the service, there is nothing wrong in it, provided there is some good alternative because accidents on Goan roads are a regular feature. Also, there are a lot of complaints that there is still a lack of immediate emergency services or disaster management services in rural areas. So, we are only fooling ourselves when we say that Goa is number one in health services. Rural health and emergency facilities still have a long way to improve.

Don’t follow the ‘pack’!

goanobserver — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:27:55 +0000

Seeing a young person smoking is a common sight today. NIDA SAYED asked Goan youth what they felt about tobacco-chewing and smoking habits.

NIGEL FERNANDES, student of MBA at Wigan and Leigh College: It is not a good thing. The irony is that the packaging state clearly that smoking is injurious to health, But people still buy cigarette packs! It has become a way to get social acceptance. To be cool among friends… although it doesn’t really add to your personality, but diminishes it. I have many friends who smoke or chew tobacco-based products because they like it and then get addicted to it. In the long run, all that these products do is reduce your life span. A simple solution is stop production of such items. Also, parents should be involved in youths’ lives; then they will know when they develop such habits. Another way would be to explain to the youth at a young age like 11-12 years about the devastating effects of tobacco products so, when they grow up, the image and knowledge is fixed in their minds.

MITALI VORA, B Com, CFP certificant: Well, today the youngsters are aware of what exactly is beneficial for them. No doubt, it is injurious and one must try not to fall for such habits and act in a responsible manner, but then if they do fall for it there is nothing much one can do about it. There are many factors that lead to such addictions in youngsters. Peer pressure or fascination of tobacco. Stress, according to me, is a contributing factor. If you are stressed, there are many other ways to relieve it like sports or a walk… just to vent. There is absolutely no need to resort smoking. And as far as peer pressure is concerned, take a stand and decide what is good for you. Don’t be pressurised by friends.

DIVYA CACULO, student, Goa Medical College: Chewing tobacco is a problem amongst the poor; youth prefer smoking. Most of them want to try it out for kicks, but then get addicted. Smoking hampers lung capacity. But it is very much reversible, up to a certain stage. So if youngsters are determined to quit, then they cud come return to good health pretty quickly. One more point I would like to add is that not only males, but an increasing number of females smoke too now. Even though smoking is banned in public places, some hotels/ restaurants still allow people to smoke. They should have a separate area for smokers.

ANTONIO LOPES, marketing executive, Automobile Goa: Tobacco consumption is injurious to health. It is an uncontrolled habit which tends to become an addiction. It is the main cause for deaths at early an age. It starts from peer pressure. I feel it is time to make people aware of the after effects of tobacco on the human body. Youngsters need to be educated on its ill effects through street plays or banners and hoardings and radio awareness, etc. There should also be tobacco addicts’ camps to help them quit smoking. Counseling also helps. Also, tell shop owners not to encourage customers buying tobacco supplies. Show people videos on the effects of smoking on the body, which will scare them and make them think twice before smoking or using tobacco. It leads to lung cancer, mouth cancer, brain clots, reduction in stamina.

ADITI KAMAT, student of Law, VMS college of Law: Chewing and smoking tobacco has been prevailing in Goa for years and it’s not an easy task to eradicate it. The youth must come together to fight this malaise. If this new generation makes the aam janata aware of the consequences of smoking, they could provide a remedy to prevent bad habits. I have many friends who smoke; I often tell them not to. It seems like they just do it for pleasure and because they have been influenced by other friends who smoke. It leads to diseases like oral and blood cancer, lessens your life expectancy and also leads to environmental pollution.

ANISH JOSHI, student of MCA, Goa University: Puffing has become a style statement among the youth. First they try it as an experiment and it later becomes a habit which needs to be controlled. One more reason could be the level of stress they undergo every day. Youngsters just want to run away from their problems and think these habits will help them. They may have family problems or career related problems or personal relationship problems. Instead of facing them, youngsters find it easy to avoid the situation. This phase is very critical and should be handled wisely.

Can the left defend democracy?

goanobserver — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:18:53 +0000

By Ram Puniyani

The Left has to reflect and incorporate the understanding that politics is not just an electoral phenomenon. It encompasses a broader canvass, incorporating all arenas of our lives. Struggling for security of minorities and their economic rights is a good beginning, but it is merely a beginning.

THE RECENTLY concluded CPM Congress (Kozhikode, Kerala, April 2012), apart from other things, passed a resolution saying that the Muslim community’s demand for ending disparities in various spheres of life is fully justified within the secular-democratic frame work of the nation. It also called for measures to call for suitable legislative modifications to overcome the obstacles to implement the Misra Commission recommendation of 10% reservation for Muslim minorities and 5% reservation for other minorities. It is a welcome move on the part of a party which should have been in the forefront to defend the secular fabric and democratic ethos of the country. The need for these demands has come mainly because of the rise in the communalisation of the society and state. This, in turn, is due to the rise of communal forces, who want to bring in Hindu nation and stifle the democratic system.

What is the historic responsibility of the Indian Left on these issues? It has focused mainly on the very necessary issues of workers’ wages, land reforms, equitable distribution of wealth. Significantly, it was a major force behind the UPA-I implementing crucial welfare schemes, before it decided to pull out of the support to UPA-I on the issue of nuclear alliance with the United States of America. Electorally, the Indian Left is not in a very good state and its contribution to the preservation of secular values and defence of minority rights could have been major, had it worked on the understanding that the erosion of secular values and plight of minorities is a sign of weakening democracy due to the rise of communal forces and their impact on society. Democracy is the base on which movements for social change stand and can survive. Today, to dream of an armed revolution like the Russian revolution of 1917 or Chinese revolution through the Long March of Mao Tse Tung or armed takeover like that done by Fidel Castro and Che Guevara not possible in India.

INDIAN REVOLUTION

THE path to the Indian Revolution is through the democratic path; the path to revolution is through social movements transforming daily life; the path to revolution is through empowerment of struggling masses. That precisely is what the democratic space is all about. And that’s precisely where communal forces are targeting, sometimes bit by bit, sometimes by launching massive assaults on minorities through the pogroms of the Gujarat kind, carnages of the Mumbai kind or Kandhamal. Fascism in India is seeping through the very vitals of the democratic channels of society. We are not going to witness a Hitler-type massive and quick blow to democracy. Every little cultural effort to promote blind faith is also a blow to democracy in the deeper sense, and that’s what godmen are promoting. Every attempt to demonise minorities, either on the pretext of communal or terrorist violence, is an attack on the plural ethos needed for survival of democracy. The role of police, media and education is intensifying the impact of communalism. The agenda of multifarious organisations working for promotion of Hindu rashtra is undermining democratic values.

The language of ‘rights’ has been substituted by issues related to religious identity. Popular culture has been undermined and the glitzy world of make-believe, the promotion of blind religiosity and rituals is on display. These, in turn, have impacted electoral arithmetic. The BJP, which was a marginal outfit till it played the Hindu identity card, became powerful through the Ram Temple agitation and later emerged as a major player on the electoral chessboard. Though the BJP may not be looking in the pink of its electoral health, the cultural and social processes which are the base of a fascist state are going up by leaps and bounds. The social space is dominated not by the struggles of Irom Sharmila or Adivasis struggling for their land, but by the Anna Hazares displaying Bharat Mata. Gau Mata (cow) is not far behind and it may be the next vehicle riding on which the communalisation of society may be given a frightening shot.

The symptoms of the fascist set up are very much scattered and rising by the day. The routine struggles of the Left may have to be relooked at and a new form, a creative engagement with social issues, is the need of the hour. The Left, with the agenda of social change for a society with equality, equality at social, political and economic level, is duty bound to reflect in this direction and think of how to struggle against the creeping communalisation of society. This creeping communalisation is a major threat to democracy and, in turn, to the struggles of the marginalised, to the social movements working for social change.

INADEQUATE

IN this light, while the resolution of CPM is most welcome, it is not adequate to take on the problem at hand. An effort needs to be made to dislodge the politics harping on religious identity from the political-social space and to bring back the issues related to bread, butter, shelter, employment, land rights, etc. The path to this begins with working against the propaganda indulged in against minorities in one form or the other. The cultural front needs a rejuvenating by boosting the rational spirit of movements like People’s Science Movement, movement against blind faith, etc. The association with the security issues of minorities is not a marginal peripheral issue. It is the core litmus test of a democracy. The Left taking it up in a serious way will transform the current weak efforts in this direction. The path to equalitarian society is paved through democracy, which in turn needs a different type of campaign for its health.

The arena of struggle has to include cultural-social efforts to bring in a rational spirit while respecting people’s faith and going on to take up proactive steps against the forces who are operating not just at the electoral level. The Left has to reflect and incorporate the understanding that politics is not just an electoral phenomenon. It encompasses a broader canvass, incorporating all arenas of our lives. Struggling for security of minorities and their economic rights is a good beginning, but it is merely a beginning. It has to be taken up with utmost sincerity and its logic has to be extended to involve all arenas of activity.

Steel rolling mills roll on

goanobserver — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:17:19 +0000

By Rajan Narayan

AND A few more stray thoughts and a few more observations for yet another Sunday. For a Sunday following the week when the power guzzling, power stealing, steel rolling mills continued to get special treatment from the BJP government. For a Sunday following the week when it was revealed that one out of every ten Congress members of parliament below 40 had inherited their seat from close relatives. For a Sunday following the week when it was revealed that Goa was one of the very few states in the country which has yet to notify the historical Right to Education Act. For a Sunday following the week when the allegedly corrupt and incompetent former executive director of the Sports Authority of Goa, V M Prabhudessai, managed to return to power through the backdoor. For a Sunday following the week when it was disclosed that though the per capita income of the state of Goa has continued to increase despite the recession, the number of families below the poverty line has increased by 400% over the last decade.

STEEL ROLLING MILLS

AND a few stray thoughts on how the power guzzling, power stealing, steel rolling mills continue to thrive irrespective of which political party or group of parties is in power. It may be recalled that before Manohar Parrikar toppled the Sardinha government to form the first ever BJP government in the state, he had filed a criminal complaint against former power minister Mauvin Godinho for unilaterally extending rebates in power tariff to steel rolling mills in defiance of the decision of the then Pratapsingh Raoji Rane-led government to discontinue the power subsidy to steel rolling mills in the state. It has been historically admitted and recognised that the 100% bhaile-owned steel rolling mills have been a huge liability on the state and have put enormous pressure on the precarious power infrastructure.

POWER GUZZLERS

The steel rolling mills account for more than 60% of the total power requirements of industry as a whole in the state. Steel rolling mills have tended to bend and break the laws. They have secured huge amounts of loans from the Economic Development Corporation (EDC) and extracted huge concessions in power tariffs from successive governments in the state by allegedly giving huge kickbacks to politicians in power. If Goa has become a favourite location for steel rolling mills, it is because of the concessional power tariffs extended to them. In the case of steel rolling mills, power is the critical input. Given the fact that Goa produces very little power and is dependent on the centre for most of its power supply, it is criminally irresponsible to continue to encourage the setting up and functioning of steel rolling mills in the state.

If it was the Congress party, particularly during the tenure of Luizinho Faleiro as industries minister, who encouraged the setting up of a large number of the power guzzling steel rolling mills in the state, they continued to enjoy government patronage from the BJP. The worst part of the operation of the steel rolling mills is that they have been refusing to pay even the concessional power tariffs extended to them. So much so, the highest arrears of power bills in the industrial sector are on account of the steel rolling mills. Despite filing a criminal complaint against Mauvin Godinho for bypassing the cabinet and extending concessional power to steel rolling mills, on the eve of the 2003 elections, the treasurer of the BJP wrote letters to all the steel rolling mills seeking funds for constructing the Panaji headquarters of the BJP.

POWER TARIFF

ONE of the few, though unpopular, revenue generation measures announced by Manohar Parrikar while presenting the budget for the year 2012-2013 was an increase in the power tariff both for domestic consumers and for industry. But the exceptions are steel rolling mills, which continued to get power at a concessional rate during the Digamber Kamat government’s rule. Indeed even the medium and small scale units in the state let alone the large units, have been paying much higher power tariffs than the steel rolling mills which contribute very little to the economy of Goa whether by way of production useful to Goan industry or employment. The overwhelming majority of the workforce in the steel rolling mills are from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

One would have thought that given the fact that it is called the Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), the apex body representing trade and industry in the state would demand concessional power supply or an exception from the increase in power tariff to all manufacturing industries in the state, especially small and medium enterprises. But, keeping in character, the president of the GCCI, Manguirish Pai Raikar, has requested the Finance Minister to not only retain the existing concessional power tariff enjoyed by the steel rolling mills but spare it from the proposed hike in power tariffs announced in the budget.

I understand that the letter sent by Manguirish Pai Raikar was in fact drafted by Pankaj Jain, who is the chief promoter and owner of the Pooja Ferroalloys unit, who is allegedly one of the major defaulters of the electricity department. The move by GCCI to demand status quo on the concessional power tariff enjoyed by steel rolling mills is not only anti-Goan, but also against the interest of the Goan run and managed industrial units in the state. Not only should the steel rolling mills be required to pay the increased tariffs applicable to other manufacturing units in the state, the Industries Minister must attempt to phase out the steel rolling mills which are a luxury that a hugely power deficit state like Goa cannot afford.

DYNASTY POLITICS

AND a few stray observations on the fact that the Congress is obsessed with dynasty politics. It is now universally acknowledged that the reason why the Congress was routed in the Assembly elections held in March was because of the High Command succumbing to blackmail and possibly huge kickbacks in allotting tickets to family members of sitting MLAs in the state. It may be recalled that the electorate rejected all the four Alemaos and the families of Ravi Naik in the assembly elections. But it is not surprising that the Congress High Command, despite clear cut indications that the voters in Goa were disgusted with dynastic politics, allotted so many tickets to kith and kin of senior Congress leaders in the state.

A political analyst, Patrick French, has revealed in the issue of The Week dated May 13, 2012 that dynastic politics has become a part of the genes of the Congress party. On analysing the results of the 2009 parliamentary elections, Patrick French found that two-thirds of the 545 members of Parliament, under 40 years of age, had been given tickets because of their close relationship with senior leaders and sitting members of parliament of various parties. The political analyst found that except for the CPM, every party succumbed to the pressure from its senior leaders to give their sons, daughters, wives, daughters-in-law, sons-in-law, brothers, cousins and grandsons tickets to contest the parliamentary elections. Patrick French found that the Congress was the worst offender with 9 out of 10 of Congress Members of Parliament in the present Lok Sabha being part of the mummy-daddy syndrome and that they were given tickets and probably inherited the constituencies because a close relative had held the seat before them.

The Association for Democratic Rights based in Delhi, which has been analysing the assets and the criminal records of Members of Parliament and the candidates contesting Parliament and Assembly elections, has also established that politics is a very profitable family business in the country. The organisation found that mummy-daddy members of Parliament were five times richer than MPs who did not have any family background in politics. The finding should not be surprising considering that at the highest level of the Congress party dynastic succession has been the rule with power passing from the first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru to his daughter Indira Gandhi who in turn passed on the mantle of prime minister to her son Rajiv Gandhi. Sonia Gandhi may have dramatically turned down the office of prime minister after the 2009 elections, but there are no doubts about who does the back seat driving in the UPA government ostensibly run by Dr Manmohan Singh.

BJP DYNASTIES

IN Goa, and indeed in many other states in the country the BJP, is also becoming afflicted with if not dynastic politics but politics centred around party bosses. In Gujarat, it is Narendra Modi who calls the shots. It may be recalled that he openly defied the BJP High Command and refused to campaign for the saffron brigade in the assembly elections held in Uttar Pradesh recently. In Rajasthan, Vasundhara Raje Scindia, who still thinks that India is ruled by kings and queens, demanded-in the best or worst traditions of royalty-that only she should be projected as the chief minister in the forthcoming elections to the Rajasthan assembly. When a ‘commoner’ announced that he was going to conduct a statewide yatra to project himself as the chief ministerial candidate, her highness, Vasundhara Raje threw a royal tantrum and threatened to leave the BJP along with over 50 MLAs. In Goa itself Manohar Parrikar perpetuated family raj by initially permitting the MGP, his alliance partner, to grant tickets to both the Dhavlikar brothers and subsequently allowing himself to be blackmailed into inducting both of them into the cabinet.

AND a few stray thoughts on the Manohar Parrikar-led Bharatiya Janata Party government being among the very few states in the county which is yet to implement the Right to Education Act passed by parliament. Under the Right to Education Act, the state governments are obliged to ensure the compulsory enrolment of all children at least at the primary level. The Right to Education Act also stipulates that states should ensure free education to all children and insists that aided schools and even unaided education institutions should reserve 25% of their seats for children from economically backward groups. The state is required to reimburse the schools for the free education provided to children of the poor.

GRANTS LAPSE

Under the Right to Education Act passed by parliament, huge grants were made available to states to implement the Act and to improve the quality of education. Under the Right to Education Act, economically deprived children were entitled to not just one set of school uniforms, but two sets and free supply of books. Several other facilities were also to be extended to the schools to strengthen the infrastructure for primary education, including grants for provision of basic facilities like drinking water, toilets, etc. By failing to notify the Right to Education Act, the Goa government has deprived children of the facilities that are funded by the central government under the Act.

The Right to Education Act, unlike the rules in force in the state of Goa, extends to parents and children the freedom of choice when it comes to the medium of instruction. This runs contrary to the Goa government’s stand that grants will be extended only to primary schools imparting education in the vernacular languages. It is possible that Manohar Parrikar, who has kept the education portfolio for himself, has deliberately postponed the adoption of the Right to Education Act by the state due to the controversy over the medium of instruction at the primary level. By announcing that the Diocesan schools, which in defiance of the stay order, used grants given for running Konkani medium primary schools for switching to English medium primary schools would continue to get grants, the Chief Minister has been sending conflicting signals. Another point of conflict between the centre and the state of Goa with respect to the Right to Education Act is the reclassification of the primary section. Under the Right to Education Act, standards 1 to 5 are considered as the primary section whereas the practice in Goa and most of the states has been to consider only standards 1 to 4 as the primary section.

The Chief Minister announced that while Goa will accept the reclassification of standard 5 as coming under the primary section with respect to the Right to Education Act, this will however not apply to the question of grants. This is because, at present, grants are extended only to schools imparting education in the vernacular medium up to the fourth standard while from the fifth standard onwards all schools, including those imparting education in English, are given grants by the state government. The Chief Minister has also strong reservations over the provision in the Right to Education Act which stipulates that no students should be failed up to the eight standard and that special classes should be conducted for students who fail to make the grade even as they are promoted to the next class. It has been the tradition of many aided schools to fail large number of students at the eighth or ninth standard to ensure that only students who can get a first class are promoted to the tenth standard in order to create the impression that they have very bright students. Even while implementing the Right to Education Act and addressing the medium of instruction controversy, the Education Minister should crack down on the scourge of huge donations demanded almost by every prominent education institution in the state for admission to the first standard and to the fifth standard as a large number of students are forced to shift school at the fifth standard.

V M PRABHUDESSAI

AND a few stray thoughts on the backdoor entry into power by V M Prabhudessai, who was sacked from the post of executive director of the Sports Authority of Goa. It may be recalled that following the discovery of the shocking state of unpreparedness for the Portuguese Commonwealth Games and the National Games allotted to Goa in 2015, Prabhudessai was replaced by Elvis Gomes. Though Prabhudessai was rejected by the Goa Public Service Commission for the post of Director of Sports, which he was holding because of the political patronage of successive sports ministers, he got himself appointed executive director of the Sports Authority of Goa when the Goa Public Service Commission (GPSC) appointed Susanna D’Souza as the Director of Sports. In the wake of the differences that have crept up between Susanna D’Souza and the new Sports Minister, Prabhudessai has managed to get himself appointed as officer on special duty to the Sports Minister. Dramatising that political chamchagiri always scores over competence in the state of Goa.

And the last stray thought on the steep increase in the number of families allegedly living below the poverty line in the state which boasts of the highest per capita income in the country. A survey by a national body has revealed that there has been a dramatic increase of more than 400% of families living under the poverty line in the last decade. According to the 2001 census, there were only 6300 families below the poverty line in Goa. This rose to around 24,000 in the run up to the Assembly elections. Confirming the suspicion that enrollment under BPL is linked to creating vote banks, there was an increase of 2500 BPL families between October 1, 2011 and May 7, 2012. Surprisingly the, biggest increase in the number of BPL families has been not in Tiswadi or Valpoi but in Salcette. Presumably Churchill Alemao has been more helpful in conferring BPL status on migrant workers than Babush Monserrate. Incidentally, Babush Monserrate who used to have a darbar every Tuesday and hand out doles to the aged has shut down shop. Apparently he is angry that those who had benefited from his charity had not extended adequate support to his wife Jennifer Monserrate in the Assembly elections. It may be recalled that Jennifer won by a very narrow margin.

BJP failing to practice what it preaches

goanobserver — Sat, 12 May 2012 06:06:25 +0000

GO Correspondent

Three members of the Asnodkar family while local BJP Morcha chief Vijay Chodankar and wife Namrata are contesting panahayat elections in the Porvorim constituency.

APARTY with a difference.’ The BJP had conducted a fierce campaign during the recent Assembly elections against ‘family raj’ but, after it has come to power, this has been forgotten with the former BJP state president and present North Goa MP Shripad Naik’s son Siddesh seeking to make his debut from the Old Goa panchayat in the Cumbharjua constituency.

Interestingly, Cumbharjua, that is presently represented by Congress MLA Pandurang Madkaikar, has his wife, Janita as the Old Goa sarpanch and brother Dhaku Madkaikar as the Zilla Panchayat member. While both brothers contested the assembly elections, the former Scheduled Tribes Corporation chairman Dhaku failed to convince the Priol electorate to elect him on the Congress symbol.

In the neighbouring Porvorim constituency comprising of three panchayats-Socorro, Salvador-do-Mundo and Penha de France-BJP office bearers are contesting the forthcoming panchayat polls scheduled on Wednesday, May 16, 2012. While the local BJP Morcha chief Vijay Chodankar and his wife Namrata are contesting from wards I and II of the 15-member Salvador-do Mundo village panchayat, there is a more interesting contest in the Soccoro panchayat where three members of the Asnodkar family are contesting on the BJP panel while their relative is making his entry from the opposing panel backed by Porvorim independent MLA Rohan Khaunte.

ASNODKARS

BOTH former sarpanchas Mahanand and his wife, Sonia are seeking to be re-elected from wards 3 and 7 while the BJP state executive committee member Mahanand’s brother, Kishore is contesting from ward 9 of the 11-member Socorro village panchayat. (Kishore’s wife, Kirti, is not seeking re-election.) It was reliably learnt that another Asnodkar is also in the fray, Rupesh Asnodkar from ward 5. It may be noted that their relative Ulhas Asnodkar was elected as the Aldona MLA in 1999.

Speaking to Goan Observer, Mahanand informed that he was contesting his fifth panchayat election. Stating that he had made his debut way back in 1991, the former sarpanch disclosed that though he had opted out of the fray during the last panchayat polls held in 2007, he had won a total of four times and been elected as sarpanch thrice.

Re-contesting from the Arrarim ward, Mahanand boasted of the progress that he had achieved such as solving the water problem, repairing the pathways and constructing internal roads in the village. Adding that he had also built five children’s parks in the open spaces in the entire village that were being coveted by builders through their links with politicians. Mahanand also informed of the measures he took towards further development of the village like a library, football ground and construction of a compound wall around the 7,800 sq metres Hindu crematorium.

Sonia, who is the state BJP Mahila Morcha secretary, made her entry into grassroots level politics in 2002. She is re-contesting against five candidates from the women-reserved ward 7 of the Socorro village panchayat. She was the Socorro sarpanch for a brief one-and-a-half year term (2004-05) during the tenure of the then BJP state government headed by Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and claims to have quit when the Parrikar government was toppled.

Remarking that he intends to strengthen the present weak position of the BJP in the constituency, Mahanand was confident of the success of the BJP-backed panel. And strongly defended the strong criticism of his rivals of BJP promoting family raj at the panchayat level by exclaiming that their trio had been elected previously in 2001 with maximum support from the electorate in the then nine-member village panchayat.
The former Socorro sarpanch quipped, "It is the personalities and the work that they undertake that matter at the panchayat level. Besides, the Ranes and the Monserrate couple have also been elected as MLAs so where is the question of promoting family raj?"