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 even the Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry came out against the Dona Paula-Vasco sea link project that is Digamber Kamat’s latest obsession. For a Sunday following the week when the Taleigao MLA and Minister for Education, Babush Monserrate cut the Corporation of the City of Panaji’s (CCP) nose to spite Chief Minister Digamber Kamat. For a Sunday following the week when the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) engaged in a show of strength in Goa. For a Sunday following the week when the Chief Conservator of Forests, Shashi Kumar, and the police sought to victimise the whistle blower Rajendra Kerkar, who exposed the tiger killing in the Yuvraj’s constituency.

DIGGU OBSESSION

AND a few stray thoughts on Digamber Kamat’s biggest obsession and folly, the sea link between Dona Paula and Vasco. Ever since the Bandra-Worli sea link was inaugurated in Mumbai, Digamber Kamat has been obsessed with building a similar sea link in Goa. Not only has Digamber Kamat been lobbying with Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, he has even deputed his man Friday, Sanjit Rodrigues, to proceed to Mumbai to study the project to replicate it in Goa. The Chief Minister’s obsession with the sea link project between Dona Paula and Vasco exposes his hypocrisy vis-à-vis his professed commitment to the aam aadmi. It is significant to note that while Digamber Kamat insisted that the state could not facilitate or generate funds for a sewage project costing Rs.10,000 crore, which would have benefited the aam aadmi and greatly reduced the incidence of epidemic diseases, he is not worried about any resource constraint with respect to the Dona Paula-Vasco sea link project.

Apparently, he has not even considered whether any private party will be willing to invest in a project of this magnitude and whether it will be financially viable. Comparing the sea link in Mumbai to the Dona Paula Vasco sea link is absurd because there is nowhere the volume of traffic in Goa that exists in Mumbai. But even with the huge volume of traffic in Mumbai, the sea link project has not proved very attractive. Nor has it really fulfilled the purpose of speeding up movement of traffic and reducing traffic congestion. This should have been obvious to the Chief Minister as it was obvious to me when I made repeated trips across the Bandra-Worli sea link in Mumbai.

KHAAS AADMI

AT the outset, it was clear to me that the Bandra-Worli sea link in Mumbai only benefited the khaas aadmi and not the aam aadmi. This is because a single return trip in a car on the sea link costs as much as Rs. 75. Which would be more than even the taxi fare for the length of the sea link. Public transport buses are not using the sea link because the private contractor who manages the sea link has been insisting that even state run buses should pay the charges for using the sea link. The sea link has also not achieved the purpose of easing traffic congestion or speeding up the movement of traffic between western suburbs like Santa Cruz, Vile Parle and Andheri, not to mention the more distant suburbs. Because while the drive across the 15 kilometre stretch of the sea link itself takes only ten minutes, vehicles inevitably get stuck in the huge traffic jam at Linking Road on the one hand and the Worli belt on the other.

TRAFFIC CONGESTION

THERE can be no two questions that a sea link between Dona Paula jetty and Vasco would, in theory, reduce the time to reach the Dabolim Airport. Provided the problem of extreme congestion at Dona Paula is solved. Because Dona Paula has become an extremely popular tourism attraction and, during the season, the traffic is so heavy that forget tourist buses even other vehicles are not permitted beyond the NIO Circle. During peak tourism season, even the Raj Bhavan road and the road leading to the University get choked because all the tourist buses are parked on the sides of these roads. At the other end of the proposed sea link between Dona Paula and Vasco, there is an equal amount of chaos. One wonders whether the Swatantra path, the main artery of Vasco, will be able to handle the increased traffic.

A far more economic and aam aadmi friendly alternative would be to revive the ferry service between Dona Paula and Vasco, which was very popular with all those who stayed in Panaji and other parts of North Goa and travelled to work to Vasco. In fact I recall that during the Konkani agitation, when the main highway was blocked, several ferries were organised to transport stranded air passengers to the Dabolim airport. I do not understand why this cannot be done on a regular basis. No wonder even the Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry has shot down the idea of a Dona Paula sea link as impractically unviable and unnecessary.

BAINGUINIM DUMP

AND a few stray observations on Babush Monserrate cutting the nose of the CCP and the much harassed residents of Panaji and North Goa to spite Chief Minister Digamber Kamat. The expert committee appointed by the Chief Minister with the Urban Development Minister, Joaquim Alemao, as chairman cleared the Bainguinim site for a waste dump and a treatment plant. It was conclusively established that the dump would not pose any threat to the historical archeological monuments in Old Goa. The site was far enough from the water supply line not to affect it. There were no dwellings close to the site which would have been affected by the garbage dump unlike the one in Curca.

Enough safeguards have been taken to prevent the treatment plant and the garbage dump raising a stink. The Bainguinim dump would have taken care of the needs not only of Panaji, but Santa Cruz, Ribander, Merces and Old Goa itself, which does not have a proper garbage dump. The Goa Bench of the Bombay High Court dismissed all the objections raised in a batch of writ petitions against the location of the garbage dump at Bainguinim. The land had already been acquired and had been handed over to the Corporation of the City of Panaji. So there were no obstacles to the setting up of the garbage dump at Bainguinim.

Even the Taleigao and Panaji MLAs, Babush Monserrate and Manohar Parrikar, were in favour of Bainguinim as a location for the garbage dump and treatment plant. But everything changed overnight when the Congress High Command overruled the decision of the president of the Goa Pradesh Congress, Subhash Shriodkar, and made it clear that there was no question of admitting or rather readmitting Babush Monserrate into the Congress. The decision came closely in the wake of a statement both by Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi that those with a criminal record should not be permitted to join the Congress. Coincidently just when it appeared that Babush had successfully bought his way into the Congress, the CBI filed a diluted chargesheet against him for the attack on the Panaji police station.

It was certainly not a coincidence that soon after statements by Rahul Gandhi that criminals would not be readmitted or admitted into the Congress that Babush Monserrate announced that the CCP would drop the idea of using Bainguinim for the garbage dump and the treatment plant. Significantly, the statement came not from the Mayor of the CCP, Carolina Po, but Babush Monserrate who effectively controls the CCP. It was all fine for Babush to respect the sentiments of his friend Pandurang Madkaikar and the Church authorities and drop Bainguinim. Fully knowing that the CCP had not been able to succeed in finding an alternate site for the garbage dump.

BUILDING LOBBY

THERE is no doubt in our mind that it was not the sentiments of the residents of Old Goa or the neighbouring constituency Santa Cruz that led to Babush bullying the CCP to give up the Bainguinim dump. For a long time we have known that the building lobby has been obstructing the choice of Bainguinim for the treatment plant. It is obvious that it was to oblige the building lobby and his friend Pandurang Madkaikar, who has several projects in the area, that Babush grandly announced that despite the high court judgement the CCP would not build a waste treatment plant at Bainguinim. Babush of course is not willing to offer any of the vast real estate he has accumulated for a garbage dump. If the capital city of Panaji continues to stink, it will be thanks to the Monster Rat. And since the process of locating another site will probably take another two decades, there is no escape from the stink for the residents of Panaji and neighbouring areas.

FOMENTO PROJECT

TALKING of garbage dumps, it would appear that Digamber Kamat is not likely to get his way on the contract between Fomento and the Margao Municipal Council (MMC) to take over the Sonsodo garbage dump. Eyebrows were raised when the Margao Municipal Council was bullied by the Chief Minister to accept the Fomento offer, even though it was Rs.3 crore above the offer made by the other company which bid for the management of Sonsodo. Fomento has refused to reduce the cost to the level of the price quoted by Ramkey and has only agreed to a token reduction of Rs.10 lakh. But apparently it is not the price, but the various hidden clauses in the contract that is worrying the councillors in Margao. The Fomento offer makes it clear that if the volume of garbage exceeds the contracted amount, an extra payment will have to be made by the MMC. Similarly, there are several other sub clauses which could push up the cost to well beyond Rs.10 crore.

Despite pressure from Digamber Kamat, the MMC has yet to sign the contract. Besides genuine disputes over various clauses in the bill, it would appear that the Urban Development Minister Joaquim Alemao, who has his own coterie within the MMC, is determined to sabotage the decision of the Council accept the Fomento offer. Because apparently no kickback to Joaquim Alemao has been provided for in the agreement between Fomento and the MMC.

And talking of garbage, the most irresponsible of the grassroots level bodies are the panchayats, particularly the coastal panchayats, which are the richest of them all. Despite raking in huge sums of money, coastal panchayats have been rapped on the knuckles by the Goa Bench of the Bombay High Court for failing to set up infrastructure for collection and treatment of the huge amounts of garbage that tourists and tourism-related business generate. The High Court has directed that coastal panchayats will not issue any fresh occupancy certificates till they set up waste treatment plants. Indeed it would be an excellent idea if the High Court issues similar instructions to the Corporation of the City of Panaji and the Margao Municipal Council. It is only when the builder’s interests are affected will the dishonourable representatives of the people act.

CHADDI POWER

AND a few stray thoughts on the show of strength by the RSS in the state. It may be recalled that RSS chief Mohanrao Bhagwat was in Goa last week and not only participated in a march through the city, but also addressed a well attended rally at the Panaji Gymkhana grounds. Never mind that several freedom fighters thought that it was an act of sacrilege for the RSS to start the procession at the Azad Maidan. As far as we can recall, this is only the second major rally held by the RSS in Goa. It will be recalled that the first such rally was held during the tenure of Manohar Parrikar as chief minister with Parrikar along with other local senior party leaders sporting the RSS uniform of khaki shorts and white shirt.

It is perhaps not a coincidence that the visit of the RSS chief came closely in the wake of the visit of Rahul Gandhi. It may be recalled that Rahul Gandhi had a controversial interaction with the student community or rather members of the Congress affiliated National Students’ Union of India in the Goa University premises. Presumably like Rahul Gandhi, the RSS Chief also believes that one should catch them young and the RSS should strengthen its cadre base in Goa. There was a huge increase in the number of RSS shakhas in the state during the tenure of Manohar Parrikar as chief minister. The RSS has been concentrating on backward talukas like Pernem, Bicholim Canacona and Quepem where there is an ideological vacuum, which the RSS believes it can fill.

The RSS is attempting to fill the gap not only left by the disintegration of the Mahrashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) whose president Pandurang Raut quit and joined the NCP recently but also the space left by the Congress. The ground reality is that the frontal organisations of the Congress like the Youth Congress and the Mahila Congress have been in a shambles, partly because of the culture of nominations instead of transparent elections.

And though the RSS itself has not been very visible or vocal since the BJP lost power, its frontal organizations like the Sanatan Sanstha and the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti have been working overtime to spread the communal poison. What the liberals do not seem to understand is that with the disintegration of the left and even the socialistic movement, it has become much easier for the RSS to woo young people in backward rural areas. Whether the RSS will be as successful as Rahul Gandhi in building up a mass base is debatable. This is primarily because Goa has a tradition of communal harmony and even in terms of electoral politics it does not make sense to antagonise the minority communities, which now account for almost 40 percent of the vote.

WHISTLE BLOWER

AND a few stray thoughts on the whistle blower being victimised by the Chief Conservator of Forests, Shashi Kumar, and the police. Well known environmental activist Rajendra Kerkar first exposed the fact that a tiger had been killed in Goa. The Forest Department went into denial and claimed that there were no tigers in Goa. This despite the photograph of the dead tiger, which was published in the vernacular papers and the Goan Observer. In an effort to hush up the matter, the Forest Department apparently sent the bones of some other animal to reinforce its claim that Goa was not a tiger habitat and that there was no questions of tigers being killed in Goa. Unfortunately for the Chief Conservator of Forests, who has a dubious reputation and has been trying to denotify the Mhadei and Netravali sanctuaries for the benefit of the mine owners, the Forensic Department has concluded that the bones sent a second time definitely belong to a tiger.

The Forest Department now finds itself exposed and is trying to victimise the whistle blower. Apparently, the Forest Department has put pressure on Rajendra Kerkar to reveal the source from which he got the photograph. They are even threatening to file a case against him of abetting the killing of the tiger. Which is ridiculous and all those who are concerned about the vanishing of the big cat should rally around Rajendra Kerkar. Indeed, animal lovers including Padmashree Norma Alvares should demand the sacking of the Chief Conservator of Forests, Shashi Kumar, for trying to hush up the tiger killing. He should be replaced by Richard D’Souza, who has been repeatedly victimised and who, in any case, is senior to Shashi Kumar.

And a last stray thought for yet another Sunday. The better three quarters Tara Narayan has been insisting for some time that the beautification that has been undertaken along the Dona Paula bypass road is actually a huge land grab by Babush Monserrate. We are glad that this has been confirmed by the former Town Planner, Deshpande. It takes a town planner to catch other town planners who have abetted the nefarious land grabs of Babush Monserrate.