Betim: A riverbank of despair

Betim,Verem and Reis Magos may have a quaint aura surrounding them. However, theirissues are anything but quaint. Illegal construction and the influx of migrantshave the locals of the village struggling to deal with the basic necessities oftheir daily lives.

Addedto all of this is the perpetual bone of contention between the trawlers and thecasinos on the Mandovi River. When askedabout the offshore casinos and how their presence affects the smooth operationof the trawlers he Francisco Fernandes, Director of the Mandovi Fishermen Marketing Co-op.Society in Betim states, “At themoment the casinos operating in the river are the lions, while we are the deer.There is no point attacking them. In fact we had a meeting with the previousfisheries minister Joaquim Alemao of the Congress Government when they were inpower, at the assembly hall along with all the casino operators. The ministersaid that there will be no more casinos operating in the river. A month lateranother casino turned up.”

Healso adds in a disgruntled manner, “We have not been satisfied with thefacilities provided to us by the government. Our request for a full-fledgedjetty has not been met for the past 10 years. There are 800 trawlers crammed ina jetty that is barely 200 metres long”. The society is hoping toprocure the Ribandar highway stretch as an extension for the jetty toaccommodate the trawlers. The casinos operating on the already cramped andnarrow river do not help matters much, especially at night, as their runninglights pose a safety hazard to the boats that don’t have them.

Anotherconcern is the lack of public toilets from Betim right up to Verem. Whileletters have been written to the Panchayat for the last eight years, nothinghas been done to remedy the situation. This has resulted in the men relievingthemselves in the streets while the women having to suffer. Several of thevillagers also state that apart from approximately 85 % of the houses rented byimmigrants, have no toilets. The tenants resort to using the seashore. Oneother much needed amenity that this area lacks is hospital and ambulancefacilities, with the nearest Healthcare Centre situated in Candolim.

FrDomnic D’Costa, Parish priest of Reis Magos church says, “Illegal constructionis changing the face of the land. This rampant construction has led to sewageand water problems in the area.

Othervillagers also lament in a similar vein. Pradip Salkar, an ardent participatorin local issues says, “Traffic jams near the Panchayat of Reis Magos are aregular occurrence. There are no speed breakers on the entire stretch, eventhough there is a higher secondary school and a college nor is there a busstop.” This issue has led the area becoming accident prone.

Speakingto the locals, one might need to ponder the consequences of rampant illegalconstruction, water shortages and shortage of electricity. Under the cleverfaçade of development, these villages are actually taking one step forward, andten steps back, in the struggle to retain their identity.