It’s Diwali once again! Narkasur has just been vanquished and the State is set to usher in the festival of lights. But, is there light at the end of the tunnel for the still bewildered fish-loving Goan?
Fish restrictions have put the out-of-business wholesale traders on a warpath against a sluggish government. The new-found resolve of health minister Vishwajit Rane and TCP Minister Vijai Sardesai is intriguing since it took them a good four months to wake up from their slumber. Will they stand up to the pressure, is the million dollar question.
The wholesale fish traders’ meeting in Panaji is just
another move to pile on the pressure with their multi-crore business coming to a screeching halt. If there is no
enabling law to directly ban fish imports, government’s twin requirements has done the trick. Mandatory use of insulated vehicles to transport fish and possession of a trade licenses are two clauses that have effectively managed to halt import of fish. It remains to be seen how the government stands up to the mounting pressure of the fish lobbies.
The wholesalers can’t dictate terms. It is the government and respective departments that will decide. Fish forms part of our staple diet and there are lakhs of people who are consuming it on a daily basis. It’s the duty of our government to ensure that Goans are supplied with clean fish and this should supersede everything else. There can’t be any temporary solutions to accommodate the fish lobby. The state-of-the-art fish testing facility which the government has promised to set up will take time. Against this background, it is but obvious that fish imports will not happen soon.
While the authorities prepare ground to put in place proper mechanism for fish import, the restrictions will also give a window for Vijai Sardesai to regain lost ground after the infamous formalin-in-fish July flip-flop. Politically speaking, this makes a huge difference for the Fatorda MLA who was initially believed to be siding with the wholesale fish lobby led by M Ibrahim. By calling for a ban on imports, Vijai has sought to distance himself from the wholesalers and straighten up the equation which threatened to turn his political fortunes topsy-turvy.
The flip side is that Goans, who were till now feasting on kingfish and other big catch of the day, will have to be content with local supply of mackerels, sardines and shrimps, till imports resume. Against this there is an urgent need of a fool-proof system to ensure that clean and fresh fish is made available to Goans. For now, this will be a big test of the government’s resolve. “May we join hands …and make collective and concerted efforts to secure a joyful present and a hopeful future” “ excerpts from Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao’s Diwali message assumes significance even in this context.
