The decision of the High Court of Bombay at Goa not to grant a stay on the Defence Expo, slated to begin on March 28, means the last effort of Orixtt Porjecho Avaz has come to naught. The organisation has been agitating against the exhibition, which is already benefitting hoteliers and small businessmen. The GCCI and CII came out in support of the exhibition, and the decision of the Union Defence Ministry and the State government to forge ahead could prove beneficial to Goa. With all decks cleared for the event, the petition is now of academic importance. The opposition to the Defence Expo was based on uncertainty that surrounded the event. Initially, there was a lack of clarity and the thought of
having a 10,000-foot runway for the aero show was unnerving.
However, by January the picture became clearer and the
agitation ought to have been withdrawn or at least suspended.
The size and scope of the exhibition is huge and it would
be impossible for only neighbouring villages to reap benefits
because the expertise required is not available locally. While
Quitol-Naqueri is the staging area, the benefits will percolate
to the entire State, but to prove that this happened, a cost-benefit
analysis will have to be undertaken after the event.
