the goan I network
MARGAO
Senior officials, including the traffic police, have found themselves caught in a crossfire over the Margao Carnival float parade 2020.
While the Goa Forward ruled-Margao Municipal Council has insisted with the traffic police and district authorities not to deviate from the Ravindra bhavan route, the government appears hell bent in bringing the parade back to the old Margao Municipal Square route this time around.
Sandwiched between the two sides are officials from the traffic police and district authorities over granting permission for the float parade.
Margao municipal chairperson Pooja Naik dashed off a letter to the Margao traffic cell that the MMC carnival float parade will be held as usual along the Fatorda route.
The decision comes following claim made by Margao Carnival float parade chairman Arthur D’Silva that the government has taken the decision to hold the carnival parade along the original Holy Spirit-MMC square route.
Margao Traffic Cell, PI Suraj Samant on Tuesday called on Naik to find out the civic body’s decision on the float parade, with the chairperson insisting that the parade will take place on Fatorda.
The traffic police as well the district authorities, including the district Collector, find themselves in a piquant situation as they had in the past strongly backed the MMC to shift the parade route from the old Holy Spirit-MMC square to the new Ravindra bhavan, road Fatorda.
In fact, senior officials are keeping their fingers crossed over the emerging controversy, with traffic and other Civic officials pinning their hopes on district Collector, South Ajit Roy to save the day for the bureaucrats. Roy is believed to have made it clear to the MMC at a meeting held recently that the Ravindra bhavan route should not be disturbed, especially from the traffic point of view.
Police officials however say in private, that all would depend on the district Collector convincing the government, including the Tourism department to see reason and not shift the parade back to the old route.
“Both the police and the district authorities will have to face a big embarrassment in the event the government has its way, more so when the police and the Collectorate had in the past listed out a host of reasons why all parades ought to be shifted to the Ravindra bhavan route,” an official added. Authorities fear shifting Carnival parade will bring all other processions back to town
MARGAO: Traffic officials and officials in the South district Collectorate pointed out that any decision to shift the carnival parade back to the old Holy Spirit-MMC Square will bring back all parades and processions, including religious and cultural, back to the heart of the commercial capital.
After the Carnival parade was shifted to the Ravindra bhavan route three years ago, all other parades, including the Shigmo Parade, the Muslim Julus procession and the Shiv Jayanti processions were all barred from being held around the MMC square.
In fact, the police as well as the district authorities had last year stood their ground and refused to grant permission to the Julus procession and the Shiv Jayanti procession from entering the heart of the town, around the Margao Municipal garden from the traffic point of view.
Both traffic and district officials fear that any concession granted to the ensuing Carnival parade will only pave the way for the return of the Shigmo parade, besides the Julus and Shiv Jayanti procession back in the town.
