Anything related to land in Goa becomes news and attracts eyeballs. More so in these last few weeks that the investigations into the so-called ‘land-grab’ scam by the government set up Special Investigation Team (SIT).
Therefore, an unusual notice in the official gazette declaring a whopping 1.5-lakh square meter parcel of land in the much sought after tourism haven of Anjuna as “vacant for temporary use” by the Administrator of Communidades, Bardez zone, we thought was news.
And we reported on it and the fact that the Administrator has called for applications to put the ‘vacant’ land to temporary use.
What followed was an eye opener to us and an indicator of the swiftness with which people across India are lying in wait to pounce on an opportunity to do business with land in Goa.
The very day that The Goan published the story of the ‘vacant’ Anjuna land, our editor gets a call from an eloquently speaking agent of a Delhi-based company we weren’t surprised
The lady on the other end of the call wanted our editor to give her more details about the ‘vacant’ Anjuna land which appeared in an “advertisement” on our paper. It took our editor quite some talking to explain it wasn’t an advertisement reportage and we had nothing more than what was published to give her.
Can’t blame her though, given the pace at which the lines between news and propaganda are blurring in mainstream media, especially in Delhi.
“Bebdo” in Konkani we all know means a drunkard. The Wikepedia page describes it as a Goan Konkani song, composed by Chris Perry and sung by Lorna, part of the ‘Lorna - Unforgettable Hits’ album. It is about a drunkard who troubles his wife, it says.
This tid-bit on the ‘Bebdo’ is not about the song or our Nightingale Lorna. It’s about the ‘bebdo’ comically sparred over by two of our veteran cabinet ministers -- Ravi Naik and Mauvin Godinho.
It all started on day one of the Road Safety Week celebrations. Transport Minister Mauvin Godinho came up with this outlandish claim that bar owners will be responsible to ensure their drunk (bebde) clients are dropped home. Short of saying Mauvin was perhaps a peg or two down in exact words, Agriculture Minister Ravi Naik, whose exploits as a much loved proprietor of Ravi Bar in the 1970’s and 1980’s is folklore in Ponda, comically reacted to his colleague’s ‘bayan’. “Goans drink but they do not get drunk. They may swing but they do not fall down,” Naik blurted to waiting cameras outside the BJP headquarters earlier this week.
“Only tourists who drink get drunk. They will drink worth of about Rs 150 and a taxi to drop them home will cost Rs 1,000,” Ravi went on in his inimitable style, concluding with a kicker: “The minister must be having some calculation. Go ask him.”
If reactions on social media is anything to go by, this round went to Ponda and Dabolim, it seems isn’t having very good days.
Looks like there are no takers for Power Minister Sudhin bab’s appeal to politicians not to encourage narkasur contests or to avoid giving donations for making narkasur. Not only were youth busy carving narkasur effigies at every nook and corner of the State, politicians have also joined in the celebration and to organise narkasur contests.For the first time, Mapusa MLA Joshua D’Souza is going to be part of a narkasur competition being held in the town this year.
An online campaign announces that the Sateri Boys Sports and Cultural Association, Khorlim, Mapusa in association with Deputy Speaker and Mapusa MLA Joshua D’Souza will be organising “Traditional Standing Narkasur Competition” which is restricted to the residents of Mapusa Municipal Council area.
Politicians have the unique gift of understanding the pulse of the people and such contests indeed draw large number of youth who take part in “celebrations”. Who cares if it’s the evil or the devil that they glorify in the process? Sudhin bab is just being a spoilsport!
The migration in hoards of Goans to the United Kingdom witnessed over the last decade and more is seemingly rubbing off on that country’s politics. It was hardly six weeks ago that Goa and the diaspora rejoiced over the appointment of Goan-origin Tory politician Suella Baverman as Home Secretary by the British Prime Minister, Liz Truss.
On Wednesday she was gone, quitting the cabinet in a huff amidst the economic turmoil in that country. Less than a day later Truss herself was gone, quitting office in exactly 45 days with her authority in the Conservative Party obliterated over her policy interventions which sent the economy in a tizzy.
That’s not all. In this UK political chaos, there are three more politicians who have had shorter tenures than Braverman and Truss. Kwasi Kwarteng, who took over at 11 Downing Street as Chancellor lasted only 38 days and had to quit after his mini-budget sent the economy into turbulence. His successor Jeremy Hunt had an even shorter tenure of just one week, ending as it did with Truss’s resignation as prime minister.
But who took the cake was Grant Shapps, the man who succeeded Braverman as Home Secretary. The guy lasted less than 24 hours. Puts to shame the 7-day and 16-day tenures as Goa Chief Minister of Ravi Naik and Churchill Alemao in the 1990s.
It was on July 1 last year that several kiosks purportedly obstructing flow of traffic and hindering ambulances in and out of the GMC were demolished.The displaced were then allotted shops at a rehabilitation project and the problem was expected to be permanently solved.
But it isn’t the case and the entry and exit of the GMC continues to be impeded with vehicles parked on either side of the road. Food trucks too are stationed there, hampering passage to ambulances. Worse, hawkers occupy the footpath outside the GMC gate, adding to the confusion.When the Santa Cruz panchayat tried to evict the hawkers they approached the Curca panchayat and the former St Andre MLA, Francis Silveira, who apparently told them to continue doing business.
All this, despite CM Pramod Sawant warning that nobody will be allowed to do business on roadsides after vendors were rehabilitated in the project. Now, it appears that the purpose of the exercise is defeated and all the efforts of the authorities gone down the drain. Its business unusual outside the GMC all over again.
