the goan I network
PANAJI
The Congress on Monday wrote to Chief Minister Pramod Sawant asking that all educational institutions in the State be made to observe September 30 as the death anniversary of orator, economist, political scientist, physician, social activist, historian, journalist, philosopher and versatile writer Dr Francisco Luis Gomes, who passed away 150 years ago.
In his letter, Congress chief Girish Chodankar has made a couple of demands with regard to Gomes, who died at the age of 40, leaving a rich legacy behind him.
Chodankar has asked that Gomes’ ancestral house at Navelim be taken over to build an international memorial for him. Further, that Gomes’ complete published works which are scattered and out of print be collected and published in English, Konkani and Marathi as a single volume
by the Directorate of Art and Culture.
The Congress has also asked that a documentary on the writer’s life and work be commissioned in English and Konkani, and that a Francisco Luis Gomes centre for studies in political economy be established at any prominent college, preferably in his native village of Navelim.
“We request you to commemorate the 150th Death Anniversary of the greatest Goan Dr Francisco Luis Gomes who made Goa proud globally in the 19th Century, let our new generation know about Dr Gomes’ contribution,” wrote the Congress chief.
Besides his contributions to literature, Chodankar noted that Gomes was a “staunch nationalist,” who had called for self-rule for India, proclaiming in a letter, “I ask for India liberty and light!” “Dr Gomes was the first patriot who preached the theory of Indian nationalism,” Chodankar concluded.
