MARGAO
Is the great Indian nationalist Dr Ram Manohar Lohia and the maidan named after him at Margao remembered by the powers that be and officials only during auspicious days?
A visit to the Lohia Maidan on late Tuesday revealed that there’s practically no illumination at the place. Ram Manohar Lohia’s statue and the freedom fighter’s memorial lay in darkness for want of illumination.
Sources pointed out that the Lohia Maidan was lying in darkness since the time the authorities failed to repair the lamps.
Fortunately, the LED illumination on the roads surrounding the historic place has ensured that the place is not completely in darkness.
That’s not all. A visit to the maidan showed that the entrance to the place near the Lohia statue has been used to dump debris and mixed waste. It could not be ascertained who has dumped the debris and the mixed waste inside the maidan and that too just 2-3 metres away from the Lohia statue.
Incidentally, outgoing Goa Governor Satya Pal Malik had promised to get the government to renovate the historic Lohia maidan during his stint in Goa. Sadly, the Lohia maidan is craving for attention from the authorities as the place is not even illuminated for reasons best known to the authorities, including the Margao Municipal Council.
