Parrikar diverting Goans
attention, says Lopes
MARGAO
The Forum for Rights of Children’s Education (FORCE) has questioned Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar’s statement on Medium of Instruction (MoI), saying the statement is either made to fool the people or to divert attention of the people with the DefExpo underway in the State.
FORCE secretary Savio Lopes told The Goan that the Defence Minister should explain to Goans in what language is the ongoing DefExpo conducted at the Naqueri-Betul plateau. “If Parrikar is so patriotic, then he should explain why not a single board about the DefExpo has been put up in Konkani language. The Defence Minister is preaching education in Konkani medium, but he should explain why the DefExpo is not conducted in Konkani,\" Lopes said, while raising doubts whether the government decision to spend Rs 400 on students opting for education in regional languages will improve the quality of education.
On Parrikar’s contention that Goa is facing brain drain due to language, Lopes demanded to know whether the Defence Minister is ready to give an assurance that Goans who come out of educational institutions will get jobs in the State. “The Defence Minister should also explain whether Goan youth will get the salaries on par with their counterparts with the rest of the country,\" he sought to know, while saying the BJP leaders, including the Defence Minister and Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar are only fooling the people on the MoI issue.
“If the government is serious in stopping the brain drain, why has the government not adopted a resolution assuring jobs to locals with salaries on par with rest of India,\" he said.
Referring to the statement made by the Chief Minister that the Select Committee has not finalised the MoI issue, Lopes said the Chief Minister as chairman of the Committee ought to have taken the initiative to hold the meetings, while saying that the Chief Minister is going slow on the issue because he does not stand to gain on the subject.
“FORCE is forced to conclude that the BJP-led government is only fooling the people. They don’t want the common man to get the best of education. They want to manipulate the people and keep them contended by only giving them doles,\" he added.
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Translate words into action,
withdraw grants: Bhembre
MARGAO
The statements made by Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar rooting for primary education in the regional language had no takers amongst leaders of the Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch (BBSM).
In fact, BBSM leader Adv Uday Bhembre told The Goan that the BJP leaders, including the Chief Minister and the Defence Minister should stop paying lip service to the MoI issue and translate their action by withdrawing grants to English medium primary schools.
“We have lost faith in the BJP leadership, including the Chief Minister and the Defence Minister. And, we do not want to believe in what they say on the MoI tangle. If at all they are serious in imparting primary education in one’s mother tongue, they should translate their words into action,\" Bhembre said.
The BBSM leader said the BJP leaders have lost their credibility in the eyes of the Goan people, not just on the MoI issue, but on several other issues affecting Goa and Goans. “The BJP government has only made U-turns on various issues during the last four years. We can no longer believe in this government. If they are serious in translating the promises made in the election manifesto, they should take action on the ground,\" he said.
Bhembre warned that statements made by the Chief Minister and the Defence Minister will not change the course of their agitation. “We will not get distracted with the statements made by the BJP leadership. Leaving along doing a re-think, such statements will not even make us complacent. We will continue our agitation till the government fulfills its promise made in its election manifesto,\" Bhembre said.
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what FORCE says
Explain to Goans in what language is the ongoing DefExpo conducted
Explain why not a single board about the DefExpo has been put up in Konkani language
Will government\'s decision to spend Rs 400 on students opting for education in regional languages improve quality of education
what BBSM says
If government is serious in imparting primary education in one’s mother tongue, it should translate its words into action
The BJP government has only made U-turns on various issues during the last four years
Will continue agitation till the government fulfills its promise made in its election manifesto
