the goan I network
MARGAO
Don’t be surprised if you come across a revenue official, be it a deputy collector, mamlatdar or a talathi at the Margao railway station.
In times of Covid, these revenue officials are not seen much in their offices, but more at the railway station coordinating the departure of migrants to their native states and putting in place arrangements for home-coming Goans.
In fact, with the Centre relaxing the lockdown on movement of trains, ostensibly to ferry the lakhs of migrants stranded across the state, the revenue officials, right from the District Collector, Additional Collectors, Deputy Collectors, Mamlatdars and talathis are all coordinating the departure of migrants and return of Goans stranded outside.
Registration of the migrants heading to their native states, arranging their food requirements before the journey and during the journey have all been entrusted to the revenue officials by the District Collector.
Talathis and mamlatdars were seen physically moving trolleys containing food packets on the platform for loading the same in a special train for migrants heading to Kashmir.
Sources in the know say that mamlatdars, talathis and deputy collectors have hardly been found in their offices, more so after the trains have started running, transporting migrants from the state.
“The revenue officials oversee and monitor the entire exercise, right from arranging buses for the migrants to take them to the stadium and the railway station, coordinating with the health officials for thermal screening, placing order for food and water et al. Sometimes, we report for duty as early as 6 in the morning and head home late in the night, only to report for duty the next morning,” a senior official said.
Some of the officials such as deputy collectors and mamlatdars, who hail from North Goa, face the problem of travelling to and fro from the Collectorate to the stadium and the railway station every day. “We have both the deputy collectors who are not from Salcete area. Besides, some of the joint mamlatdars hail from North Goa, but have to report back to duty every day in times of Covid,” a senior official said.
Sources say that resumption of rail services may necessitate the revenue officials to make the railway station as their office, as it involves a gigantic exercise of registering the passengers, arranging buses and resting place till the Covid test results are out, in addition to arrangements for food and water.
