THE AUTHOR IS A GOAN WHO LOVES GOA VERY MUCH Sent in by Shyam Sawant – Courtesy of Times of India
Goa is the homeland for all Konkanis. Our ancient temples are here, we are rooted to this soil and it is the only state that has Konkani as the state language.
Goa has come a long way since liberation. I have been coming here since 1969 and have seen the change. Some of the change has been good but some bad. Tourism is a large part of the economy but a sub-culture of drugs, crime and sleazy activities is developing.
Politics lacks aspiration and the debate is very local, but the greatest danger is that Goa's young are emigrating in large numbers as they lack economic opportunities.
The time is not far, say in 20 years, when the Goan will be a minority in his own state, with an aged population, and Konkani will be a dead language. Any society which sees it's young abandon their birthplace is a society doomed to diminish and die and I do not want my Goa to diminish. What needs to be done. First Goans have to decide what kind of a society they want to be in the next 20 years and how they are going to retain their children.
In my view the only way is to create high quality economic opportunities in Goa. The solution lies in higher education. Goa has to be a centre for higher education. Goa should invite India's best schools and colleges to come and start here. One BITS is too small a bit! There has to be large scale capacity.
Yes outsiders will come and they are welcome to be educated but our children will have access to high quality education, the Goan outside will send his children here to be educated.
And they will be connected to their own culture, they will develop their roots here. Along with this hopefully there will develop an open liberal global society.
Goa has to focus on the high value service sector, IT, R&D, design, fashion, culture etc. For all these, there needs to be a good policy framework. Adopt Karnataka's IT policy to kick start IT. Create high quality infrastructure and above all rebuilt the airport.
The airport is worse than a fish market in Goa and India's shame. Goa is a premier destination, a proud showcase for India and has the country's worst airport, the government of India, and the tourism ministry should be ashamed of this, but then they have a lot to be ashamed of otherwise too. This will create high quality jobs for Goa's children. Along with this, Goa needs to focus on it's culture, it needs more theatres, cultural centres, museums, art galleries, places to focus its fashion industry.
Goa needs more think tanks, policy institutions, science centres to keep innovation going. It is only the intellect of the Goan and a spirit of innovation that can create the new Goa.
But the citizens of Goa need to sacrifice their tendency to oppose any developmental project. Educational institutions, high quality service industry are not an option to debate but the root of their existence, the only way to retain their children, their culture, their language and their identity. Otherwise all will be lost. I do fear for my Goa. There is an aspiration deficit, an unwillingness to look to the future, a nostalgic tendency to harp on the good quiet life, with fish and feni, sea and the sun, the afternoon siesta and the carnival. But we need to remember our children have high aspirations and they are demonstrating that with their feet.
The writer is a Konkani, a Kannadiga and an Indian who loves his Goa. He is a member of the board of Infosys and these are his personal views. (Courtesy TNN)
Thanks a lot for highlighting this Dear Pai. You are a Goan by roots although you may be staying in other parts of India.
ReplyDeleteI have been talking about this here for a long time now.
The only land for the Gawd Saraswat Brahmins and for their language Konkani is Goa.
The GSB should come out in full force and support Niz Goenkar and their just cause.
Goa belongs to all Goans, irrespective of where we stay.
Today you will find GSB spread all over India, but still they have not given up on their language that is Konkani and their love for their homeland Goa.
On the other hand, many Christians don't speak Konkani and have migrated to other countries.
We should all unite and save our Goa from the ghantti culture that is rising in Goa.
Mog asundi, Dear Pai
Lets first get the Nizgoenkar Party to rule Goa then we will decide what to do. We have our own plans and we will see that Goa will be first non corupt state in India. First we will fight for Special status. No more planning only planning is to dump these 40 chors
ReplyDeleteFirst of all "Goa good wisher" let's acknowledge it's Invasion, Annexation but never Liberation, Liberation is a lie to fool people of Goa and around, smart guys like you always fool us by saying Liberation and Panaji, we don't say anything and you people think we except it. (be careful by friend, Goans were asleep like the lion, now they are awake and like to hunt, we were only waiting for the Internet to start our mission, our mission that will be of a success.
ReplyDeleteNow the positive side, what you mentioned and stated is true, we need a higher education system in Goa, few Universities surely not from bangalore and delhi, but from Europe and the States.
With well know Universities, the rest will follow as you mentioned "R&D", "IT" "Culture & Art" "Sport".
When the natives of Goa migrate for a better living or whatever, that does not mean that the rest of India should take over, like quoted by our Beddo, we should have the Bailos under controll, they should have a certain Permit system to start their Business, these baillos should not have a right to voting system nor the right to buy properties. Mining should be stopped for the next 100 years.
Now this "Konkani" language is a big problem in Goa, we Goan see it - baillos can't see it, this Konkani of ours is spoken differently by the Hindus and the Catholics, the Hindu call it Kokni and we Catholics call it Konkani, the Hindus feel comfortable with the devnagiri script, (not all of them), and the whole Catholic community feels comfortable with the Latin script, of late the bible was sold like pancakes in the Latin script.
For us the Dog is a "Sunne" for the Hindus it's a "Kutra", for us the stone is a "Fathor" for them it's a "Degad" and so on. This is the main reason that our Konkani is having a problem in Goa, there is no one definition.
And your last thought, we are not against development as you see, we are against baillos taking over us, a Golf club is good, but not when our native Goans are ball collectors, IT centres are good, not when our native boys are like chaiwallas, Big Banks are good, but not when our Native boys are like simple clerks or worst like Peons in the big offices. Tourism is good but not when our natives are like waiters and bartenders.
To summarise the whole thing, please give us I N D E P E N D E N C E and we'll take care of our shit.
Mog assundi, Dev borrem korunng ani VIVA GOA - where everything is still under the Sun.
True,i seen with my own eyes a bihari put up his stall in front of a particular shop opposite luzinha stores(mapusa) and was unwilling to budge disallowing our Goan(GSB) brother from opening the shutters(our brother was an elderly man),not only this when our brother protested a few biharis began to intervene...Fortunately i was around along with a few Goencar friends who gave that bastard a good thrashing but the sad part is no other goencar even bothered to intervene...when will we unite as one ?
ReplyDeleteThe article is the second phase. The first phase is to get rid of the illiterate politicians, close the tap of immigrants pouring into Goa, freeze all mega projects, stop mining etc. Kick the non Goan bureaucrats out. Clean the mess of 50 years.
ReplyDelete