There is still now a bit of a rigamarole at the Central Library—you have to check your bag, take only paper and a pencil they issue to you, and I, at least, had to purchase a membership, being a foreigner, perhaps? Once over those hurdles, though, the service was superb, and even the director came up to where I was seated and asked if he could help! And the librarians were also very helpful.
It is very distressing about the Archives — such a rich repository for historical documents, likely being systematically destroyed by neglect and abuse, not to mention terrible environmental conditions. As an independent researcher and writer working on a couple of projects related to Goa, I feel your pain. Regards, Debra ~~~~~~~~~~ Debra Nicholson, MFA, MA www.debranicholson.com alternate email: [email protected] Sent from my iPhone > On May 1, 2023, at 2:47 PM, Bernardo de Sousa <[email protected]> wrote: > > This piece was published by a Goa daily 15+ years ago. Clearly, the attitude > of the staff has not changed. Nor for that matter the utter disrespect with > which priceless ancient documents are treated: > > > Aal izz “Sit” in Goa’s State Archives > > By Bernardo de Sousa > > Any visit to Goa needs to start with a wallet refueling stop at a bank. > Having connections speeds up that process. In the Mapusa bank we went to, a > lady was seated at a desk, dozing peacefully; she suddenly woke up, picked up > a ball, rolled it on the desk, then returned to dozing. We later learnt that > banks are required to hire personnel belonging to scheduled castes/tribes. > Being a local bank, this occurs through the intercession of an MLA: the > candidate controlling the largest number of votes gets the job. A win-win > situation: our aspiring athlete gets a salary, the MLA gets the votes. Thus, > “vote bank” politics ensure the “upliftment” of the downtrodden. > > My contact at the bank being away, I was instructed to head upstairs. The > scene was chaotic: no boards indicating which counter handled which > transaction, people rushing to any counter that was manned. An acquaintance > said he would call Mr. X and guided us to a pair of chairs with a parting > instruction: “Sit” -- an instruction I would repeatedly encounter in Goa with > devastating consequences. > > After about an hour, I managed to obtain from Mr. X the prized ATM card that, > sadly, failed to function until our departure. For expediency, we cashed > traveler’s cheques at Vivanta hotel in Panaji, where the transaction absorbed > all of three minutes flat -- the most efficient and friendliest service I > have ever encountered anywhere on the planet. > > Our wallet thus replenished, we headed to the State Archives, Panaji, where I > wished to consult a list of historical documents. > > We were greeted at the ground floor by an overpowering smell of naphthalene, > attempting unsuccessfully to mask the odours from the nearby toilet. The > strong influence of carnival in Goa is not to be underestimated – a vote bank > mask at the bank, a naphthalene mask at the State Archives. > > The clerk at a counter instructed me to go upstairs to see the manager. I did > not quite comprehend why but arguments would only waste time. We were invited > into the manager’s cramped office. “Sit!” he instructed. Not again! After > reading my list, he confirmed that the documents were public; we were thus in > violent agreement but the documents still eluded me. > > I was now instructed to cross the corridor to the public documents section; > as we did so, we saw a lady sitting on a bench, resting one of her feet on > it, blissfully cutting her toe-nails. I did not need an explanation: another > vote bank mask with an aspiring beautician replacing an aspiring athlete. > > In the public domain, five persons were seated at five desks, engaged in deep > conversation, otherwise doing nothing. I showed one of them the titles of the > documents. She looked at it and shouted to her colleague a few meters away. > Having been disdainfully ignored twice, she approached the recalcitrant > colleague, exchanged a few furious words, returned, turned to me and ordered: > “Sit”. > > Decidedly, “sit” was becoming the bane of my short holiday. In my mind, I > silently slipped an “h” in between the “sit” but refrained from vocalising my > thought. > > Explaining to us children the intricacies of traditional Goan hospitality, > our father once recounted that guests were routinely greeted with the Konkani > phrase: “Ailoi, io, bosloi, bos, kashti sodd, lepti kha” – loosely translated > “you have arrived, please come in, sit down, loosen your loin-cloth, share > our food”. I did not expect these five uncooperative chair-warmers to share > their food but there was no escaping the instruction to sit. I politely but > resolutely declined. The lady repeated her instruction except that this time > it was an order: “Sit”. > > The situation was turning hopeless. Asked how long this was going to take, > she muttered: “5 minutes”. My heart sank: in Goa, 5 minutes encompass any > span between 5 minutes and eternity. I heard my wife say that she had been > handed a form that I was required to complete hence, sitting down may not be > a bad idea. Her pragmatic logic carrying the day, I sat down, opened the > small rucksack containing my pen and other items. “You have to keep your bag > downstairs,” said the recalcitrant librarian, who had just concluded his > yogic meditation and was back in command barking out his orders. > > I explained to him that I had carried my rucksack all this time from the > counter downstairs, transiting through his manager’s office into the public > documents section, without anyone’s objection until then. He repeated his > order, this time raising his voice. Another mask, what was his bark really > masking? Resentment because I was an NRI, PIO or OCI? Or because I had not > presented him with a motivating incentive in an envelope? > > Do they still insist on envelopes, or would plain cash do? Or was he another > vote bank beneficiary who resented having been disturbed from his reverie or > conversation? I had had enough of this rude, uncooperative, unhelpful, > obstructionist and bureaucratic attitude of the Goa State Archives staff. I > got up, returned the form to the lady who had given it, and walked out. > > Back in the taxi, our friend suggested visiting the Central Library instead. > Indeed, I was led to the relevant section immediately - and could finally > consult and photograph the documents of interest. I now understood why the > Central Library was so well frequented whereas, excepting staff, not a soul > other than my wife, our friend and I were present at the public documents > section of the State Archives. > > This time around, when a kindly member of the Central Library staff pulled up > a chair and asked me to sit, I was delighted to comply. > > Sent from my iPad > >>> On 1 May 2023, at 19:20, 'Carvalho' via Goa-Research-Net >>> <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >> >> Dear Albertina, >> >> I totally agree with you. I didn't want to say it in my initial message. >> Technology would certainly help and is the need of the hour as those books >> under no circumstances should be passed around like pie to men jabbing felt >> pens at them, but the more important thing is attitude. There are lots of >> things one can do ease the process. For instance there is one (just one) >> moth-eaten catalogue which looks like it survived Noah's flood, used by one >> clerk to find out the reference number of the required document. All that >> needs to be done is print out 10 catalogue books and keep them for use by >> the general public. Or better still upload the catalogue online and make it >> accessible. Then the public can provide the clerk with the reference number. >> All it takes is the will power to improve systems. There needs to be a very >> radical change in attitude in every organisation. The Gandhian >> non-cooperation movement in Goa is alive and kicking. >> >> And Sandra, absolutely, being a woman doesn't help. >> >> Also what is up with those pens being allowed into an archive hall for >> goodness sake? I had carried a book and pencil inside to make notes. This >> was shouted down (fair enough, rules are rules) but for goodness sakes, the >> pens must go. >> >> Take care, >> Selma >> >> >> On Monday, 1 May 2023 at 17:44:00 BST, Albertina Almeida >> <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> >> Is there anyone here who accessed the Goa Archives about 35 years or more >> ago? Where it was accessible even without technology? I somehow think that >> it is not just about technology, though technology certainly can help. It is >> also about a regimen of corruption, which can persist even with technology. >> >> For instance, at the Registrar's office, the process towards registration of >> sale deeds has been digitised. One would have thought that would make it >> easier. But approvals of what is uploaded can take sooooo long for some. And >> the connectivity and other issues including the website being dysfunctional, >> so to say, can make life hell. The whole exercise can be a nightmare. >> >> So while technology can help, it may not be the panacea. There is something >> more. >> >> Albertina >> >> On Mon, May 1, 2023 at 9:55 PM sandra lobo <[email protected]> wrote: >> He/She is precious, or just a piece of a shameful state of affairs, >> particularly at Goa archives? Of course Selma being a women does not help >> the situation. For instance, if one does not hold Indian citizenship then >> has to pay seven times the price of copying documents, as if researchers >> swim in money. The present head of the Archives, Dipak M. Bandekar, should >> be confronted with being runing a historical archive in a modern world. My >> experience is that sometimes conversation works miracles (not always). I >> hope there are still good examples in Goa, as that of Central Library when >> under Carlos Fernandes direction. Without his positive attitude I would have >> never been able to perform the ample investigation of my PhD. Good luck, >> Selma >> >> >> >> >> >> Sandra Ataíde Lobo >> >> <Outlook-tu21a1pp.png> >> <Outlook-retvcb5t.png> >> >> <Outlook-qdflsbeb.png> >> https://giepcip.wordpress.com/ >> tmn. ++351 930690459 >> >> >> De: [email protected] <[email protected]> em >> nome de John de Figueiredo <[email protected]> >> Enviado: 1 de maio de 2023 16:43 >> Para: [email protected] <[email protected]> >> Assunto: Re: [GRN] Update about Goa Archives >> >> Dear Selma, >> Please get the name and contact information of the person who helped you. >> He/she is precious. >> Best wishes, >> John >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >>> On May 1, 2023, at 2:25 AM, 'Carvalho' via Goa-Research-Net >>> <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>> >>> Dear all, >>> >>> Thank you for the numerous helpful response regarding Goa Archives. I did >>> indeed visit the Goa Archives. I arrived at 10am and sat patiently for an >>> hour. Eventually someone recognised me as the writer and hastened my entry >>> into the archive hall. This office defied any semblance of modernity and >>> had an estranged relationship with technology. By some antediluvian method, >>> I ordered a documented assisted by person who recognised me. I then took a >>> seat and awaited said document. I sat in a hall full of men who pored over >>> centuries-old documents with their arms spread on these books, brandishing >>> felt pens, the documents spine straddled without support. After I saw this, >>> I felt nausea creeping up and tried to avoid eye contact with anyone, most >>> of all the clerks in the room. >>> >>> I sat for another one hour and could see all the peons chatting but no >>> document had arrived. I went to the head clerk and asked about the possible >>> arrival of my book. He nodded to a peon, they laughed, and one frail >>> creature departed on his search with all the enthusiasm of a man being led >>> to the guillotine. Finally he returned clutching the holy grail of a book >>> but when I took custody, it was the wrong book. I went to tell the manager >>> who sat in a class cabin with the surly look of a government officer, >>> pressing a buzzer to summon people. He dismissed by not looking up. I did >>> not wait for the right document because had it arrived, I could neither >>> photograph it nor photocopy it. I would have to make an application for the >>> record and collect it 15 days later. So I left. >>> >>> Every department, institution and organisation of governance in Goa (and >>> unfortunately I have had to visit many) is a failure of efficiency, >>> procedure, custody and care. We are light years away from any semblance of >>> modernity and our sense of Goan exceptionalism is utterly misplaced. >>> >>> The story does have a happy ending. The man who recognised me researches >>> records for a living and I shall simply hire his services. >>> >>> Take care, >>> Selma >>> -- >>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >>> "Goa-Research-Net" group. >>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >>> email to [email protected]. >>> To view this discussion on the web, visit >>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/goa-research-net/1514668968.1207763.1682922322014%40mail.yahoo.com. >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Goa-Research-Net" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To view this discussion on the web, visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/goa-research-net/9D48A34D-A844-452E-B373-6932A92C553D%40sbcglobal.net. >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Goa-Research-Net" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To view this discussion on the web, visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/goa-research-net/AS8PR10MB62941C448F31108CFB20C4E5A56E9%40AS8PR10MB6294.EURPRD10.PROD.OUTLOOK.COM. >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Goa-Research-Net" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To view this discussion on the web, visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/goa-research-net/CACbS_uQsWeXAJx66qzrAaYwaK%3D8HxVO6WTwUOfrUerrASFW1BQ%40mail.gmail.com. >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Goa-Research-Net" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To view this discussion on the web, visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/goa-research-net/419815227.1334473.1682961635874%40mail.yahoo.com. >> <Outlook-tu21a1pp.png> >> <Outlook-qdflsbeb.png> >> <Outlook-retvcb5t.png> > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Goa-Research-Net" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion on the web, visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/goa-research-net/5A28C9D0-AB79-4AD9-A660-70978E55D42C%40gmx.ch. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Goa-Research-Net" group. 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