P.S. I don’t mean to suggest that I “feel your pain” in the same way, not being of the culture, but pain as a researcher who grieves all the history that is potentially being lost.
Please forgive if I have offended… Debra ~~~~~~~~~~ Debra Nicholson, MFA, MA www.debranicholson.com alternate email: [email protected] Sent from my iPhone > On May 1, 2023, at 3:13 PM, Debra Nicholson <[email protected]> > wrote: > > 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 historical documents, likely being systematically destroyed by neglect and 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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