The following editorial appeared in the 'Oherald' newspaper of date (refer: www.oherald.com)
As part of the democratic system of government we have created a statutory authority called the comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) to audit the accounts of all government departments and to make recommendations for corrections. The reports of the CAG are required to be placed before Parliament or on the table of the respective Legislative Assemblies and have to be debated by the House. These reports are meant to inform the public about how the government has performed during the previous (financial) year. Unfortunately, the Governments have managed to circumvent the recommendations made by the CAG. There are innumerable instances where scathing indictments made by the Comptroller and Auditor General against a particular government have simply been ignored and no action has been taken on the recommendations made. It is high time, therefore, that the citizens galvanized themselves into action and made a public audit of the performance of their government. The just concluded, �International Film Festival of India 2004� (IFFI) in Goa typifies the danger which democracy faces if the government is allowed to make decisions which are contrary to the established procedures which have been put in place to ensure transparency. The government decided that hosting the film festival in Goa was good for the Goans and good also for India. This decision was taken without any consultations with the people of Goa. The rationale for this decision was never made public. The implications of this decision were not considered - except, perhaps, that hosting an International Film Festival would bring prestige to Goa, and would increase the tourist traffic to this small State. Paedophilia, which was detected in Goa many years ago, and which was clearly linked to the tourist inflow, has now become epidemic and is highly organized. It is international in its ramifications, and is facilitated by the Internet. The vigilance of private citizens and of some voluntary organizations helped to bring a few paedophiles to book; but the extent of this anti-social activity is massive, and no one can yet guess at its magnitude. In spite of this, the Government, which has consistently failed to protect the innocence of its children, has made a big brouhaha about hosting the IFFI in Goa, as if this is a feather in its cap. This procedure of floating tenders for the different civil works was completely ignored by the Government while allocating contracts for many public works associated with the hosting of the IFFI, with the result that many projects were accomplished at exorbitant cost. Even worse, the contractors were given the liberty of providing their own specifications. The Chief Minister has promised to make the statement of expenditures public, but this does not satisfy the criteria laid out in the Government�s own procedure for the allocation of public works. There are overwhelming reasons to believe that many of the projects were completed at costs that are far above reasonable expectations. It has been discovered that the entire cost of the construction of the Kala Academy did not exceed Rs 5 crore; but the cost of renovation and refurbishment of the Academy for the IFFI cost the public exchequer over Rs 24 crore. Similarly, research has revealed that there are about 100 multiplexes all over India - all of them built by private enterprise -, and not one of them cost more than Rs 5 crore, whereas the multiplex constructed by the Goa Government in Panjim for the IFFI cost a whopping Rs 24 crore. This raises serious questions about the manner in which the decisions were made, and the criteria used to give the contract to a particular company, viz. INOX. In particular, the fact that the multiplex was built out of public funds raises serious questions about the repeated statements made by the government that it did not have the funds to clean up the storm-water drainage canal in Panjim, or to upgrade the sewage treatment plant in Tonca. Quite obviously, the government has got its priorities all skewed up. This is an indication of the topsy- turvey priorities of the government, reminiscent of the neglect of its citizens by the French monarchy prior to the revolution. Marie Antoinette is reported to have told her advisors that if the people did not have bread to eat, they should be asked to live on cakes. The similarity with IFFI in Goa is striking. Since the citizens of Panjim lack basic health facilities, the government has made extraordinary efforts to provide them with entertainment to distract their attention. Entertainment becomes meaningful and acceptable only after these primary needs are satisfied. It is a matter of great shame that the two prestigious institutions of the Government of Goa, viz. the University of Goa, and the Goa Medical College and Hospital are in a shambles. The University is moribund and on the verge of collapse. The Goa Medical College and Hospital is less than mediocre. Both these institutions, which should have been the pride of Goa, suffer from supreme neglect by the Government. The Chief Minister has never applied his mind to the serious ailments besetting these institutions. All that he has done is to interfere in the administration of what should normally be �autonomous� institutions. The Government run schools, particularly in the rural areas are also in precarious condition. The only solution that the government could find was to hand them over to the R.S.S., which is a blatantly communal organization which fosters hatred and violence against minorities. The primary health centres, which are supposed to be the providers of basic health services to the people, including preventive health care, are grossly neglected - both in terms of personnel and materials. Instead of providing finances to maintain these institutions in the rural areas, the Parrikar Government has splurged over Rs 120 crore on providing an entertainment infrastructure in Panjim, for the benefit of tourists. It is a great shame that the Parrikar Government chose to invest all its energies to make Goa a venue for the IFFI. It is further unfortunate that it is trying hard to make Goa the �permanent� venue for the IFFI. The nebulous and ephemeral world of the films will not provide any direction for the political and social future of Goa. On the contrary, they will prove to be a drag on our progress. The citizens of Panjim, (and perhaps of Goa ) are well aware that some positive good has come out of the frenzied activities of the Government, viz. better roads, and improvements to heritage buildings, but these were overdue in any case. It did not need a film festival to initiate these improvements. However, on a balance, the primary needs of the citizens for better health infrastructure, improved garbage disposal systems, better traffic control, and above all, protection of the more vulnerable sections of our society, specially our women and children, still remain unmet. Instead of expending its energies to prepare for the next IFFI event, it would be more appropriate for the Government to show as much enthusiasm for the more important needs of its citizens. This procedure of floating tenders for the different civil works was completely ignored by the Government while allocating contracts for many public works associated with the hosting of the IFFI, with the result that many projects were accomplished at exorbitant cost. ________________________________________________________________________ Yahoo! India Matrimony: Find your life partner online Go to: http://yahoo.shaadi.com/india-matrimony
