Hi Fred, The tourism infrastructure in South Goa is pathetic, to say the least, and there has been no serious initiative or effort by succesive tourism ministers, or panchayats to improve the infrastructure even marginally, over the past 5 years.
Lets take the Margao-Colva road for starters. This is the main feeder to the Southern beaches, and yet there is no regular bus service on this road for the past 50 years! Why, you may well ask? Well, there is a mafia of taxi drivers who cram 10 people into their Ambassador taxis for each trip, and these guys are the kings of the road. No buses allowed over this stretch. The entire stretch of 5 kms. of this road is littered with garbage, and getting worse by the day. The new initiative of the Govt. to have 1 panchayat in a cluster to clear garbage will come to zilch, because the panchayats are a collection of greedy and corrupt men and women, whose one aim is to line their pockets during their tenures. This year, the Benaulim panchayat did not even cut the grass along the road leading to the beach--resulting in danger to tourists walking daily to the beach along this narrow road. The mast lights on the beach are non functional for months. How can such nincompoops be entrusted with a major task of garbage clearance? The shacks along the Colva-Benaulim stretch are in complete disarray--no one knows how many were sanctioned to build, and the number of illegal ones. In the meantime, the sun beds have encroached upto the waterline, making walking along the beach difficult. The Lamanis continue to pester the tourists, while 2 fat policemen stroll by, with their hands in their pockets, every few hours. The parking plaza at Benaulim beach is in complete chaos every evening with traffic jams caused by upto 15 taxis(drivers sitting in empty cabs) blocking the single entry and exit. Such is the the situation in our golden state--get the picture? I gather that the tourism minister is in Spain-God bless him. regards, Gilbert. essage: 8 Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2005 01:51:43 +0530 (IST) From: "Frederick Noronha (FN)" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [email protected] Cc: elston soares <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: [Goanet]Health... and transport in glamorous Goa Reply-To: [email protected] Another e-friend, Nand Wadhwani, managed to make it from Cavelossim to Saligao yesterday morning... after catching as many as nine buses. It was my mistake to assume that he wouldn't risk Goa's notorious public transportation system, plagued as it is with both inefficiencies compounded by a lack of information. Nand, who is based in Costa Rica, had a story to tell of how he had to change "nine buses" to get across the distance of approx 60 kms or less! This included some 'wrong' buses, since there are hardly any maps or guidance needed in a tourist-oriented state to guide you to your destination! "It's so badly broken," he said, referring to the public transport system. The emphasis was on the word *broken*. For someone who has a background in IT, Nand described the situation quite well. I couldn't help agreeing. Most of Goa's middle-classes (and this includes journalists) have simply seceeded from the problems this system faces. They mostly travel on their own vehicles, whether two or four-wheelers, and simply forget this side of 'the best state in the country'. Just thought of sharing some pictures from the 'other side' of glamorous Goa. Your comments would be welcome. -FN
