<What is being opposed are the foolhardy twin decisions: 1) of building a 2nd airport elsewhere, when Dabolim has all requisites ...and, 2) of locating this 2nd airport at one extreme end of Goa, furthest away from the maximum who will use it.... The issue, simply put, is the LOCATION of the proposed facility ...Just tell us what justifies locating the facility at Maharashtra's doorstep? If Mopa is viable and is seen as for the good of Goa, shift it to Ponda, Shiroda, Madkai ... any location in central Goa. >
Where was this gent in 2000 when the Civil Aviation Minister himself announced that too in Goa that Dabolim would close once Mopa was ready? Where was he a year ago when yours truly reported on goanet that a techno-feasibility study of Mopa by international consultants was imminent? It seems he surfaced only about a month or so ago -- a bit late in the day, right? Oh well ... What he should do now is to pull out a map of India (as I did) and familiarise himself with the location of important places i.e. those which have international airports, to boot. He will be interested to find that places like Chennai, Bangalore, Trivandrum and to some extent Mumbai, all state capitals (not just international airport locations), are all way out in the corners of their own states and just a stone's throw away from their neighbouring states' borders! Skewed locations are a fact of life in India (and maybe elsewhere too for that matter). One has to get over it. Hence the author's argument and proposal dont stand up to scrutiny for a minute! The basic issue is NOT (as he suggests) whether Mopa benefits a neighbouring state or not. It is whether Mopa benefits GOA at all and if so whether the benefits outweigh the costs to Goa. If there are favourable cost/benefits ratios for neighbouring states too then Goa should leverage them in its dealings with those states in future to derive suitable quid pro quos. This is the sensible stance to take not the inane one he is virtually proposing viz build an airport and hide it "under the [Biblical] bushel"! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Goa - 2005 Santosh Trophy Champions | | | | Support Soccer Activities at the grassroots in our villages | | Vacationing in Goa this year-end - Carry and distribute Soccer Balls | --------------------------------------------------------------------------
