-------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Wishing all Goanetters | | a Prosperous | | and | | Happy New Year - 2006 | | Goanet - http://www.goanet.org | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- NRI GOANS WANT THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF A DEVELOPED COUNTRY
What NRI Goans are demanding is exactly what "Goan Goans" i.e. the present 14 lakh-strong Goan population, have been crying themselves hoarse and in vain for years now since liberation. BY TARA PATEL. THIS YEAR'S Gomant Vishwa Sammelan was far more vocal and eloquent than the last two! On one hand there's the Government of Goa's attempts to woo investment from NRI Goans abroad and on the other hand there is the cry getting louder with each passing year. Give us the infrastructure of a developed country above all if you want our hard-earned money! That's all it will take to tempt many Goan businessmen abroad to make their wistful dreams of returning or retiring to their homeland. Infrastructure translates to round- the-clock surety of water and power at home and office, 24 hours of water supply, decent roads and streets which are pedestrian-friendly first, public transportation which is not manipulated to fleece law and order! Also implicit in every demand, an important corollary: Safety of life and limb in a politically safe, peaceful and happy environment in harmony with man and Mother Earth alike. An increasingly clamorous demand for basic infrastructure and law and order is not such a tall order when you consider that even ordinary Goans in Goa are pining for all these on a priority basis. If a government can give its own citizens a desirable and enviable infrastructure - then it follows that anyone wishing to return or invest in Goa will in turn automatically be happy to do so. What NRI Goans are demanding is exactly what "Goan Goans" i.e. the present 14 lakh-strong Goan population, have been crying themselves hoarse and in vain for years now since liberation. Now the band of NRI Goans, who presumably are beginning to feel the winds of change in the hitherto liberal countries of the West i.e. witness the attacks on Hindu religious establishments in England and the discrimination and violence in Australia vis-à-vis Asians, are perhaps seriously contemplating that after all they should have a homeland to return to in any emergency. A homeland where no one can discriminate against them or their children and call them second-class citizens. All these anxieties were palpable as one NRI Goan after another raised issues of infrastructure in the corruption-ridden systems of governance in Goa. Both Joseph Libano and Geary Machado who're employed in the Gulf countries say they have family in Goa and would like to see more comfortable times by the time they return for good or to retire, but quipped one of them, "I had to pay a Rs. 10,000 bribe to get an occupancy certificate for my house in Porvorim. The entire bureaucratic system in Goa is hand-in-glove." Appalled at the amounts of bribe money they had to shell out, one of them observed, "A friend of mine is a minister but when I asked him even he said, You can bid ministers down but you still have to pay if you want to get any government clearance!'" What's more, if the authority concerned knows they are from abroad the pay-off is higher! In a tête-à-tête with Deputy Chief Minister Dr. Wilfred de Souza, one NRI Goan traced the sordid story of how even to get a 29-day visa extended they had to pay a Rs. 5,000 bribe, "They stamp the extension on the passport but we get no receipt for the bribe which is illegal!" Goa never used to be like this some 60 years ago, rues Victorino Pinto, who was an engineer in charge at the Panjim Municipality and deputy director, PWD, in the late 40s-50s, says, "You were probably not born then! I left Goa to work for the UN in Geneva and that's where I've been living for many years now." But he visits Goa for family and friends and says, "Goa's infrastructure has become very weak. It is necessary to have technicians and engineers who know their jobs management is bad, work is bad!" He also sees short-sightedness in planning which does not take the increasing population in mind and so infrastructure, instead of improving, only gets more complicated. What is important is to create conditions in villages to stop people from coming to cities, but the roads are in shambles in rural areas and the quality of water poor. This was not the case in Goa when he was a boy. Cipriand Fernandes, or "Cip" as his friends call him, is from the U.K. He says, "I was in Goa till 1984, a PWD engineer in water supply, and I never took a penny from anyone (as bribe)! I've been in the U.K. for 20 years and returned to Arpora in Goa for good recently" He shrugs, he is not happy with a lot of things and warns the government of Goa, "Control corruption if you can't do that legalise it!" And finally, complained a visibly angry Yvonne Gomes Riefemthaler (she's married to an Austrian), "Why do I come across perfectly educated people driving a car and honking at me as if I'm a stray dog! Pedestrians are all stray dogs for Goan drivers - be they men or women. On New Year's eve at Dona Paula I nearly got my arm ripped off because of a bad driver who frightened me with his honking (there are no pavements for pedestrians down Goan roads)." And when she complained to three policemen standing by and watching the incident, they laughed and "preferred to dig their noses!" There is zero law enforcement on Goan roads, she says, "It's the incessant honking and garbage which gets to me plastic heaps are dumped everywhere, there's this plastic heap at Hawaii Beach (shudders)." Yet family brings this Karachi-born Goan annually to Goa, otherwise they're living between Austria and USA. She does find Goa beautiful enough in some respects and has invested in some property which she hopes will be a safe and protected haven for them when they semi- retire in Goa. Her husband Peter is interested in developing some eco-friendly housing here on the lines of what they've seen by the riverside in Dubai, "Goa is so ideal for such development. We've also seen some wonderful development in harmony with its natural surroundings in Kerala - go and see how Kerala is developing. Goa should emulate Kerala " The Austrian Peter, who looks more hassled by the culture shock in Goa, nods and says eco villages are the development model for the future, "Although there're many eco-villages in the world now, the oldest is CAT in Wales, it is maybe 40 years old. CAT stands for Centre for Alternative Technology." People and builders who're interested in eco-friendly development of land and architecture should go on to several websites, which exist today. Eco-villages are really the way to go and what many people are increasingly looking for nowadays! In Mumbai, he says, a Mrs. Chatterjee has created an eco-village near the Mahim Park which used to be largest garbage dumping grounds at one time go and see that at least and learn something from it. The Third Gomant Vishwa Sammelan proved to be an invaluable exchange of opinions and information and the various government departments including the Economic Development Corporation which made presentations to entice NRI investment to give direction to Goa's future, should, in fact, for a change, listen instead of present! Quipped one NRI Goan, "All these government presentations and ministers answering questions it wastes time and energy. We can tell these government folk many things given our experience of living in the developed countries, if only they would listen to us!" It is true that many NRI Goans would like to return to settle or retire in Goa the Goans in the Middle East have no choice in the matter but given the poor and laid-back infrastructure in Goa courtesy a dysfunctional government bogged down by corruption, few are really happy at the prospects of returning and investing their savings in Goa! One young Goan working in the Middle East summed it up, "I may go to China where once you have completed the required formalities they give you water, power, labour clearances in hours if not in a few days!" In Goa the same exercise would be dragged over weeks, months, years a man can be dead before he sees his dream of making it good in Goa come true." ================================================================== Thanks to Ben Antao for forwarding this story. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- | 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 | --------------------------------------------------------------------------
