Some further thoughts on this thread for what its worth: Fred wrote: <As far as the Dabolim airport goes, the Navy -- like any landlord -- is sitting pretty on an asset that few realised the value of till the charter logjam just a few years ago>
My new response: OK maybe times change. Maybe its time to replace the ancient 1961 divide with a new watershed year in the modern era viz 2005. Pre-'05 it was all smooth sailing for the Navy largely because of the apathy of the populace as Fred has pointed out. Post-'05 the Navy would realise that it has a fight (intellectual not physical) on its hands whereby its cherished dream of replicating "Fightertown, USA" in a peaceable part of the world is going to be challenged at every step not just in Goa but from all over India. I wrote: <3. Your characterisation of the Navy as a "landlord" is a dead giveaway! HASG too recently questioned the need for the Navy to own such vast tracts of land in the vastly changed scenario at the "air station". Recently I heard on a Goa channel that the Navy believes the airport is worth either Rs 70 thousand crores (or Rs 17 thousand crores as the Hindi/Konkani expression escaped me). Is this based on historical cost or market value (i.e. of 1700 acres of Vasco land)? Who spent this money? And what does the Navy enjoy, outright ownership rights or mere administrative control responsibilities "at the President's pleasure"?> My current take: Confirmation of the figure Rs 70 thousand crores came on March 31 in the TOI supplement Goa Plus. It is attributed to the Rear Admiral in charge of the Navy's Goa base. Think about it. It converts to the princely sum of U.S. dollars 16 BILLION! What is there at Dabolim that makes it so valuable? Either the Rear Admiral is projecting prime property prices of Delhi and Mumbai (of Rs 1 lakh per sq m!) onto Dabolim or he is projecting earnings from an oil field under the runway. Seriously, this may not be a simple error of extra zeroes. The Navy does seem to be harbouring this strange delusion about Dabolim rupee values. I remember hearing something like Rs 25,000 crores (one third of the present estimate!) a little over a year ago on goanet. I remember comparing it with a figure for Hickam Air Force base a frontline Ameican military base at Honolulu International Airport. The figure given is a relatively piddling $450 MILLION! Thus a major part of the "contradictions" in Goa society over Dabolim and Mopa Fred observes is due to information inaccuracies and distortions such as the above. Fred wrote: < As the Father of independent Tanzania, the late Mwalimu Julius Nyerere will be remembered by his famous saying: "It can be done; play your part".... In this context, my view too is that India, like a lot of other 'developing' and 'developed' countries, spends too much money on its military. > My present response: Lets earnestly hope that such pious words will in due course translate into a meaningful stand regarding the incongruous military presence in Goa and especially at Dabolim. Cheers. _____________________________________________ Do not post admin requests to the list. Goanet mailing list ([email protected]) Help/Unsubscribe/Update your Subscription: %(user_optionsurl)s This email sent to %(user_address)s
