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> On Sep 20, 2021, at 02:55, Ivan Pereira <[email protected]> wrote: > Joao, > when Goa became part of India, 1961, after the Indian Govt of Nehru sent in > paratroopers, then ground troops, the ‘economic literature’ shows that a > small State like Goa was actually ‘exporting’ food to the rest of India, & > was itself being ‘rationed’. > Import duties were raised dramatically, making the availability of foreign > goods Goa enjoyed financially not affordable anymore. > > Goa actually fed India. Isn’t that amazing? > It exported to other countries, & was a major source of scarce ‘foreign > exchange’, allowing India to import other produce, & to manage its ‘balance > of payments‘ shortfall. > > It is an extraordinary part of Goa’s economic history, & a telling story of > the Indian Govt’s management of the Indian economy at the time. > > Goa should return to organic farming, feed itself its quality produce first, > not import less quality food from Karnataka, etc., & then only export its > supply. > > Furthermore, Goa was self-sufficient without taxes. > >> On Sep 20, 2021, at 02:02, Joao Barros-Pereira <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> >> Goa's agriculture deserves more than a shot in the arm to >> survive;nothing less than a major transfusion is necessary and the >> photo-op of a couple of MLAs in the fields from time to time is >> Gollywood; it cannot be expected to be taken seriously by the Goan >> public unless our MLAs think the Goan electorate is not much more than >> an imbecilic mass of rotten meat with the right to vote every few >> years. >> >> Giving subsidies to farmers, at this point in time, is a little like >> trying to apply a band-aid on a patient who is at death's end. And, >> that is about where we are today, with most of the food we eat - >> fish,fruit, vegetables, and water - all polluted! >> >> Some people are asking, what's next? >> >> With the high cost and shortage of labour, the unholy abundance of >> imported fish, vegetables and fruit from outside the state pouring >> into Goa is indeed an ill omen; local producers cannot hope to compete >> with the prices of the formalin-laced fish during the monsoon and the >> polluted food! >> >> And, by the way, where is the state-of-the art lab which was promised >> by our Health Minister. June, July and August are the months for >> formalin-laced fish at their best. Bon appetite. >> >> We need to upgrade agriculture to an agro-industry. >> >> Farmers organic markets and restaurants in fields in villages is the >> need of the hour. We must have dedicated markets and organic >> restaurants in agricultural fields in Goa where local farmers are >> eligible to sell their chemically-free cooked food, fresh fruit and >> vegetables. >> >> Hotels and the local population will gobble up the food. Rice, >> potatoes, onions,tomatoes, and so on, can be sold in these >> chemical-free markets and restaurants. >> >> Farmers, in this way, will get a much greater profit margin when we >> add this marketing strategy to the subsidies that exist at present. >> >> Agricultural land will become more valuable, and agriculture a more >> viable industry, and people will celebrate the burial of 16B. >> >> This new policy makes the farmer the >> beneficiary of the land and our green Goa will not have to become a >> concrete Goa where politicians and builders can grow richer faster >> than a fenugreek plant can reach maturity. Best of all, the farmers >> won't have to dispose of their land to builders! >> >> Organic farming is the way to go as Goa is also a major global tourism >> destination. Make no mistake, we do not have a choice. Health >> conscious people will flock to Goa if organic food is widely available >> in hotels and restaurants all over Goa. >> >> Unlike the problem of garbage disposal, we need to eat food every day. >> Bottled water in Goa today is no longer a status symbol but >> circumstantial evidence of how polluted our ground water is - a >> warning to us to think twice, at least, if we don't want >> to scare the tourists away. >> >> Tourism is now the economic backbone of our state - a weak backbone - >> as mining is snoring and on life support. Unemployment, >> which is on the way up, is an ugly fact in the lives of Goans who have >> to go abroad to earn a livelihood. >> >> Kitchen gardens can be included in this marketing strategy: >> individuals, too, should be allowed to sell their chemical-free fruit >> and vegetable produce in the local farmers markets. It will help to >> raise the standard of health in the village and provide additional >> income to >> households all over Goa. >> >> As the truism goes - we are what we eat - and so, let's eat right.
