Dears,
A small news clip in the first column IN BRIEF of the oHERALDo today [11
June, 2008] gladdened my heart. VINOD KUMAR DUGGAL is the new Governor of
Maharashtra!
Personally, I owe a lot to Mr. V. K. Duggal's encouragement when I was still
a very junior Officer in the Directorate of Agriculture and had the post of the
Secretary of the Goa Agriculture Officers' Association resting on my then
slender shoulders [I was just 55 kg then; marriage, my wife's good cooking and
a little of the Goan spirit has changed all that .... forever ;-)]. We had a
very rule-conscious Director of Agriculture to boot! [Pun not unintended.;-)].
That was 1987 .... not the Orwellian 1984!
When we organised the first all-Goa Mango Show 24 to 27 May, 1987, Mr.
V.K.Duggal, then the Development Commissioner and Chief Secretary i/c was there
to inaugurate it. When the Director of Agriculture insisted that the Goa AOA
needs a Government "recognition" in writing, to be allowed to fix a half
-a-square metre 'Notice Board' at the Head Office [then at the 4th floor Vidyut
Bhavan], Mr.V.K. Duggal gave it within the day of the application, with
supporting documents as needed.
If I have the courage to organise an event like the popular "Konkan Fruit
Fest" today at the drop of the hat, it stems from that encouragement. If the
AOA has a voice with the Government, it also stems from the good deed of Mr.
V.K. Duggal. there will be others in Goa who will recall their association with
him with pride.
As the Union Home Secretary, Mr. V.K. Duggal handled some ticklish issues
about Nagaland, its territorial boundaries and its autonomy, too, as did a
former Chief Secretary of Goa Mr. P.P. Shrivastav [who was here long before
Dr.G.C. Srivastav, incidentally a Ph. D in Agricultural Economics, and a help
to me in getting study leave to do my M.Sc. [Agri] in Horticulture] .
I wish him all the best as the Governor of Maharashtra, Goa's Big neighbour.
Mog asundi.
Miguel
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