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Accidental Activism
Intentional pseudo-activism is getting popular!
Miguel Braganza
Do village self-governing bodies or panchayats have the ability to govern
the village? Do they have the Constitutional mandate and powers under the
Goa Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, to decide on the so-called "mega projects" or
should they limit themselves to building PCC gutters under the
Japanese-aided projects. Should a party to the dispute also seat in
judgement? Can a babu like a Deputy Director of Panchayats determine the
extent of his or her powers and the limit of the powers of the elected
village bodies? Should a legal counsel for one builder be considered a
social activist at another project? So many questions though they may seem,
one man had all the answers. One person who has not won a Panchayat or
Municipal election in his area of residence, and has proved unequal to the
task of bring home his birthday shopping, seems to think he can control the
whole of rural Goa. Then came his nemesis.
The Joint Secretary in the Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj, T Raghunathan
was in Goa for an interactive programme with the increasingly vocal women
members of village panchayats. It was organized by the Bailancho Saad [BS],
the call of the women that is being heard loud and clear, and the Panchayat
Mahila Shakti Abhiyan [PMSA]. This official, who is of the rank many notches
above the "Babus' and the "Babis" in the state Directorate of Panchayats,
has said that panchayat bodies are indeed empowered to decide on land use or
spatial planning along with socio-economic planning of the villages. As the
Salcete strongman would ask, "Ani anink zai?"
Article 243-G of the Constitution provides that the Panchayat can plan for
the economic development, social justice and implementation of the scheme.
My friend, Soter D'Souza, had been shouting this from the roof-tops but a
prophet is never recognized in his own town. This is specially so if he
cannot afford a media publicist like the pseudo activists who build their
own profile with proper investments in HR. "The Constitution has not said
that the Panchayat cannot plan for spatial development of the village," said
the Joint Secretary who knows what Panchayati Raj is all about. The
Constitution provides for statutory District Planning Committees [DPCs],
mandated to prepare a draft development plan having regard to matters of
common interest between the panchayats and the municipalities, including
spatial planning. The Government of Goa has constituted the DPCs but not
empowered them. Instead, it vested the powers of the DPCs in the Task Force,
a blatantly anti-Contitutional act that seeks to disempower the people.
It was bad enough that the Task Force incorporated into the Regioanl
Framework Plan for Goa 2021 the "Mission Bypass" road from Balli in Quepem
to Sanvordem, a critical railway station and barge loading jetty for the
iron ore extractors to ship the cargo to down the Zuari river to the port.
The mine operators in Colomb, Cavrem Cuprem, Maina, Rivona will bless the
Task Force as much as the poor villagers in these areas will curse them.
Just today the Goa Police detained people agitating against the flooding of
the paddy fields ready for harvest in Colomb. It was the same story in
Advalpal last season. Incidentally, one of the mine operators fomenting the
trouble is common. It is living up to its name and 'naxalite' Seby is
unhappily documenting it at www.mandgoa.com . Venancio can apply for a
Police medal or perhaps for some corporate award for excellence created
recently in Goa. He is doing a great job of arresting the people's
agitation. If he was in Mapusa sub-division, he might have detained Venita
for a longer period, for her own safety. He is a part of the "Aam admi"
sarkar. Arresting the aam admi is his job.
The Task Force approved bypass from Karaswada junction on NH-17 within the
Mapusa city limits to Sanquelim on the old NH-17 enroute to Usgao and
Dharbandora on NH-4A is ostensibly to connect Mopa airport to the
hinterland. One is supposed to swallow the stupidity, that the facilitation
of ore movement from Advalpal and Shirigao mines to Amona and Vagus jetties,
is only incidental. This is an issue that needs to go to the Gram Sabha
meetings in villages like Tivim, Revora, Nadora, Pirna, Advalpal, Assonora,
Bordem, Karapur, etc on the route. Are they ready for the 24 x 7 movement of
the trucks over-loaded with ore, the spillage and the dust? Do the people in
these villages know that they are sitting on a mine about to explode like a
'land mine' and displace them from their houses? There are all types of
pseudo activists and media agents telling them not to worry. The Goa
Government is not crazy to invest such huge amounts into infrastructure to
help a few Goans to reach home faster from Mopa airport, which is not even
going to be functional in the horizon year 2021. Besides, who in his right
mind would travel along a dusty mining road soon after a foreign jaunt by
air. Even our Montri Babu would not do that!
For the villagers, their land and their lifestyle are at stake; for some of
the accidental activists and pseudo activists it is an issue, vested or
otherwise. Therein lies the difference. I hope we do not have more activists
like a legal counsel, who suddenly withdrew from the chairmanship of a
"Flying Squad on 'hill cutting' violations" created on 06 January, 2007,
when hill cutting occurred in his land. Recently, he is reported to have
withdrawn as a legal counsel for someone who has been tagged as the "German
mother" as if she was some "Queen Mother". Help often comes from unexpected
quarters. Imagine, a tabloid's threat to expose [it never published the
story] saved a CSO from egg on its face! Media built up the hype on the rape
and assault to generate mass hysteria. The belated prudence of the
electronic and print media may perhaps be linked to the TRP booster that
will be the Pale constituency by-elections. In the meanwhile, four more
casinos were being licenced to operate in the river Mandovi with one more in
the offing. "Aag lai temkam!" muttered a villager from Malim, but it is
already too late for Molotov cocktails. It is time for flambé sizzlers and
white wine.
Whether it is mundane thing like leaving an empty mineral water bottle on
the beach instead of putting it in the bin or accidentally causing a fire by
throwing a glass bottle in the roadside grass, roaming semi-nude in town or
pushing drugs or soliciting customers for prostitution, tourism can be an
irresponsible act. Even burdening the local infrastructure like buses and
roads after paying almost everything in the country of origin with only
bed-n-breakfast paid to the local agent, is irresponsible tourism. So is
gambling in Goa when one cannot do it in one's state.
Mr. Raghunathan has cleared one confusion about Village Panchayats and the
power to do spatial planning. In the meanwhile, the Goa Government has
proposed Development Planning Regulations [DPRs] in which the F.A.Rs have
been increased to 250 for C1 Special zoning. "Far-ar FAR zatai rannan-tu.
Pakle martai Raneanku. Rane martai pakleanku" by the time you and I finish
singing the dulpod, a building would have come up beside us. There is
another casino waiting to sail in and more to set up in a hotel close to
you. Life is a gamble, baby, roll the dice and be done with it! (ENDS)
Miguel Braganza's column at:
http://www.goanet.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=482
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The above article appeared in the nOVEMBER 14, 2008 edition of Gomantak
Times, Goa
