Yes, its unfotunate that I had not a too good an experience with a Goan
maid. . Could be I don't speak Konkani. Some will say, how come you are a
Goan and don't speak it. I was never brought up in Goa, but in North India.
My parents never believed in getting domestic staff from Goa, like most
Goans have in Bombay, but to engage local staff, like cooks, maids,
gardners, etc. Maybe because I speak Hindi fluently, the North-Indian and
not the Bombay Hindi which is kanda-batata instead of alloo-piaz, and also
understand Bengali and Gujarati.
If I was not a true Goan with a Bengali husband I would never settle in
Goa, probably buy a place in one of the Southern hills stations like Conoor,
Kotagari, etc. But because I'm passionate about Goa that we bought this
place, and so was my late husband. From childhood, we used to come all the
way from Punjab or Jammu to goa for holidays, prior to 1961. My father being
in the Army would get special permission. He wanted us to love Goa and
always instilled in us that 'our roots were in goa'. That is why my two
brothers and myself have settled in goa.
Some of my women friends are foreigners married to Indians and they simply
love Goa. They have settled in Goa, because they love the place, like the
people and have integrated into the Goan Society. They keep on asking me
'why don't Goans want to come back to goa',. Maybe the grass is greener on
the other side.
Yes, we can employ goan staff, but do they keep to timings. No.
A friend's husband came 10 years ago to set up a company in Goa. His first
preference was to employ Goans, but he found they were not as qualified as
some of the non-Goans.
Don't blame the migrant labourers for the filth and garbage, blame the
builders who bring them. Blame the goans/non-goans who occupy a flat in a
building for one month of the year. Look at the strain on the
infrastructer.
My German friend lives in Calangute. She is the only occupant in her
building 24x7, the rest come, for say, a week in a year.
Some of us Goans are doing something for Goa, maybe for environment, some
for heritage, some for traffic control etc. If one looks around, yes there
are people who are working for the good of Goa.
Ana Maria de Souza-Goswami
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