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MARG is "Movement for Amity towards Roads in Goa". MARG will one day go out of
Goa and become "Movement for Amity towards Roads in General". Not only Goa, but
also India needs MARG. And MARG is not for traffic only. MARG is for,
besides traffic, for cleanliness, non-pollution, beautification and worthy
behaviour on roads. That makes "MARG's panchsheel",
means five principles. MARG calls it road culture. Sunderlal Bahuguna of
Chipko fame cares about trees; Maneka Gandhi takes care of animals; here Goans
love roads.
All want roads for cars. MARG firstly wants roads for people to walk. Who
created the road? We walked and there was the road. We call it paem-vatt . Now
cars have come and have taken possession of roads. Car has become the queen of
the road. Car has made all diabetics. This is not to be tolerated. Car needs
to be shown its way. First give me my paem-vatt and then give the car a road.
My house is "I" and my road is "we". When we say "love thy road", we say make
friend with who is on the road. Respect the road and the road user.
And the road is secular. Half the population in India has made road its abode.
The road will never ask you whether you are a Hindu or Muslim or Christian. Or
for that matter, whether you are poor or rich. There is none more generous
than the road. Now to whom does the road belong? Does it belong to your
father, the law breaker will ask you. And you will not dare to say "Yes, it
belongs to my father," or "I am the father / mother of the road."
Now henceonward Goans will say, we will own the road and teach India what road
is.
This is a gift that Goa can offer India. Has Goa nothing to give to India? Do
we have nothing to export? During Portuguese times we lived on imported goods.
Even rice and potatoes. Now we are importing lecurers from outside Goa and
spending lakhs of rupees on this. There is body pleasure in listening to a
good lecture. Do you mean to say that we have nobody to go out and give a good
lecture or thought? No one will invite a Goan to Mumbai, or Delhi or Belgaum
for that matter.
Goans do not want to act, They love siesta and gossip! They love to sing "Mhaka
Saiba vatt kollonna; mhaka Saiba Vatt dakhoi!" The prophets of doom say, the
day is not far away when there will be Goa, but there will be no Goan in Goa!
No negative thought. We say be a MARG mogi and strengthen citizenship.
Say"Mhaka Saiba vatt kolltta!" Thank you.
Gurunath Kelekar.
