Enjoyed your post Bernardo. Well thought out and written, not to mention realistic. Roland. Toronto. Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network. Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.
-----Original Message----- From: "Bernardo de Sousa" <[email protected]> Sender: [email protected]: Sat, 25 Feb 2012 13:37:22 To: <[email protected]> Reply-To: "Goa's premiere mailing list, estb. 1994!" <[email protected]> Subject: [Goanet] In the aftermath of the Calvim tragedy Please post on Goanet, thanks, Bernardo In the aftermath of the Calvim tragedy. The tragic loss of innocent lives in the bus accident on 18th February is deeply saddening, not only as a Goan but even more so as an Aldoncar. I was born and grew up in Cottarbhat but I discovered some months ago when analyzing documents from the period 1595-1605 that my ancestors were not as I originally thought from Quitula, where the ancestral house is located, but from Calvim or Kaluve, as the location was then called. Consequently, this tragedy becomes a personal loss and has upset me even more because it affects a place where my ancestors lived, prospered and died in the 14th and 15th century. I have been reading all accessible information, some of which is contradictory, in order to try to understand what really happened. For example, the driver of the ill-fated bus claims that the brakes of the bus failed whereas the RTO inspection headed by S P Kamat has ruled out that possibility. I believe that the cause of the accident now appears to have been elucidated. When I took driving classes in Switzerland in the late sixties or early seventies, I was specifically taught that it is illegal to shut off the car engine whilst driving except when one is caught in a traffic jam or when stopping at traffic lights. On a slope, we were instructed to shift to a lower gear to capitalize on the engine braking and avoid using the brake pedal excessively thereby preventing overheating of the brakes and an ensuing brake failure. This rule is applied in all European countries that I am aware of. I found the following on the internet written by J. Angelo Racoma: "Some drivers I know coast along the road in neutral whenever they're slowing down, or when going downhill. This is mostly done to conserve fuel. However, coasting may not necessarily be safe. This term describes a vehicle travelling in neutral or with the clutch pressed down. Do not coast, whatever the driving conditions. It reduces driver control because * engine braking is eliminated * vehicle speed downhill will increase quickly * increased use of the footbrake can reduce its effectiveness * steering response will be affected particularly on bends and corners * it may be more difficult to select the appropriate gear when needed. - <http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk/09.htm> UK Highway Code" The problem is obviously compounded when the engine is shut off completely. When visiting Goa, I have noticed time and again that both taxis as well as private cars follow this highly dangerous practice of coasting with the car engine switched off and the gear shift on neutral. According to the press, the police said that the driver Rajesh Naik has admitted "to switching off the engine of the bus and hence lost control over it when its brakes failed.". I think that at the time he switched off the engine, he must have been driving at quite a high speed as well. In addition to turning off the engine and, I assume, moving the gear shift to neutral, the front tyres were completely worn out, creating a situation that would warm the heart of many a skier on an alpine slope. I have personally been told by a professional taxi driver in Goa that he borrows tyres with adequate tread depths before a car inspection and reverts to the worn out ones once the inspection has been successfully completed. The RTO and everyone are aware of this but the practice is obviously tolerated. When he realized that he was losing control of the vehicle, the best solution would have been to turn on the engine, shift to the lowest gear and then apply the foot brake. Another, albeit more desperate option, would have been to steer to the left or right, as JoeGoa has suggested but the steering response may have been compromised (see above). Panic-stricken with the ever increasing acceleration of the bus and following their survival instincts, the conductor and the driver chose to jump off the bus abandoning the innocent and hapless passengers inside. The rest is tragic history. That the RTO would find the brakes to be in good condition does not surprise me. Any other conclusion would have begged the question as to how the bus had passed the inspection and that in turn would have raised the well-known but taboo topic of bribery. Let me now fast track to 18th February 2015, exactly three years after this tragedy, and based on past experience, try to visualize a fictitious but possible/plausible scenario: The driver of the bus was produced in court where his lawyer claimed he was temporarily insane. After all, no one can think properly when panic-stricken. Furthermore, he was just following current driving practice when he switched off the engine and it cannot therefore be considered as rash or negligent. Didn't the North Goa disaster management chief and North Goa collector Mihir Vardhan state that this was just a "freak accident"? Everyone knows that freak means abnormal, unpredictable, fortuitous, bizarre, aberrant. The worn out tyres must have been within the norm or else the bus would not have passed the RTO inspection; no proof of any tyre manipulation could be found. And looking at the judge straight in the eye, the defense lawyer asked "Would you have reacted differently?" The strong bus-owners lobby had recommended a highly experienced and skilled defense lawyer and after having supported the Congress party in the 2012 elections, the politicians viewed the plight of this poor driver with greatest sympathy. The judge concurred with all the clever arguments put forward by the defense lawyer; the defendant was found to be non-guilty except for a minor misdemeanor and since he had already spent 5 days in jail, the case was closed to the great satisfaction of the bus-owners association, the congress party politicians, the RTO, since no claims of bribery had surfaced until then, and last but by no means least, the defendant himself. They are all pleased that nothing has changed, life is good for them. The defendant is today a successful businessman and owns a bus fleet and his drivers are instructed to conserve fuel by turning off the engine at every opportunity. The new Calvim bridge connecting this ward to Carona has been inaugurated. Dignitaries from Delhi, Goa's VIP's, Bollywood filmstars, and even Hollywood filmstars attended the event and feasted on champagne and oysters. This is only fitting because according to Prof. Nandkumar Kamat, Calvim or Kaluve is derived from Kalvam, oysters in the language we all love. Police cordoned off the area, locals could watch the proceedings from the hill, roughly from where the ill-fated bus three years ago went hurtling down towards the river. There has been an avalanche of messages addressed to Goa's Chief Minister, the PWD minister and Aldona's MLA, congratulating them for the fabulous inauguration. Some guests who had already participated in the inauguration of the Corjuem bridge remarked that the Calvim party had been far, far superior. The Aldona MLA Narvekar had stated in 2012 that 30 crores had been earmarked for the bridge, the current Aldona MLA doubled that figure: with inflation and increase in prices of raw materials and labour, the bridge finally cost 60 crores. The actual price of the construction was around 15 crores, so there was enough remaining to share between all the interested parties as well as for the inaugural bash. And since at 15 crores, quality materials could not be used, the politicians expected cracks to develop in 5 years or so; this is beneficial because future generations of construction companies and politicians will also be able to benefit from the contracts for repair work and - who knows - even a new bridge may be commissioned. By applying strong pressure on both of Aldona's comunidades, common property belonging to the comunidades was made available not only for the bridge but also for a beautiful housing complex with a magnificent view and Goa's most luxurious swimming pool, gated community and all. There are rumours that in addition to Russians and Israelis, Japanese and Chinese have also acquired some units. The politicians and construction companies are delighted that nothing has changed; in fact, things have improved substantially, life is good, really good, who can complain under these circumstances? Today, 3 years since the tragic bus accident, the parents of Diana and Elvina kneel by their children's grave at the Aldona cemetery. They tell their babies, their angels, how they remember with nostalgia the wonderful times they spent together and that not a day goes by when they think of them. And they also say a prayer for their aunt Josephine. Nigel's parents also do exactly the same thing; they also miss their baby terribly and pray for their little darling. The family of Dayanand Hoble went to the temple and paid their respects and prayed to their deity. The mother of Priyal also went to the temple, prayed and wept, she asked God why after losing her husband, she also had to lose her most precious being on earth, her only child. And they all thought that nothing has really changed; another sub-standard bus now transports the kids from school to Calvim, their babies, their angels died in vain. ______________________________________________________________ No power on earth can remove the grief of the parents, families and friends who have lost their loved ones and I grieve along with them. Whether the rest of the fictitious scenario described above becomes reality is entirely in the hands of Goa's voters. They can choose to vote with their conscience to save whatever can yet be saved of Goa or instead vote with their wallets keeping their own personal selfish interests in mind. If as a result of this post, if even one single Goan voter chooses to vote for a clean candidate, my objective will have been met. Please remember: "Every country has the government it deserves." (Joseph Marie de Maistre, 1811). I believe Goa and Goans deserve better than what they have chosen up to now. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Protect Goa's natural beauty Support Goa's first Tiger Reserve Sign the petition at: http://www.goanet.org/petition/petition.php --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Protect Goa's natural beauty Support Goa's first Tiger Reserve Sign the petition at: http://www.goanet.org/petition/petition.php ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
