Hi Augusto, Thanks for the interesting details of the new chief secretary of MP. Cheers. Joel.
On Wed, Oct 2, 2013 at 3:38 PM, augusto pinto <[email protected]> wrote: > In my last letter I made the unfortunate presumption that Anthony Campos de > Sa was not really a Goan. Given that I have it on good authority that he is > certainly one and a proud one at that I'd like to correct myself. > > The Chief Secretary of Madhya Pradesh is the grandson of Dr Antonio de Sa, > who was born and brought up in; and did his studies in medicine in Goa. > > From the year he left Goa (1899) to the year he died (1946), he and his > family came back to the ancestral house in Piedade, every year, and the > first thing that Dr Antonio apparently did while stepping on to the soil > of Divar each year was to pick up the mud and anoint his forehead with it > saying "Minha terra". > > It is a tradition which Dr Antonio's son (until his death in 1981) and > Anthony himself and, I am told Anthony's son Rohit maintain to this day > with pride. > > Anthony's father made it a point to bring his family every May to Goa > (whether by ship or by bus or by rail - and fifty years ago it was an > arduous journey of a thousand kilometers from Bhusaval to Piedade), and > further made it a point that they live in their ancestral village house > (and though it was a difficult time his mother had to open up a house that > had been shut for a year; but she did it willingly, because, after all, it > was - Goa!), notwithstanding the fact that it did not have electricity and > only sported a 'pig-toilet'. > > Those annual holidays in Goa, include bathing at the well and fishing in > the Mandovi estuary, were among his best childhood memories. His ancestral > house in Piedade is one of the oldest structures in Goa, the ground floor > dating back to the time when his family name was Kamat, and this house of > his ancestors is something that the de Sa's would never part with for > anything in the world for it represents their roots. > > In spite of Anthony's father himself being born and brought up outside of > Goa, both he, and his son (as soon as they completed 14 years) were > registered in Goltim (Divar) for their 'zonn'. > > Both of Anthony's parents have bequeathed to him and his sisters an abiding > love for and pride in their heritage. > > Anthony has stated somewhere,"The waters of the Mandovi and the Chapora are > mingled with the blood in my veins". > > Soon after his post-graduation from St Xavier's in Mumbai, Anthony was a > research fellow in the Heras Institute, and while preparing for his IAS > entrance exams also researched the history of Goa - under the supervision > of his cousin, Fr John Correia-Afonso, a scholar of international repute > and an authority on Goan history and culture. > > Practically every wedding in the de Sa family, including that of Anthony's > daughter, has been celebrated in Goa. > > Anthony is also a poet and a whole section of the poems he has composed are > dedicated to Goa, and a book of short stories that is soon to be published > are entirely located in Goa. > > In the Govt of India records his 'home state' is recorded as Goa and that > his mother tongue is recorded as Konkani. Although he admits he is not very > fluent in it (his wife, Malusha is fluent in both Salcete as well as Bardez > Konkani - even though she too has been born and brought up outside Goa, in > Mumbai), and they have consciously tried to familiarize their children with > the language of their heritage, even though, understandably they are more > fluent in Hindi. > > Like a good IAS-wallah he is equally proud of his native state as well as > devoted to his state cadre Madhya Pradesh. That apparently is the very > essence of an all-India Service, such as the IAS. > > I think we all agree that it is as presumptuous to assume that just because > a person is born and brought up outside of Goa, there would be a lack pf > pride in his or her roots, as it is erroneous to assume that every person > born and brought up in Goa is passionate about it. Being Goan is a state of > mind more than a mere geographical accident. > > My regrets for any offense caused > Sincerely > Augusto > -- > > > Augusto Pinto > 40, Novo Portugal > Moira, Bardez > Goa, India > E [email protected] > P 0832-2470336 > M 9881126350 >
