*By Nisser Dias 8th Aug 2013* * *
*Panchayat gram sabhas have become Sunday entertainment for villagers* Over the years now panchayat gram sabhas seems to have become sparring arenas for those wanting to object to developmental project coming in the villages. Over period of time now the very essence of gram sabha is being lost as most of the villagers attend it to oppose development, but when a good proposal is placed before them they immediately shy away from being a member or part of the programme. Thus to my mind gram sabhas of today have become sort of Sunday entertainment for fly-by-night activists and gossip mongers. A classic example of such a gram sabha unfolded last Sunday in the village of Nuvem. One of members questioned the sarpanch over construction of a building for a new school. I would give villagers or gram sabhas members some leeway for objecting to setting up this school because being unaided school it would be charging exorbitant fees which would be out of reach of most of the parents in the nearby areas including Nuvem. Of course the Education department has allowed commercialization of education in the state and the result is industrialists and businessmen have invested money in elementary education and are reaping in huge profits part of which is channelized into the accounts of ministers and officials of the education department. To so extent I would justify stopping managements of private schools setting-up in villages as it would be a step towards curbing exploitation of parents under the guise of quality education. How these institutions function is another matter. The sarpanch explained to the members that the panchayat could not revoke the NOC as the promoters had all the requisite permissions. But when the sarpanch moved a proposal to constitute a traffic management committee of six villagers there were no takers. Over and above the gram sabha members demanded to know why such committee was required when RTO and traffic police are managing the vehicular movement. This either indicates the ignorance of the members or their blindness or care a damn attitude. I say this because not a day passes without a traffic jam at Nuvem. Every morning by 8.00am traffic jam at Nuvem junction is a common feature despite the fact that traffic cops are stationed there. The flow of traffic is so dense as the national highway passes through the village that it is impossible for two traffic cops to manage it. So also the traffic cell cannot deploy more men there as they would fall short elsewhere. Hence there is an urgent need for villagers to help the police to manage the traffic during peak hours and during festivities The situation is precipitated during the Nuvem feast when lots of cars are parked on either side of the highway and also on the Majorda-Nuvem road. The 10 day saga of people visiting the fair is terrible. I was in the KTC bus one day travelling to Margao from Panjim and it took 45 long minutes from the Nuvem cementary to KTC bus-stand in Margao. I can imagine the ordeal of daily commuters returning home from work Because of this nightmare Nuvem traffic management committee was required to be constituted. Of course they would have to undergo traffic management training from the police or other agencies. It would also set a precedent of civilian coming forward for such a programme and encourage others to take-up such activities. It would also send a message that any Goan irrespective of caste, creed or religion can take up the spade when the situation demands, but no, at Nuvem gram sabha we proved once again that Goans have a fat ego meant only to give orders to non-Goans and then call them ‘ghantis’, attend public meetings and give lectures, talks and suggestions of things to be done and needs to be accomplished but getting their hands dirty is something they cannot do or will not do. Another issue that was rejected by Nuvem gram sabha was the proposal of the garbage contractor to use panchayat garbage treatment plant premise to sort, segregate and treat garbage. It is simply unbelievable that the villagers refused to allow garbage to be treated at an area designated for the purpose. Question is where should the garbage contractor treat it? Should he take the garbage generated in Nuvem to another village for its disposal? This line of thinking is completely out of sync and cannot be digested. But then Goans have a bad habit of flinging our dirt over the wall into the neighbour’s compound and now the villagers of Nuvem are endorsing this habit as a tradition. Nuvem villagers should have realised that having a designated space for garbage treatment is an asset which many villages lack. The panchayat should work towards setting-up a treatment plant to scientifically treat their garbage. This would be an example for other villages. But no the villagers have rejected the proposal of the garbage collector but not given a solution to the issue. What I’m trying point out is that gram sabhas on Sundays have become sparring arenas where fly-by-night activists or blackmailers raise issues or object to genuine proposal or development but do not provide solution. We talk about promoting Panchayati Raj in Goa where the common man or rather the villager has a say in the development of his village. Over the years we have been only hearing of objection to development but no solution to the issue. What needs to be put in practice is whoever wants to raise objection to any proposal should also be made to suggest solution. If the individual or a group of individuals cannot provide solution then their objection should not be given importance. This would also endorse the very purpose of gram sabhas wherein discussions are held not only to object but to find solutions to develop the village. But at the moment purpose of gram sabhas are moving in the opposite direction and that is reason we hear about villagers indulging in fisticuffs or name calling or heated exchanges forcing the presiding officers to adjourn the gram sabhas. *Send your comments/reactions to **nisserd...@gmail.com*<nisserd...@gmail.com> * Or SMS 9422437029)* -- Nisser