On many occasions having had the opportunity to travel by the airport taxis, I have come across many drivers, who sometimes are employed while others have been in this business for the last 40 to 50 years owning three/four vehicles. They have been staying in Vasco, Calangute, Birla; their children studying at St Andrews, St Theresa while they themselves have been ex-students!
In the last assembly sessions a lot was discussed, proposed and bill passed. One of the bills that caught attention was the Goa Change of Name and Surname Amendment Bill, 2019, which gives a criterion for change of name as follows: Name can be changed if it is wrong; if it is an improper entry; correction of spelling or to make correct version; if it is unpleasant or distasteful; if erroneously written – under the ‘The Goa Change of Name and Surname (Amendment) Bill, 2019.
The Legislation to determine Goan Origin the Chief Minister says “who is the original Goan, whether the one who is born in Goa, or has 15 to 25 years domicile or whose parents, grandparents are of Goan origin. And that we will have to determine this first and then bring in the legislation”.
So, as mentioned above, …who has been staying in Goa for more than 40 years, in this situation the question of 15 to 25 years domicile does it make any difference? Will this legislation solve the issue when their roots have already been rooted? When they have been staying here for half a century? Can the legislation be strictly written as one whose parents are born before Dec 19, 1961? And who could be held responsible for the increase in the influx of the migrants?
Who is a Goan – one whose grandparents and parents born before 1961 could be called the real Goan or of Goan origin. For it was on Dec19, 1961 that Goa got freedom from the Portuguese Rule. So, the increased influx of migrants that have over the years from 4 lakhs people to over 15 lakhs; who are all these, their origins? Just because their parents came in search of jobs and had children and now are residents for over 30 years do we call them Goans? Does change in surnames give one the Goan identity?
Man was not created to be alone! We are all dependent, independent and interdependent beings. We need not forget these basic essentials. This does not mean that we sell our credentials and lose our identity to the extent that one day we may have no place of our own! We have been witnessing the migrants enjoying the Goan perks as we even find them as members of the Panchayats! In a colony when the population out does the locals why should a non-Goan be given a ticket to contest? There should also be rules about who should be given a ticket to contest.
No one has seen tomorrow. As heard and seen a lot of issues with regard to the concept of the word ‘Ghanti’. The real meaning of the word ‘Ghanti’ is those who came from the ghats we referred to as. And not a word to degrade or of less importance!
It’s high time that those representatives whom the people have elected on their behalf take responsibility of the Goan origin issue and take stringent action before we become foreigners in our own land! So plan, speak and act.
