SUNDAY, MAY 05, 2024
‘Vauraddeancho Ixtt’ came into existence in the city of Margao at the hands of late Fr Joao Francis Fernandes, who was the editor of the weekly. Late Fr Arsenio Lucio Fernandes was its manager. The first edition of the Roman Konkani weekly came to light on December 20, 1933. And since then, it has catered to the needs of the Goan community through news ranging from politics, religion, social issues, sports and entertainment.
Through thick and thin, late Fr Joao and late Fr Arsenio worked tirelessly for the survival of ‘Vauraddeancho Ixtt’. Sharing responsibility with each other, they worked unitedly for almost ten years with the encouragement provided by the then Archbishop of Goa, Dom Jose Costa Nunes.
Unable to take on the responsibility any longer, the Konkani weekly was taken to Rachol Seminary in 1940. With the assistance of late Fr Joao and late Fr Arsenio, Fr Gracian Morais shouldered the responsibility as its editor and carried forward its edition.
With the publication and printing from the Rachol Seminary, financial constraints came in and the three priests found it difficult to stand the production and circulation cost of the weekly. Taking note of the growth of the Society of Pilar, Archbishop Nunes decided to hand it over to the Pilar Fathers.
The only Konkani weekly ‘Vauraddeancho Ixtt’ was handed over to the Society of Pilar in 1944. In 1961, the weekly was suspended for three months and re-started in November 1961.
With regards to closure of the Konkani weekly for three months, the present editor of ‘Vauraddeancho Ixtt’, Br Eusebio Miranda informed that there was a genuine reason for the suspension of the weekly then by the then Governor of Goa, Vassalo e Silva. “During that period,” he shares, “the Catholic weekly was supporting the then freedom fighters. And before the paper went for printing every week, it was censored by the government officials. Anything of distaste was asked to be removed and replaced by other news.”
“Late Br Henry D’Souza and late Sebastiao Barneto would carry the weekly to the officials for scrutiny every week,” Br Miranda informs, “they faced many hardships for the survival of the weekly, but it was all for the love of the Konkani language.”
After the Konkani weekly was brought to Pilar, those priests who worked tirelessly as editors included late Fr Conceicao Rodrigues, late Fr Jerome Pereira, late Fr Lactancio Almeida, Fr Lino Florindo, Fr Sergio Mascarenhas, Fr Kyriel D’Souza, Fr Andrew Fernandes, late Fr Peter Raposo, Fr Ubaldo Fernandes, Fr Feroz Fernandes and Fr Eusebio Gomes.
Over the years the Konkani weekly ‘Vauraddeancho Ixtt’ had around 9,000 subscribers, in Goa, India and abroad. But due to the pandemic, for the past two and half years the issues sent across by mail started returning from Mumbai and consequently around 90 subscriptions overseas had to be stopped.
With regards to hurdles faced in publication, print and circulation of ‘Vauraddeancho Ixtt’, Br Miranda says that there are no advertisements for the oldest and largest circulating weekly. “Apart from advertisements, be it from the government or private parties, the regular subscribers fail to renew their subscriptions annually,” he says.
“Earlier we would get advertisements from the government, especially on festive occasions like Ganesh Chaturthi, Diwali, Christmas, and it would help to bear the cost of the printing and other expenses,” reveals Br Miranda. “But for the past ten years, the advertisements from the government side has stopped drastically and we are at a loss,” he added.
“The intention of the Society of Pilar to run this Catholic weekly till date is basically to propagate Good News to the people,” the editor of the weekly informs, “And with that sole aim in mind the Society had accepted it in the initial stage.”
Soon after the Konkani weekly ‘Vauraddeancho Ixtt’ came to Pilar, the Xavieran Press came into existence on the Pilar hillock in 1962. “Earlier the weekly was run from the Pilar Monastery,” he reveals.
The Xavieran Press was inaugurated in 1963 by the then Prime Minister of India, late Jawaharlal Nehru. And today the Xavieran Press caters to the printing needs of the people as well, besides printing work carried out of the schools and colleges in the vicinity.
The yearly subscription of the weekly is merely Rs 250, “yet we fail to get enough subscribers. And those existing over the years fail to renew their annual subscription,” Br Miranda says.
“Apart from advertisements, if we get enough readers through subscriptions, then it will help in the growth of the weekly,” Br Miranda said. “If we truly care for the Konkani language, then it needs to be expressed in action. And that is possible only when readers will subscribe for this age-old Konkani weekly,” he says.
“There are tiatrs being staged practically every day in the villages and cities,” the editor says, “but none of the tiatr directors give it a thought of advertising on ‘Vauraddeancho Ixtt’, the only Konkani weekly still existing in Goa. “If that was made possible, then financial constraints would be curtailed,” he adds.
