Even as the curtains dropped on the DefExpo 2016 after the much-hyped fanfare and show of defence equipment for the first time in Goa, people living in the villages surrounding the expo site at Quitol in South Goa are adamant that the site of exhibition should not be made a permanent one. Local villagers, supported by their elected MLA, made their point peacefully by standing on the roadside and waving black flags and holding placards asserting their dissent to any declaration of Quitol as a permanent venue for the DefExpo in the future. Meetings, organised between the government officials and the protesting villagers, did not lead to any change of mind.
The slogans raised by means of placards and black flags waved gave the delegates, guests and organisers points to ponder and discuss during the event. Quitol may be an open plateau, but in the future it will be almost next to impossible for the government to host any mega event there if it does not have the consensus of the residents of the neighbouring villagers prior to the announcement of the event. The misery for the villagers was accentuated by the sudden acute shortage of water and the abundance of garbage which they claim was due to the DefExpo. This ‘use and throw’ attitude at the expo site infuriated the already fuming villagers further and they lost no time in lodging their protest against the hosting of this expo before and even during the four-day event which registered a footfall of over two lakh visitors.
The expo too had its flaws. Even though the structure which hosted the stalls representing 47 different nations looked impressive, the finishing touches left much to be desired and gave the impression that the structure had been completed in a rush. This gave delegates the opportunity to discuss and compare the facilities made available to them in the past at the Pragati Maidan in New Delhi and here in Quitol at Goa. The 2016 host didn’t come out in shining colours here. Also, though this massive show left a good impact on those who attended it, there were various issues raised by the participating delegates. The primary among these is the distance of the venue from the capital city Panjim and the narrow roads leading to it. Also, delegates found the venue too secluded, at a distance from any decent hotels, hospitals and restaurants, and any networking and business had to be done in the space provided at the venue. There was no space they could step out to, except under the blazing sun.
To top the woes further, cell phone connectivity and data availability was a sort of luxury as one had to be in the radar to get the elusive signals. Delegates also felt the need of a golf cart inside the venue as covering nearly ten halls on foot was an uncalled for exercise in the heat of not-up-to-the mark air conditioning of the halls. Exorbitantly priced food and beverages sold in the complex came as a further dampner to the delegates and media persons.
The positives which emerged out of this mega event was the smooth parking facilities to ferry the delegates, something appreciated by almost all delegates. In case the event is repeated in the future, and that too only after arriving at a consensus by the villagers, it may also provide opportunities for nearby residents to open temporary stalls of food, artifacts items for the visitors, delegates and their staff. Hosting such massive event comes rarely in Goa. An overall impression was established that the State did a fairly commendable job but it needs to plan much ahead of the event to ensure that the minor details are looked into and properly sorted out well in advance and the people taken into confidence.
