One would get the idea of what must have actually happened when there is such a notable difference in opinions regarding the employment given to Pernem locals at the newly inaugurated Manohar International Airport. It is evident that the new Airport has failed to keep up with the expectations of Pednekars from the way Pernem MLA Pravin Arlekar and Mandrem MLA Jeet Arolkar were asking questions in the Assembly. The Government could have properly planned the employment before the completion of the project. Also, it is not like that there has been a shift in the power in the State. BJP has been ruling Goa since 2012 and when the same party fails to come up with concrete plans despite governing for eleven straight years, it gives out a message that the Government is not serious enough about public welfare. The date of inauguration of the Airport was decided when the foundation stone was laid. In the meanwhile, the authorities in fact got more time as there was a delay in construction of the project after Rainbow Warriors filed a petition in the Supreme Court over environmental clearance. But alas, the Government did not take that opportunity either. There was also no sign of the overhyped pre-employment training centre. When all of this is calculated, it becomes clear how seriously the Government has thought about this issue. At the same time one cannot forget that as peoples’ representatives, both the MLAs from Pernem should have shouldered some responsibility. Pernem MLA is the ruling party’s own while the Mandrem MLA is from the MGP party which has declared its support for BJP. So it is a question as to whom the locals should be looking upto when the Pernem MLAs themselves belong to the ruling party. As per the meeting held by Airport’s steering committee in 2018, it was decided that the first preference for employment would be given to people from project affected villages followed by people of Pernem and then other Goans. Now, it is another question whether the decision has been complied with. In fact, it is doubtful whether the officials except few would even know about such a decision being taken in the meeting of the steering committee. Airport is not a new thing for the State. With Dabolim Airport being run in the State for decades, it was very much possible to carry out a study to know what kind of employment can be generated at the airport. It would have been relatively easy to handle this issue if the Government had made a plan about direct and indirect employment. Sometime back it was also being said that the Airport at Mopa would become a cargo hub but the Government has never discussed what would be the employment capacity of that sector. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the Government in this regard only acted as a spectator. Yes, to say they did give some people jobs but that too in the last phase. One cannot ignore the accusation made in the Assembly that most of these were contract-based jobs and the term for them has already ended. It was possible for the Government to do a village-wise survey to collect the information of youths aspiring to work. The planning should have been done keeping in mind the sort of skilled manpower and training that is required to work at the airport. The process should have been carried out in phases such as practical training and at the end, assigning the work. It was also possible for the Government to enquire what kind of manpower the companies providing other services at the airport require. The airline companies require massive manpower at the airport who are supposed to be highly trained. The Government could have taken the initiative to do this themselves as the Aviation Ministry is a government body. Now, there will be entertainment and storage sectors which will be developed here and there is still confusion about the transport sector. This demands manpower and it is still very much possible for the Government to make it available. The Government cannot turn a blind eye when youngsters are pinning hope on their political leaders to get justice. A positive step can be life-changing for Pernem locals and if they do not take it now, the whole debate around employment will turn out to be a mirage for Pednekars.
