It was heart-breaking to read the news story of our Agriculture Minister and Father of Goenkarponn tell Goan farmers to grow vegetables for export. Is this real? Is this the new version of Goenkarponn?
Our fruit and vegetables coming from outside the State are full of chemicals and preservatives (naturally as they come from afar) and worse, the FDA does not have the necessary manpower to make comprehensive check-ups and so vendors and importers of this dangerous trade are enjoying a celebratory occasion, every day.
Does the minister expect Goan consumers to eat and enjoy this poisonous food – fruit and vegetables – while our own Goan farmers are encouraged to export healthy fruit and vegetables to countries all over the world for the good health of the whole world except the people who live in Goa? This policy is not putting Goans first; it is putting Goans last! Is this an index of our elective members’ capability and agenda? Is this the new Goenkarponn?
The outside traders will be able to increase their market share of fruits and vegetables, but for whose benefit? If not for the Goan consumer, then for whom? Would the Agriculture Minister please clarify this to the Goan consumers?
Doesn’t the minister want Goans to eat healthy food and not food laced with all kinds of chemicals since it is necessary as it comes from great distances, and even as far away as Thailand? Is the government playing with the lives of Goans? We want clear and convincing answers and not some mumbo-jumbo which we often hear on TV debates.
Government policies do not appear to favour local Goans. Are Goans expected to accept suicidal policies of the government or simply have to pack up and go abroad which some people in Goa find extremely amusing? Is this the new Goenkarponn?
Not only have Goans not recovered from the formalin scare, our Agriculture Minister wastes no time in adding insult to injury. The much-hyped market in Margao and the wholesale market in Fatorda often appear empty with Goans checking out the fish as though there is a bomb hidden somewhere which is likely to explode. The government is going to have a hard time in bringing back a little trust before the Goan consumer will be able to trust it again. When the lives of people are in danger it is a bigger challenge than a 5-yr old master plan.
Meanwhile, a lot of fish is now being sold in the villages along the coasts as people are showing an eagerness to buy fish from local fisherfolks, people whom they can trust, people whose faces are recognisable and familiar to them. People feel safe to buy fresh fish from people who live in their own villages. This is an example of Goans becoming the architects of their own Goa, solving problems through their own efforts and initiatives – the new Goa which is beyond idiotic and mind-numbing slogans, and shameless behaviour.
The mood is spreading fast. Goans first, for a new Goa.
