Reliable public transport needed
I highly commend and laud the individual who recently penned down this article titled ‘A call for dignified and reliable public transport’ dated 14 August 2024. As a commuter myself – I have first-hand witnessed the terrible experience of being pushed from all angles as the private bus conductors look to fill in their respective vehicles to the maximum. It is done with no foresight on the consequences or the unforeseen happenings that could very well occur given the insufficient space in the first instance. This is a clarion call that needs to be paid heed to given the influx of tourists, in particular domestic tourists to Goa from all across the country. As one of the prime tourism hubs in the country, it is shocking to note that the state does not invest its public expenditure into making the necessary enhancements to improve this vital conduit of our state’s economy.
To add to it, we are currently in a situation where we have lost the major chunk of quality international tourists and charters we once had a long time ago.
This is all part and parcel of the state’s incessant spending on EDMs, discos, Sunburn festivals to name a few examples. Improving public transport requires collaboration with both private and public sector to ensure that it creates a ‘win-win’ situation for all – however it would go a long way to enhancing the state’s reputation and hopefully bringing back the quality tourists we once had.
Bryce D’Souza, Sharjah, UAE
Women are no longer safe
As we celebrate Independence Day, women in our country are struggling to keep themselves safe. Every day a woman is either raped, sexually assaulted, molested, physically abused, attacked with acid and even murdered.
The latest case of the Kolkata doctor’s rape and murder proves that we aren’t safe.
A doctor who worked day and night to save lives ended up being murdered. A daughter who studied to become a doctor and make her parents proud is now dead for no fault of hers.
She didn’t know what was going to happen and all she wanted was to rest for a few hours after doing a tiring night shift.
Rapists will roam around freely as they have no fear of the law. Until our country doesn’t start taking this matter seriously, our women will never be safe.
Reena Maria, Divar
Government offices and stray dog menace
It appears that even the court premises are not free from the stray dog menace. It is learnt that the Judge in an urgent appeal to the Margao Municipal Council (MMC) has highlighted the issue of stray dogs roaming freely within the Civil and Criminal Court premises at Margao.
This has been causing considerable distress to advocates, litigants and court staff. It must be said that when several stray dogs move about in a pack that is when they are most dangerous. They move about looking for something to eat from garbage bins. If they do not find any food, they attack people and little children are most vulnerable. The concerned authorities need to take necessary steps to control the stray dog population. These dogs roaming on the streets should be picked up by the civic bodies and kept in the dog shelter.
They also need to be sterilized in order to control the dog population. If a stray dog is a rabid dog then a dog bite could prove fatal. It is the duty of the civic body to make the area around government offices including court premises, government hospitals and Primary Health Centers (PHCs) free from stray dog menace. These are the places that are most often visited by the citizens besides the market places. Those who visit these premises housing government offices should not end up with a dog-bite which could even prove fatal if the dog is rabid.
Adelmo Fernandes, Vasco
SC verdict on bail hailed
Recently, the Supreme Court has ruled that courts cannot decline bail, even under the special anti-terror law UAPA, and other offences, once the accused satisfies his prima facie innocence.
Such a ruling might have saved the life of Fr Stan Swami. Now, the question is whether this ruling would be applied to Umar Khalid, who had still been languishing in jail after his arrest under the UAPA, in connection with the Delhi riots on September 14, 2020. His bail plea has repeatedly been adjourned, and he has been waiting for justice since then.
A documentary, “Prisoner No. 626710 is Present”, on him has shown his controversial speech in Maharashtra in 2020 in its entirety. It is reported that he urged the people in that speech to use Gandhian means to oppose the new citizenship laws, which sparked fears of disenfranchisement. If it is true, then it means that Mahatma Gandhi could have faced the UAPA had he still been alive.
Sujit De, Kolkata
