Are CCP coffers full or empty?
On March 20, the City of Panjim which includes Ribandar will elect 30 new Corporators. Under the current leadership at the CCP, Goa’s capital City has only further miserably decayed. Panjim’s infrastructure is crumbling, the solution to the garbage crisis is nowhere in sight while increasing number of stray dogs and cattle has remained unattended.
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The poor state of the roads and traffic chaos is a constant reminder of the failure and incompetence of a CCP which has failed to punish those involved in that long pending infamous multi crore Panjim market scam. On the pathetic state of the market less said the better. The CCP has only merrily been giving licences for new high rise buildings, but the problems, that blight the once beautiful city of Panjim continues to fester and just get worse.
The Smart City promise is yet another reverie and just one more window of opportunity for the self-serving and greedy ruling politicians. The irony is that when in opposition the current politicians now in the ruling party expressed grave concerns about the Smart City concept and its lack of transparency, but now when in power and having a duty to make good that promise, they are conveniently turning a blind eye after now possibly dipping their hands in the till.
At the Panchayat level, the gram sabhas enable the public to question and monitor the actions and misdeeds of their elected representatives. But at the Corporation of City of Panaji and the other municipal councils there is no such mechanism in place to give the public a forum to seek accountability. The CCP meetings may be open to the public but this is meaningless as the citizens cannot participate in the proceedings.
The thrust ahead should be towards Zero tolerance to Corruption and Nepotism at the CCP. Every citizen is entitled to transparency and accountability in respect of every paisa spent from the coffers. The fact that the CCP coffers are empty instead of overflowing is worrying and a matter of concern, warranting accountability.
Aires Rodrigues, Ribandar
Punish those alighting from moving train
A video that has gone viral on Social Media shows how a Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel saved the life of a man at Vasco Railway Station after he slipped while boarding a moving train. The Ministry of Railways also shared the CCTV footage of the incident on micro blogging platform Twitter and requested passengers to refrain from making attempts to board or get off a moving train.
The RPF personnel needs to be felicitated for the brave act and could also be considered for a promotion by the employers. However, it must be said that passengers getting on and off a moving train is a common occurrence in India. In the same video one can see a man getting off the train seconds before the incident occurred. It must be said that the passenger could be saved because it was the last door of the coach and the gap between the two coaches helped the braveheart pull out the man in time.
The passenger must consider himself lucky for not being crushed under the wheels of the moving train. Be that as it may, boarding or getting off a moving train needs to be made punishable by law. Under normal circumstances, boarding a moving train is not a crime. It becomes a crime only in cases where it endangers the life of another passenger. In such cases, the offence is punishable with a fine of Rs 500 and above under the railway laws. There is however, no provision for imprisonment.
Adelmo Fernandes, Vasco
Frontline warriors: the fight is on!
The fight to be named as ‘frontline Covid warriors is on! Only to get priority for the jab! The Delhi Bar Council filed a PIL for the same and the HC, hearing the same questioned the sale of vaccines to foreign countries before taking care of Indians first.
At a high-level meeting on 9/3 between Central Govt officials and State Secretaries on the vaccine drive, Maharashtra rooted to include the Judiciary in the priority list, MP asked to include truck drivers. What did Goa’s Secretary recommend? Mum?
Surely, we need to have the regular bus commuters in the list. Bus commuting is a major mode of travel in Goa and social distancing is impossible as also enforcing proper mask wearing.
The TTAG head says making their trade people frontline workers would help project Goa’s image, nationally and internationally as a place conscious of the dangers and the measures taken to ensure safety! Very, very strange logic. What happened on NYE 2020? Forgotten the ‘parties’ in Hotels and Clubs during lockdown? While all metros in India heeded to the national call for curbs on NYE celebrations, TTAG did not, but actually influenced the Goa Govt. to go for full fledged celebrations. ‘Goa is open’ is the mantra.
Even today, with Maharashtra and at least 20 other States showing rising trends in positive cases, there is no call for RT-PCR tests for people coming into Goa. The Hotel Industry must be the last on priority for the jab courtesy the self-professed regulators’ care, not for their peoples’ safety, but for the sound of the cash registers. Unethical to the core.
R Fernandes, Margao
Cleaning the Augean stables
The BJP’s ploy of naming a new chief minister every time it confronts a crisis was apparent once again after it asked Lok Sabha member Tirath Singh Rawat to helm Uttarakhand.
Tirath, a dark horse for the post, takes over the baton from another Rawat, Trivendra Singh, who had come under a cloud for his incompetent handling of day to day affairs.
It will be a tall order for the new CM to clean the Augean stables created by his predecessor.
N J Ravi Chander, Bengaluru
