Bengaluru water crisis: Lessons for Goa
Bengaluru city is reportedly facing severe water scarcity amid its worst drought in 30-40 years with apartment owners scrambling for water, amidst dried-up bore-wells and overburdened tanker services. Urbanisation, marked by an increase in built-up areas, is blamed for depleting groundwater. The problem is the unregulated growth pattern accompanied by inability to conserve resources. The Silicon city’s infrastructure struggles to meet demand, highlighting the urgency for sustainable water management strategies.
The crisis is so severe that many Bengaluru residents are reportedly considering leaving the city, as water-crisis has hit daily life. Fresh-water supply is not able to keep up with a growing population. Another concern is that paved surfaces cover nearly 90% of the city, preventing rainwater from seeping down and being stored in the ground.
Decades of unplanned and unregulated growth, rapid erosion of green cover, overexploitation of natural resources, concretisation are some of the reasons Bengaluru has been pushed to the brink of an unprecedented water crisis. Several places in Goa have been hit by water crisis which include Headland Sada, Chicolna-Bogmalo, Chapora, Anjuna and Assagao among other places. Goa needs to learn a lesson from the water crisis Bengaluru city is facing and take necessary remedial steps. The growing population and advent of mega projects has only worsened the situation. Water usage for real estate development needs to be regulated.
Adelmo Fernandes, Vasco
India, China must help de-escalate Ukrain war
This is in reference to the news report ‘Putin wins “never in doubt” opposition-less win in presidential polls’ (March 19), the mysterious Russian President Vladimir Putin is known to stick to power. The presidential poll was merely a ceremonial affair, especially taking into account the popularity that the former KGB officer had galloped in the wake of Russia’s successful onslaught on Ukraine and eventually winning a fifth term in office. The West might have dismissed the elections as a sham but the inescapable fact is that the US and its allies would have to deal with Putin for some more years.
Nonetheless, it goes without saying that iron-handed tactics against opponents and their imprisonment in an era of censorship had left a bad taste even for those who awe and rallied for the Russian ruler. India and China, who have good relations with Russia, should play a proactive role in de-escalating war with Ukraine.
Gregory Fernandes, Mumbai
Happiness is indeed a state of mind
Definition of ‘happiness’ varies from person to person. Common knowledge says happiness is a state of mind. Propagating and promoting global happiness on a large scale is of utmost importance, and world leaders are up to it. The then UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was convinced by special advisor Jayme Ilien to mark a day for happiness that culminated in the announcement of twentieth day of March as the Universal Happiness Day. Happiness encompasses a wide gamut of physical and mental emotions. Emotion is a central theme to happiness because many philosophers have simultaneously compared ’emotion’, ‘happiness’ and ‘experience’.
A Finish proverb has aptly put happiness as ‘something between too much and too little’. No medicine can make a person happy since there is no panacea for happiness. What makes an individual contented perhaps is the key to happiness. Work, love and hope are inspirations to a happy life. Quite often we fail to count our happiness, and dwell on unhappiness, forgetting only a past unhappiness will make the present happiness sound real. It is understood, therefore, that what is ‘happiness’ for one individual may not be so for the other. The responsibility of being happy is thrust on the individual. Perhaps, the best definition of happiness is ‘not getting what you want but wanting what you get’.
Ganapathi Bhat, Akola
Radicalisation causes disruption in society
Radicalism is intuitive and poses many questions at a time when large section of society has become almost blind and supports, every move of any political party in India.
Radicalisation in any religious context is dangerous and equally causes disruption in a progressive society like ours. India is a home to the largest youth power compared to any other country. But it is disheartening to see majority of our youth being distracted by a handful of people, while the rest of youth of our country is busy shaping their future or struggling to support their families due to job satisfaction of other various reasons.
Diomedes Romano Pereira, Corlim
Siolim is not an exception to destruction!
Green (rapidly turning brown) Siolim village is in the news, not only due to the illegal tree cutting driven by a husband-wife MLA combo, but also to the rapid destruction many times illegally by filling fields, encroachments, etc . I empathise with those Siolkars who are pained by the destruction, but I want to point out this is a growing concern in many villages, including my village of Colva .
It is understandable that high land price is one factor but I think the destruction is also allowed by the corrupt authorities! Local Panchayats, TCP, etc, are all actually local real estate/brokers with connections, going all the way to the top to senior politicians/ministers! It is so easy for anyone to commit any illegal land offence/destruction in Goa today and the process of getting justice is made so cumbersome for those who want to defend the land/environment/trees! Take for instance, just the first part i.e. to complain against land filling as I have witnessed in Colva, The Flying Squads are so unprofessional by not committing an approximate time and one having to waste so much time waiting for them and even then they don’t show up in the day/next or following days; and when they suddenly showup (if at all) the complainant has to drop everything and run with very less notice! And the latter is just the first part, the next series of steps with other depts i.e. Panchayat/TCP is so frustrating! Given that most people have limited time to spend on getting justice it’s not a surprise that the illegalities mostly have their way!
The whole system is rigged by the ‘Double Engine Sarkar’ to allow the illegalities; though I commend specific NGOs/individuals who are still persistent despite all these challenges like for example in Colva, we have Judith Almeida and her team from Colva Civic and Consumer Forum!
The destructive/negative forces in Goa are united in the quest for illegitimate wealth (via destruction of Goa and its environment) irrespective of their backgrounds and unfortunately the good/positive people are not that united (many times made so by the deceptive politicians!) In fact, what’s worse is that many good people are actually silent spectators! I think it’s obvious what we need to do, should we want to stop the rapid destruction of our beautiful state of Goa!
Arwin Mesquita, Colva
