Of festivals and foolhardiness
Non-Goans know that Goans like to revel in partying and merry-making at the drop of a hat, while their land, their houses and their properties are being unlawfully usurped under their very noses. Politicians are aware that Goans’ love for music, dancing and revelry can be exploited to their own advantage, so much so that crores of public money are being recklessly poured into providing profit-driven yearlong non-stop entertainment to all and sundry with festivals and fun-events while the real issues affecting the Goan people are brazenly shoved under the carpet. While the great Goan land grab saga continues and Goa’s romance with entertainment galore overflows, we Goans need to ask ourselves: What have we done with the heritage that our revered ancestors left no stone unturned to leave behind for their progeny and what are we, the present inheritors of this our beautiful land called Goa doing, to pass on to the generations to come, what we have received from the generations gone by? It is unfortunate that the realization has not dawned on us yet that while we are kept busy with unlimited extravagant carnivals, and along with these, unwanted issues and controversies, we, Goans have lost hold on our beloved land and our age-old heritage.
Tomas Lobo, Aldona
Service charge
is unethical
Many restaurants charge their customers service charge in addition to GST. Unlike GST, there is no law which authorizes the restaurants to charge the customers service charge and that too at a very high rate of 10 per cent. Service charge is the creation of the management of restaurants to make extra profit.
The only service that restaurants provide is serving the customers at the table which is already factored in the pricing of the dishes along with other overheads.
Charging extra by way of service charge is therefore a very wrong and unethical practice. Customers should refuse to pay service charge. As far GST is concerned, only those restaurants which do not come under GST composite scheme can charge GST in the bill. The concerned government authority should look into these malpractices.
Rodney de Souza, Assagao
‘Traffic Sentinel
scheme’ with riders
Two years after the state scrapped the ‘Traffic Sentinel Scheme’ it is learnt that the government is all set to review the scheme in the wake of a significant rise in the traffic violations and accidents. The scheme in which citizens earned financial rewards for reporting road violations to the police was scrapped in January 2021 owing to a series of controversies regarding its misuse by some sentinels.
It was noticed that for some, the scheme turned out to be a means of abnormal earning, as there has been a large accumulation of points entailing payments of a substantial amount from the state treasury. The violations that could be reported under the scheme were, driving against the flow of traffic, parking on footpaths or zebra crossings, triple-seat riding, improper number plates, driving without seatbelt, riding without helmet, using vehicle with tinted glasses, using phone while riding or driving, red light jumping, and dangerous driving. There were complaints that sentinels were reporting minor violations, leading to persecution. The scheme could be revived with some riders. The traffic sentinel could be penalized for false reporting of traffic violations. The financial rewards for reporting traffic violations could be substantially reduced and the traffic sentinels could instead be felicitated at a public function.
If possible government staff could be roped in as traffic sentinels so that there is less likelihood of the scheme being misused.
Adelmo Fernandes, Vasco
Cops turning extortionists is a shameless act
The recent issue of extortionist scam by ATS of Goa is yet another embarrassing episode. Such incidents indeed are an aberration on the reputation of the administration. The decline in policing standards in India is linked to the growing size of the black economy, which spawns corruption and results in systematic violation of laws. The system has deviated from its ideal form, leaving only the pretence of a law. The police force was set up by the British colonial power as an instrument to control and subjugate the population.
The common people continue to fear the police, which often brutalises them. It is hoped that the department will conduct a proper investigation and take action against the guilty police officials. There is a need for further sensitisation of the police force, which in turn will remove the general public’s apprehensions. In, 2006, the Supreme Court, in a landmark judgement, directed the states and Union Territories to introduce police reforms. It has been over 16 years since the landmark judgement was passed but the directives by the apex court to the states and UTs remained in limbo. The failure to comply with the directives reveals the extent to which elected governments are resisting police reform across the country. The incident of extortion in Goa is an example of a fence eating the crop.
K G Vilop, Chorao
Impose hefty fines
on real culprits
Policemen in plain clothes have been reportedly deputed at various spots at all police stations under Mapusa Sub division at Mapusa, Anjuna and Colvale police station jurisdiction and their staff have been directed to click the photographs of those not wearing helmets, riding triple seats etc and to penalise them by imposing hefty fines on them.
People don’t die in road accidents for not wearing helmets, riding triple seats etc but only because of their own or callousness as they simply don’t know to concentrate on the road and know how to drive in Goa.
The worst part is that some of them think that it’s their fundamental birth right to casually consume alcohol in the state and to drive recklessly at full speed.
They know that even if they are caught for this serious offence somewhere, they can still get away by paying a small bribe to some traffic cops and continue to put other people’s lives at risk.
Traffic cops should seriously start targeting and imposing hefty fines on irresponsible people for habitually indulging in drunken driving and other traffic violations instead of coming out with some temporary foolish ideas of clicking photos wearing plain clothes for time-pass and sending love-letters (challans) by post only for those not wearing helmets, travelling triple seat etc to stop road accidents in Goa.
Jerry Fernandes, Saligao
Carnival posters not yet removed
What is going on in Panjim, it appears that the Carnival posters at the Miramar circle still not been removed by CCP, neither from electric poles. Are they busy with their building renovation or closing all the pot holes in the city? All attempts to dig holes all over the city have failed miserably. Next the white washing of buildings in the city will start after the monsoon.
The most important area in the City of Panjim now is Miramar where you find them with all kind of Carnival posters.
Stephen Dias, Dona Paula
