In our small State, there are quite a few Govt. Departments and Agencies which, besides having a dubious reputation, are also known to be people unfriendly. Topping the list is the Town and Country Planning and the PDAs, commonly known as ‘piddas’. Just as it happens in case of Courts, where justice, if any, often comes much after one is six feet underground, people dread approaching them because of delays and lengthy procedures, but are left with no alternative, particularly when one needs to construct a house. Proliferation of illegalities can be attributed to the reluctance of people in seeking licenses from these Depts, because of the unreasonable demands, including bribes, made on them. We need no further evidence on the notoriety of the TCP, as Manohar Parrikar himself, who then headed the Ministry provided it by being candid enough to acknowledge that he would have to close the Dept. if he had to tackle, corruption therein! Vow! What a confession that was from someone who had vowed “zero tolerance to corruption”. I only wonder why should only the TCP have the privilege of being entirely corrupt and why should this benefit not extend to every Govt. Dept. The silence over such a grave accusation is obviously to allow building of funds to win future elections.
Municipalities and Panchayats, despite being elected bodies, Customs, Passport and Transport were some other Departments for which people never had a good word. A couple of years back, there were serious complaints from people that even getting an appointment at Passport Dept. was extremely difficult. Things changed when a Goan Officer, Mr. Agnelo Fernandes took over charge of the dept. Today, people are all praise for his accessibility, prompt and efficient service and least delay in getting a passport. Customs too have shown a marked change for the better and people are now much less harassed.
The Dept. of Transport never had much of a reputation, for various reasons. Today, it is perhaps, being cursed also because of the imposition of the helmet rule for the rider. True that the pillion is more at risk, but a beginning had to be made. Just like others, I too face much inconvenience in wearing a helmet. But it is much better than landing in hospital if not in the grave or funeral pyre. India has many firsts in the world, for the wrong reasons, including road deaths.
The Centre directed that steps be taken to reduce road accidents. Crash helmets cannot avoid them. Waterways and a rail link from Karmali to Panjim surely would, by reducing the pressure on our roads. But that will not happen because the bus lobby is too powerful to allow it. The Transport Dept. must insist on speed limits being fixed and enforced on city and village roads which have seen a sharp increase in accidents and deaths even of pedestrians. The Supreme Court has opined that rash driving must be curbed. Deaths caused by reckless and negligent driving must be treated as culpable homicide and the driver immediately arrested. Only such tough measures will make drivers and riders more cautious. Light penalties are mainly responsible for motorists to be careless on the roads.
If the Traffic Police has been inefficient in tackling serious violations responsible for road accidents, it is the Public Works Dept that is most callous and criminally negligent in ensuring that the condition of the roads are not the cause of major accidents. Though not a Dept. to which the general public needs much access, it is one which we all have much to complain about.
The PWD is a milking cow and hence the portfolio is much sought after. It is generally allotted, on demand and to those having the most nuisance value and least sense of honesty. Scams reported are never thoroughly investigated for obvious reasons. It also serves the purpose of the new dispensation to keep the sword hanging on the head of predecessors. Parrikar is known to be an expert in this field.
Incidentally, the PWD and Transport are under Sudin Dhavlikar. One would wish that this gentleman had paid as much attention to safety on our roads as he does to the women’s attire on the beach. Development is surely needed and road digging is inevitable be it for sewerage, water, underground cabling, telephone connections, etc. But such trenches need to be properly filled, cured and resurfaced promptly and not left perennially in that condition. In Malbhat in Margao, the sewage manholes are much higher than the road level – recent hotmixing of Abade Faria Road was done also over at least two spots which had been dug and just covered with mud. The road is bound to sink in these areas. Besides absence of supervision, there is also total lack of coordination among various sections of PWD. It is contended that Water and Sewage sections dig roads without keeping the Roads section informed. So, the left hand does not know what the right is doing.
The PWD must have a team engaged solely in repairing these spots after proper curing. It is obvious that the Government wants to throw the onus of reducing road accidents on motorists alone. It must also do its part and behave responsibly. Several people have died in so-called “self-accidents” due to negligence of PWD in painting speed-breakers, covering trenches, etc. Even when these are covered, it is done so casually and shabbily, with either humps or depressions, which are bound to cause accidents.
My appeal to the police, family and friends of accident victims, is to book the PWD for negligence if accidents occur due to such reasons. Only then will they realize the gravity of their negligence. Stretches in Nuvem, Verna, Borda in Margao which are wide enough for four-lane traffic, must have dividers, not only to ensure road discipline but also for the safety of pedestrians crossing the road.
Let us have some sincerity both on the part of citizens as of Government, in reducing road deaths. We have had far too many of them and put hundreds of our families in acute distress and sometimes in penury too. We need to work together in reducing not only fatalities but accidents too. I wish Herald could take the lead in reducing the pain and sorrow that accidents have caused to our families by highlighting the causes and exposing the negligence, particularly of Government authorities.
(The author is a retired banker)
