Goa has always enjoyed a unique, distinct and special identity in the midst of India. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru had called it ‘distinct individuality’ of Goa. It is a rich diversity in the unity of our motherland India.
Where is this unique, distinct and special identity derived from? “What is special about Goa?”, anybody may question. The answer lies in that Goans are special people who have lived in their Village Communities in a true community spirit. From times immemorial, they were well-knit and organised in communities, where there was a sense of belonging, of loving, caring and sharing, which is not heard about from the other parts of our country. This is what constitutes Goa into a unique, distinct and special identity.
This identity entails five essential elements namely: land, language, ethos, culture and communal harmony. It is worth dealing with each one of them separately:
1. Goa’s identity is first and foremost linked to its ‘land’. This land (bhumi) is ours. While throughout India (expect some parts of North Eastern States) the land belongs to the State, in Goa the land belongs to the private Village Communities. This has come of age, from times immemorial, when there was no ruler in our land. Even when a ruler appeared on the scene in the III Century BC, the real rulers were the Goans. From that century till 1961, when the Portuguese Rule came to an end in Goa, several Rulers and Dynasties ruled Goa. All of them have accepted the fact that the land in Goa is not owned by the Ruler but by the Village Communities called ‘Ganvkaris’, who paid a certain tribute, according to their customs and usages, to these Rulers and their land ownership has been expressly proclaimed by the Portuguese Government in the present ‘Code of the Comunidades’ of Goa, promulgated on April 15, 1961 by Legislative Diploma 2070. The Bhumiputra Adhikarini Bill passed in the last session of Goa’s Assembly, the non-Bhumiputras, have been made sons of the soil of Goa, which is unacceptable to any Goan.
2. Konkani is the ‘language’ spoken on ‘Goan Bhumi’ and most of the Konkani vocabulary has come from times immemorial from the bosom of these Village Communities or Ganvkaris. Many might have migrated to other parts of the country or even to foreign lands, but they are proud of their mother-tongue Konkani and in 1986 Goans have fought, even to the extent of shedding their blood, for the recognition of Konkani as the official language of Goans.
3. Goan ‘Ethos’, the third element of Goan identity pertains to the very essence of Goa, where different ethnic communities have lived peacefully, respecting each other’s identities, working for the common welfare of the communities, living in a sound moral ambience, welcoming strangers in their fold, sharing the same customs and usages of centuries, where in they were and are still known as sossegado, meaning not lazy, but without worries, polite, civilised, peaceful people and that is why they are respected throughout the world. Goa has in it all the elements of ‘Civilisation’.
4. Goan ‘culture’ has its unique stamp. It is Indian, but in the course of centuries it came to absorb and assimilate some elements from other cultures, who were trading with Goa like the Arabs, Greeks, Jews, etc and after 1510 also appropriated many elements of Portuguese culture in art, architecture of churches, buildings and houses. This is evident from the style adopted by the architects, replicating Roman, Neo-Roman, Gothic, Baroque, Mannerist, Manueline, etc, in the building of churches and especially at the Old Goa Complex of Churches, some of which we can still see in and around Old Goa. Most of the tourists coming to Goa, make it a point to visit and admire the splendour of these churches. Their splendour and admiration extends to the interior of these churches, with beautiful glittering altars, carved in woodwork, images and sacred motifs and that is why our Goan culture has got a special designation of ‘Indo-Portuguese’ culture. Our fuggdis, dhallos, deknnis, manddos, fados, tiatrs, etc are all part of our Goan culture. Also to be mentioned here are the dress customs of Goans. We all Goans are proud of our cultural heritage; and finally:
5. ‘Communal Harmony’ constitutes the hallmark of the State of Goa, where people of various religious denominations have lived together for centuries, respecting each other’s religion, participating in each other’s religious festivals and always respecting different ideologies, living always in peace and harmony, which is seen many a times disturbed in other states of our country.
Goa is the smallest state of the Union of India, where land is the most precious commodity. It is just 3702 sq. km., with a population of 16 lakhs. On April 15, 2013, the late CM of Goa, Manohar Parrikar, had stated in the Goa Assembly that only 362 sq km are left for future development. From 2013 to 2021 in a span of 8 years has anybody conducted a study of how much land is still available for development? And how much land is the Govt willing to give to the ‘Vote Putras’ and how much of it remains for the real ‘Bhumi’ Putras, is anybody’s guess? Without this study the Bhumiputra Adhikarini Bill is an affront to Goans, where they will not be left with an inch of land for themselves and others will be ruling over them. The State has the duty to look after the sons of the soil without neglecting others, but in a small State like Goa, the Govt has the obligation to see that the real Bhumiputras do not become strangers in Goa by accepting an unlimited number of outsiders.
Goans should always pride themselves with their special unique and distinct identity and try their utmost to preserve it for future generations.
(Visitacao Monteiro is the author of the book Goan Village Communities)
