U turn on Casinos: The govt cannot move the hand that feeds
it
While former Chief
Minister Manohar Parrikar’s promises of moving casinos out of the river Mandovi
and the failure to deliver will go down in Goa’s history books, let us look at
fresh betrayals of 2015
Background: According
to a Cabinet decision in 2013, each of the casino operators was granted
operational licenses for five years with an undertaking to shift out of River
Mandovi within two years of signing it.
Govt in early 2015
said: Deltin Jaqk will be the first of the four offshore casino vessels to halt
its operations this year with its conditional license expiring in August-end. M
V Casino Pride 1, Deltin Royale and Casino Pride 2 will follow the queue if the
Goa government fails to finalise any of the four identified rivers to shift the
vessels by year-end.
Additional Secretary (Home) Sanjiv Gadkar said: He was clear
that on the day the deadline for fulfilling the undertaking to move out of the
Mandovi was over, casino operations on that vessel will cease.
What happened in 2015: A study under the supervision of the
Captain of Ports was carried out in all four rivers – Sal, Chapora, Zuari and
Aguada – identified as possible locations for casinos to shift. Except Chapora,
the other locations were found unfit. However, for Chapora to be functional a
massive dredging project is required. In addition large amounts of land on the
banks, needed for utilities, need to be acquired. The government’s clear
decision was that if alternate locations were not found, casinos would cease
operations.
However in a shameless buckling in, Chief Minister Parsekar
said moving casinos would affect the economy of Goa and send wrong signals to
investors and tourists. Probably for the same reason, other activities which
have faced large scale social protests are allowed to continue.
U turn on special status: A very special hurt and a knife
through Goa’s soul
Goans, please reflect on what your Chief Minister said on
May 30, 2015. “Special status from the Centre (for Goa) is like a mirage. I
don’t want to chase it. There is no possibility of getting special status. Time
and again some people are raising this issue. I don’t want to be a part of it.”
The Chief Minister said though he would be happy to protect
the land and identity of the state through special status.
While we can understand Narendra Modi and Amit Shah going
back on their promises, how can Goa allow a resolution taken in the Goa
Assembly which has the sanctity of law, to be insulted? If a pledge to push for
special status is taken by the Assembly, how can the present leader of the
Assembly utter these words: “Time and again some people are raising this issue.
I don’t want to be a part of it”. He has to lead it and the people who have
raised it in the August house, are elected representatives, not any “people”.
U turn on Goa becoming garbage free: Waste management is
just a money-making racket
Oct 2 2014 Chief
Minister, Manohar Parrikar announced: By December 19, 2015 Goa will be garbage
free.
These famous last words ring hollow across every waste dump
scattered across the roads and villages, in dumping grounds and proposed waste
management sites.
• Banguinim
Plant has not yet been established
• Door-to-door
collection in Margao remains a pipedream with the DMA not sanctioning even Rs
2.5 crore annually
• Segregation
of medical waste and market waste not activated across towns
• The situation
remains grim in Vasco and Mapusa
• The Saligao
garbage plant is a Rs 400 crore white elephant with the government spending
four times more than the amount being invested by the private player with all
machinery imported from abroad
• The same
template will be followed in Curchorem
