Team Herald
Panjim: The United Goan Photographers & Videographers Association (UGPVA) met Chief Minister (CM)Pramod Sawant on Wednesday at his residence and requested him to look into the hardships faced by them due to the lockdown.
The President of UGPVA, Oscar Das Chagas e Silva brought to the notice of the CM that all other activities will begin gradually but photography business will be the most affected as there will be no celebrations or big events till the end of this year. The CM assured the Association that he will look into the matter at his earliest and promised his full support to them.
“I have put forward the hardships faced by the photographers and especially our Association members in front of the CM. With Goa being declared a Green Zone, all other business will start but our business. We are in a situation where we do not know how we will survive the next few months,” said Oscar Das Chagas e Silva.
Advisor to UGPVA Chiquito Adriano Baretto said that now that they have put their grievances in the court of the government, now they have to wait for the results. “We have full faith in our Chief Minister and I know that greener pasture will follow soon for us,” added.
Orlando Dias, from Navelim and Treasurer of UGPVA added, “The Association members are exclusively the natives of Goa and self employed in the art of video photography. We depend mainly on capturing the memories of social gatherings like weddings, birthday celebrations, hotel events, conferences, etc and that is our main source of income. We do not have the financial backup to upgrade our equipment as per the market demand and pay the rents of our business premises and the staff salaries.”
Secretary of UGPVA Pramod Hirloskar thanked the CM for giving them a patient hearing and are hoping for early intervention from the government.
Assistant Secretary of UGPVA Mazhar Aga concurred and added, “We are hoping that the government realizes the gravity of the situation and comes up with positive answers for us.
Executive Member Parish Borkar hoped that the Chief Minister will look into the matter with priority and commit to welfare of the photographers society in Goa.
