Prime Minister Modi is widely accepted as an iconic politician on a global level and is the father of Indian demonetization and grand spring cleaning of our black economy after a 70-year-old history of irresponsible housekeeping. He is, unfortunately, not being informed correctly of the aspirations of the Goan people and the situation in Goa with regard to Goan identity.
Prime Minister Modi has said often enough how he admires Goans for wanting Special Status because we want to protect our cultural identity and how our request is not monetary. He, however, does not know the ground reality, what is going on in Goa!
We also need to put Goa in perspective as it is a small part of India and compared to a large state is no bigger than a district. The Prime Minister has much bigger problems to ponder on and tackle especially after long decades of our badly governed country piloted by the Congress Party all of which is on record so there is no need to comment further.
A good example of a current hot issue on the front burner is of watering holes being too close to the highways according to a decision of the Supreme Court which wants the sale of alcohol banned within an area of 500 meters from national and state highways. But, isn’t this common sense?
No need to seek a correlation between drinking and driving. That a lakh and a half people are killed on national highways in India is apparently not impressive enough for some people. A recent newspaper report claiming only a hundred and sixty people have been killed because of drinking and driving in Goa is simply not believable, and is at best, a bad joke. Everybody knows how corrupt the various government departments are and no less a person than the Defense Minister and ex-Chief Minister of Goa once vented his frustration when he said that the majority of policemen were corrupt and if he were to do something about it then he would find himself with no police department at all. Other departments have also been corrupt, it is not only the police department!
If through some magic or miracle the highways are denotified or the bars saved then we might get to the real issue which is how cheap human life is in India! A lot of bar owners might not be aware they have blood on their hands. How many drivers have drunk alcohol and then murdered people because of road accidents due to drunken driving?
Goa, as noted earlier, is a small state and so the government should not have highways going this way and that way and not expect to create utter chaos all over our small state. It is the state government which has created this mess through piecemeal, mindless and unplanned development.
In Japan there is a fine for drinking and driving as there is zero tolerance. If someone is found drinking and driving on a routine road check he is fined one and a half lakh and so is each passenger in the car! This policy of zero tolerance has made roads safe. It is also good news for taxi drivers. The Japanese value human life. Can we say the same?
If we implement the Japanese policy it might bury the bars and liquor stores but human beings will survive. Goans who live abroad might want to send in information about rules and regulations in the various countries in which they reside so the government can make an enlightened choice and not give Goa a bad name. Tourism is not something which is going to end in a few years and so we need to plan for the future and future generations. Let’s not wait until there is no way to turn back the clock.
Goan identity is taking a bashing from all sides because of our insatiable appetite for becoming rich overnight or with little effort. I could make a long list of grievances but will not because some people might think I have become a cranky old man. I have taken up one aspect of the tragedy of Goa and Goans, others are welcome to choose their favorite dish from the menu, their favorite bone of contention. I have chosen mine.
