Ever since the Bharatiya Janata Party has come to power, it has been at loggerheads with the same people who brought them to power, which has resulted in several agitations, purely due to the government’s “care a damn” attitude rather than anything else.
The party which came to power promising ‘parivartan’ and ‘acche din’ has failed to keep its promises and has taken several U-turns which has further upset the common man.
After the maad controversy, the Defexpo scheduled to be hosted by the state at Quittol, Betul from March 28 to 31, seems to have taken centre stage now, with protests at the proposed site almost every day.
The people of Quittol, Naqueri, Betul and surrounding areas are agitated because they feel that the event has been thrust upon them without their consent or taking them into confidence.
A visit to the nearby areas by Herald revealed that the problem lies in issues which the locals have no clue about.
Severina Fernandes, a local says that they have no clue what the Defence Expo is and how long it will remain. “We want to know from the government how long will it be here, whether it is permanent or temporary and how it would benefit us or the state,” she said.
Another local, Ramesh Desai says, “We went to the police station, mamlatdar, deputy collector but nobody was in a position to give us any information.”
Fr Eremito Rebello, who spearheads the Goa for Dabolim Only movement asks, “Why has the government waited till the last minute to hold a dialogue? Why not speak to the people and get their doubts cleared? Whatever is heard is only through the newspapers and nothing concrete comes from the government.”
The priest was also agitated with the Chief Minister’s statement of getting people arrested for opposing the event, saying, “This is not anyone’s father’s property. Instead of finding a solution, how can he say that,” he asked.
People feel the CM’s statement has come at a wrong time and has fuelled the controversy further as it was uncalled for. “We are living in a democracy and not a dictatorship,” Fr Eremito added.
Defexpo is not the only thing the State has been thrusting on the people. The issue of declassification of the coconut tree and the electronic city in Panjim has also been forced upon them.
COCONUT TREE
The declassification of the coconut tree also saw a huge agitation only because the government just did not want to take stakeholders and the people of Goa into confidence. On the coconut tree issue, the government did not discuss it with anybody and just put the bill before the cabinet and got it passed.
Thereafter, the amendment to the Goa Protection of coconut tree act was brought in the Assembly and was passed amidst the opposition walkout.
All this was done just to promote a liquor manufacturing company, Vani Agro to set up factory at Sanguem. However, after facing criticism from all quarters, the government is now running from pillar to post to get the issue cleared fearing a backlash in forthcoming Assembly polls.
Tuem Electronic City/ Tiracol issue
The less we talk of the Tuem Electronic city as well as the Tiracol golf course cum resort, the better, as it defies all norms of logic. The government has flouted all rules to have its own way on the issue. While a poor farmer, Amarnath Naik has been robbed of his land in Virnoda, Tuem for the approach road of the electronic city, the tenants of Tiracol are now homeless due to the government’s unjust attitude towards the poor, only to promote corporates.
