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Goa's phone numbers change from Nov 10, 2002. Prefix old number with a 2. New numbers will be seven-digit 2XXXXXX (where XXXXXX is the old number).
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Documented by Goa Desc Documentation Service
& circulated by Goa Civic & Consumer Action Network
(GOA CAN)<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Ph:2252660
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Miramar lota parade defies heritage call
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Not far away from the Campal Heritage Precinct,
where a two-day heritage festival was held recently,
is the famous Miramar beach. Towards the Caranzalem side,
the beach has a dune vegetation in the form of green shrubs.
And, when experts were pouring out ideas as to how to protect
and enrich Goa's heritage, they were blissfully ignorant about
the fact that the beach has been converted into an open toilet. ...
...The Lota parades particularly in the mornings and evenings
are brazenly conspicuous. One of the topics discussed at the
said festival was "The Golden Heritage - Sand Dunes".
But, those who defecate regularly using the dune vegetation
as a camouflage at Miramar beach, are not the persons
who can understand what the experts say or even appreciate
the gravity of mucking up public places.
They are primarily the construction workers, hawkers,
pavement dwellers and drivers of public transport.
The government only recently installed a number of ready made
toilets all along the Campal river front and Miramar beach.
However, very few persons are using this facility.
An American writer has described Indians as the greatest
ablutionists in the world considering their capacity to do it
exceedingly well with the help of only a tumbler-full of water
and four square inches of land. One has to only visit the Miramar
beach to ascertain the fact.
There is lots of construction activity at Caranzalem along the
beach side Miramar-Dona-Paula road and, obviously, the builders
have not provided sanitary facilities, except perhaps plastic Lotas
to the construction workers. The speed at which men and women
carrying Lotas and crossing the road to reach out to the dune
vegetation braving the two-way speeding vehicular traffic,
is something to be seen to believe.
We have brought this matter to the notice of Chief Minister
Manohar Parrikar and Chief Secretary Baleshwar Rai so that
they take appropriate measures to keep the beach free of night soil
so that visitors to the beach could breath fresh air.
There is lots of talk on the need to preserve heritage.
People talk of buildings, old structures, architectural styles -
all inanimate objects. However, living environment, which forms
an integral part of any heritage preservation scheme, normally
gets sidelined.
Yes, there was a talk on the living environment of Panaji at the festival.
What is the point in talking about heritage preservation in the capital city
of Goa when the entire river front and Miramar beach have been
virtually converted into public toilets?
When the Chief Minister devised the Miramar development scheme
last year, almost everybody rejected it saying that the pristine purity
of the beach should be maintained. Last week, the Chief Secretary
himself conducted the Miramar beach cleanliness drive wherein
several truckloads of litter collected from the beach was disposed
of. Yet, lots remains to be done to keep the beach clean.
For, a large portion of the beach is littered with not only plastics
but also glass splinters. Walking barefoot on the beach has become risky.
When even environmentalists and opinion makers bamboozled
the Miramar beach development plan only because they resented
creation of certain sports facilities there under private sector,
it was clear that they were carried away by the mass psychology.
Those, who vehemently opposed the plan, are not particularly bothered
about the problem caused by open defecation on the beach.
One is free to talk about policies for preservation of heritage.
But, who is supposed to take care of the steadily deteriorating
environment in which the so-called heritage is to be preserved?
Mere identification and declaration of monuments, structures
and sites as heritage would not solve the problems of the people
living in these areas. Further, everything that was built during the
colonial Portuguese regime does not automatically become heritage
for Goans unless the objections selected for this purpose
are of exceptionally high heritage or architectural value.
It is here that a policy is required. And, it is time the Panaji
municipal council compels builders to provide sanitary facilities
to the workers.
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Gomantak Times 28/11/02 page 4
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GOA DESC RESOURCE CENTRE
Documentation + Education + Solidarity
11 Liberty Apts., Feira Alta, Mapusa, Goa 403 507
Tel: 2252660 mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
website: www.goadesc.org
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Working On Issues Of Development & Democracy
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What's On In Goa (WOIG):
Nov 06 Children's book exhibn opens, Walkabout, Anjuna... (all weekdays)
Nov 06 ArtHouse, Calangute: Chaitali's acrylics on canvas till 19.11
Nov 07 Revision of electoral rolls (till Nov 30) See schedule.
Dec 01 Two day conference, Goa Agenda. IT For Society. (Ends 2.12)
Every Sunday: Music therapy sessions at Moira, 5 pm. 278, N.Portugal
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