Dear Goans, Worlwide Goans was a forum expartriate Goans,aimed at promoting interaction and better understanding between Goans at home and abroad all for the betterment of their homeland.
Two Conventions were held in December, 1999, 2000 at at Institute Menezes Braganza Hall Panaji Goa. The first among several other demands of the NR Goan was the need to set up an NRI Cell to address problems of NR Goans and interact with the Goa Government. The Cell was thus formed and came under the nodal agency of the Economic Development Corporation Ltd., Panaji the financial arm of the Government, in December 2001. This was followed by a convention at the Kala Academy, Black Box at Campal Panaji. However since year 2002 the NRI-Cell was transformed into a NRI Facilitation Centre of the Government of Goa and placed under the Home Ministry - because this Ministry deals with immigration and is invariably a portfolio held under successive Chief Ministers. The first Convention under the Goa Government was therefore held on 29 December 2002 under the auspices of the NRI GOA Facilitation Centre at the Kala Academy Campal Panaji and labelled as the CONVENTION OF OVERSEAS GOANS . There is no doubt that the mindset of successive Governments both in Goa and India, is to merely lure NRI's for their investments in financial institutions and the latest attempt has been to promote a Social Security Scheme in collaboration with a subsidiary of Insurance Company of the Government of India. Unfortunately most NR Goans have been victims of financial and real estate sharks and their woes are one too many hence the poor response and the Government organised convention. Every Convention witnessed the inconclusive debate on a) Who is a Goan? b) What is Goan Culture? (there are two schools of thought---the pre-Portuguese era culture (Vedic times) OR the post - Portuguese era (east meets west ) culture which gives Goans an unique identity till this day making Goans being identified as distinct from Indians world over. b)Need for Konkani as our mother tongue (but which one that with its Sanskritized version understood by a miniscule percentage of the Goans written in Devnagiri oor the Konkani spoken and written in Roman script or the non Sanskritised version which the masses are familiar with even in wriiten Devnagiri ) There are equal and almost always the same speakers for both sides seen at the Convention making these well intentioned functions a boring syndrome. The real issues which were discussed since 1999 till date as under are however forgotten a) Immigration Emigration hardships b) Legal heirs - Compensation c) Scope for Educational /Higher Education seats for dependants d) Investment opportunities is Industry, Tourism, Services, Infrastructure, Agriculture, Horticulture Fisheries, Animal Husbandary, Power etc; e) Healthcare, Homes for the Disabled Old Age Homes etc f) Protection of immovable properties of Goans from trespassers, illegal surveys, encroachments, leave licence eviction of unauthorised persons, encrooachments tresspass g) Unscrupulous builders (in the absence of a suitable enactment) h) Monopoly of air travel by domestic airlines; There is no Ministry set up till date both at the Centre or in Goa to look after the NRI while Kerala has one thanks to the efforts of the NRIs There is however a silver lining, with the State losing its demographic composition rapidly and no constitutionally accepted safeguards to protect the Goan identity. What with the language issue Konkani or Marathi or both, the Konkan Railway, now the four lane road from North Patradevi to Pollem South and from West Mormugao to Anmod in the East being taken up in right earnest in the ensuing Plan period 2002 to 2007? and winds of global village shrinking our economic barriers and demographic composition. The first move was the GOMANT BHARATI SAMMELAN meant to invite Goans settled within India to come and renew one's Goan Identity which was held at Rajiv Gandhi Kala Mandir at Ponda. This would ensure that Goans settled elsewhere would be staging a homecoming but the same problems as listed above needs to be addressed by the Goa Government in right earnest. Political expediency often outweighs economic considerations and Goans suffer. The 14th Lok Sabha elections are due mid next year 2004. The present government in Goa will continue from June 2002 to June 2007 unless there is an upheaveal of the clobbered rag-tag government at the Centre come 2004. It is with this background there is a need for Goans worldwide to remember "GOA CAN BE DIFFERENT - IF GOANS ARE NOT INDIFFERENT" The South Goa Public Interest Action Group a Regd NGO based in Margao Salcete Goa with jurisdiction over the South Goa Parliamentary Constituency has at each of the Conventions made a presentation on the problems of NR Goans and latest on Goans settled in different parts of India which are under the active consideration of the NRI Facilitation Centre. The NRI Facilitation Centre EDC House Panaji Home Deparment, Govt of Goa held a meeting on 17.July,2003 at the EDC Board Room, Panaji and deliberated on a) Compilation of Report since formation till 30.6.2003 b)Compilation of names, of NRIs and various institutions and form a mailing list c)Identification of cultural programmes/troupe to be sent abroad d)Identification or areas where Goans visiting abroad can receive help from NRIs e)Identification of Goan institutions and families who would like to maintain contact with people of Goan origin in foreign lands f)a seminar on what we in Goa can do for NRIs /What NRIs can do for Goa? g)preparing CD/Video cassettes on Goan cultural life h)publication of a book on Culutral History on Goa for the benefit of NRIs This agenda was restricted only to the committee members of the BRI Facilitation Centre. However to deliberate on the forthcoming proposed two and half day Non resident Goan convention to be held tentatively in the 2nd week of January 2004 from 0900 hrs to 1700hrs IST for both, Goans resident overseas and within the country our Group was invited to attend the meeting held on 6 August,2003. In our considered opinion, we feel that a) the prospects of a mid term poll alongwith Assembly elections in other States after Ramzan November or December or early January 2004 may not attract many NRIs to visit the country; b) subject to a) the Convention dates should be decided in such a way that there is convenience for participation of all Goans from the various Associations in India and abroad The travel advisories would have to be taken note of. c) rather than deliberating on the issues by presenting papers at the Convention; constitute a Nodal Officer having under him a panel of Secretaries, Jt Secretaries, Directors, Ministers, to attend to a Question- Answers after making a Power Point presentation on each of the areas which could attract the non resident Goan both in India and abroad viz; Agriculture/Horticulutre/FloricultureFishereies/Irrigation Education/Culture/Language/Art Health-Care (Medicare Old age Homes para medical services) Industry - Out sourcing/Single window assistance Infrastructure - Roads Transport Communication IT E-governance Waterways Airways Railways Services - Tourism, Convention Centres, Recreational Centres, NRI City, Fun city, Oceanarium,Planetariam/Call Centre Sports/Games Grievances of NRIs on subjects under the Concurrent or State or Central list Real Estate/Land Revenue/Immovable Properties and documentation/removing of encumberances Financial Investments in safe Investment instruments Social Security facilities to those returning home and legal heirs of deceased NRIs etc Upgradation of all general quality of life in Goa in keeping with its newly acquires BEST STATE status To begin with we at SGPIAG have demanded the setting up of a Nodal Officers who will from 15 August,2003 Independence Day 2003, begin replying to all queries from Goans world-wide so that these could be collated by November-December end and the Goa Government could formulate policies to be announced at the Convention 2004. There is also a need for the Government to take the MLAs both past and present constitute a think thank in formulating policies so that irrespective of the Government in power the policies remain unchanged. The next meeting will be held on 6th September,2003 and we hope that Goans by then will first accquaint themselves with the websites www.goagovt.nic.in especially the the Budget Proposals 2003-2004 , Economic Survey 2002-2003 Goa Industrial Policy 2003 and other services of the various Departments. Because this will facilitate making queries answerable easily. The NRI Facilitation Centre has already recieved around 700 queries and these are being collated and presented to the Government for necessary action. It is hoped that these will be available on the website www.nrigoa.com Since the Chief Secretary Shri D. S. Negi is the top official from the Government side on the NRI Facilitation Centre it will be easy for him to whet the suggestions into policy decisions. We trust that Goans worldwide will not miss this opportunity to ensure that the Government of Goa addresses their grievances and seeks their helping hand to make Goa an unique state in the Country. for SOUTH GOA PUBLIC INTEREST ACTION GROUP PRESIDENT(SGPIAG) [EMAIL PROTECTED] 1st Flr, Benlix Bldg, Opp Fatima Convent Margao 403601 Goa (INDIA) 11.08.2003 ________________________________________________________________________ Send free SMS using the Yahoo! Messenger. Go to http://in.mobile.yahoo.com/new/pc/ ########################################################################## # Send submissions for Goanet to [EMAIL PROTECTED] # # PLEASE remember to stay on-topic (related to Goa), and avoid top-posts # # More details on Goanet at http://joingoanet.shorturl.com/ # # Please keep your discussion/tone polite, to reflect respect to others # ##########################################################################
