Goanet meets in Goa: December 27, 12 noon and January 7, 4 pm (meeting point: Kala Academy canteen). See you there! ------------------------------
Hi Godfrey I will at least grant that your article is well written but it is nothing substantial or beneficial to either Goans or the cause of Konkani. Adversely it could only stoke communal mistrust. For obvious reasons Devanagri Konkani is rightfully the official language. (Before I was hard-pressed for time I used to even write in Roman Konkani, I even have a story book to my name Mukt Jinn Jietana. But that does not compel me to ask why Devanagri, why not Roman? Because I know the reason and if you care to think objectively I am sure you will see why.) I think issues like Konkani-Marathi, Nagri-Roman konkani are dead. It is now regional v/s English. Forward-looking people will agree that the imposition of Konkani/Marathi at the primary stage is against the free-wheeling spirit of a democratic society. Freedom of choice is something fundamental to democracy. And I am sure it is not only limited to choosing candidates during elections. The authorities should leave it to the people to decide what medium of instruction they should choose for their child. The students should even be free to choose what subjects they want. I have a friend who can make a picture almost as good as a photograph. But he could never make it to BFA because he could not clear his Maths I & II at SSC after 4 attempts. What type of education is it if it blocks us from promoting our potential or talents? The Parrikar government’s move to make Math optional is a great step in the right direction. The inconvenient implications of the move could only be avoided at the cost of victimizing our students. Let’s stop being sentimental and start being practical. We have a soft corner for our regional language. But regional languages, particularly Konkani, hold no future for tomorrow’s citizens of India both on the employment front as well as in social intercourse. Unless we realize this important fact our English medium schools and colleges will continue to be English medium in paper and Konkani medium in reality. Regards Tony Martin __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Protect your identity with Yahoo! Mail AddressGuard http://antispam.yahoo.com/whatsnewfree ########################################################################## # 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 # ##########################################################################
