Dears,

There are two distinct issues in what Soter wrote;
1. Road crossing, specially the safety of pedestrians and
2. Development model for villages in Goa. 

Venantius Pinto has picked up the first issue. The second one also needs 
attention in Goa.

I will share two of my experiences in the month just ended last night.
1.Tiruchirapalli-Tamil Nadu, INDIA, 18 October, 2008.
The autoricshaw that takes me from the Trichy Junction Railway station to the 
Tamil Nadu Multi-purpose Society premises suddenly turns on to the right side 
of the concrete median at a petrol pump/bunk and proceeds for the next 200 
metres on the WRONG SIDE of the four-lane highway  HORN BLARING till it reached 
the gate and escaped from the highway.

2. Kuching-Sarawak,MALAYSIA, 27 October, 2008
The taxi carrying me from  Kuching International Airport to Damai Beach Resort 
slows down and stops to allow a man to cross the street. He does NOT blow the 
HORN and race through [as one would expect cars to do at the Santa Monica jetty 
in Panaji when tourists try to cross the road after the evening cruises]. 
Professor Sukhpal Singh from IIM-Ahmeddabad and Mr. Vikram Bokey from Pune 
notice the difference just as I do. Says Sukhpal "Oh, Oh! We are out of India 
...and the cars do not blow horns."

The unfortunate accident near JMJ is partly due to our attitude of "Jiski lathi 
uski bains" [Might is right]. The other part is about  our PLANNING ...or its 
sheer absence. The Zebra Crossing at JMJ-Ferns Store, Porvorim, is exactly at 
the top of the steep climb from Dr. Pinto do Rosario hospital. There is a bus 
stop also at the same point ...for upward bound buses! Besides constricting the 
road effectively to a single lane, the bus also blocks vision of the traffic 
behind it. There is space for a BUS BAY. the bus stop shelter needs to be 
demolished and taken behind. The Zebra Crossing needs to be taken a little 
ahead. A Gram Sabha resolution to this effect, and concurred by the Village 
Panchayat at its fortnightly meeting, can be communicated to the RTO and 
Director of Panchayats for onward transmission to the District Collector for 
suitable orders.It is do-able. Like the NIKE punch line, we need to find the 
courage to JUST DO IT!

Mog asundi.

Miguel

Date: Sat, 1 Nov 2008 00:26:37 -0400
From: "Venantius Pinto" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Goanet] Save yourself first before saving Goa

Message-ID:
    <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>

Soter raises very good points. What I cannot understand is the notion that
just because it is a highway that a crossing is not a legitimate right, and
that too in a country like India where millions live by the highways
-- most of which go through small towns. Earlier on there were no crosing.

 But the sheer nonchalance of wanting to get through with complete disregard to 
what could have happened to us was very real.

venantius

From: "soter" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Goanet] Save yourself first before saving Goa

Just a forthnight ago a young pathologist working at JMJ Hospital in
Porvorim was crushed under the wheels of  a speeding bus as she tried to
cross the road on her way to the bus stop after work. The NH17 has also
taken a huge number of lives of children and adults in road accidents.
Churchill Alemao the PWD Minister is now busy propagating the idea of a
6-lane National Highway that is being senselessly pproposed through villages to 
benefit the builders and real estate developers.  Who will enforce traffic 
discipline which is also required along side other development?


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