goanet-digest Friday, July 12 2002 Volume 01 : Number 4151
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In this issue:
[Goanet] PIB Phone-in programme on consumer rights
[Goanet] FEATURE: Waiting for baby...
[Goanet] Is Old Unquestionably Gold?
[Goanet] re: Respecting our roots and herbs
[Goanet] THE BLAST IN VASCO
[Goanet] Re: THE BLAST IN VASCO
[Goanet] re: Knowledge deficit and freedom of ideas
[Goanet] Access to Anjediva Church to be Blocked
See end of digest for information on subscribing/unsusbcribing.
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Date: Thu, 11 Jul 2002 23:40:14 -0600 (MDT)
From: "pib" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Goanet] PIB Phone-in programme on consumer rights
PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
*****
PHONE-IN PROGRAMME ON CONSUMER RIGHTS
Asadha 20, 1924
Panaji ----------------------
July 11, 2002
A Phone-in programme on the topic "Consumer Rights" will be telecast by
Doordarshan Kendra, Panaji between 6.15 pm to 6.55 pm on July 15, 2002.
Adv. Amrut Kansar and Smt. Shubhalaxmi Pai Raikar will answer to the
viewers questions. The programme is anchored by Shri Sanjay Talwatkar.
Interested viewers can ask their questions on telephone No. 220028 or
220029 within this period.
*****
PIB/PANAJI/SVJ/VRG/L-361/ W-85
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 2002 10:03:47 +0530 (IST)
From: Frederick Noronha <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Goanet] FEATURE: Waiting for baby...
Waiting for baby: infertility a growing concern for couples in Goa
By Frederick Noronha
PANJIM, July 12: Decades back, it was grounds for legally permitting
polygamy in colonial Goa. But today, infertility is becoming a growing
concern of Goan couples, leading to a new kind of problem that this small
region is left to grapple with.
'Infertility clinic' sign-boards are more visible in this state's small
towns, and the anguish of childless couples is writ large on many faces.
On a recent weekday, it's past dinner-time but the doctor's consultancy is
still full with waiting patients.
"It's a very powerful problem. Upto 20 per cent of couples could have
problems (in conceiving a child)," says obstetrician and gyanecologist Dr
Kedar Padte, who specialises in maternity and infertility issues in this
state-capital.
On another weekend, the local Rotary Club drew a full-hall. A team of 12
doctors worked till late Sunday afternoon, even as couples mostly in their
thirties sat patiently -- many since early morning -- in the large hall,
where chairs seem deliberately to be arranged in pairs.
These visible signs are reflected in the hard facts. "(Goa's) fertility is
already well below replacement level," says the National Family Health
Survey India (NFHS-2).
"The substantial decline in fertility in Goa over time is evident....
Fertility has declined sharply at all durations....," comments the NFHS-2 in
its recent special 284-page report dealing exclusively with Goa.
Dr Babasaheb Raosaheb Desai, Belgaum-based KLE Hospital's assisted
reproduction centre programme director, points out that as many as 70
couples flocked to the recent Rotary camp organised at a very short notice.
"Unless one does a study, it's difficult to say. Pelvic infections are one
of the commonest causes of infertility. People are getting married later
too," he says.
Statistics show that women in Goa tend to marry at a much older age than
women in most other states.
Only six percent of women age 15-19 have ever been married, which is
substantially lower than the national average of 40 percent for that age
group. Recent surveys found the average female in Goa gets married at 25
years -- much older than the legal minimum age of 18 years.
But not all those attending the camp were in their thirties. Organisers said
the youngest was 24, and had waited for three years after marriage. Women
upto 41 held out hope, after ten years of marriage.
Shanta Naik (name changed) is hopeful but undecided. "Will I get a chance to
meet the doctor today?" she asks, in anticipation. Her home is just outside
the Sant Inez venue of the infertility camp, and she says she could get her
husband along if he doesn't have to go to work. "Isn't this more important,"
chides a doctor, "where's the question of work on a Sunday?"
Other patients look to medical personnel with a clear mix of anticipation
and trepidation in their eyes.
Goans who are issueless are increasingly finding the only way out as taking
to adoption. Recently, Panjim specialist Dr Kedar Padte made headlines when
Goa's first test-tube baby was born this year.
Things were different in the recallable past.
Ironically in the colonial Portuguese era, the absence of "issues by the
wife" was grounds enough for permitting simultaneous polygamy under the
family laws governing some sections of the population.
Article 3 of the law governing the quaintly-named 'Usages and Customs of
Gentile Hindus of Goa' of the family laws of this region provided an
exception for simultaneous polygamy to have 'civil effects' in case of the
"absolute absence of issues by the wife of the previous marriage until she
attains the age of 25 years".
But times have obviously changed.
Today, 25 years is about the age an average woman in Goa gets married.
Fortunately, no one is now known to have taken recourse to this
little-noticed provision of the law.
Dr Padte believes that this trend has been showing up in Goa since at least
the "last couple of decades". "Go in and see the files," he smiles, when
asked for an indicator of how many couples face the problem of infertility.
Late marriages could explain part of the problem.
It's known that the number of children that a woman will have in her
lifetime is strongly influenced by the age at which she marries. In Goa, the
age at first cohabitation with the husband is 23.2 years for women in the
25-49 age group. This is more than six years higher than the media age at
first cohabitation in India as a whole (17 years).
This age of marriage and cohabitation has gone up sharply from 21.2 years to
24.1 years for women between the 40-49 age group and the 30-34 age group.
This means there has been a "notable increase" in delayed marriages in a
"relatively short period of time".
Padte argues that stress is growing more common in this once-rural but
fast-urbanising society.
Social pressures, delayed time at marriage, multiple sexual-partners
resulting in blocking of the reproductive tubes, poor food habits aggravated
by alcohol and smoking-intake by the males, and the reduction in the sperm
count could be some of the causes, says Dr Padte.
The termination of the first pregnancy can also cause complications.
Strangely, Goa is a case in point where family planning programmes have been
propelled more by voluntary initiatives and economic considerations, rather
than government pressures.
Pressures push younger couples to wait longer before they have their child.
"Some want their own home, or a car before having their child, while leads
to a delay," points out Dr Padte.
"Age is another big problem. By 35 years, fertility rates come down. Even
with the latest facilities, one should not waste a lot of time and hope for
the best," says Dr Dessai of KLES.
Former Director of Health Services Dr Ananda Helecar, who served from
1984-1990, says the fertility is obviously declining -- and becoming a
problem in some cases -- though Goa still doesn't have a clear understanding
of the causes. "It's visible in our families too," says he.
"Sometimes, even just counselling helps in conceiving," says Desai. But
high-end treatment could end up costing upto Rs 70-80,000. At this cost too,
the chances of conception, say doctors, is around thirty percent.
Mark D'Gama (name changed) of South Goa meanwhile waits for his wife to
finish a consultation with the doctor, while confiding the travails of not
getting a child when wanting one. "We've spent 40,000 rupees already, and
will have to pay up 40,000 more for the treatment," says he. (ENDS)
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 2002 07:38:38 -0000
From: "santoshhelekar" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Goanet] Is Old Unquestionably Gold?
Paddy wrote:
>
>Old is Gold.
>
Subhash Paradkar wrote:
>
>Intelligence of our forefathers should not be undermined and
>measured by Western scientists.
>
When I see or hear statements such as the ones made above, I ask an
obvious question. Why? Why is old gold? Why should knowledge of our
forefathers not be questioned by modern science?
Modern science has found no evidence for any regression in the
intelligence or creativity of humans over the past 5000 years. There
is no reason to believe that our forefathers were any smarter than we
are. If you examine the knowledge and scientific and technological
achievements of our forefathers there is ample evidence to suggest
that they more often wrong about things than right. For instance,
Aristotle was completely wrong about basic Physics. Ptolemy was
utterly misguided about the structure of the solar system. Susruta
and Caraka made horrible blunders pertaining to human biology. A few
of the erroneous ideas that they believed in are as follows:
1. Congenital defects were due to an ungratified mother.
2. The position of the fetus in the mother's womb determined its sex.
3. A male was conceived on even days and a female on odd days.
4. The softer tissues were derived from the mother and the harder
ones from the father.
5. A mother who feeds on ghee and milk gives birth to a male child,
whereas oil and beans produces a female child.
6. The heart is the seat of consciousness. This is also what
Aristotle believed.
There is also the ridiculous ancient field of Astrology, which has
been shown to be completely baseless and worthless by modern
observations.
It is absolutely important and essential for us to apply to ancient
ideas and therapies the same rigorous empirical tests that we apply
to modern scientific ideas and therapies. Our lives depend on it.
Many of the age-old traditional treatments are harmful to our health
such as the practice of applying ash, cowdung and brick powder to cut
umbilical cords.
Paradkar wrote further:
>
> We need to respect our roots and herbs as well. If they work for
>masses with guidance from Aayurvedic doctors and universities, then
>we need to accept these remedies as a gift of our ancestors and be
>thankful.
>
Statements such as the above fly in the face of the knowledge that
more than 2500 years of Ayurveda did nothing to cure and control
dreaded diseases such as small pox, typhoid, malaria, leprosy,
tuberculosis, syphilis and pneumonia. On the whole, Ayurvedic and
other traditional remedies have been abysmal failures in saving lives
and promoting the health of the masses. They have flunked the test of
time.
Open-mindedness does demand that we entertain the possibility that
some of these ancient ideas and treatments may have some merit,
especially because our forefathers were also unlikely to be any less
smart than we are. However, prudence demands that to harness the
limited merits of these ancient ideas and forms of treatment, we
subject them to rigorous modern scientific analysis. Otherwise we
will truly be laboring in darkness with regard to their effectiveness.
I am all for respecting our traditions, and cherishing them, and
preserving them. But to me, old is unquestionably gold only if it is
to be used as a museum piece, not if it is to be put to its intended
practical use. For that I would first want my appraiser to run some
tests in broad daylight.
Cheers,
Santosh
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 2002 01:13:47 -0700 (PDT)
From: "J. Almeida" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Goanet] re: Respecting our roots and herbs
> look how many people related your article bashing
> all Hindus and relating them to RSS/VHP, and even
> BJP.
Dear Xri Paradkar,
I appreciate your level-headed contributions, and your
wit (as exemplified in your well-chosen title). I
appreciate level-headed contributions from others too,
including Santosh. I do not think it desirable for
anyone to bash anyone else: we are all seekers after
truth, of which most of us have mere glimpses. Many of
us share your hurt when any of us feels bashed, and
nearly all of us are able to place ourselves in the
shoes of others before we write. In fact, many of us
(regardless of persuasion) delight in the
highly-evolved treasures of Hindu civilization. I
think there is nobody here who would differ with your
suggestion about the impartial sentiment "More
scientific research needed".
>From a R&D point of view, your approach is rather
close to that of the big pharmaceutical companies.
They don't care how R&D leads are generated: whether
by myths or age-old practices or rumours. If there is
potential merit in a lead, they want to know. They
cannot afford to be dismissive.
Your emphasis on preventive measures for health seems
very important. Especially so in the USA, where (in
the words of Galbraith, in an inversion of Malthus)
"the food supply presses relentlessly on the
population". I saw a picture of a well-fed spectator
at a US sports event, wearing a special hat. It had
two large cups with tubes leading to his mouth. No
exertion involved: the ultimate in creature comforts.
There has been a rumour (possibly started by myself)
that the enemy would soon drop food parcels on the
USA, in a bid to wipe out vast sections of the
population.
I wish you well in your pursuit of happiness. My own
pursuit of happiness has been much enhanced by Malvani
cuisine. I was delighted to learn recently that
Malvanis are our Konknni brothers and sisters.
Dev borem korum. Or Dev baro kartalo.
Regards,
Joel Almeida
__________________________________________________
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------------------------------
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 2002 14:33:40 +0530
From: "Joel D'Souza" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Goanet] THE BLAST IN VASCO
Hi Rene & all who got worried after hearing about the Vasco fire,
There is no cause to fear now because the fire has been brought under
control by the Fire Brigade. I telephoned Linton Barreto (Rene's brother)
around 2 pm and he says that there was a real big scare in town. However,
when Rene called to find out around 6 am this morning, Linton was not
really aware of the gravity of the situation.
The early morning report said that it was the naphta pipeline, which had
caught fire. However, according to the latest report, (received from Bharat
Kavelkar in Vasco), a tanker was dicharging Motor Spirit petrol or HSD. The
MS Pipeline had a leakage and while some welding work was going on nearby
in the port area, the pipeline caught fire. As a result there was a big,
loud blast, which shook an area of about 1000 metre-radius; even the
Sanjeevani Hospital felt the jolt.
However, no human or other casualty has been reported so far.
The blast caused a total confusion in the Port Town, and there was an
exodus of people escaping the town even without knowing what was really
happeing. The people have returned to their residences, which they had left
in a hurry. The area around the site of the accident has, however, been
cordoned off and at least 10 fire brigade units were seen along with a
number of vehicles of the Navy, Coast Guard and MPT.
The two oil companies--IOC and HP--have reportedly taken all precautionary
measures and are are fully alert.
Further confirmation about the exact cause of the problem is awaited.
- ------ Joel D'Souza -------
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 2002 10:39:15 -0700
From: "rene barreto" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Goanet] Re: THE BLAST IN VASCO
Thanks Joel .
Thanks to the beauty of GOAN networking ! We Goan netters
got to know what was happening in Vasco -Goa before the Goans
in Vasco knew about it .
On reading the news from Joel , I called my brother - he was not
aware of any blast , they had a good night s sleep ........susegad
no problems he said to me.
Thank you -Joel , Alister and Daniel for keeping us informed and updated
too.
rene
- ----- Original Message -----
From: "Joel D'Souza" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Cc: "rene barreto" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Friday, July 12, 2002 2:03 AM
Subject: THE BLAST IN VASCO
> Hi Rene & all who got worried after hearing about the Vasco fire,
>
> There is no cause to fear now because the fire has been brought under
> control by the Fire Brigade. I telephoned Linton Barreto (Rene's brother)
> around 2 pm and he says that there was a real big scare in town. However,
> when Rene called to find out around 6 am this morning, Linton was not
> really aware of the gravity of the situation.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 2002 02:45:29 -0700 (PDT)
From: "J. Almeida" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Goanet] re: Knowledge deficit and freedom of ideas
"Arabs once led the world"
- ------------------------------------
It is easy to forget that while Western Europe once
lapsed into relative uncivilization, mathematics,
literacy, science and learning were being developed
elsewhere. Arabic mathematics and astronomy led the
world, alongside highly important advances in India.
These were exact and scientific disciplines,
encouraged by the religious authorities of the time.
The explosion of science in Western Europe was ushered
in by the Scholastics (Christian religious scholars
influenced by Greek philosophers whose writings had
been kept alive within the Arab civilization) who
asserted that:
a. Nature is not entirely capricious and
unpredictable, but has laws that can be studied and
discovered.
b. Material reality exists independent of our senses:
it is not all just illusion.
These seem commonplace now, but were bold at the time
(the latter seems bold even to present-day quantum
physicists). It is easy to forget such things amidst
the well-known examples of intolerant authorities who
have sometimes pretended to have expertise in the laws
of matter, which they clearly lacked. Such intolerant
people unfortunately ignore the advice of St.
Augustine of Hippo. He opposed the idea of a religious
account of natural phenomena in opposition to what
could be known by science. He viewed such accounts as
“most deplorable and harmful, and to be avoided at any
cost". That is the view of many large, mainstream
Christian churches.
Today, fortunately, many people know enough history to
take an informed view about the origins of modern
"Western science and mathematics".
Freedom of ideas seems critical to the battle against
hunger and suffering, as so persuasively argued by
Popper in his writings on the "Open Society".
Authoritarian regimes often seem expedient, but
democracy is a more reliable route to ending hunger
and suffering. Leaders who get only positive feedback
are unlikely to remain servants of the people.
Joel Almeida
__________________________________________________
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------------------------------
Date: 12 Jul 2002 10:17:58 -0000
From: "Khoro Goenkar" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: [Goanet] Access to Anjediva Church to be Blocked
=0AAccess to Anjediva Church to be Blocked=0A=0AVery soon, if the Indian Na=
vy has its way, Christians won=92t be able to visit the Anjediva island any=
more. Construction activity is in progress at the North breakwater startin=
g from Binaga point which will be connected to Anjediva (Anjadip as the nav=
y spells it) Island. Since the construction activity includes construction =
of very sensitive facilities the Navy, keeping the nation=92s security in m=
ind, has deemed that it will not be possible to permit the visitors to Anje=
diva Island beyond May, 2003. They have written a letter to The President o=
f the Catholic Association of Goa, with a request to make necessary arrange=
ments to shift the church from Anjediva Island by May 2003 as visitors shal=
l not be permitted to Anjediva Island after that.=0AThe Church of Nossa Sen=
hora das Brotas (Our Lady of Springs) on the Island of Anjediva has got tre=
mendous archeological significance being one of the oldest churches and the=
site where the first Christian conversion took place. The present church w=
as built in 1729, but an earlier church existed on the spot where in 1500 P=
edro Alvares Cabral leading the second Portuguese expedition landed. It was=
here that in August 1500, Fr. Henrique de Coimbra and eight other Francisc=
ans celebrated Goa=92s first mass. =0ASometimes referred to as the foundati=
on stone of Christianity in the East, the church draws visitors every year =
in February and in October for the feasts. Pilgrims have to hitch a ride on=
a trawler from Binaga and wade in knee deep water to reach the island, yet=
many make the pilgrimage. The island was handed over to the navy in 1991 f=
or expansion of their seabird project. Given the historical importance of t=
he church it is imperative that some access to the church has to be made av=
ailable, with the Navy can imposing security measures. The church can also =
be considered a heritage landmark and hence needs to be preserved. Your com=
ments on the proposed shifting of the church will be appreciated and can be=
sent to [EMAIL PROTECTED]=0A=0AAlexandre Moniz Barbosa=0A=0A=0A_________=
________________________________________________=0AThere is always a better=
job for you at Monsterindia.com.=0AGo now http://monsterindia.rediff.com/j=
obs=0A
------------------------------
End of goanet-digest V1 #4151
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