Goa, infrastructure ------------------- That Goa's communication infrastructure is the pits is more than clear for some time now.
On Monday August 22, VSNL's (the Tata-controlled former state-run monopoly) Internet phone lines 172226 gives a continually busy signal. Unusual. What's wrong? To find out, of course, you need to contact VSNL, which has offices in Panjim and its technical facilities at Verna. But BSNL's Goa telephone directory hasn't come out for years. Apparently, some racket led to the contract reaching the wrong hands; it was expected four years back! You ring 197, the enquiry number. It takes about 15 minutes for the phone to get picked up! In the meanwhile, you are repeatedly irritated by being told, ""Your call is important to us. Sorry to keep you waiting. You will be attended (sic) shortly." Once the phone is lifted, you're told that VSNL doesn't have an office in Panjim. Never mind that you visited it just a month back, to pick up a new account! Meanwhile, the lights have failed. Phone the local sub-station, and you're told that some "jumper" fault means you won't have power for the next "ten to fifteen minutes". Three calls later to the BSNL, we still can't find out the number of VSNL. The earlier numbers, which the enquiry service hand out so glibly, are all "out of service". End result: no access to the Internet, no information on the phone number. We are India's best state; but in information terms, very, very poor! FN