On his arrival Narendra Modi first sought the blessings of Lord Bodgeshwar (guardian of Mapusa), he said coming to the sunshine state of Goa filled him with vigour. He also acknowledged the crucial role Goa played in his journey towards becoming the PM, “Where you see me today, its beginning was in Goa.”

By Joshua George

Carving a new acronym for Goa, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in
his election rally at the Bodgeshwar temple grounds in Mapusa, said that Goa stands for Governance, Opportunities and Aspirations. The
crowd of over 10,000 people waited for three hours before the prime minister arrived by helicopter from Dabolim Airport to a temporary helipad built over two days in Mapusa.

EARLY last year while doing my post-graduation course in Journalism & Mass-Media which was drawing to a close, my immediate desire was to bag an opportunity to cover the Indian Super League (ISL)! As an ambitious sports enthusiast and someone who wanted to focus on sports journalism, I believed an exciting career beckoned on the horizon.
Little did I know that after finishing a short internship of three months at a website portal, I would be unemployed for five months. On New Year Eve 2021 I got an opportunity with a local political weekly in Goa and a month later I was covering an election rally headed by none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself! Yes, my interest and forte was in sports but my editor wanted to groom me as an overall journalist and gain a strong background, by dabbing in other areas of journalism too.
On February 10, 2022 when I went to the BJP’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mega meeting, I looked forward to two things. One was seeing Prime Minister Narendra Modi in person – although I don’t admire him or support his politics and policies. But I got an opportunity to see for myself first hand a great orator, one who has captured the imagination of the majority Hindu community of India. The second thing I looked forward to was to…if lucky, I might get the opportunity to attend a press conference addressed by the PM of the country!
It was not to be. Perhaps because Narendra Modi has done over two terms as Prime Minister he prefers to avoid confrontations or interactions with the media. In his Goa visit campaign speech Modi spoke about the various achievements of the BJP under the leadership of Goa’s chief minister, Pramod Sawant, during the last five years. This included the building of the Atal Setu bridge amongst other things, also the under-construction new Zuari Bridge and the new flyover from Ponda to Margao — which has reduced travel distance by 10 km.
The PM also gave a new meaning to Goa – “For us, GOA means Governance, Opportunities, & Aspirations.” However, this is in complete contrast to what the BJP has achieved and for many Goans it is more like — Gloomy, Outlandish and Arrogant!
Addressing a crowd of around 10,000 Modi said the target of 100 per cent vaccination against coronavirus, achieved by the Pramod Sawant-led BJP government, has helped in the revival of Goa’s tourism industry, which had been badly hit by the pandemic. The PM highlighted the milestone of India administering over 150 crore Covid-19 vaccine doses. He also reiterated the importance of having a double-engine government by saying, “Imagine if this was a government of the past what would have happened? Would Goa become the only state to be fully vaccinated?”
In my short one month’s experience in life journalism I have had the opportunity to cover an election campaign. I learn that time is not a valuable thing for any of the VIPs visiting Goa. Media people covering the BJP’s “Jan Sankalp Sabha” were instructed to be at the venue near Bodgeshwar temple in Mapusa three hours before the Prime Minister’s arrival! Time passing in a press enclosure can get to be very boring with no real activity happening on the podium. So there was nothing to do but use the opportunity to interact with fellow media reporters, photographers, videographers and other media of various denomination…to kill time waiting. Some media people had come from Mumbai and Delhi to cover Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s much praised speech in Goa detailing how a glorious future for Goa will unfold in the next five years. That is of course if the people of Goa vote for the BJP!