35TH STATEHOOD DAY OF GOA: Present on the dais was Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Ravi Naik, Mauvin Godinho, Governor Sreedharan Pillai, Shripad Naik, Rohan Khaunte, Subhash Shirodkar, Sudin Dhavalikar and Subhash Phal Desai.

IT’S not the first time the thought has occurred to me while witnessing one of our government celebrations. They all have a touch of bygone British grandeur verging on the needless and puerile in our times. I wonder if the British or Portuguese are still around…that British government has long since departed but we continue to walk in the footwear of colonial rulers. See how our Indian governments continue to bloom in pomp and pomposity dating back to empire times!
Our celebrations are rarely short, quick and to the point as surely more modern governance ought to be, l should be? Why are we stuck in only too familiar patterns of erstwhile raj darbari culture? Must we in a modernity-seeking India continue to celebrate as if our British colonial masters are still around and want to throw their weight around? Why do our democratically elected aam aadmi governments love to celebrate in absurdly extravagant style?
India’s British colonial times and Goa’s Portuguese colonial times are long since gone but we continue to wallow in dated celebration mode! Seventy-five years of independence later we continue to indulge in these long drawn out celebrations which are a carbon copies of each other and a throwback on British empire heydays.
THE latest being the occasion of Goa’s 35th Statehood Day which for the first time Chief Pramod Sawant’s government decided to celebrate at the new Raj Darbar Hall of the Raj Bhavan on May 30, 2022. It was a two hour long extravaganza in the chilly air-conditioning of the new hall built close to the gates and quite far, far away from Goa’s magnificent Raj Bhavan set in several hectares of cliff side land overlooking the grand Mandovi and Zuari riverscapes meeting the Arabian sea.
The new Raj Darbar Hall is actually a more spaciously designed building and undoubtedly more practical for celebrations engaging a large number of invitees) with perhaps a lunch or dinner thrown in at public expense. This is not to say it was not a momentous occasion but the BJP prides itself as an extraordinary freedom fighters’ party and is steeped in its own political corruption scams, it continues to squander public money — even in what are troubled times for the common people who are currently battling lack of jobs, hunger, nameless traumatised illnesses post-Covid pandemic and lockdowns of three years.
As celebrations go Goa’s 35th Statehood Day celebration was no different from whatever the previous celebration was and we have a mindboggling series of celebrations. This time around former chief ministers/their families and various favoured company heads were bestowed with shawl, shriphal and citation awards. The list was long with more awards added on for achievements read out by the compere who did an excellent job.
Our politicians and business barons collect so many awards, shawls, gifts, I wonder whose homes are full of cabinets showcasing all the trophies, or are they just gathering dust in corners? I know a minister who hands over all shawls received to his maid’s husband, both of whom work loyally for him, what they do with all the shawls is their business!

JEWEL IN CROWN
AFTER national anthem and a fulsome welcome address by Mauvin Godinho, who described Goa “as the jewel in the crown of India,” floral tributes were presented to more or less the entire Cabinet on dais (with the exception of the missing Vishwajit Rane and Babush Monserrate). There were song and dance performances but the awards presentation took up much of the time for achievements real or half-real. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant is learning brevity! He listed his government’s achievements quickly, plus declared a War Memorial Day on July 15 every year to celebrate annually. All colonial atrocities will be remembered on this day in New Delhi on War Memorial Day.
It is Governor Shreedhar Pillai who as usual left one with something to think about. He was all praise for the state of Goa and said Statehood Day was a national moment. Apart from advocating more power to mother tongue of Goa, Konkani (which is spoken in five states including his home state of Kerala), he also observed that in a democracy there must be a desire for unity, “Unity is very important for a country.” In a democracy, he added, there is a right to differ and there should be no enemies there.
He congratulated Archbishop of Goa Philip Neri for being promoted to a cardinal’s status by Pope Francis in Rome and said it was a proud moment for Goa and India. It is something which has made many people happy but is there a happiness deficit in Goa? He cleared up any misinformation circulating about whether Goa’s magnificent vintage times Raj Bhavan would be destroyed. All this he credited to the spread of misinformation. According to him the Raj Bhavan is a national monument and worthy of protection even if put to other use. He would be happy to live wherever he was asked to live.

OUTDATED POSTS?
PERHAPS somebody should suggest to the governor that the governor’s post itself is arguably another relic of the erstwhile British empire and perhaps it should be dressed down if not done away with altogether (along with the president’s post)! Seeing how state after state is surviving on deficit banking, as is the government of Goa. After all, how long can governments live in the CSR pockets of various A-B-C-D companies of whatever denomination – even if many of them are supportive of graft to politicians and governments to get away with many of their illegalities? Read the news every day and it is clear a vice industry is growing and flourishing in Goa and filling the secret pockets of many. That is if one would like take it seriously.
So who says the British and Portuguese masters and exploiters of old have quit Indian shores? I say our Indian politicians walk in their footwear daily to keep their addictive raj darbari lifestyles alive. As the governor commented in not so many words we need to educate the people about what defines good governance. Today our politicians advice the people they betray in every election to be positive, tighten their belts – while they presumably continue to loosen theirs!