GARBA BEAT IS HERE!
DUSHEERA is here. The festival of lights For Goa Gujus is a festival of nine nights Bare backed designer garba choli dancing called garba and dandiya ras will take place at various venues for ten days to the beat of the dhol. Now there is even disco dandiya dancing. Garba Navarati has four days Laxmi puja to invoke wealth, Saraswati puja for wisdom, Dhanteras for buying jewellery and Bhai Beej, the male equivalent of rakhi bandhaan, for Mamata-didi in West Bengal it is Durga Puja. No other country celebrates like we do in India or Bharat around the year! Maybe we celebrate more than we actually work.
SATTARI TIGER IS CORNERED
THRE is no sanctuary for Vishwajit Rane. Goa Bachao Abhiyan has started roaring again and Dean D’Cruz who exposed Babush Monserrate during RP 11 has called Pernem the “mother of all scams.” Even the BJP top leaders are not supporting Rane junior. Chief Minister Pramod is avoiding direct confrontations with him.
NO TAKERS FOR BANASTARI?
THE biggest wholesale market in Banastari now has a mall. No traditional vendor wants to go there. Some of the fish markets in the Margao government don’t understand that vendors don’t like closed spaces. They want direct contact with customers. Even in England they left the Convent Gardens and moved out to open spaces. Vendors are more comfortable on the streets. They cannot afford costly rental space units.
NIIT FINALLY FINDS HOME IN CUNCOLIM
IT was set up long before IIT had yet to find a permanent residence. Goans want factories not collages. There are already four engineering collages. The Government Engineering College, the Pilar Collage, Don Bosco Collage. Now it has the NIIT and the Jewish IIT. But no jobs even for toppers. The salaries in Goa are pathetic. So Goans are forced to go outside Goa for jobs
MUSLIMS BEING TARGETTED AGAIN
THE NIA has raided offices of the Personal Front of India, a major Muslim organisation. The main objective is to intimidate Muslims in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh going to polls soon. The PFI has been accused of aiding terrorists.
4TH JANATA DARBAR AT SATTARI
THE Office of the Collector, North Goa organized the 4th Janata Darbar for Sattari taluka, a pioneering outreach program, at Municipality Hall, Valpoi, on October 9, 2023 bringing governance to the doorstep of the people. Minister for Social Welfare Subhash Phaldesai along with Poriem Constituency MLA Dr Deviya Rane graced the occasion, offering a responsive ear to the grievances of local people and finding solutions to issues bothering them.
Subhash Phaldesai announced the formation of a separate department for Divyangs and revealed plans to include mini national games in the upcoming Purple Festival, an international-level event. He also assured an officer would be appointed within a month he will submit a report on both pending and resolved grievances of the people. Phaldesai said the government is committed to ensuring that all social welfare schemes reach the beneficiaries promptly. Additionally, he shared plans for the development and beautification of Rock Art Mauxi, Nanus Fort, and Dipaji Rane House under the Department of Archeology. Cost estimates will be determined soon. He also spoke of digitization of archives, a task comprising over 3 crore pages, to be completed within 1-2 years.
Poriem MLA Dr Deviya Rane underscored the government’s dedication to improving the people’s quality of life. She commended Goa’s social welfare minister for proactively delivering social welfare schemes and said the Janata Darbar is an invaluable platform for addressing the grievances of the people.
Present at the darbar were dignitaries Rohit Kadam (director, Department of Archives), Nilesh Phaldesai (director, Department of Archeology), Ajit Panchwadkar (director, Department of Social Welfare); Pravin Parab (deputy collector, Sattari); Dashrath Gawas (mamlatdar, Sattari); Pundalik Khorjuvenkar (additional collector-lll); Devyani Gawas (ZP member); Sagun Wadkar (ZP member); Rajashri Kale (ZP member); Shehzin Shaikh (chairperson, Valpoi Municipal Council); Dr Rajesh Patil (Medical Superintendent of Goa Medical College); Vinod Shinde; Sarpanch’s; Panch members; government officials, and others. The program was compered by Uday Sawant with Pravin Parab (deputy collector) proposing vote of thanks.
TREAT GIRL CHILD WITH EQUALITY!
PARENTS have to support girls with regards to their all-round development without any discrimination. Society must aspire to the girl child with equality. This was reiterated by District Magistrate and Collector–North Goa Dr Sneha Gitte (IAS) while speaking as chief guest at a function organized to celebrate International Girl Child Day on Oct 11, 2023. The theme of the celebration was “Invest in Girls Rights: Our Leadership, Our Well Being.”
The function was organized by the State Family Welfare Bureau, Directorate of Health Services in the city October 11 2023. Dr Gitte highlighting the importance of celebration which aims address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and fulfilment of universal human rights. This is an important celebration because there was time not too long ago when a girl child was discriminated in early society. But now with a change in thinking and enforcement of the law of equality, much has changed for the better. However, girls are discriminated against in different forms and this has to be rectified. Parents and society must create an environment of equality and respect for the girl child on every family.
Chief Medical Officer Dr Uttam Desai clued up participants about various activities conducted under PC-PNDT and Beti Bachao Beti Padhav, sensitization programs were conducted for the staff of sub-registrar and appeal letters with Save Girl Child message are to be given to couples at the time of marriage registration. Other areas where sensitization programmes were conducted are Vidhya Prabodhini College of Commerce, Education, Computer and Management Porvorim, Kare College of Law & Salgaonkar College of Law, Skit competition for Higher Secondary students, ITI students and for government employees. There were dance competition, cloth bag designing, greeting card on BBBP on Women’s Day for government employees and akash kandil contest. Staff blessed with a baby girl were felicitated. Also, there was a poetry competition, virtual cyclothon and other activities to sensitize masses about “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” campaign.
Psychologist and professional trainer Ketaki Parab delivered the keynote address, stressing how young girls must be empowered educationally, physically and emotionally. She advised women to do away with discrimination and say, “Wow! A girl child is born!” Deputy Director Dr Rupa Naik welcomed the guests and presented a memento to the chief guest Dr Sneha Gitte, Medical Officer Dr Pritam Naik, students of Nursing Institute, staff of DHS, State Family Welfare Bureau and others who attended the function.
Shraddha Naik compered and there was a cultural program in which Manjushree Mate and her team members performed Bharat Natyam dancing.
JUSTICE GURUDAS G D KAMAT MEMORIAL LECTURE
THE Justice G D Kamat Charitable Trust was established in 2015 to perpetuate the memory of the late Justice Gurudas D Kamat who expired on January 27, 2015. Justice G D Kamat was earlier judge of the Bombay High Court and retired as Chief Justice of Gujarat High Court. Prior to his elevation as judge Justice Kamat was an advocate in Goa, associated with educational and social organizations. To celebrate the memory of the late Justice G D Kamat a memorial lecture was organized on Friday, October 13, 2023, at 5.30 pm at Sanskruti Bhavan Hall, Patto, Panaji. The topic was “Legal Pendency & Moral Tendency” and it was delivered by Justice (Retd) Mridula Bhatkar, former Judge of the Bombay High Court. Justice Mridula Bhatkar has authored books in English and Marathi. Justice Mahesh S Sonak (Hon’ble Judge of Bombay High Court) presided over the occasion where two eminent personalities, Adv Fernando Jorge Colaco in the field of law and Suhas Sardessai in the field of education were felicitated.