Last fortnight at
Azad Maidan, Panjim, I attended the Hunger strike – a daylong activity in
support of the unemployed Goans and also those who were retrenched from the
Mining Companies. Some of them are having their families to look after while others have their loans to repay and
still others so many other financial obligations. They cry saying the
government is least bothered to know their plight while others say there is no
government in Goa functioning in the absence of CM.
During the whole day they said not a single government
emissary visited them to enquire about their plight leave aside the ruling party
MLA or any Minister. And by the way why
they should take interest in them? Let
them go to hell, they must be saying. In
Konkani they say “KUNKOD MELEM FUNKOT
GELEM”.
Somewhere in 1957/58 there was a chaos in the Mining belt where
because of the dispute between Sesa Goa management and workers the mining
activity came to an abrupt halt sending shivers in the veins of many of the Sesa’s
employees. Then Sesa as per my
information readied itself to close down its operations in Goa and put the
employees on the road. This news reached
to Salazar in Portugal who immediately advised Governador Vassalo e Silva to
stop Sesa going ahead with their anti-workers policy but find a solution. Then Sesa management did not terminate anyone
but for few months made the employees sit at home on half the salary till the
solution was found. The question that
Salazar posed to Goa Governador was: Who
will then support the employees and their families?
It is a pity that the outsider Salazar was more sympathetic
to Goans than our own insiders who without compassion put the people working in
the Mining companies on the road.
The Mining companies accumulated crores
and crores and according to the Shah Commission Report thousand of crores
these companies owe to Goa and Goans. Instead of utilising this amount
for the benefit of affected Goans, Government is pampering the Mine Owners.
There should be justice done to the affected Goans.
A.Veronica Fernandes.
