MARATHI AS OFFICIAL LANGUAGE OF GOA WILL BE AT THE COST OF LIFE.

By NisserDias.                                                                                                                    
28th Feb 2013.

 

With the BJP in power for almost a year now Marathi protagonists have started asserting themselves and this was very much evident last week when a group of Marathiwadis demanded that Marathi be made the official language of the state. This might just be a call but the seed to destroy Konkani language gradually has been sown.

Maharashtrawadi Gomant party’s (MGP) primary ideology was to merge Goa with Maharashtra no matter how. Even after losing the historical Opinion Poll their desire still continues and the moment they get an opportunity they push their agenda. BJP too also harbours similar aspiration because most of the MGP protagonists have now become BJP workers. This is what chief minister Manohar Parrikar was saying just prior to the general assembly election last year that both the parties are natural allies because they have similar manifestos and plans for the state of Goa but the ultimate goal is to merge Goa with Maharashtra.

Way back in 1967 MGP did not use tact but wanted to bulldoze against the wishes of the people and merge Goa into its larger neighbour. Now it seems they are using dexterity and devious ways to achieve their goal. Their recent demand from the government is to give official status to Marathi language in Goa besides Konkani. They are not happy with equal status but want official status, this to my mind is totally unreasonable and illogical, how a Konkan region accept Marathi as official language? In the future Maharashtra inclined Goans or rather Maharashtra deity Sashikala Kakodkar and others may demand that since Konkani does not have much literary works as Marathi it should be sole official language and our mother tongue should be given the kitchen status. These riff-raffs should understand that the issue has to be decided by the people of the state and not by handful of political supported vagabonds, who are at the moment are sounding the bugle of the government.

I wish to remind my readers that Manohar Parrikar as the Opposition Leader had stated in the assembly that he loves to speak Konkani but we should not forget he was educated with Marathi as his first language so also he educated his sons through Marathi medium in the primary level and not Konkani. Thus our chief minister thinks and calculates in Marathi but propagates his love for Konkani in public. It is always said that people get the government they deserve. And in the case of Goans it is very much right as we have made a virtue of electing all the wrong people.

A year back we did not want Congress led government of which MGP was an ally because of full scale corruption so we elected BJP to power without realising that BJP also harbours MGP ideology and more. During the lean years of the MGP after the Opinion Poll, most of their members joined the BJP. Hence when Parrikar said that his party and MGP were natural allies he was not far from the mark as both these political parties seems to yearn for the merger of Goa into Maharashtra.

Similarly airport at Mopa will benefit Maharashtra more than Goa, it might spell the death knell for tourism in the state but chief minister Manohar Parrikar is hell-bent on the airport at Mopa and has even put the process in fast forward mode.

Then the Maharashtra strong man and Union Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar flies down to Goa under the guise of attending party affairs and promises to the take up the mining issue in the state with the prime minister and in few he facilities the meeting between representatives of mining affected people and Dr. Manmohan Singh. Mining issue is in no way related to agriculture, it pertains to environment, forest hence he has no business to poke his nose. It seems that either our state government is impotent or chief minister feels that he does not need Prime minister’s assistance to solve the problem. Thus those people affected by stoppage of mining activity in the state will be grateful to the Maharashtrian irrespective of the outcome of the case in the Supreme Court.

Coming back to the demand of elevating Marathi language as the official language of Goa, some of the Konkani protagonists are also to be blamed for this. While some want ‘Devanagari’ others want ‘Romi’ script. Marathi lovers have seen the ever growing divide between Konkani lovers and are now seeking to exploit it. While most of the individuals backing ‘Devanagari’ script have done their elementary schooling in Marathi, most of the individuals supporting ‘Romi’ script have completed their schooling with English as medium of instruction and hence find it difficult to read and write in Devanagari script.

At the same time while majority of Hindu brethren prefer Marathi because Bhagavad Gita is in that language. The Holy Bible is written in Romi script of Konkani but nobody seems to find the parallel between both these aspects. While Marathi is given preference and also equal status, Romi Konkani is not even receiving equal funds as the Devanagari script. This is our nemesis.

We as Goans have to think about these issues and for once and all put an end to it. And the first thing to do to achieve this goal is wipe out Maharashtrawadi Gomant Party (MGP) from Goa. They should not be representing Goans in the Assembly but representing Marathi Manos in Mumbai. Finally if the government tries to concede to the demand of making Marathi as the official language there is all probability of discontentment and bloodshed.

Send your comments/reactions to nisserdias@gmail.com Or SMS 9422437029).

TIATRO "AMI KHUXEAL" IN KUWAIT ON 25.10..13.

From: Gasper Almeida

 

AVY Production to stage Konkani Drama “AMI KHUXAL”Goa Kala Academy award winner and versatile actor, singer and composer Braz de Parra, after staging two Konkani drama’s “Nagounno” and “Rostad” in Goa, is all set to present his Konkani tiatr in Kuwait titled “AMI KHUXAL” under the banner of AVY Production on October 25, 2013 (Friday) at the Kuwait Medical Association Auditorium-Jabriya.

 

This drama will feature a galaxy of Kuwait-based singers and artistes as well as reputed actors from GCC countries and Goa, India. Stage and Light settings with special scenes will be arranged by Unique Arts and Music by Maestro Shahu.

 

Those interested to be part of this major production in a typical traditional tiatr format are welcome.

 

Keep reading your favourite newspaper for further details or contact Mob: 99111786, 97847247.

CURSEFUL GOAN FREEDOM FIGHTER DIED A CURSED DEATH.

She was one of the last irresponsible Goan freedom fighters to die as unwanted and unsung. Unwanted in Goa for whose sake she sacrificed and suffered so much from the hands of Portuguese colonialists. Unwanted by her own children who neglected her so much even when she was on her deathbed. Her last days gone unsung any Hosanas in her praises for the efforts she put in to drive out from Goa the dictatorial rule of Potugal’s Lisboa and in the bargain irresponsibly bring in another dictatorial rule in Goa of Bharat’s Delhi. This was the late Dr. Laura D’Souza Rodrigues from Parra Bardez who was then called just Laurabai.

Being a Goan and fighting for Goa’s freedom she should have been in Goa to breathe her last and to burry in Goan soil but no, God has denied her this privilege to die an honourable death in her own Goa. This was the tragedy of many of those who tried to destroy the good future of Goa and Goans by helping invasion of Goa by Bharat without taking Goans into confidence. Laura and other such freedom fighters were not the spokesmen of Goans and they had no right to decide what was good and what was bad for Goa and Goans. They were not freedon fighters but Chamchas of Bharat.

On its edition of 16th February 2013, Herald from Goa headlined the news with her photo saying “Goan freedom fighter dies a destitute in Mumbai”. This type of death was the punishment for such irresponsible freedom fighters who had no love for the genuine Goa and its morality, culture, language, tradition, folklore and everything attached to genuine Goa and genuine Goans. Just to give a slogan saying “Salazar Murdabad and Nehru Zindabad” does not qualify you to be a great freedom fighter. Goan freedom fighters like Laura, G.M. D’souza and their likes had no vision for Goa after the ouster of Portuguese from Goa.

Portugal had to leave Goa that was certain but in its place was it right to bring in another Portugal in the name of Bharat? Bharat and Goa are two different entities and as such Goa should have been an independent nation, totally independent from Portugal and totally independent from Bharat. But all our freedom fighters like Laura gave Goa on silver platter to Nehru’s Bharat. And because of this we now are suffering in Goa from the curse of invasion of Goa by Bharat.

By being a part of Bharat, Goa is losing all its original characteristics existed in Goa before 19.12.1961. Freedom fighters like Laura worked not for freedom but for slavery for this reason she submitted blindly to the annexation of Goa to Bharat.

Following the entry of Bharat in Goa she while in Goa was the regular visitor to Calangute Khobravaddo at the palatial residence of rich Bhattkar Fausto Andrade who was the renowned Manddoist and who introduced Calangute group in the name of Congottchim Lahram to Manddo Festival in Goa in late Sixties. My wife as a young girl residing in the same Vaddo opposite to Andrade’s house was one of the beautiful members of this beautiful Congottchim Lahram that won many awards during Manddo Festival contests in Goa in different categories.

One day when Andrade asked Laura “whether she was feeling sorry for driving away Portuguese from Goa and bringing in substitute Portuguese and thereby destroying genuineness of Goa”, Laura had no answer in her defense but shamelessly started abusing Portugal as a freedom fighter. Goan freedom fighters are not genuine freedom lover for Goa, they had no vision for Goa, they just wanted Goa to get swallowed by Bharat with her cruel culture of “Sala Banchot” and this is what we see now everywhere in Goa. Inviting Bharat to help driving Portugal out from Goa is okay but not allowing Bharat to annex Goa to it surely would be beneficial for Goa and Goans and also for the freedom fighters whose efforts gone unnoticed and unsung like that of Laura, G.M. D’Souza and others.

Many of the freedom fighters thought that they would become the rulers of Goa once Portuguese are ousted from Goa but for their regret they got a kick on their back. Good that some of them are given Pensions as Alms and this was done to silence their mouths in support of Portugal. Otherwise many of them would be beggars and as a matter of fact they had qualities in them of beggars, robbers, murderers and cheats. The value of their efforts is equal to the Tamrapatras they received and the Pensions they are receiving. This is the worth of their struggle. I don’t know in what category of freedom fighters Laura falls. Among them there was one category of Murderers, another category of Robbers and yet another category of Liars but according to me surely Laura falls into the category of Liars.

On 19th December in the morning while it was declared that Portuguese Governor Vassalo e Silva was going to sign the surrendering document in Panjim, at Mapusa over Bustand one Helicopter was hovering and in that Helicopter there was one nice looking lady on Microphone advising in fluent Konkani the people down below who were restless not knowing what was exactly happening in Goa, to remain calm and nothing will happen to them. Also the same voice saying that “we are come to Goa to do good for you and don’t worry everything will be good in Goa for Goans”. These were the lies spread by that nice looking lady in the Helicopter at Mapusa in support of the invasion of Goa by Bharat. And by the way, who was that lady speaking from Helicopter? She was none other than Laurabai as righty noticed by the people from the ground.

Laura was acting like more Indian than Indian themselves. Opposing India and its leaders was not tolerated by her as if she was the owner of India and Goans are slaves of India. When Churchill Alemao was alleged to have burnt the Indian Flag she jumped like a spring from her chair demanding his arrest without knowing the authenticity of this news. This was the trend then of Goan freedom fighters to show to the “Panpotti” Central leaders in Delhi that Goan Freedom Fighters are more patriotic than patriotic Indians. Laura was one such freedom fighter who fought for Goa’s freedom without thinking of Goa’s future.

As a human being I regret her death in such a pitiable situation but as a freedom fighter she was a curse worked to bring curses on Goa that we witness now under the Bharati rule in Goa.

A. Veronica Fernandes,

Kuwait.