Goa was in the midst of a “fish crisis” as the controversy over fish preserved in formalin being sold in the markets emerged. For a state heavily dependent on fish, the issue brings to the fore questions of food safety and the politics surrounding supply of fish in Goa.
Moving the National Green Tribunal from Pune to New Delhi, for Goa, would have had severe implications for reshaping the reality of who could seek redressal over environmental concerns in Goa, at what cost, and how frequently.
Once again at the superficial level, Goa seems to be going back to having its politics dominated by the two big national parties. Both have leaders hopping across party lines and who seem well disposed to lobbies ranging from those advocating casinos to destructive strip-mining, especially once they are in power. Neither of these parties seems to be able to go beyond conservative and divisive politics to create a vision for the future of one of India’s most affluent, best educated and outmigration-oriented states.
Once again at the superficial level, Goa seems to be going back to having its politics dominated by the two big national parties. Both have leaders hopping across party lines and who seem well disposed to lobbies ranging from those advocating casinos to destructive strip mining, especially once they are in power. Neither of these parties seems to be able to go beyond conservative and divisive politics, to create a vision for the future for one of India's most affluent, best educated and out-migration oriented of states.
Careful political management, built on Congress' misdeeds, brought in a Bharatiya Janata Party tidal wave that more or less decimated the ruling party. The BJP has managed to woo the minorities as well, but what impact will soft Hindutva have on diversity in the state?
The BJP in Goa is sponsoring and circulating VCDs of a film purporting to tell the story of the territory?s liberation from Portuguese colonial rule. But there is a clear anti-Christian agenda behind the film and the effort to promote it, with the intention of appealing to the Hindutva vote bank.
There are lessons to be learnt from the experiments in developing community run/owned radio in south Asia and outside. The Philippines has taken community radio to new heights and even tiny Nepal has opened up its community broadcasting, and in Sri Lanka community radio stations are owned by the state.
Earlier this year, the government unveiled its rules that allow educational institutions to set up `community radio' stations. But, as several institutions stumbling over many obstacles to seek licences have found, the government is not at all comfortable about allowing this low cost communication technology to be put to wide use.
The state's Right to Information Act, 1997 has given rise to a number of applications for information from a wide-ranging section of the population. Their experience, although uneven, has probably had some impact on the functioning of the government which now can, at any time, come under direct scrutiny by the people.
Accusations against Goa's BJP government for its attempts to 'saffronise' education, are being met by a growing citizens' resistance movement. The government, on the other hand, is seeking to allay suspicions by positioning it as the long-running controversy of Marathi vs Konkani. With the potential instability seen in successive governments in Goa, such controversies will only add to the continued lack of governance.
India could well benefit from the creation of a three-tier system of broadcasting: a state-owned public service network; commercial private broadcasting and non-profit, people-owned and managed community radios.
