savegoa

The GOOD, the BAD, the UGLY

Proposed township in Carmona, Salcete

Location and Heritage

The village of Carmona is located on the southern coast of Goa that stretches from Colva to Mobor, and is hemmed in by the villages of Varca and Orlim on one side and Cavelossim on the other. Carmona has about 1,200 homes spread over its settlement zone. AS much as 55 per cent of the land in Carmona is agricultural and the rest is horticultural/orchard/residential land. Its settled population is 5,000. Carmona has its own church, which celebrated its 400th year in 2007, a temple for Hindus and few chapels.

Carmona, reckoned to be a 700-year-old settlement, is ranked among the 20-odd Heritage Villages by the Goa Heritage Action Group (GHAG). Unlike some others in this 'privileged club', Carmona does not boast of numerous unique, elite houses. It has a few old homes of the zonnkars which complement its old agricultural traditions, and have acquired the heritage status. But Carmona's strength is its neat landscaping, bunding, old water channels, thickly-wooded tracts Â¬all manifestations of the heritage if one applies the term in its entirety.

A large number of families have been living for generations in Carmona, sustaining themselves on agricultural and allied activities. In the last decade or so, an appreciable number of youngsters have found employment in West Asia or well-paying placements with the international shipping companies. Carmona has remained relatively untouched by the tourism, even as it is located on the South Goan tourist belt, comprising Betalbatim-Colva-Benaulim-Cavelossim.

Beauty & The Beast?

GOA:Sweet Land of Mine

by Miguel Braganza
A brief note on the book "GOA: Sweet land of MINE." by Dr.Claude Alvares and Reboni Saha with contributions from many. The vividly illustrated and captioned book is available at the Other India Bookshop at Mapusa for just Rs.250/-

The book entitled simply "GOA:Sweet Land of Mine" compiled by Dr.Claude Alvares and Reboni Saha with inputs from Rajendra Kerkar [Swami Vivekananda Green Brigade],Nirmal Kulkarni[ Green Cross, Wildernest], Sandeep Azrencar [Nisarga Nature Club], Amrut Singh [Animal Resque Squad], Abhijit Prabhudesai [Goa Wildlife Group], Rahul Alvares, Ramesh Gauns [CICH, anti-mining activist] is creating waves in Goa.

The opening page has a telling comment by Joseph Wood Krutch:
WHEN WE DESTROY SOMETHING MAN-MADE AND REPLACEABLE, WE ARE CALLED VANDALS. WHEN WE DESTROY SOMETHING IRREPLACEABLE AND MADE BY GOD, WE ARE CALLED DEVELOPERS."

If Shelley said "A THING OF BEAUTY IS A JOY FOREVER", his views are not shared by those who have mining concessions in Goa. What the Mine-owners and operators think is written on page 27 "mine, Mine, MINE! Goa's latest story of greed"

Goa: Blood on its mountains

YES, GOA has blood on its mountains, of forest being denuded and water resources drying up through mining activity. The misery the mining industry has invariably dumped on the Goans over the last few decades. A different Goa, from the one projected by the tourism department to the outside world.

Mining has been the second most revenue generating industry for the state after Tourism. But at what cost?

Villagers staying at the foothills and mountains have been suffering for decades the ill effects of blatant rape of the hills by the mining giants. And the rape of the environment continues.

Environmental activists like Goa Foundation founder Claude Alvares were banking on hope that the Supreme Court will stop iron ore extraction in the state. The hope faded away with the highest court of the land clearing the decks for resumption of mining in January this year, with a rider that it should be environmentally friendly.

Moral Externalities of Coastal Tourism

There is no danger to Goa's morally, socially and legally subsidised tourism as long as the international community (EU members, USA and the Anti-Narcotics arm of the UN) brings pressure on the Indian government to cleanse Goa's tourism sector. Perhaps the British Parliament would be as sensitive to the drugs and crime scene in Goa as it has been to the condition of the last few surviving Indian tigers.