Those of you living in the state of Goa, India may have witnessed the bandh held yesterday, June 6th, 2011.
For those of you who are not aware what a 'bandh' is, it means 'closed' in Hindi. It is basically a strike or a protest brought on by political activists wherein the general public are forced to stay in their homes, shopkeepers are not allowed to open their shops and modes of public transport are stopped.
These bandhs are called on by certain parties to get their way by invoking fear in the hearts of the common people. You may wonder how and I'm planning on telling you just that.
3 years ago, when we first arrived in Goa, we were in the dark on such matters, life just seemed fun. But as time went by, the glamor of living in Goa gave way to horror and realization of how things really worked here.
Back to our topic, some days ago, it was announced in the papers that there would be a 'bandh' on the 6th. The reason for this is as follows:
In Goa, there are 2 types of schools- The local schools and the high class schools ( Thats what I had gathered from those who've lived here). The high class schools are horribly expensive and the rich and some medium class people send their children here. The fees charged are somewhere around Rs. 28,000 per year! The local schools ( Village schools) are attended by people who can't afford the luxury of the other schools. The fees here are around Rs. 800 per year. Now the high class schools have English as the medium of instruction whereas local schools have 'Konkani' as their medium ( Konkani is the native language of the Goan people). Sometime ago, it was suggested that with modernization and evolution of the new era, the children who didn't have English as the main medium, faced problems later in life ( College, work opportunities, etc.)
People went about demanding equality for all, an opportunity for English medium for the fortunate and those not so fortunate. It became a topic of discussion everywhere till finally, the Government agreed that Goa did need a change for the better and English won.
Now, a few days back, some political parties came up with a new twist- If English was taught in schools, people wouldn't make much of an effort to learn it at home and eventually, in say 15 years or so, Konkani would die out!
The bandh was held as scheduled to prove their point and we spent the whole of yesterday cooped up in our home, not that we were complaining though : P We enjoy holidays : D
However, after hearing what happened, it became a bigger issue.
Politicians disagree on points and force their opinion on the public without giving them a choice! They say India is a democracy, they say people are free here and have a right to choose what they want out of life. I've come from a country in the Middle East where freedom is not a word commonly heard. How is India different from these countries?? They claim to let people's voice's be heard and some other nonsense I really dont want to go into. So how are they better than the Middle East in terms of freedom?
These parties force people to live in constant fear of being stoned or beaten up. They give no thought to anything, there are no factors, they stone everyone, children, women, old people, the sick, injured, EVERYONE!!!
These people claimed that the bandh held yesterday was a success cos people stayed in, most schools were closed, etc. My question is which mother would allow her child to take the public bus on a day when she knows that crazy people are waiting out there to stone her precious child? No matter how against the bandh people are, no human being values anything more than their life and so, nobody moved out of their houses!
These LUNATICS stoned buses with innocent children in them. I mean, how can have the heart to do something like that? Where is your sense of humanity people???? You'll are so concerned about the future of your language that you'll have lost all concern for the future of the state ( The children).
I personally feel Goa needs to implement English into the schools. I've heard college students struggle to find words to string together to make proper sentences! And these people are the future doctors and engineers of our state, these useless idiots who cant understand text books and who have no idea what is said to them till it is explained in their local language!
English is a universal language, wherever you go, you need it! It is important for communication with the outside world. If you cant speak proper English, how in the world are you living????
Im not against Konkani or anything, I respect the language though I know very little of it, it is a beautiful language and should be kept alive as long as Goans exist. I just feel like Goa needs this to move forward. India has been a developing country for far too long! Indians are smart people and can do wonders but if they cant speak, what good are their brains? I doubt companies want translators along with their employees to translate the Konkani that flows out wonderfully from our mouths! : P
I think the Shiv Sena or whatever other parties taking part in this should sit and really think about the future of Goa. Soon the beaches will stink and the price of alcohol will rise and then what good will Goa or the Goans be??
We need to take a stand here, we need to fight against these people who terrorize us and force us to become hand puppets in their climb to power!! They cant force their opinions on us!
I love Goa, I want to see it prosper. But if people cant even understand what you say to them half the time, I doubt the future holds anything great for us...
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