DON’T SQUANDER PUBLIC FUNDS ON MEMORIALS AND STATUES

It is absolutely outrageous that a cash strapped and heavy debt-ridden Goa Government has had the audacity to make a budget provision of a whopping ten crores to build a Manohar Parrikar memorial on the Miramar beach.

Miramar Beach is a public recreational beach for the public to enjoy freely and without hindrance and should not be converted into a Memorial Beach of concrete structures. It is fair enough that there is one Samadhi of charismatic Dayanand Bandodkar our first Chief Minister who with a vision laid the strong foundations of Goa. Let us keep what remains of Miramar Beach to freely use and enjoy, by not pouring more concrete on it.

The Miramar beach comes under the purview of the Tourism Department and any use of the beach must be properly and legally authorized. Environmentally, as it is classified as a no development zone, one must therefore question whether any construction and development is legal. The Government must also refrain from creating a wrong precedent by creating a memorial for Manohar Parrikar having ignored Goa’s other Chief Ministers. More importantly there is another serious question to consider as to what would happen if a future CM had to be buried rather than be cremated? It is inconceivable that a burial on the public beach would be allowed and yet another concrete memorial constructed.

As the Government has not erected any memorials for other Chief Ministers, it should not do so now for Manohar Parrikar who departed leaving the State exchequer burdened with a multi crore bill over his medical treatment expenses. Needless to say, he left the State in an utter mess with every possible public issue lying unresolved. From Mining to Madhei and from Casinos to Corruption Manohar Parrikar procrastinated on it all for the fear of losing his Chair. God Save Our Goa.

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