Yet another edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) is on. This year a bankrupt Goa Government is squandering around 18 crores on this needless extravaganza.
From 2004 this annual over week long nightmare has in no way benefited the State but only been a big window of opportunity for the politicians in power to rake in huge moolah. Even the small contracts of this event are not entrusted to our locals.
With its crumbling infrastructure Panaji is already a very congested city and the traffic chaos on account of IFFI is something the city could do without. With the fun and frolic at taxpayers expenses, IFFI has only further burdened an already cash strapped State, besides that extra pile up of tons of garbage IFFI generates and the municipal authorities have to grapple with. The common man also suffers as the day to day government administration takes a break with officials all pre-occupied with the IFFI fiesta.
IFFI has been a bonanza only to the workers of the ruling party in power and not been advantageous to the State. The ground reality is that what is being staged is in fact the International Fraud Festival of India.
