AND a few stray thoughts for yet another Saturday. For a Saturday followingL the week when the drums of war beat louder. For a Saturday following the week when the fact-finding committee, headed by the revenue secretary Sandeep Jacques, has apparently blamed the police for the Siridao jatra stampede tragedy. For a Saturday following the week when fires broke out again in the last fields of Taleigao. For a Saturday following the week when it looked as though government primary schools in Goa are being boycotted by parents. For a Saturday following the week when children in schools are increasingly switching to coding and robotics which have been included in the curriculum.
AND a few stray thoughts on the drums of war became louder. On Monday, May 5, the Ministry of Home Affairs ordered nationwide security drills to prepare the nation for any attacks. The presumption is that in view of the threats made by Narendra Modi and Amit Shah, Pakistan may launch an attack on India. Preparation of war whether initiated by India or Pakistan include air raid warnings. This are sirens which go off if enemy aircraft are approaching a particular target. The preparations also includes a blackout. This implies putting all the lights out so that sensitive targets will not be easily identified by enemy aircraft or drones. Which is not very relevant any longer as by using simple geographical positioning, drones and enemy planes can target airports and even aircraft carriers in the naval bases like Goa.
In the next few days and weeks, Goa may also see evacuation plans to move the civilian population out of strategic areas like Vasco, where the Hansa airport may be targeted. As the crow flies, Goa is an easy target from Karachi, being on the same coast. The fear of war has become greater following the threats being made on both sides. Every day there are reports on exercises by the Indian army, the navy and the air force. There are announcements that Modi has met the chief of the air staff to signal that India may be ready to strike across the border. Home Minister Amit Shah has been threatening that no terrorists will be spared.
Besides the sabre rattling, India has also launched an economic war against Pakistan. The Indus river which runs in India is the lifeline of Pakistan. India has started the process of diverting the Indus river to prevent any river water flowing into Pakistan. The Chenab river which supplies water to hydroelectric dams, has been diverted to prevent water from reaching Pakistan. More than a military attack the diversion of life-giving water can be fatal to the economy of Pakistan. Agriculture and Pakistan depend entirely on the waters of the Indus river.
A senior Pakistani leader, Bilwal, the son of former Prime Minister Zulfikar Moto, had warned that if the water doesn’t flow there will be bloodshed. The major risk from war is that both India and Pakistan have nuclear bombs and they may be tempted to use them if anyone survives.
Moreover, it is unlikely that India is allowed to capture Pakistan, for as in the past the super-powers will intervene. The United State is equally friendly with Pakistan and India. In all the wars between India and Pakistan, the two countries have been forced to declare a ceasefire under pressure from the United States and Russia. Unlike in the past there is the risk that Bangladesh may help Pakistan in the event of war with India.

SHIRGAO JATRA
AND a few stray thoughts on the fact-finding committee headed by the revenue secretary Sandeep Jacques, who is apparently blaming the lackadaisical police for the disaster. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant is not willing to accept the report as it indirectly indicts him, as he is the home minister. Sandeep Jacques is reported to have commented that the jatra should have been staggered over a period of time.
Sandeep Jacques was in charge of the St Francis Exposition too which concluded earlier in the year in January. But unlike the exposition the homkund rituals cannot be staggered and this event happens during a brief window over a single post-midnight early hours. The stampede occurred when the Dhonds rushed to the homkund after a ritual bath in the temple tank.
There is general agreement that it was a lack of discipline and perhaps even fights between the Dhonds which was responsible for the tragedy. There was no procession of the return of the goddess Lairai to the temple in the wake of the tragedy. On the second day jatra traditionally, the goddess is taken to the homes of pilgrims before returning to her home in the temple on the last day of the jatra.
All the stalls on the roadside have also been removed following the stampede. Incidentally, it has been is clarified that Chowgule reference is not to the business group but to a group of people who are with the goddess throughout the jatra and accompany the goddess in and out of the temple. We understand that Sandeep Jacques’s committee will recommend preventive measures to prevent such a tragedy in future.

FIRES OF TALEIGAO
AND a few stray thoughts on the fires which break out again and again in the last few remaining agricultural fields of Taleigao. This time the smoke emerging from the fires was so thick and excoriating that residents of Vision Park building near Camrabhat in Taleigao had to be evacuated. The fire brigade had to evacuate more than 30 residents, including children and senior citizens who were affected by the traumas of the fire.
Fires in agricultural fields are common in May, but this time there are rumors that they were lit deliberately to clear paddy fields for construction purposes. Ironically, the worst victims are the new buildings put up by haphazardly by construction companies.
A claim being made is that many snakes and reptiles and wile animals are killed in the fires. The fire broke out around 12 noon on Monday, May 5 and smoke lingered in the area till 4 pm. Among the affected persons was a 95-year-old man and a 70-year-old woman.
It may be recalled that earlier in the month, there was a fire next to the restaurant Copperleaf in Taleigao, which affected the functioning of the popular eatery.

GOVERNMNT SCHOOLS BOYCOTTED
AND a few stray thoughts on how it looks as if the government primary schools in Goa are being boycotted by parents. It has been revealed that over 30% percent of government schools have fewer than 15 students spread across classes 1 to 4. Moreover, there are as many as 250 government schools where a single teacher handles all four classes.
The majority of government schools are in Marathi medium with just a few being in other languages, including Konkani, Urdu and Kannada. Out of the 65 government schools in Goa more than 2/3rds have an enrollment of less than 30 students. The norm is that every class at the primary level should have minimum of at least 25 students. The aided English-medium primary school like Don Bosco have been forced to enroll as many as 40 students in each class.
The ground reality is that parents are not interested in Marathi or Konkani medium schools as they do not offer any economic opportunities later on for their children. In the last decade, there has been rapid growth in elite private schools like the Sunrise school in Old Goa, which charges a fee of Rs 12,000 per month.
In fact, there is a drop in the enrollment levels even at the first standards level due to a drop in population and slower rate of migration into Goa.

CODING & ROBOTING
AND a few stray thoughts on children in schools increasingly switching to coding and robotics which have been included in the curriculum. It is been disclosed that over 8,000 students are now following an advanced course to upgrade technical education.
The project management unit has trained 900 school teachers across Goa to upgrade their skills. As many as 65,000 students in 430 schools are now familiar with computers and even Artificial Intelligence. During the academic year 2025-2026, it is proposed to allot 12,000 hours of training in cutting-edge tools like the Linux Mint OS, Scratch, KOJO, Blender and Sonic Pi which have been introduced with education technology support partners PRERNA and educational management systems.