LETTER TO THE EDITOR FOR THE ISSUE DATED JUNE 13, 2026

No Comments

LETTER TO THE EDITOR FOR THE ISSUE DATED JUNE 13, 2026

GOANS NEED TO BE CLEAN AND GREEN!
IN 1981 Goa’s tourism was boosted with foreigners, also called hippies, and the beaches flourished because they only wanted to be on the beaches. One noticeable fact was that they were picking up waste thrown from anywhere while walking. We need such earnest cleaning human beings — like hippies — to maintain cleanliness around us for healthy surroundings.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant announced a state-wide competition awarding prizes to the cleanest and greenest village panchayats that successfully ban single-use plastics and cleared out waste dumps. The winning village will be officially recognized as the State’s cleanest, with the awards set to be distributed following the 90-day “Green Goa, Clean Goa” campaign. But Goan richness is least bothered about cleanliness and green environment, they will clean up through labourers.
The criteria to qualify for the reward, village panchayats must be completely free of single-use plastics, lack visible waste dumps, and have zero littering in public areas. The law should not be to do with competition. But gradual transformation is essential for cleaning practice, otherwise minds could convert like “garbage.”
— Rajesh Banaulikar, Arpora, Goa

The SFL Football League Mumbai successfully concluded its 2025–26 season, bringing Season 2 of one of the city’s leading grassroots football competitions to a close on June 12, 2026. The Grand Finale Awards Ceremony celebrated champions across boys’ and girls’ categories. The season finale recognised players, teams and coaches whose performances defined the campaign. The younger categories — Under-8, Under-10 and Under-12 — were concluded earlier in March, with the remaining boys’ and girls’ categories now completed to round off the season. Spanning nine months of competition, Season 2 drew more than 2,000 participants, 200-plus teams and over 50 clubs across its age groups, delivering consistent match exposure, real competitive pressure and a professionally managed tournament environment for boys and girls developing through Mumbai’s football ecosystem. The conclusion of Season 2 follows the successful completion of the inaugural SFL Football League Pune season last month, reinforcing the league’s growing footprint as a structured, multi-city grassroots platform.
The Grand Finale Awards Ceremony was attended by chief guest Steven Dias, former Indian international footballer and current coach of Jamshedpur FC. He honoured the season’s top performers and champion teams. Dias presented honours to the campaign’s winners and runners-up and spent time with the young athletes, underlining the value of regular, organised competition in a player’s early development. The ceremony celebrated standout players, winning teams and the coaches whose work through the season shaped the quality of football on display. The concluding finals across the older categories produced closely contested matches and showcased the depth of talent emerging through the league. Here are the results:
Sub Junior Boys
Winner: Dsouza Football Academy/ Runner-Up: Conscient Sports
Junior Boys
Winner: MH Oranje FC/ Runner-Up: Dsouza Football Academy
U14 Girls
Winner: Young Guns FC/ Runner-Up: Shivajians FC
U17 Girls
Winner: Young Guns FC/ Runner-Up: Bravo FC
The SFL Football League is built to address a persistent gap in Indian youth football: the shortage of consistent, structured competition between academy training and elite selection. Over a full season, players gain repeated match exposure, experience genuine competitive pressure, and develop within a fixture-based format with standings, match officials and a professional match day experience. For many young athletes, this sustained exposure — rather than one-off tournaments — is what builds the composure, decision-making and resilience that underpin long-term development. By completing categories from the Under-8s through to the U17 Girls in the same season, the league offers a continuous pathway across age groups, allowing players to progress within a familiar, organised environment as they grow.
“We run this as a long league for a reason — because that’s how players actually develop,” added Medda. “Every match is live-streamed and every player’s statistics are captured through the season, so a child can go back, watch their games and see how they’re progressing over time. That record of growth, built match by match across a full season, is far more meaningful for a young player’s development than any single result.”
The conclusion of Season 2 in Mumbai, alongside the recently completed inaugural Pune season, reflects SFL’s steady expansion of structured youth football across cities. Each new edition gives more young players access to a full season of competitive football, organised fixtures and a clear pathway to develop as they move up the age groups. Together, the Mumbai and Pune leagues are widening the opportunities available to grassroots footballers — and SFL intends to extend that reach to more players and more cities in the seasons ahead. “Young players don’t develop through one tournament or one standout performance,” said Sourjyendu Medda, Founder, SFL. “They develop through repetition, competition, and the experience of playing meaningful matches over time. That’s what a full season gives them — not just a few games, but a real run of fixtures where they learn to handle pressure and keep improving. Completing the full Mumbai season across both boys’ and girls’ categories, alongside the inaugural Pune season, is a real step towards giving more young footballers that kind of sustained competition. For us, it always comes back to the players and the long road from grassroots football to higher levels of the game.” The SFL Football League will return for its next editions with expanded participation and additional categories under consideration.

JOY OF FORGIVENESS
FR HENRY JOSE, “Reconciliation: The Joy of Forgiveness”(The Herald-29 May- 4 June) was inspiring. Reconciliation also includes the joy of healing, as when one forgives, the person heals not only oneself but also the one they try to forgive and spreads joy and unity among each other. To reconcile one needs the courage to stand up for the right of forgiveness.
— Cajetan Peter D’Souza, Mumbai

THE KALA ACADEMY ROT
THE “KA IIT Report” is out and it’s a masterclass in the misuse of hard-earned public money. We’ve seen the cracks, the leaks, and the “costly fiasco” of the Kala Academy renovation. But let’s be honest: are we surprised? The problem isn’t just a few people mismanaging funds. The problem is the silence of the majority.
We elect our leaders, then we watch from the sidelines and complain when things go wrong. By staying silent, we are effectively consenting to this cycle. Democracy isn’t a spectator sport. If we keep pointing fingers instead of taking responsibility, nothing changes.
Are we going to keep complaining, or are we going to start acting?
— JM, Panjim