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RATS IN GMC WARDS
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RATS IN GMC WARDS

Sept 05- Sept 11, 2026, Stray Thoughts September 4, 2026 , by

AND a few stray thoughts for yet another Saturday. For a Saturday following the week when there was panic in the surgical wards of the Goa Medical College & Hospital. Apparently, rats have been nibbling the toes of patients, particularly the patients suffering from diabetes. For a Saturday following the week when Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant claiming in the legislative assembly that love can be fatal. For a Saturday following the week when the Pramod Sawant government climbing down on the proposed Anti-Conversion Bill. For a Saturday following the week when the Speaker of the assembly vetoing a question on the amount of land under no development zones in Goa.

PANIC AT GMC
AND a few stray thoughts on when there was panic in the surgical wards of the Goa Medical College & Hospital. Apparently, rats have been nibbling the toes of patients, particularly the patients suffering from diabetes. Not because rats are necessarily sugar junkies.
 Apparently, patients suffering from severe diabetes lose sensation in their feet, so much so they cannot feel even if a mouse is nibbling or a rat biting them. This is the explanation offered by the doctors in charge of the post-surgery wards in the GMC. Indeed, the doctors have told relatives not to bring fruit for the patients. Though rats do not have any preference for fruit. There are two issues. Surely, the relatives or attendants should have witnessed the attack by rats. Surely the nursing staff and the multiple tasking attendants could have chased the rats away. Doctors are of course terrified of Health Minister Vishwajit Rane and will not talk about the crumbling false ceilings and the partitions which have become a breeding ground for rat families.
It is only government hospitals including the GMC where rats have a free run. It is ironic that Vishwajit Rane who boasts of state-of-the-art technology including robotic arms for surgery cannot take basic pest control measures. I recall being threatened by rats when I was in the side room of the Medicine ward in the GMC over a decade ago. Fortunately then the late Dr Wilfred Mesquita, who was a good friend, decided to act on my complaints to him about rats having a party at night in the false ceiling spaces above my bed and the washroom. The washroom itself was in a terrible state.
My wife who was attending to me was terrified that the rats would descend to the floor where she was sleeping and bite her feet. Dr Mesquita who was very close to Manohar Parrikar intervened spoke to then medical superintendent Dr Sunanda Amonkar, who had been a class mate of Dr Mesquita in the GMC. Between them they got the overhead spaces cleaned up along with the washroom, the rats nests were removed, and after that I slept more peacefully.
Social media is full of some magical remedy in the form of small pellets which drive away rats and other vermin. Surely the GMC can invest in some of this or use the sticky pads which trap rats in corners. Interestingly, we have never heard of rat bites in any private hospital in Goa. Has anyone been bitten by a rate in a private hospital in Goa?

LOVE CAN BE FATAL!
AND a few stray thoughts on Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant claiming in the legislative assembly that love can be fatal. Replying to a question in the ongoing assembly sessions, the CM insisted that most of the rapes and even murders were the result of break up in live-in relationships of young couples. Or cases where women were enticed by the promise of marriage. Pramod Sawant implied that it was these ill-fated romances among migrant couples that are responsible for the sharp increase in crime rates in Goa. Pramod Sawant in fact insisted that over 90% of the crimes of passion were committed by migrants. Never mind that Goa has also witnessed a lot of gun fighting. Both tourists coming to Goa and locals seem to be trigger happy and there have been several incidents of gun shooting in the gang wars going on in Goa.
It may be recalled that two groups of young people got into a major physical brawl outside a nightclub in Panjim. This was apparently provoked by one of the young women using a 4-letter word. There have also been other incidents in Colva, Chimbel and parts of Goa where “koita” and swords have been used. In the latest instance, gunshots were fired at Shrinivas Nayak, the managing director of the Neo Majestic Hotel in the parking lot.
The ground reality is that disputes over property have started taking a violent turn in Goa. In the midst of all this debate on crime in Goa comes the news that the Maharashtra police arrested two Kharapur activists on the charge of extortion. The liaison officer of Abhinandan Lodha claimed that some Kharapur activist demanded Rs6 crore and has been paid Rs40 lakh so far. In the wake of an uproar in the assembly over Goan activists being targeted by Maharashtra police, Director General of Police Alok Kumar said no arrests have been made by the Goa Police.

ANTI-CONVERSION BILL WITHDRAWN
AND a few stray thoughts on the Pramod Sawant government climbing down on the proposed Anti-Conversion Bill. It may be recalled that the chief minister had announced that a bill against forcible conversion from Hinduism to Christianity or Islam would be introduced in the ongoing monsoon session of the assembly. The proposed bill was stringently objected to by the Church in Goa. It was pointed out that there have been only two cases of so called coerced conversions by Protestant pastor Domnic from Siolim. The high court has however ruled that the police did not have any evidence of forcible conversion.
 In fact, Protestant churches in Goa and those of sects like Jehovah’s Witnesses take an undertaking that people are voluntarily attending their meetings without any coercion. The Catholic Church in Goa and the Diocese of Goa actively discourages conversions. Those who want to convert have to undergo a long process of Bible study classes and other requirements which can take up to six months. So much so forced conversions are not possible in Goa. So there is no need for an anti-conversion bill in a state which has been an example of communal harmony. However, the Anti-Conversion Bill has been introduced in several of the BJP-ruled states including Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
The dozen Catholic MLAs who have joined the BJP or been elected on the BJP ticket served an ultimatum on Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and the government decided to withdraw the proposed anti-conversion bill. The BJP cannot take any risks ahead of the elections coming up early in the next year. The minority community dominated south Goa had rejected even a candidate as formidable as Pallavi Dempo, who stood on the BJP ticket in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Besides south Goa there are many constituencies in Bardez and Tiswadi which are dominated by Catholics. In Tiswadi Atanasio Babush Monserrate and his late wife Jennifer represented Panjim and Taleigao. Rudolf is the MLA from Santa Cruz. In Bardez , Calangute and Siolim are with the Lobo family. Carlos Alvares is the MLA of Aldona. The BJP cannot hope to form the government after the 2027 elections without the support of Catholics.

ABOUT LAND CONVERSIONS NOW
AND a few stray thoughts on the Speaker of the assembly vetoing a question on the amount of land under no development zones in Goa. The question was asked by Leader of the Opposition Uri Alemao. This was in the wake of continuing land conversions under Section 39-A of the TCP Act. The most recent conversios have been in Morjim and Colva. The question was addressed to be answered by TCP Minister Vishwajit Rane. However, the Speaker would not even permit the tabling of the question. The Speaker insisted that the matter was sub-judice which was not correct. Only Section 39-A conversions are being heard before the high court. The Enough to Enough movement is considering a comprehensive bill against the conversion of agricultural land into settlement and commercial zones. In a related development the Pramod Sawant government withdrew a bill for exempting private universities from the TCP Act. It may be recalled that in the last six months a huge amount of government and communidade land has been allotted to the Maharashtra-based Peace University and also the Gujarat-based Parul University.

PUPPY AND APPU
AND A last stray thought for yet another Saturday. Inspired perhaps by Puppy and Appu (see cover story) all the Goan casinos have also gone online. Leading the party is Casino Royale owned by Jaydev Mody. It may be recalled that the high court had denied permission for Deltin to replace Casino Royale by a gigantic 1,000 meter vessel. The casinos have now decided that it is not worth their while to fight to remain in the Mandovi river or contest CRZ regulations. They have decided to expand in the digital world. Where there is no limit to the size of the casino. Deltin launched their online casino app at a mega party at the Reliance Convention Center in Mumbai. According to the video posted on social media Anant Ambani is offering a Rs300 crore jackpot.

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