LETTERS TO THE EDITOR FOR ISSUE DATED SEPTEMBER 12, 2026

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR FOR ISSUE DATED SEPTEMBER 12, 2026

Letters To The Editor, Sept 12- Sept 18, 2026 September 11, 2026 , by Goan Observer Team

`MATOLI’ BECOMING EXPENSIVE
MATOLI is a decorative, colourful canopy of perishables from leaves, herbs, flowers, sheaves of grain, fruit small and large, vegetables – a good amount of representation from the wilderness bounty of mother earth – which goes atop as a protective shelter for the images or idols of Lord Ganesh pandal in homes and community halls. Wherever the festival of Chovoth or Ganesh Chaturthi is being celebrated by family and community. Alas, this wild bounty collections are getting more and more expensive by the year and every year various members of the family go shopping in the matoli bazaar or in the forest patches wherever they may to harvest wildly growing fruit, herbs and flowers…so that Lord Ganesh feel at home in every home or back in his habitat as the elephant god of Hinduism. Lord Ganesh is wooed and evoked as a harbinger of ache din for sure. Just give him a good matoli welcome!
Significantly people will go far and near for their Ganesh festival. Many people visit matoli markets of Banastarim, Mapusa, Panaji or further to Ponda…anywhere there is real good jungle grounds left where familiar and not so familiar “gems” may be collected. Prices of such things as import coconuts, pumpkins large and little, a variety of gourds, flowers like “tigers claws”and golden kadamba flowers, flowers of paradise, and their like, are hard to find or acquire…also think huge stalks of banana, betal leaf clutches, betal nuts and so on. A good matoli is a sight to behold for sore urban eyes and there are competitions held for the best matoli decoration of them all in Goa!
Why are matoli decorations costing more? Blame the rising prices courtesy several seasonal and economic shifts. Heavy or continuous late rains frequently damage seasonal forest produce and delicate crops like areca nuts, reducing overall supply right before Ganesh Chaturthi.
Traditional matoli relies on a massive biodiversity of wild, edible, and medicinal forest fruits (like “kangla, toring” or “gavan”). The first yellow flowers of the mustard or sarson greens can light up a matoli like nothing else. Flowers lend a rainbow of colors to any matoli.
Stealing from the wilds of the lush Western Ghats and transporting all the plant, floral and fruit loot is all very well but it drives up the expenses for the transporters who do it for a living in the matoli bazaar. Divine tradition may be considered eternal! But what about future? The wilderness of the Goan hills and plateaus and its share of Western Ghats are getting devastated year by year for who is replacing the bounty of the wilderness? A real good important question which environmentalists and wildlifers are asking seriously!
— Rajesh Banaulikar, Arpora, Goa

BELL THE CAT!
THE shootout at a Porvorim casino ought to be the last straw, and if Goem has a single upright statesmen, a sea change would be on the cards ASAP. Doutor Mariano Pinheiro’s feature recently has struck a chord; his heartfelt appeal for universal quality public education is workable if the Goa government pulls the brakes and embeds the Singaporean gaming model here, instead of continuing with the current Laotian riverfront travesty. Tiny Singapore has just two casinos run by internationally renowned gaming giants; they are strictly regulated, committed to responsible gambling guidelines, discreet, with no garish neon advertising, and entertainment on-site is constantly honed to attract high quality international tourists while contributing tons to public education, community up-liftment programs and healthcare.
Casinos run by politically exposed persons from the two dominant national parties are detrimental to Goa’s high end, sustainable tourism industry; ditto fly-by-night desi casinos, both red flags for discerning international travellers. The Goa government has literally dodged a bullet by differing the notification and implementation of the Goa Public Gambling Rules instead of debating the same in the upcoming Assembly session. MPs and MLAs please note that the unregulated environment in Goa risks landing India on international financial-crime grey lists.
— Chris Fernandes, Miramar, Panjim

PAYING GUEST ACCOMMODATIOIN IN DELHI
EVEN though the collapsed building of Satya Niketan in Delhi is tragic, it is definitely not unexpected. When I went to Delhi for education in 2014, I went to see some places for rent at Delhi University’s North Campus. I was going to study at the Ambedkar University and there was no hostel for students. It was there for girls and very limited rooms, so the majority of out of Delhi students rented PG rooms.
Double-stored accommodation at Vijay Nagar in North Campus and Mukherjee Nagar are students’ living places. Delhi University also has hostels but they are not enough. So students have to arrange their own accommodation. One of the houses I saw in Vijay Nagar was a samples. A kitchen in a small corner, a bathroom used by 6-7 people, lack of common space, and an informal system stood around the campus with no trees.
Actually, there are life threatening conditions for students. Tagore Park, Civil Lines, were also close to campus but there were unaffordable rental rates since there is a gated complex. I lived in GTB Nagar on the other side of North Campus and used to go for dinner regular night at Christian Colony in Vijay Nagar. When I got there, I felt that if ever anything happened, it would be difficult to get out. I shifted to South Delhi when I entered JNU next and then I kept doing rental rooming outside despite getting hostel room.
It was part of my privilege that I didn’t have the courage to ask for money from home to pay the rent! But when numerous students come to Delhi for education, it is very important to have an affordable accommodation for these ordinary young Indians. Getting good education in big states of North India is difficult and so many students head to Delhi to learn at Jamia, JNU, Delhi University.
There’s good education at these economical universities. But why should it be hard for them to get such education in their own states? And if so students are coming, then universities should also pay attention to basic decent accommodation for them. The government’s budget is towards decreasing education, privatization of higher education, and a crucial economy that stands on the lives of students coming from outside are all responsible.
The collapsed Satya Niketan is not a disease but just a symptom of the country’s lop-sided priorities. Where students are declared enemies of the nation, what will they do and who will listen?
— Kaustubh Naik, Goa