Wednesday, July 23, 2008 | By: Kunal Ekawde

SEZ, IT Park, Commercial complex, Mall == Development ?

Well, if I keep a debate on this topic, there are a lots of pros and cons.
Problem solving in software(loosely) engineering is such that a single solution cannot
be used at all places, hence there is requirement gathering , analysis and design followed by
implementation.My intention of specifying this is because a lot of people talk of SEZ, IT park,
Commercial complex and Mall pros to be set-up in Goa. One basic question to answer is, Does Goa need it?

I have a friend (Non-Goan), who likes(not clear on what) Goa and says he would like to own some land and build something. Later, I asked him as to what exactly he likes and got the answer as the picturesque serenity and calm nature. This was the answer I was waiting for, so I questioned him, If all people like you do the same thing what you desire, will you be able to see the same thing after ..? There was a pause..

Goa is a tourist destination for major part of India and other countries too. But for average earning Indian, Goa is the best place to visit economically. What if in Mauritius and Switzerland too, there were mega housing, SEZ projects? The place would get crowded, roads would become busy and noisy, beautiful piece of land would have acquired. Would then anybody(tourist) visit these places?????

If a average earning Goan want to build his own house after years & years of saving, there is no land/ or a a very high price; the Mega Housing Projects developed are not at all affordable.

A tourist destination should remain same with respect to serenity so that many generations can enjoy the same view and not high rise buildings on the hilltop.
There are industrial estates where companies can be set-up, tourism is the main sector of source of income for many, pharmaceutical also operate in Industrial areas, IT engineers can and are ready to work at IT hubs of the country..

Something which is not required is being carried out, too make extra(lots) of capital and the shameful part is that the money-eaters majorly the hungry politicians are enjoying the extra cushion in their couch.

A humble request to all the people to think on this and save a state from our country from loosing its charm..
Thursday, July 10, 2008 | By: Kunal Ekawde

My Beautiful Goa


Least as many must have jotted down about Goa it is different for every individual who is part of it.
If I start thinking all of it, this page won't be sufficient. But still feel like noting few events.
My childhood as been in the village of Goa-Velha, and as I say it I can feel the warmth it has. Its the fragrance, the warmth and the feeling it gets you. I remember going to High School at Peoples in Panjim by the 'kethoba'(name of the bus) bus with the fare of Rs:1.50 (cant recollect exact).
The most interesting part was walking from the home to the village busstand and back from busstand to home.
There was(is) a tamarind on the way from the busstand to home. And I had real good interest in eating those, so had to stone them down. And when the stones(which can be throne) were not available, had to return without one.
Also there was a small shop at the corner of the church, it was kind of open, basically 2 parts, one to store the extra items and other for unrelated things. Its like most houses in Goa would have a spare area (also called as kopshi/khope) were many unnecessary things are stored which may aid you sometime for example some wooden pieces, an axe or some copper wire etc. Ok, back to shop; so just a little ahead of those compartments was a display stand, which had the glass utensils containing chocalates, mints and others among the 'roll-aa-ka-cola', man, that was amazing. On saving some few bucks mostly like a rupee or two, I would be proud owner of one. One more thing I liked was a pepsi, no its not the pepsi you know but the small freezed sweet drink filled in a small plastic cylinder. It had many flavours too. There was one for Rs:0.50 and Rs:1.
During rains, was the best part of that walking. The sand road which led to my home had small slopes and water would flow down and believe me it was clear, transparent. I would always put my leg in the flow to feel it. The water felt nice to the bare feet, which were only covered by a small rubber payal, mostly worn for school.
Ohh man, it was all fun...