x

DR OSCAR REBELLO 08th Jan 2023

*MAA MHADEI*

An interesting and rather indisputable fact of Life!!

Water has no Religion,

Water has no Caste,

Water has no Ethnicity,

Water has no Race,

Water has no Nationality,

Water has no Social Status,

Water has no Pride,

Water has no Arrogance,

Water has no Language,

Water has no Hubris. 

In fact, if we ponder deeply, we are not really Hindu or Muslim or Christian.

We ain't Black nor Brown nor White.

We are not really Chinese or Asian or American or Russian.

In strict biological terms, we are actually just *WATER*

(At least 70% Water and 30% Bullshit). 

The Mhadei crisis is well and truly upon us. 

And, compared to all the little battles that Goa has fought over the decades, this one is the Mother of them all. 

Epic, Existential and End Game!!

A Mahabharata if you will. 

We, the Pandavas of Goa, against the double-engine, double-speak , double-backstabbing Government of the Day!!

Everyone, and l mean Everyone, must get onto the same page to wage this mighty battle for Goa's survival, using every vestige of power and influence at our disposal to change minds and win hearts in the corridors of power.

Apocalypse is well and truly at our doorstep.

Let all groups, both political and activist, do the stuff they deem right.

The moneyed, the well-oiled and high-heeled of Goan society must whisper and influence Delhi at their personal levels. 

The common man, the teacher and the cop, the student and the labourer, the priest and the criminal, must all add to the chorus.

Every single lawyer and politician must unite to work out a new plea bargain, so that Goa's interests are never compromised. 

We must write and we must talk and we must educate.

We must consult, coordinate, and compromise a little, if necessary. 

But we simply cannot fail.

The two absolute heroes of this movement to save the Mhadei, Goa's priceless gems, will always remain Prof. Rajendra Kerkar and Madam Nirmala Sawant. 

For aeons now, they have been waging lonely battles, both legal and on the ground, to get us out of this quicksand.

Their voices must remain the most authoritative and binding on all of us.

We need to conserve water, harvest water, desalinate water, and put a full stop to those gargantuan swimming pools built as badges of honour in the homes of the rich and famous. 

The urgency of these measures can never be overstated in our present predicament.

So no, we are not the land of St Francis Xavier or Parshuram.  

We are not really the Kashi of the South or the Rome of the East.

We are not Konkani or Marathi or Kannada or Portuguese.

We are not United Goans (never were) or Revolutionary Goans. 

We are not political or religious labels. 

All these epithets make for great poetry and romance.

What we truly are, and what is our real identity, if we carefully flesh it out, is this:

We are the Mhadei. 

That is our true, non-controversial, divine and sublime identity.

However insignificant your contribution may be to highlight the plight of the Mhadei (as this column of mine), make that contribution.

Join a fellow comrade. 

Move shoulder to shoulder. 

Lend a hand 

in this murky, murderous, moribund Land of ours that we call Goa. For one thing is crystal clear: 

If the Mhadei gets diverted, 

We can all walk, eyes wide shut, collectively, into the Arabian Sea.

*POSTSCRIPT*

In case you have forgotten your Epics: the Pandavas eventually won in the Mahabharata because they stood as One Solid United Force.

More Such Blogs 1