FORCE (The Forum for Rights of Children’s Education) agitation in Goa took serious turn today resulting into road blocking by parents along with their children holding the public on ransom by blocking all the major junctions and highways in the state. The Rasta Roko by FORCE MOI agitators started at 8 am today without any prior notice creating huge roadblocks on all major junctions in Goa. Legislatures attending the ongoing assembly session could not reach at Goa Assembly Bhavan in Porvorim due to Rasta Roko, Ramesh Talvadkar was confronted by agitators at Verna Junction while on his way to Assembly Bhavan. All ruling ministers condemn this act of the parents and warned of the strict action against the relevant parents and school they represent.
The road blocks made the entire state including Margao, Panaji, Mapusa, Vasco and Ponda traffic stagnant for almost 4 hours, people travelling to and from major cities in Goa were remained with no option but to wait in the middle of road. Some of the parents also got engaged in pelting stones on the buses demanding English to make the medium of instruction and government grants for every academic year. “At least four buses were stoned following which we have withdrawn all our fleet. All operations were scrapped. We are waiting for the situation to become normal,” a senior KTCL official said.
The agitation started from July 27 with many parents assembled in Panaji over the MOI (Medium of Instruction) also known as FORCE MOI. They were doing the agitation peacefully at Azad Maidan before the state administration pushed them from there. The congress legislator Aleixo Reginald earlier tried to raise the issue of FORCE MOI in the ongoing assembly session but in vain.
There were mixed reactions on this issue from ruling and opposition, St. Andre MLA, Vishnu Surya Wagh was furious about the entire incident and he strongly condemn the action of the parents, while Vijay Sardesai was seemed to be in favor of protestors claiming that the agitation was an outburst of the parents who are not getting any positive feedback from the state government. BJP legislator Ganesh Gaonkar told PTI that “This is not the way to protest. The government will take the entire issue very seriously.”
According to the sources in the government the Goa government has already passed a cabinet resolution giving the grants to school of English Medium but the demand of FORCE is that the resolution to be endorsed into a law whereby the grants will continue forever.
Whatever may be the reason but do you think a holding road block was the solution for this issue? Road block does not only result into revenue loss but it could also result into the loss of life in case of emergency which may arise anytime. If the blocking of roads could result into getting the work done then everyone start implementing it? What agitator wants to prove by blocking all the roads? What do you think about the entire issue? Who is right and who was wrong here? Please do leave your valuable comments and suggestions on this issue.
IMAGE CREDITS : Vishvesh Kare
