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Goa – Carnival Economy

Carnival Economy

Till 2010, Goa did not have a single Audi. Now, there are at least 50 Audis and more than 100 Mercedes on the state’s streets,” says Panaji-based businessman Sandesh Sadhale. The remarkable rise in number of high-end cars is just one of the things that justify Goa’s billing as the most improved small state as far as its consumer market is concerned. The rising purchasing power of Goans is leveraged on three industries: mining, tourism and gambling. These industries generate almost 60 per cent of employment in the state. Nearly 15,000 people in the Rs 16,000-crore mining industry earn Rs 1,800 each daily. The result is that even villagers can afford to buy bikes and repair their homes. “Mining is caught in scam controversies but the positive side of the industry is that it has generated wealth,” says Kirit Maganlal, an official of the Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Goa Tourism Director Swapnil Naik’s efforts to brand the state as the world’s holiday destination has borne fruit. More than 26.42 lakh domestic and foreign tourists visited Goa in 2010, a 5.6 per cent growth over 2009 figures. In tourism-based small industries, the daily income for employees is around Rs 1,500.

The government’s decision to allow 22 casinos in the state has generated employment for nearly 5,000 people. The casinos give around 1,000 staff a monthly income of Rs 25,000. “Even a Class XII dropout can easily earn Rs 25,000 a month in a casino,” says Shrinivas Nayak, spokesperson for CP Group, the largest casino company in Goa.

During April 2010 to February 2011, 18,555 two-wheelers in the price range of Rs 40,000-50,000 and 6,217 above Rs 50,000 were sold in the state. Also, 7,222 cars ranging between Rs 3 lakh and Rs 5 lakh and 4,907 cars above Rs 5 lakh were sold over the same period. According to the state’s Economic Survey, over 50,000 vehicles get registered every year. On November 30, 2010, the number of vehicles registered in the state was 7,65,588.

Increased earnings have reflected not just in increasing spending but increasing savings too. Not surprisingly, there were 556 banks in Goa on September 30, 2010. That’s one bank branch for every 4,000 people against a national average of one for every 14,000.

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Prawn neureo and yum

Kitchen Bytes

Rissóis de Camarão

13 October 2011 13:35 IST


Much like prawn neureo and yum!

This has been my all-time favourite seafood snack/starter. Little did I know that making it at home would be this easy. Try it out for yourself.

 

Ingredients

For the pastry: 

1 cup refined flour (maida)

1 cup water

1½ tbsps dalda/butter

Salt to taste

For the filling:

12 medium sized shelled prawns

½ cup finely chopped onion

2 tbsps butter/dalda

4 tbsps cornflour

1½ cups milk

½ cup prawn stock

Salt and pepper to taste

For frying:

Oil for deep frying

1 egg

Breadcrumbs for coating

Pinch of salt & pepper powder

 

Method 

To make the pastry: Sieve the flour. Heat water and butter in a saucepan. Bring to the boil. Once the butter melts, add salt. Add flour all at once, stirring vigorously until mixture leaves the sides of the pan and becomes lumpy.Transfer to a pastry board or plate, knead a little, cover and keep aside to cool. Knead again. Roll out the pastry dough with rolling pin until fine and smooth. Cut out circles with an inverted cup (approx. 2 inches in diameter). Put a teaspoonful of the filling on one side of each round, fold over into moon shapes and moisten to seal.

To make the filling: Boil the prawns and chop them real fine. Keep stock aside. In a non-stick pan, sauté the onions with butter till translucent. Add the chopped prawn. Add the flour and mix well. Stir for a while and then add the prawn stock followed by the milk. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring continuously. Add salt, pepper. Combine. Remove from heat and keep aside.

To fry: Beat the egg. Mix the breadcrumbs with a little salt and pepper powder. Dip each rissóis in beaten egg, coat evenly with breadcrumbs and deep-fry till golden brown.
By Sapna Sardessai

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Cauliflower Sabji

Kitchen Bytes

Cauliflower Sabji

02 February 2011 16:14 IST


Easy & tasty

Cauiliflower is my all time favourite vegetable and experimenting with dishes made from this vegetable is a passion. This simple preparation tastes best with garam garam phulkas. Try it.

 

Ingredients:

1/2 cauliflower, cut into flowerets

1 medium potato, diced

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped ripe tomato

1/4 cup fresh green peas

1/2 tsp grated ginger

1/2 tsp chopped garlic

1 green chilli, slit lengthwise

4-5 curry leaves

1 tbsp besan

1 tbsp chopped coriander for garnish

1/2 tsp each chilli, turmeric, cumin and coriander powders

1 tbsp edible oil

Salt & Sugar to taste

 

Method:

Steam cauliflower flowerets and diced potato.

Drop oil in a kadai and do a phodnni of chopped garlic, green chilli and curry leaves. Stir in chopped onion, then add green peas, then tomato. Continue stir-frying. Add the drained steamed veggies, chilli, turmeric, jeera and coriander powders, sugar and salt to taste. Flavour with grated ginger. Combine, and last sprinkle a little besan to make the preparation completely dry.

Garnish with chopped coriander.
By Sapna Sardessai

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Prawn Pulao

Kitchen Bytes -Goanews

14 September 2011 18:48 IST


The fastest and tastiest pulao I know. Enjoy.

This pulao is amazing because it is so quick, and never fails to please.

 

Ingredients:

2 cups Basmati rice

Half cup medium-sized, shelled prawns

1 onion (half chopped fine, and the other half sliced and deep fried till golden brown)

4 cups hot water

2 bay leaves

2 half-inch pieces cinnamon

5-6 cloves

8 peppercorns

3 cardamoms

1 masala velchi (black cardamom)

5 flakes of garlic, finely chopped

1/4 inch piece of ginger, finely grated

1/2 tomato, finely chopped

1 tbsp finely chopped coriander

1-2 green chillies, finely chopped

3 Maggi cubes

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

3 tbsps oil

Salt to taste
Method:

Soak the basmati rice for 15 mins. Drain and keep aside for another 15.

To the shelled prawns, add the ginger and keep aside.

Heat a pan, drop in the oil and fry the spices (bay leaves, peppercorns, cinnamon, cardamoms, cloves). Add the chopped onion and garlic and stir fry. Add the basmatic rice and stir-fry a bit. Add the prawns. Add the chopped green chilli, tomato, crushed Maggi cubes, turmeric powder, salt and a wee bit sugar (optional). Mix and immediately add the hot water. Stir once, cover with lid and allow to cook.

Just as the water is getting all used up, put off the stove. Keep the lid on for at least another 15 minutes by which time the rice gets its full body.

Garnish with burnt onion and coriander. Serve hot.

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Goa is being plundered

‘ Mining’ is a misnomer.

What goes on in Goa is plundering.

Goa’s mine operators are today’s version of Mahmud Ghazni, Muhammad Ghor and Tamerlane who plundered India a millennium ago.

O ver the last few weeks many editors and knowledgeable people have written well- researched articles about the mining industry in Goa. For a quarter of a century people like Ramesh Gawas, Rajendra Kakodkar and Claude Alvares have taken up mining- related issues with various government departments. All these departments have turned out to be nothing but paper tigers. Their purpose seems to be belied by their performance. They have turned a blind eye to all the violations of the mining industry.

With their omission or lack of commission, they have encouraged and legitimised all the illegalities, scams and frauds of the mining lobby.

To regulate mining we have a plethora of government departments and government servants ( who we all know are more like serpents than servants). So we have a Department of Geology and Mines, Goa State Pollution Control Board, Forest Department, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Indian Bureau of Mines, Department of Land Revenue! And yet the mining companies get away with a multiplicity of violations of the laws of the land. It is quite obvious that the bureau( c) rats and techno( c) rats are using laws and loopholes to leverage all kinds of concessions and considerations from the perpetrators of the crimes being committed in the name of mining.

In fact, ‘ mining’ is a misnomer.

What goes on in Goa is plundering. Goa’s mine operators are today’s version of Mahmud of Ghazni, Muhammad of Ghor and Tamerlane who plundered India a millennium ago.

Between 1995 and 2000, I visited many worked- out / abandoned and active mines in Goa.

Even then, when iron- ore exports from Goa were in the region of 14 million tonnes per annum, the situation in places like Mulgao and Lamgao was horrendous. Doors and windows of homes were closed when the mine was in operation.

In spite of this, all the furniture was permanently covered with dust. All the wells in the area had dried up due to de- watering in the mine pits.

Respiratory diseases were 36 times higher than the average for Goa. Noise levels were way above the comfort threshold. I can well- imagine the state of affairs now that the iron- ore exports have gone- up from 14 M. T. P. A. to 50 M. P. T. A. Whenever I visited a mine site, the mine operators’ name was very clearly visible and easily recognizable. These names were boldly painted. In huge two- foot high letters, on all the trucks, dozers, excavators, graders, loaders and stationary equipment like pumps, compressors, generators! Today, all this has changed. All these operations have been outsourced.

Politicians and people from the area have been co- opted and made stake- holders. They have become defenders of mining / plundering, especially since they have all borrowed huge funds to finance their businesses.

Hence, even bank managers and truck / equipment salesmen have fallen into the debt- trap which has so cleverly been sprung on them. The same debttrap has swallowed the bargeowners but on a much bigger scale.

Three weeks ago two news items in our dailies caught my attention. One was written by the mining dependant peoples’ representatives and the other by two women sarpanchas from villages touched by mining operations.

Both these articles made more or less the same assertions about their dependence on mining and their financial indebtedness to banks and financial institutions. Both gave the same set of figures. Firstly, the number of trucks has gone- up from 5,000 to 25,000 in the last 8 years. Secondly, the number of trips per truck has gone- down to one per day from the earlier five trips per day. Naturally! If the number of trucks increase by a factor of five, the number of trips will go down by the same factor of five. The tonnage exported remains the same.

One final observation, relevant or irrelevant: If 25,000 trucks are lined- up one behind the other, with a two- meter gap in between, they will stretch over a distance of 250 kilometres- going from North to South Goa is 105 kilometres long. With our greed and hubris we have woven an intricate web of selfentrapment.

Our government has painted itself into a corner and is now waiting for Justice Shah to exorcise these demons.

Anthony SimoeS politically incorrect
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