Don’t clip digital wings
A report titled ‘Goa weighs ban on social media for under-16 children’, published recently in a section of the press, has stirred a debate across the state. While the move takes a cue from the Australian government’s blanket ban, it is imperative that our policymakers avoid blindly aping foreign models without considering the local realities. During the Covid-19 pandemic, social media and online platforms were not mere entertainment tools – they became lifelines for education. With the government swiftly erecting towers and expanding digital infrastructure, children accessed online classes and educational resources through platforms like YouTube, Facebook and even WhatsApp groups. To now impose a blanket ban would be to erase the very progress that helped our students stay ahead of the curve. Furthermore, in today’s artificial intelligence (AI)-driven economy, digital literacy is no longer optional – it is a survival skill. As reputed companies downsize and issue pink slips, it is evident that future job stakes will be determined by how well one adapts to Internet-assisted AI. Goa’s children, already excelling in BCA and MCA programmes, are proof of our state’s digital acumen. Restricting access to social media risks creating a digital divide that will disadvantage our youth in global competition. Instead of knee-jerk bans, the government should adopt a nuanced, case-by-case approach. Age-appropriate guidelines, parental controls, and digital literacy campaigns can balance safety with opportunity.
Assis Everette Telles, Margao
Happy nation
A nation that professes democracy and unity in diversity to the world while the ground realities are a polarised population with wide disparities in incomes and access to justice and where perhaps the only sign of democracy seems to be the frenzy of elections can never be a happy nation. With power and money ruling in the country and with soul of the Constitution, accountability and ethics increasingly thrown to the winds, it is time to deeply introspect what we support, oppose and what we ignore while pretending that we cannot see. This has to reflect in how we treat each other and raise our children. Why is our small state, a paradise, getting devastated, with residents not being consulted on important matters? We must commend Chief Minister Pramod Sawant for deciding to shift the Unity Mall and Prashasan Sthambh projects from the Chimbel site. This is a small step towards making Goa a happy state. Let the words of Rabindranath Tagore from his famous collection ‘Gitanjali’ sink in: “Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high…..Where words come out from the depth of truth…..Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake!”
John Eric Gomes, Porvorim
Extortion racket
I wish to draw urgent public attention to a disturbing form of organised extortion rapidly emerging on the streets of Goa. A new modus operandi is taking shape: a motorcyclist deliberately collides with a car on relatively empty roads, often causing no real damage. Before the driver can even assess the situation, a network of accomplices is summoned – friends, local toughs and often a self-styled, ill-informed “lawyer”. A crowd gathers quickly, pressure mounts and intimidation begins. The demand is simple: pay up or face consequences. What follows is psychological coercion and pressure. Victims, especially those unfamiliar with Konkani or holding out-of-state licences, are the most vulnerable.
The situation becomes more alarming when some “known police personnel” are invoked as part of the pressure tactic. Under such circumstances, victims are forced to pay huge sums despite no proven fault, damage or legal basis. This is not a random crime but organised extortion – systemic and corrosive to public trust. Goa has already suffered reputational damage from transport mafias and this emerging racket will further erode the rule of law and create a climate of fear. While the government focuses on public spectacles/conclaves, ethical governance and citizen protection must not be neglected. This menace demands urgent action.
Pinakpani Bharadwaj, Dona Paula
Save Hindus in Bangladesh
It is highly condemnable that Hindus are targeted by fanatics in Bangladesh. The interim government there should bring the criminals to book and initiate stern action. Having said that, we should also admit that Hindus are attacked in Bangladesh due to the animosity against India that has stemmed after we rushed to give asylum to Sheikh Hasina, the former prime minister of Bangladesh, who is condemned as a criminal by their courts on charges of murdering hundreds of her own people, who rose in clamour against her corrupt and dictatorial regime. Moreover, refusing to hand her over to Bangladesh against their repeated requests, and allowing her to issue statements against the interim government and the proposed elections in February, sitting comfortably in India, have also irked the people of Bangladesh. It is time India took a decision in the case of Sheikh Hasina.
Tharcius S Fernando, Chennai
