Goa's most popular tourist destination Calangute has been facing the horrors of unplanned development over the last several years. With roads being dug out every now and then to lay sewage pipelines, to the ill-managed traffic that the residents have to face - the famous North Goa village is fed up of the government's apathy. Tired of the administration's failure to resolve long-pending issues, Walter Lobo, a local from Calangute, issued a hilarious advertisement addressed to Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar asking him to "catch the contractors by the ear and get them to patch all the holes in Calangute before December 15". Lobo, who claims to have "brought hard core votes from seven constituencies that brought the BJP to power" actually went to the extent of threatening the CM after criticising him for the government's poor performance. "Please avoid a law and order situation if someone dies or a rasta roko from our absolutely upset village panchayat, Taxi Drivers and Business Men, (sic)" he writes. Calangute MLA Michael Lobo, who is also addressed in the message, told a local daily in October that “I will see that the major roads leading to Calangute market and Calangute Church from St Anthony’s Chapel are hot mixed by mid-November. There should be perfect coordination between the departments while carrying out digging works as the pot holes pose a threat to life and property. The officials responsible for cutting or damaging the road should see to it that the road is repaired once the work is done. Collective and responsible working is required to keep our roads free from potholes”. Will Parsekar act to avoid a bumpy ride? We'll have to wait and watch.
