Professional Documents
Culture Documents
3 (Autumn, 1984), pp. 429-449 Published by: Pacific Affairs, University of British Columbia Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2759068 . Accessed: 06/10/2011 21:36
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BACKGROUND
of Goa, now a union territory India with an area of about 1,350 square miles, is some 200 miles south of Bombay on the Arabian Sea coast of India. Because itwas ruled by Portugalfor451 years,it has been in thoughtof as a Portugueseoutpost,an "island of Westerncivilization" an Indian sea. Nevertheless, despiteobvious Westerninfluencein certain areas of life (music, dress, architecture,food), and despite its large Catholic community, is more useful and accurate to regard Goa as an it Indian region witha ratherunusual past. Over thecourse of twocenturies(roughly1700 to 1910), Goan society stagnated,its trade in decline and its politicsunchanged. Though there were sporadic revoltsand conspiracies by both Hindus and Catholics, Portuguese rule continued basically undisturbed. Even the major reformsundertaken by the Marquis de Pombal, the famous Portuguese who virtually ruled Portugalbetween 1749 and 1777, had primeminister littleeffecton the basic structures Goan society.A number of Goan of intellectuals,inspired by Portuguese-European models, studied and wrotein Portugaland France. Repelled by the prevailingpoliticalsystem of Goa, or suffocating itsnarrowcolonial society, in manysuch educated men migratedto the more open and favorablepoliticalclimateof British India.
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The founding of the Portuguese Republic in 1910 liberated the Hindus of Goa fromcenturiesof discrimination and repression.Immediately they flooded into the schools, joined associations, established and began to take an activerole in public lifejournals, startedlibraries, as teachers, members of governmentcouncils, and administrative officials.' During the Salazar regime(establishedin 1926), and particularly afterWorld War II, Portugal tried to hold on to the fragments her of Indian empirebybelatedlyencouragingsome developmentprojectsand by turningGoa into a duty-free port. It had long been known that Goa rich in iron-ore deposits, and in 1947 the Portuguese was extremely began issuing leases for developing them. The leases were taken up mainlyby local Hindu merchants,who paid as littleas Rs 300 for the privilegeof becomingmine owners.2Withthe infusionof foreigncapital from India and elsewhere (specifically, Japan and West Germany),the Goan mines developed rapidlyin the last decade of colonial rule. There were also attemptsto expand the road network,electricity supply,and school system, of which had been neglected up to then. all "Only in the last two years . . . were textbooksfor Marathi . . . primary schoolsprepared under government and publishedin Goa." 3 supervision The number of scholarshipsfor study in Portugal was increased, and many Hindus were given the opportunityto attend the metropolitan universities-an opportunityrarely available until this period. After 1947, Portuguese salaries were veryhigh compared to those to paid in India; and retirement pensionswere equal to the salaries.4Cheap luxury goods and the availabilityof imported staples made Portuguese rule palatable to many; even today,older Goans yearn for the days of cheap whisky,cheese, olives, and Japanese textiles.In general, the prices of manyconsumergoods were about 50 to 70 per cent below Indian levels, whileincomeswere nearlydouble5-a situationwhichencouraged largescale smugglingof goods into India. The Portuguese succeeded in creatingan artificial based prosperity on iron-ore exports, high salaries, and low prices for duty-free goods. middle class and the intellectuals, howAimed at the politically-aware of offeredlittleifanything the vastmajority peopleto ever, the system In and fishing. fact,farmersand fishermen those engaged in agriculture were reduced to subsistencelevels,since theirproducts could not com1 Antonio de Noronha, "Os Indus de Goa e a Republica Portuguesa," in A India Portuguesa, vol. II (Nova Goa, 1923), p. 351. 2 R.P. Rao, Portuguese Rule in Goa (Bombay: Asia PublishingHouse, 1963), p. 57. 3 P.S. Varde, History Education Goa from of in 1510 tothePresent Day (Panaji: Goa Vidya Pratishthan,1977), p. 96. ' B.G. D'Souza, Goan Society Transition in (Bombay: Popular Prakashan, 1975), pp. 194-5. 5 R.N. Saksena, Goa intothe Mainstream (New Delhi: Abhinav Publishers,1974), p. 81.
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Since the Indian Army takeover of Goa in December 1961, the areas. As an territory undergone veryrapid change in manydifferent has As has been basicallytransformed. integralpartof India, Goa's economy soon as the Indian Army moved in, Goa's status as a duty-freeport ended. Cheap liquor and cheap imported textiles,foods, and luxury goods disappeared. Living standards no doubt declined for the short term. But in place of the unproductive, essentiallyartificialsystem created by the Salazar government,Indians rapidly built up the same systemthey had created in other parts of their development-oriented country. Agriculturewas emphasized; Goa was integratedinto the Commuand up-tonityDevelopment Block system;improved seeds, fertilizers, date methods were adopted. By 1971, the productionof rice (the basic crop) had increased by 45 per cent.8 New land was brought under cultivationand existingirrigationcanals improved. (The major Selauli irrigationproject is now nearing completion, and will irrigate some Productionof coconuts,cashew nuts and 36,000 acres when finished.)9 increased. theirby-products expanded, and thefishcatchwas greatly was have all flourished. and associatedindustries exporting, Iron-oremining, Iron-ore productionrose from6.4 milliontons in 1961 (the last year of
Rule, pp. 57-8. Rao, Portuguese 1961-1971 (Panjim: Government of Goa, Daman and Diu, Ten Years of Liberation Department of Informationand Tourism, 1971), p. 30. Minister India toGoa (14-16 of of 9 Governmentof Goa, Daman and Diu, Visit thePrime Notes(Panaji: Chief Secretary'sOffice,1978), p. 6. November, 1978): TheBackground
7 8
6 Governmentof Goa, Daman and Diu, Goa, Daman and Diu, 1964 (Panjim: 1964), p. 8.
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Portugueserule)'0 to a highof 14.8 milliontonsin 1976." Thousands of small industrieshave been aided by government loans, and a number of large enterpriseshave sprung up in such industriesas pesticides,fertilizer, beer, and barge-building. The port of Mormugao has been expanded intoone of the major harborsof westernIndia, mainlyforthe export of iron ore. Recent years have also witnessed the widespread in distribution electricalpower. Being deficient hydroelectricpotenof tial,Goa has been connected to the grids of neighboringstates.Prior to 1961, only three of Goa's 383 villages were electrified;by 1980, that figurehad risento 330.12 Finally,the growthin agricultureand industry has been accompanied by the developmentof a sound financialsystem. The Goa State Cooperative Bank Ltd. was established in 1963, and numerous Indian banks soon set up branches throughoutthe territory. By 1978, there were 216 bank branches withdeposits of Rs 2 billion.'3 With the rise in production of agricultural,mineral,and industrial of and the increasedavailability financeand electricpower, commodities, came other changes. The Indian governmentbegan building roads, bridges,and culverts.New formsof economic activity and a new styleof administration broughtmanynon-Goans to the region. Constructionof housing and new governmentor institutional buildingsbecame a thriving business.Althougha fewGoans departed withthe Portuguese,many more returned from abroad after the Liberation in order to establish homes and businesses. The tourist potential soon became apparent: hotels, restaurants,and associated businesses have expanded tremenin dously. The statistics Table 1 give some indicationof the magnitude of economic change experienced by Goa since 1961.
TABLE 1. SELECTED INDICES OF ECONOMIC CHANGE,
1961-80
1980 n.a. 14,000 62,000 1,742 5,804 400+
1961 GovernmentEmployees Teriary Graduates Secondary Matriculates IndustrialUnits Hotel Beds CommercialTrawlers 3,000 475 9,500 290 450 7
p. 39.
12Ibid.,
13Ibid.,
p. 56.
pp. 44-5.
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Census of India 1971, Goa, Daman and Diu General PopulationTables (Panaji, 1973), Census of India, Series 29, Goa, Daman and Diu 1981 Provisional PopulationTotals,
16 Personal communicationfrom S.K. Gandhe, Director of Census Operations, Goa, Daman and Diu.
p. 25.
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Pacific Affairs place of residence, there is unlikely to be a reversal of the present trend-unless, of course, thereis a sudden and unexpected downturnin the Goan economy. Education.The Portuguese did littleto develop the educational system of Goa. At the timeof Liberation,therewas onlyone high school in the region-the Liceu Nacional in Panaji. The language of instruction was Portuguese. While standards were high, the number of graduates, particularlyHindu graduates, was pitifullysmall. Matriculation prepared one for a post in the local bureaucracyor for furtherstudies in For a good futurein Portugal-an option open mainlyto the well-to-do. the Indian context,a young Goan studied English in a private school, crossing the border to continue his studies in that language. This explains whytherewas a largernumberof Goans in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda than in Mozambique or Angola. For all intentsand purposes, education prepared Goans for migration. One of the major achievements of the Indian government since 1961 -and certainly one of the mostsignificant the future-has been for the rapid expansion of education in Goa. Where there used to be one secondaryschool,thereare now 233.17 Under the Portuguese,therewas a medical school and one or two other institutions some vocaoffering tional or professional training; today there are 37 institutions the at level.'8 While many of the privateprimaryschools operating in tertiary Marathior Englishbefore 1961 (the language of government schools was strictly Portuguese) were simplyconvertedto governmentschools after Liberation, the expansion of primaryeducation was nonetheless truly impressive.In 1961-62, there were 176 governmentprimaryschools; the figureclimbed to 601 in 1962-63; today it stands at 1,155.'9 Unfortunately, jobs have not expanded as fastas educational opportunities.As a result,migrationis stilla major factorin Goan life today, and education has a marked effecton population patterns.Education and the need to migratecan also be linked to politicsand the growthof regionalidentity. Goans who returnedafter1961 now findtheirchildren again forced to leave to findwork,while many non-Goans occupy wellpaid positions in local governmentand industry.This situation has helped unite those who returnedin 1961 withthose who had remained in Goa under Portuguese rule. Educated Goans and those withany sort of technical or service training go overseas, particularlyto the Gulf States. In manyGoan homes, thereare no husbands,brothers, sonsor only small children,women, and old men. While outsiders fromother
17
19 P.S. Varde, History Education Goafrom of in 1510 tothe Present Day (Panaji: Goa Vidya Pratishthan,1977), p. 101; and Statistical Pocket-Book 1980, p. 172.
18Ibd
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Goan societyis made up of a number of groups in a complex web of relationships.It is not easy to sum up the situationin a fewparagraphs. Briefly,there are three religious groups: Hindus (60 per cent of the total); Catholics (38 per cent); and Muslims(2 per cent), who are mostly Sunni. Goans speak a numberof languages,includingKonkani, Marathi, English,Portuguese,and Urdu. Konkani, an Indo-European language, should serve to unite the Goans; but, because it is writtenin four different it scripts, oftendivides them-Hindus preferring Devanagari; Catholics preferring Roman.
20 Armando Gonsalves Pereira, India Portuguesa (Lisbon: Agencia Geral do Ultramar, 1954), p. 383; and Statistical Pocket-Book 1980, p. 17.
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Pacific Affairs Hindus and Catholics are both divided on a caste basis. The Brahmins and Chardos (Kshatriya) of both religions are commonly the dominant castes of their villages; as members of village associations, landowners, and shopkeepers, they predominate among the modern, urban middle and upper classes. The Shudras make up most of the village population-farmers, tenant-cultivators, laborers, fishermen, toddy-tappers, and craftsmen-and the bulk of wage laborers in the towns. Among the lower castes is a large group who, while Catholic or Hindu, particularlyresemble the tribal populations of other areas of westernIndia. Known as "Gavda" or "Kunbi," theyshare much the same appearance, folk culture, and socio-economic position, despite their different religiousaffiliations. Because of this,theymay be said to form the solid base of Goan regional culture: Konkani-speaking,having a witha shared common world-view a syncretic of Hindu-Catholicvariety, and liquor-distilling. livelihood based on agriculture, The Cenfishing, on sus of India providesno information caste,but twosources give some inklingof the numerical importance of these people. In Carambolim village,there were 3,639 inhabitants according to the 1971 census.2' In 1974, thatsame village had 3,200 Gavdas, constituting vast majority the of the population.22 theSocio-Economic In a Survey Verna, village-survey of monograph published as partof the 1971 census of India, thereis a very useful table which gives another glimpse of the importance of the Gavda-Kunbi community. Verna had 752 households of which718 were Catholic,30 Hindu, and 4 Muslim.Among the Catholic households, 302 (or 42 per cent) were Gavdas; 348 (48 per cent) were Shudras and untouchables of several castes; and only 68 households (or 9 per cent) were Brahmins.23 While the Gavda-Kunbi communitycomprises a large part of the rural population, in economic terms the Catholic Brahmins predominate; itis they"who own mostof the privatelands in the village.They are also the jono holders of the village gaunkari,being the gaunkars or And it is the cultureand traditions the upperof originalinhabitants."24 caste Catholics and Hindus, of course, which have been described and idealized as "Goan culture."Needless to say,thereis a vast gulfbetween the "great tradition" the economicallypowerfulupper castes and the of "littletradition"of the large majorityof people. Besides religious,linguistic, and caste differences, there is a division
21 Census of India, 1971, Series 28, Goa, Daman and Diu District Census Handbook (Panaji, 1972), p. 143. 22 Joseph D'Souza, "Conditionsthat Keep Gavdas Backward" (M.A. Thesis, University of Baroda, 1975). 23 Census of India, 1971, Socio-Economic Survey Verna(Village Survey Monograph, of Part VI-C) (New Delhi, 1977), no. 3, p. 12. 24 Ibid., p.
14.
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influxof outsiders;but,as in so manyotherThird World countries,rural to people are flocking the townsin the hope of finding jobs. Urban areas in Goa grew at the rate of 58.5 per cent between 1971 and 1981. The correspondingfigurefor rural areas was only 15 per cent.27 to Colonial Goa was authoritarianand outwardly-oriented Portugal and its other colonies. Power was centralizedin the hands of the Porwho received theirdirectionsfrom tuguese politico-military authorities, Lisbon. In less than a year after Liberation, Indian authorities had organized village-levelelections and begun the process of integrating Goa into the democraticpatternsof the restof India. Since then,Goans have become fullyfamiliarwith the electoral process. Political parties have emerged and maneuvered for power. This paper is not the place to narratepoliticaleventsof the lasttwenty years. Sufficeto say thatthe partieshave tended to be centered around or particularpersonalities communal (religious,caste,linguistic) groups. An early move to merge Goa withneighboringMaharashtra was decisivelydefeated in 1967. The partyfavoringmergerremained in power until 1979, however.Startingas the champion of the previouslyout-offavorHindus and lowercastes,and of the Marathilanguage, thispartythe MaharashtrawadiGomantak("MaharashtrianGoa"), or MWG-gradually changed its tune. By the time of its demise in 1979, the partywas considered by manyas corrupt,dominatedby one person, and narrowly communal-in favor of lower-caste Hindus alone. Above all, it had reached a modus vivendiwiththe big families.One mightadd thatsuch a relationshipbetween governmentand capital is not unknown in the restof India. We maynote thatthisrelationship marksa basic difference betweenpre-1961 Goan society and thatof today.Under the Portuguese, local capitalists were weak or non-existent, emergingonly in the last ten yearsof colonial rule. Even during the briefperiod of economic growth in the 1950s, the Goan government was distantfromGoan industry and business, all decisions ultimatelybeing made in Lisbon. The current arrangement,which we shall discuss at greater length below, is a clear from a colonial to a bourgeois-capitalist sign of Goa's transformation mode of existence. With thisgeneral overviewof changes in Goa since 1961, let us now examine fiveareas in more detail in order to get a clearer pictureof the process of capitalist penetrationand transformation Goan society. of The five areas, which are closely interrelated,are the big families, the culturalexpression,and tourism. fishing, gaunkari,
Census (New Delhi, n.d.), vol. 1, p. 57; Census of India, 1971,District Handbook, iii; Census p. of India, Series 29, Goa, Daman and Diu 1981 Provisional PopulationTotals,p. 25. 27 Census of India, Series 29, Goa, Daman and Diu 1981 Provisional PopulationTotals, p. 25.
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Afterthe end of World War II, two factorscame to influenceGoa's future more than any others: first, the Japanese needed iron ore to rebuild theireconomy; second, as we have noted, the Portuguese realized that the only way to forestallthe increasing Indian demands for their departure was to create a class of Goans with a large stake in a "Portuguese future."A handful of small-businessmen, traditionallandowners,and war profiteers received iron-oremininglicenses,and were encouraged to dig and ship the ore to Japan. The plan worked well. Families withnames like Dempo, Chowgule, Salgaonkar, Timblo, Bandodkar, and Menezes developed into industrialist corporations. They became agents forthe importand sale of everything fromearth-moving equipment to typewriters. Dempo, Chowgule, and Salgaonkar moved into such diverse enterprisesand industriesas beer, shipbuilding,pesticides,carbon paper, machine tools, oxygen and acetylene,industrial and fishprocessing.Several of the family gas, steamshiplines,dairying, heads weredecoratedor honored byPortugalfortheirindustrial achievements. All were the creations of Portuguese policy. Yet, as Goa went through the trauma of takeover after 1961, the big families hardly missed a step. Not only were theynot penalized for theircollaboration (in fact,fewGoans were penalized in any directsense) but, in effect, they were rewarded for it. Goan mine-ownerswere allowed to keep possession of theirminesand to expand theiractivities will.They became the at in only privatemine-owners India. From 1961 on, these controllers the major wealth of the territory of came to controlits politicsas well. Foremostamong such powerfulmen Hindu mine-owner and a friendof was Dayanand Bandodkar, a wealthy the Portuguese. Elected chiefminister, and his daughterwere to rule he Goa until 1979. A man of low caste with a populist flair,Bandodkar adopted the platformof Goa's mergerwithMararashtra.This position was championed largelyby Hindus who felttheyhad been discriminated against under the formerregime,and who believed thata merger with the huge Hindu majority Maharashtrawould put an end to Catholic of in dominationforever.AfterBandodkar's MG partywon a majority the new legislativeassemblyin 1963, questions of controlof the wealth and natural resourcesof Goa did not arise, as the issues of developmentand merger were kept at center-stage.Bandodkar and his fellow industrialistsattemptedto shape public opinion throughtheirnewspapers(there eduare almost no independent papers in Goa) and through tertiary cational institutions which theythemselveshad established.The Chowand gules, forexample, own the newspapersGomantak Uzvadd,and were founders of an arts and science college at Margao; the Salgaonkars founded a law college; and the Dempos own the Navhind Timesand Navprabha,and are involved in Dhempe College at Miramar. 439
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When the proposed merger between Goa and Maharashtra was defeated, Bandodkar and the MG made a complete about-face. They now declared theirsupportforstatehood,a separate Goa university, and recognition Konkani as one of theconstitutionally of recognizednational languages. Throughout, the big familieshave profitedbecause Goa has remained a union territory, without a full state administrativeand ministerialapparatus, and withouta governor-who, as a potentially to powerfulfigurewithno local ties,would be difficult win over. By 1978, Dempo was the fastestgrowing business-house in India, witha real annual growthrate of 33 per cent,thoughit onlyranked 38th in size. Salgaonkar was growing at a rate of 18 per cent a year.28 Chowgule, in addition to its mammothiron-orepelletizationplant built on primeagricultural land, had thirteen companies in severalstates,with in branch offices fifteen cities.On the occasion of theirbirthdays the or launchingof yetanotherprojector company,the newspapersin Goa are in fullof sickly praise,endorsementsfromemployeesand smallerfry the business world, and photographs of the magnates togetherwith politiciansand bureaucratsfromDelhi. The lieutenantgovernor(the highin est administrator Goa) and chiefministers grace weddings and other there minglingwithdignitaries social eventsput on by the industrialists, fromJapan, Portugal, and other countries. The Japanese send "armtwisting" missions from time to time, to hasten the expansion of port facilities thatmore ore can be loaded more quickly.They are greeted so by the industrialists, garlanded, and called friendsand partners.The Japanese talk about a "close familyrelationship."29 The concreteresultsof this"family relationship"may be seen in the families.They may also luxurious lifestyles enjoyed by the industrialist be seen in "the ravaging of Goa's splendid mountains and forests,the pollutionof Goa's rivers, and thereduced life-span the Goan miner."30 of Iron miningin Goa is open-cut mining,and thereis virtually control no over environmentaldestruction.Protestsabout pollution are ignored (the one successful anti-pollutionmovement was waged against an outside-ownedcompany,Zuari Agro-Chemical).Labor unrestis treated to harshlyas well. Goa's economy is now linked intimately Japan's. The big capitalistfamilies,created by the formercolonial power, have continued to thrive by playing the role of agents for foreign capitalist interests. Besides theirown profit-making activities, theyhave created a climateforcapitalistpenetrationof fishing and tourism.Needless to say, an appreciationof the strength the big familiesand theirlinksto both of is foreigncapitalismand local government essentialto an understanding of Goa since 1961.
28India Today,August 16-31, 1978, p. 59. 29 NavhindTimes, December 15, 1979, p. 1. 1979, no. 5, p. 56. 3 Claude Alvares, "Goa: Finished in Ten Years," InsideOutside,
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Pacific Affairs Mechanized fishing has become a major industry withstrongties to the manufacturersof trawlersand associated equipment. Again, we find post-1961 changes marked by growingcapitalistpenetrationof a traof ditionaleconomyand increasingties to a world-widesystem markets. In all of this, the benefitsto Goans-and the Goan fishermenin particular-are minimal.The canneriespollute the riversand surrounding areas. The trawlers,instead of going out to sea where traditional craft cannot operate, have been used to deplete in-shore, traditional fishing grounds,wheretheyhave destroyednetsand killedsmallfishand egg stocks.To protestsuch developments,an organizationwas founded in 1974 by a group of social-minded,middle-class teachers and stuin dents-people who had been politicizedseveralmonthspreviously the anti-pollutionstruggleagainst Zuari Agro-Chemical. Ever since then, this organization has fought to obtain recognition for the rights of and correspondingregulationover trawler traditional fishermen activity. The pleas of the traditional fishermen a long timefelllargelyon deaf for ears. Laws have now been passed, but it remainsto be seen iftheywillbe enforced. When desperate fishermenresortedto violence in 1979, the of authoritiesharshlyoverreacted.Given the interests some Goan poliwithtrawler owners-and giventhestrength ticiansand theirconnections the of foreigninterests, lure of foreignexchange, and the behind-thescenes influenceof the big families-the sorryhistoryof Goa's fishing industry not surprising. is
THE "GAUNKARI"
Before the Portuguese conquest, Goan villages were organized in a communal system knownas gaunkari. Ratherthan abolishingthe system, the Portuguese in factpreservedit,and by the twentieth centuryit had become incredibly complex and unwieldy.It is impossibleto do justice in this paper to the complexities and far-reachingramifications this of system. Each village mighthave its own particularhistory, but basicallythe village associations were run by gaunkars,the male members of the dominant caste. Some gaunkaridecided "that their male descendents should be enrolled aftercompletinga certainage, regularlydividingthe income equally among all enrolled persons, whereas in others it was establishedthata certainamount fromthe income should be set aside to be distributed among the successorsof everyoriginal family[who were] known as Vangors."34 Amounts were given for the support of village craftsmen and forthe temple or church.The gaunkari were responsible for maintainingroads, drainage and irrigation systems, public security,
34Jose C. Almeida, Aspects theAgricultural of Activity Goa, Daman and Diu (Panaji: in GovernmentPrintingPress, 1967), p. 4.
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Goa: The Transformation an Indian Region of religious institutions-and, under the Portuguese, for supportingeducation and public health as well. However successful in its time, the systemhad developed serious problemsby 1961. "The PortugueseGovernment insistedon the observance of old traditions. .. without payingheed to the factthatthe villages had ceased to be occupied only by the gaunkars, that [the latter]constituted an insignificant in of minority the villagesand that the [structure the villages] was totallymodified."35Non-gaunkars-the tenants who rentedgaunkari land and the laborerswho did the actual work-had no say in the running of village association affairs.In 1956, a Portuguese agriculturalmission found that tenancy rates in Goa were extremely high,rangingfrom75 to 98.5 per centof tillers.36 There were altogether in the 224 gaunkari the territory, numberin each district varyinggreatly. Fifty-five cent of them were in the four districts the Old Conper of quests-which also contained nearly half the paddy fields in Goa.37 Throughout Goa, then,many villageswere dominated by the gaunkars, who controlledthe productionand distribution much of the region's of agriculturalwealth. After 1961, the Indian governmenttook quick measures to reduce the power of the gaunkari.Rents collectableby village associationswere reduced, and the previous systemof annual public auction of gaunkariowned plots was abolished. The Goa, Daman and Diu Agricultural Tenancy Act (1964) establishedsecurity tenancyand fixedrentrates; of it held that, while landlords would pay land tax, tenants would pay taxes and be responsiblefor the maintenanceof bunds. (The irrigation act applied to private owners as well as gaunkari.)Since then, several other "land-to-the-tiller" have been enacted. The Goa, Daman and laws Diu Mundkars (ProtectionfromEviction)Act (1975) stopped evictions and gave tenants the right to purchase their house sites. Landlords foughtthe acts (and some excessive observances of them) in court. In 1979, the major "land-to-the-tiller" was declared unconstitutional: law landlords now could demand the arrears owed them. The tenants appealed, and the fight continues. There are both positiveand negative aspects to the decline of the since 1961. On the positiveside, an outdated agricultural gaunkari system has been weakened, ifnot destroyed.The wayhas been cleared formany more Goans to farm their own land-many of them from the lower castes. Land ownershipwillundoubtedlygive thema sense of pride and securitythat theyhave never had. The old gaunkars often plowed their wealth into houses and itemsof consumptionratherthan back into the
3 Rui Gomes-Pereira, Goa: Vol.II, Gaunkari, Old Village the Associations (Panaji: privately published, 1981), p. 25. 36 Almeida, Aspects Agricultural of Activity, 17, 39, 48. pp. 37 Ibid., pp. 48-9.
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Pacific Affairs land. Under the new arrangements, productionmay well be higher-if the small private landholders can obtain the necessarycapital and the technology.For tenants,conditionshave improvedconsiderably;absentee landlordismhas greatlydeclined. All of these outcomes can be seen as justifying the recentchanges. Nevertheless,change has not been all for the good. Reforms were undertaken withouta thorough analysis of what might happen if the gaunkaridisappeared, and there have been a number of unanticipated of and negative side-effects change. While many Goans may benefitin the short run from the demise of the gaunkari,in the absence of any of alternative institution a more democraticnature,Goans may lose out in the long run in terms of both quality of land and quality of life. Without the organization and finances of the gaunkari,it has been difficult maintainthe irrigation to and flood-control systems.; a result, as thousands of acres have been damaged or destroyed by flooding or salination. The decline in gaunkariincome has been reflectedin the the disappearance of decline in village cultural and religious activity, church music-schools,and the deteriorationof valuable architectural monuments. (On the other hand, upper-caste culture is no longer so dominant; lower-castegroups, particularlythe Gavda-Kunbi community,are freer to develop in their own ways.) The gaunkaricommon lands, which are not rented out for agriculturalpurposes, have been subject to speculative manipulation by politicians,land dealers, and construction firms. The communal forests now cut by individualsfor are privategain, as thegaunkari become a mere shadow of itsformer has self, unable to controlthe behavior of its membership. Land reformin Goa has been carried out more thoroughlythan in many other parts of India. The gaunkariaside, private landlords were usually owners of 10 acres or less (90 per cent of holdings in 1971).38 While thisfigureis the same as for the rest of India, Goa's history and results.In otherstates,the large particularevolutionproduced different landholdersoftenhad strongpoliticalinfluence and were able to prevent fromaffecting land reforms them.In Goa, neitherthe landlords nor the gaunkari were powerfulbeyond theirvillages.They were membersof the higher castes, and many of them were Catholic. These factors also mitigated againsttheirbuildingpoliticaltiesto the post-1961 lower-caste, Hindu-orientedleadership. In Goa, then,even small landlords lost their fieldsand sometimestheirhouses to tenants.Long-runninglitigation has prevented erstwhiletenantsfrom investingin improvementsand erstwhile landlords fromsellingout and doing somethingelse. of Capital in Goa comes fromdestruction land, not fromthe careful use of it. The familieswhose wealth derives from mining remain un3
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Withregard to both individualand group modes of culturalexpresof sion,the process of socializationand the reinforcement Goan regional culture has undergone considerable change. Some modes of cultural expressionhave nearlydisappeared, othershave been played down, still othershave emerged to take theirplace. Not only are the media changand expectations behavioral patterns, ing, but also the values, attitudes, of life that theytransmit. Before 1961, "cultured"Goans wrote,spoke, and sang in Portuguese iftheywere Catholic,and in Marathiiftheywere Hindu. Konkani, while beloved as the mothertongue of all Goans, was not encouraged by the Portuguese, and it remained the language of the folk culture, both Hindu and Catholic. Since higher education was only available in Portuguese (unless one left Goa) a number of Hindus also learned that language. Portuguese-speakingGoans never constitutedmore than a handfulof the population; in 1961, forexample, less than 2 per cent of the people claimed Portugueseas theirmothertongue.39Still,there was a vast quantityof Portuguese-languagematerialavailable-newspapers, journals, books. And educated Goans generallylooked to Portugal and Europe for intellectualstimulation;theyread Eca de Queiroz, Pessoa, Cam6es, and Almeida Garrett.The Central Libraryin Panaji stillhas a large collectionof world literature(now verydog-eared) in Portuguese. With the end of Portugal's rule came the sudden demise of PortucontactwithPortugal guese as a functionallanguage in Goa. All official ceased for fourteenyears. No Portuguese books, magazines, or newspapers fromabroad were available. Portuguese is hardly taught in the policy,and more the resultof schools-though thisis less due to official a widespread desire to learn English,clearlythe language of the future. of Even though this centuryhas seen a flowering Konkani literatureboth in Roman and Devangari scripts-the new languages of education are English and Marathi,not Konkani. In fact,mostGoans are opposed in to Konkani being made the language of instruction schools.40Thus, Goans have traded one foreignlanguage foranother,and have adopted a neighboringregional language instead of theirown. Given economic realities,this situationis likelyto persist-despite the strong pressures
40Ibid.,
pp. 48-52.
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fromKonkani-languageorganizations.English has spread in a way that Portuguesenever did, due to itsuse in the restof India and much of the of world,and because of the ready availability English-languagebooks, and radio broadcasts. magazines, newspapers,films, Turning to otherformsof culturalexpression,we findmore evidence of a fundamentaltransformation since 1961. As elsewhere in India and the world, the change has been fromthe religiousto the secular, from the rural to the urban, and fromemphasis on the group to emphasis on the individual. Traditional stage-plays-immenselyenjoyed in Goa, as theyare in Maharashtra-have shiftedfromreligiousthemesto those of romantic love and consumerism, accompanied bya new Goan pop music, a combinationof Westernrockand local folksongs. Hindi films and film have achieved tremendouspopularityand wide influenceamong music a the youth.Besides introducing rudimentary knowledgeof Hindi, they representtheculturalaccompanimentof the economic changes going on in Goan society.They stressindividual problems and desires-particularly of the romantic variety-and escapism. Hindi films encourage urban life and frequentlypreconsumerismby consistently glorifying sentingtraditionalrural stylesor values in a derisiveway. Changes in the economic, political,and social structureshave been accompanied by a rapid decline in traditionalcrafts.Former patrons have leftGoa or are no longer prosperous. Factory-produced articlesare or appeal because they are "new." Architecturalstyleshave cheaper, changed as well. Few new buildings are constructedin the traditional Indo-Portuguese style,and many of the old ones have fallen into disrepair or have already been demolished. The townsare filling with up concrete blocks that look old before theyare finished.Panaji, Margao, and Vasco more and more resemble towns in other parts of western India. Regarding socialization and the reinforcementof Goan regional cultureand identity, have alreadytouched upon manyof the relevant we factors.Language, films, music, and theaterall play importantroles in establishing cultural identity.Another important area, of course, is religion,particularly religiousfestivals. These festivals-saints'days for Catholics and zatrasfor Hindus-provide the participantswitha set of moods and motivations conveyed by a single culturalstyle,givingthem a chance to move briefly fromdaily routine and normal structureto a more ideal world outside mundane reality.Such occasions transitory, in create an atmosphereof excitement, even fervor, which people have a chance to approach theirgods and theirinner selves, to learn something about theirown societythroughthe festival"text."'" Though in
41 This discussion derives from CliffordGeertz's "Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese in Cockfight," The Interpretation Cultures of (New York: Basic Books, 1973), pp. 412-53.
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At the same timethatGoa reels under the impactof massivechange, it is being vigorously promoted as a touristparadise. In such a situation, ironiesabound. While vast tractsof the territory being turned into a are moonscape, it is being touted as a "lush garden" and "almost miracu42 See Tomas Gerholm,Market, Town in Mosque and Mafraj: Social Inequality a Yemeni of (Stockholm:University Stockholm,1977), Studies in Anthropology,no. 5; and Thomas Gregor,Mehinaku:TheDrama ofDailyLifein a BrazilianIndian Village(Chicago: University of Chicago, 1977).
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lously unspoiled." As the interestingLuso-Indian architectureof the townsis replaced byconcreteblocksof exceptionalugliness,Goan urban charms are advertisedas "nearly Mexican." As politics,pollution,mass media, and the increase of population pose mountingproblems,Goa is referredto as a "place outside time."43 But the ironiesof tourismare not limitedto the dubious claimsof brochures.Because the big familieshave not gone into the hotel business in a serious way, chains operated by Indian corporationsfromother parts of the countryhave taken over. of Construction huge luxuryhotelshas resultedin the alienationof land from traditionalowners, the disruptionof village life, tremendous inand flation because of the high prices (bylocal standards)thatforeigners rich Indians are willing to pay, and the commercializationof local culture. Goa has been a touristdestinationfor many years,but only recently has it begun to sufferfrommass tourism,the sure destroyer.Over the years, there have been essentiallythree types of visitorsto Goa. First, there were the Goans returninghome on leave from their far-flung let diaspora-reaching floodtidewhen the Bombay shops and offices out for the holidays.This typeof touristbroughtnew ideas and goods into but was not disruptive.A few years afterLiberation,Goa Goan society, was discovered by disaffected,adventurous Western youth, loosely termed "hippies." Their nudism, drugs, and rock music shocked Goan while the appearance of some seaside villages sensibilities. Nevertheless, changed, the local people remained in controlof the touristtrade, and It were not altereddrastically. is the thirdtype socio-economicstructures of tourismwhichhas broughtabout severe economic,social, and cultural individudislocation.This is the more recentmass tourismby well-to-do als or groups who want littleor nothingto do with Goan life-visitors cocooned in luxuryhotelsbuilton formervillageland, staffed former by fishermen,toddy-tappers,and farmers,and supplied by the "more The greatestirony of all is that reliable" sources outside the territory. even the official advertisements urge people to visitGoa now, before it is spoiled. It seems almost inevitablethat the burgeoning tourist"infrastructure"will overwhelmand destroythe very place the touristsare coming to see.
CONCLUSIONS
Looking back over the changes which have occurred in Goa since not 1961, it is difficult to derive a sense of pessimism.But we ought not to focusonlyon the negative.Like the restof India, Goa is on the move. Its human potentialis outstanding,as is its capacityfor increased agriforthe Indian Departmentof Tourism, entitled 4 See, forexample, a pamphletwritten "Goa: A Place Outside Time," published in Madras, 1973.
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