Goan Voice UK: Newsletter. Issue 2006-04. Jan. 26, 2006

Because all offices in India will be closed on 26 January, Republic Day, this issue is being sent a day early.

Tough time for UK-bound pros
19 Jan: The Economic Times. The major changes in the UK's immigration rules, which are likely to be given final shape and announced in March, 2006, may do away with the right to appeal for student and work-permit visa applicants … Currently the refusal rate in India is quite high and in a number of cases appeals are granted favourably for the applications. … Significantly, Labour MP Keith Vaz, who is one of the most prominent British politicians of Indian origin, is also concerned over the proposal to abolish the right of appeal for visitors' visas. He has initiated debates in the both the Houses of Lords and Commons on the issue and feels that the proposal will hit a large number of his constituents in Leicester East. Click here.

Surrey: Rose Fernandes: Exhibition of Paintings
24 Jan - 5 Feb. Exhibition of oil, watercolour and acrylic paintings by Usha Bullman and Rose Fernandes at the Fountain Gallery, 26 Bridge Road, East Molesey, Surrey, KT8 9HA. 10am to 6pm daily. Admission Free. For details click here.
Rose Fernandes (nee Abreu, ex-Mombasa) lives in Thornton Heath, Surrey and is married to Melvyn {Welfare Director, G.O.A. (UK)}. This is her first exhibition but she has two more up her sleeve: one at the Osterley Park in June and the other at Westminster Hospital in July.

Young London Goans Society (YLGS)
As you know GOAN GLOBAL! The YLGS Newsletter provides you with new articles, news and regular features every month. However from this year, we have decided to make the NL bi-monthly but with the same or similar features! Hence the NL will be back next month: February. If any members or their friends have any suggestions or something to contribute, drop us a line! All articles will be considered and published if deemed appropriate! click here for previous issues.
Malcolm (Malky) Braganza (ED) ylgseditor@braganza1.freeserve.co.uk

Seraphino Antao feature to appear in Australian newspaper
A feature article, with photographs, is to appear in The Age (Melbourne) on Saturday 28 Jan. or 4 Feb.

24 Jan. London. CONRAD ANTHONY MONTEIRO (ex Mombasa/Customs). Husband of late Blandina Monteiro. Father of Caruso/Merlyn (London), Brenda/Stanley (London). Grandad of Danielle, Kieron and Nikita. Brother of Cyril/Virgie (London), Cornelius/Norah (London), Ella/Victor (Mumbai) and late Cany/Angie (Mombasa). Arrangements are being made for a private family funeral. Condolences to caruso@blueyonder.co.uk

23 Jan: Arpora, Goa. JOHN FERNANDES. (Ex-Nairobi Railways). Husband of late Santana Henriquita. Son of late Mr. Antonio Fernandes and late Mrs Magdelina Santana Fernandes of Colvale, Bardez. Loving father of Benny/Joseph, Joaquim/Cynthia and James. Funeral is on 23 Jan. at the Holy Trinity Church, Nagoa. Condolence messages could be forwarded to charl2001123@rediffmail.com [Info from Cip Fernandes]

23 Jan: Tivim, Goa. MARIA CONCESSAO FERNANDES (SABINE). (Ex- Mombasa). Wife of late Antonio Lawrence Fernandes. Mother of late Dominic/Carmine, Eulalia/Clement, late Julie, late Maria/late Hilary Dantas.

19 Jan. Kampala, Uganda. ARTHUR D'MELLO Husband of Jean. Father of Isabelle. Funeral details will be announced later. Condolences to basil@utlonline.co.ug The funeral was on Tue. 24 Jan. at Nsambya Cathedral Kampala.

8 Jan: London. VICTOR CRENCENCIO ALFONSO (ex-Nairobi). Husband of Lucy. Father of Raymond, Alex, Brenda, Cedric and Danny. Funeral was on Mon 23 Jan. Condolences to r.alfonso@btinternet.com

Re Death on 16 Dec 2005 in Goa of PHILIP REBELLO (London/Mungul). Brother/brother-in-law of Aurola/late John, Alex/Josephine, Loren/Dominic, Connie/Florence, Ida/Manuel, Roqueline, Rosalind, Agnela/Manuel and Uncle to Rita, Estella, Hilda, Dominic, Ian, Davina, Caesar, David and Richard. The family would like to thank everyone who attended his funeral, and for all the cards, floral tributes, prayers and Mass Offerings received.

Falling in love with Goa. By Michael Heath
21 Jan: The Spectator (UK). Goa is, I suppose, India Lite … Untouchable goats and cattle roam around the roads at their own snail's pace - like English yobs … The people are smiling, the people are happy, this is all very odd for us dreary EUs … These people seem kind, they will help you, not think of you as a mug. Well maybe they do, but it's done with charm. It's like I imagine England was 100 years ago … They say thank you, and excuse me … Goa now!
Access to the full text, 864 words, is by way of free registration. Click here.

50 Best Spas in the World
22 Jan: The Observer. 19: Taj Exotica, Goa. With a shady children's pool and water slide, mountain bikes, a giant outdoor chess set, a pitch-and-putt course, water volleyball and the occasional elephant on the beach, younger guests at Taj Exotica won't be bored. Adults can while away the hours in the Ayurvedic centre, with its therapeutic waterfall contemplation area and rose petal-filled outdoor baths. Rooms from £185. Massage, including outdoor rose petal bath, £55. Click here.

Indisches Strandparadies in Goa
21 Jan: Salzburger Nachrichten (Austria). Travel article in German. 696 Words. Click here.

Goa Bird Festival
23 Jan: Europe Travel News (Ireland). The former Portuguese enclave of Goa is rapidly establishing itself as one of the premier winter birding destinations for European birders - and the reasons are not hard to find. The well-developed infrastructure and easy, inexpensive travel by bus and taxi, as well as the guaranteed sunshine and the discounted price … the species list is remarkable including parakeets and lorikeets, bee-eaters and rollers, hornbills and barbets, orioles and drongos, bulbuls and babblers, flowerpeckers and woodpeckers … Click here.

In Goa, taxis will continue to give taxing time to tourists
20 Jan: Daily News & Analysis. There will be no respite for tourists arriving in Goa especially if you are coming from cities where taxis have meters … it seems certain that tourists can look forward to another long argumentative summer. 410 words. Click here.

Baseball craze picks up pace in state.
20 Jan: The Statesman (Calcutta). . … The Amateur Baseball Federation of India (ABFI) is planning to come up with a baseball stadium of international standards at Goa … The Goa government had already allotted seven and a half acres of land for the proposed baseball stadium over an area of 30,000 sq ft. Of the project cost of Rs 5 crores, a sizeable percentage is expected to come in the form of assistance from Japan and Korea … Click here.

Churchill denies a Goan coup
20 Jan: Daily News & Analysis. Speculation of a possible political coup in Panaji proved off target, though the man reportedly behind the rebellion, Churchill Alemao, south Goa’s MP, has many reasons to be contemplating one. Speaking to DNA, Alemao said: "Everybody is trying their best (to topple chief minister Pratapsing Rane). But, only I am capable, if there is to be a rebellion." Click here.

NCP issues notice to its Goa leader. By Pamela D’Mello
21 Jan: Asian Age. The NCP Goa vice-president and agriculture minister in the Goa government, Mr Francisco (Micky) Pacheco, was issued a showcause notice by his party general secretary for anti-party activities on Friday … Mr Pacheco sought the resignation of NCP state president Dr Wilfred de Souza who is also deputy chief minister in the Congress-NCP coalition government … In reply Mr Pacheco has denied committing any anti-party activity. "I will step down from the government only after my president does so," he said. Click here.

‘Goa minister issued notice for perpetual foul mouth’
22 Jan. Daily News & Analysis. First Mickky Pacheco dared to use an expletive against Margaret Alva, AICC general secretary and Goa in-charge. Then he carried out a public tirade against chief minister Pratapsing Rane. Now he has begun attacking his own boss, National Congress Party (NCP) president Dr Wilfred de Souza. http://dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1009121
For the BBC profile of Pacheco click here.

Home care services for cancer patients in Goa
24 Jan: WebIndia123.com. Global Cancer Concern of India (GCCI) will launch home care services at Panaji for the benefit of cancer patients of Goa in association with the Goa Medical College from March 15. 269 words. Click here.

Pacheco: Goa leader should be replaced
25 Jan: Asian Age. … the row in the Goa NCP has escalated into a no-holds barred war of words … In an interview with local daily Gomantak Times, a defiant Mr Pacheco said the NCP leadership in Goa ought to be changed replacing senior leader and deputy chief minister, Dr Wilfred D’Souza. Click here.

Goa tourist taxi drivers plan stir on meter issue
25 Jan: Business Standard. Following the Goa state government’s move to make fare meters compulsory to tourist vehicles, the tourist taxi drivers association (GTTA) has decided to launch a state-wide agitation. Click here.

"The mando is not of recent creation, but it is not very ancient either." Find out if it is indeed "a unique creation of the Goan musical genius" in an interesting piece titled The Great Goan Mando Over The Years. Note too that the 39th Mando Festival will be held on 28 January 2006 at the Hotel Majestic, Porvorim, Goa.

Many Goan Voice (UK) readers, of a certain age, will remember Goa as being very sparsely populated well before electricity and piped water became a reality. But overnight we now hear that, it will soon become very congested as all living space is utilised rapidly. Find out as to exactly what is generating such a transformation.

Could erotic images of deities in the temple friezes of Goa be easily missed by residents and visitors to Goa? Controversial evidence about such friezes presented on Goanet can help one understand this little known aspect of Goa.

GV (UK) readers visiting Goa probably do visit numbers of bookshops all over the state. One new book they would encounter is The Parish Churches of Goa. This 201 page volume is packed with fascinating information and pictures of facades of innumerable local churches. The book is by Jose Lourenco with photographs by Pantaleao Fernandes.

Read about Grandmomm's recipes for health and remedies for toothache, migraine, goitre, high blood pressure and many other ailments on Goanet. They encapsulate traditional remedies used in Goa before the modern pharmacy made its appearance. Many of these traditional medications are still widely used and deemed to be very effective.

Finally, Fatima da Silva in Lusotopic (2000):423-432 provides an excellent account of Goan migration from pre-Portuguese times to the present. It is definitely worth reading for several new insights regarding the impetus for migration to different destinations. However, the particular in-depth focus of this paper is on the Gulf region.

More details can be found at the Goanet archives at http://www.goanet.org Or to subscribe to Goanet, send an email to subscribe@goanet.org

UK: Imli - Indian street food in Soho
18 Jan: Time Out (London). Imli is the Hindi word for tamarind, and an offshoot of Tamarind, one of the top Indian restaurants in London … We enjoyed Goan pork curry laced with chilli and palm vinegar. Goan pork curry: £4.95. Imli, 167-169 Wardour St, W1F 8WR (020 7287 4243)

How To Set Up Shop In India
19 Jan: TMC Net. Donal Griffin speaks to three Irish entrepreneurs who are at the vanguard of Irish business's tentative foray in to India. They discuss the subcontinent's patriarchy, as well as its sharp levels of competition and sheer scale. Click here.

Canadian elections get an Asian flavour
19 Jan: BBC News. … They are among nearly 50 candidates of South Asian origin who are vying to become members of parliament … Click here.

Buy an Indian woman for just $20
20 Jan: Trafficking in children and women to and from India is now a booming business and a young woman can be 'bought' for as low as Rs 1,000 (about $20) according to a survey by the New Delhi-based Institute of Social Sciences on ‘Trafficking in Women and Children in India’. Women are supplied within India to Goa among other States and the overseas markets include Kenya and UK. Click here.

Texans travel to India for low cost operations
20 Jan: WFAA-TV. Nancy Koehler's Indian hip operation cost $9,000 in Bombay where many Americans are going for expensive high-quality surgery. In today's dollars her American hip could cost as much as $40,000. Click here.

Vindalho: just right
20 Jan: The Oregonian (Portland, Oregon, USA). Vindalho is the new "spice route" restaurant … More to the point, it's a David Machado restaurant, and that means a lot of things, first and foremost that it's professional … Machado came to Portland years ago to open Pazzo, the downtown Italian restaurant then the immensely popular Lauro Mediterranean Kitchen. Meat and seafood dominate Vindalho far more than you might expect from an Indian restaurant. Vindalho is a very good, friendly and reliable place, offering excellent value and enough intriguing dishes to make you want to add it to your list of regular destinations. Those are David Machado virtues, and you can take them to the bank. 657 words. http://www.vindalho.com/

Spoonfuls of entertainment in a palatable history book
21 Jan: The Canberra Times. Indian food without chilli is today quite unimaginable but it was the Portuguese who introduced it to the sub-continent in the 15th century … At Goa and their other Indian possessions, the Portuguese did what no other European power was ever able to do and this was to change the eating habits of the local populace. After the exodus of Hindus who did not wish to be converted to Christianity, those converted Catholics who remained became fortunate recipients of not only the Host at Mass but of other superb, secular feasts. The important introduction of vinegar resulted in dishes such as vindaloo, still known so well today. Book Review of: Curry: A Biography, by Lizzie Collingham, Random House, 318pp, 55 Australian Dollars.

All Indian Christian Council Meets With Government to Prevent Attacks
21 Jan: Christian Today (London). The All Indian Christian Council has met with the Indian Home Minister to address the ongoing persecution of Christians in the country. Click here.

Saudi firms keen on foraying into India
22 Jan: Gulf Today (Dubai). The "Saudi Arabia in India" exhibition is on from Jan.24-26 … Saudi Arabia's Amiantit Group already has a plant in Goa for manufacturing special fuel tanks and fibreglass pipes catering to not just Indian but overseas markets as well.

Foreign law firms can give India competition
22 Jan: Asian Age. India needs to open its doors to international law firms, says London-based arbitration lawyer Sarosh Zaiwalla. He has fought cases for Amitabh Bachchan and Benazir Bhutto among others and is optimistic of that happening … Mr Zaiwalla’s partnership venture, India Law International Partnership, is one of the first Indian global law firms in London. It has offices in Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore and Goa as well. Click here.

How curry conquered the world
22 Jan: Sun Herald (Sydney, Aus). In 17th-century Goa it was the visiting Portuguese who taught the local Indians how to make the exquisite egg and milk-based sweets that have since become part of the fabric of eating on the western seaboard. By way of reciprocity, the natives taught the Portuguese how to be clean: not previously known for their personal hygiene, the settling Europeans started lathering up and changing their pants with a regularity that amazed newcomers as they reached for yet one more helping of bebinka, a delicious mix of coconut milk, eggs and hunks of palm sugar.

Desperate British Asians fly to India to abort baby girls. By Dan McDougall
22 Jan: The Observer (UK). Women refused terminations on the NHS are joining the millions of Indians who have surgery to uphold a sons-only tradition … British Asian women, some in effect barred by the NHS after numerous abortions, are now coming to India for gender-defining ultrasounds and, if they are expecting girls, terminations. 1430 words. Click here.

My Church, My Family
23 Jan: Indian Express. On Sunday, in a historic first, the Indian Church ordained two married men as deacons. Cardinal Ivan Dias chose Lloyd Dias and Elwyn de Souza to be the first family men to become permanent deacons serving the Church. Click here.

Indian Church : False “myths” of proselytising and elitist education in Catholic schools
23 Jan: AsiaNews.It. By Nirmala Carvalho. Click here.

UK: Portuguese in Boston, Lincolnshire
23 Jan: the Guardian. [As part of the investigation of racial attitudes in the UK, a study of English attitudes towards the Portuguese.] 1522 words. Click here.

Close Shave Earns Cash for Elephants
24 Jan: Gloucester Citizen (UK). … At the event at the end of last year, barber Asif spent five hours giving cutthroat shaves, facials and massages to the men at the Victoria Inn. Asif also treated women to other massages and facials … International Animal Rescue was sent £1,182.65 in aid of a mobile clinic scheme in Goa that aims to treat elephants for work-related illness and injury … the rescue facility is located near Mapusa where the rescue team employs three vets under the leadership of a veterinary director. The clinic houses 90 dogs, 50 cats as well as numerous pigs, goats, cows and water buffalo that suffer from all sorts of ailments as well as injuries from collisions with vehicles on the busy roads. 465 words. Click here.

The story of Miguel Arcanje Mascarenhas
Jan 2006. Business Traveller. Miguel Arcanje Mascarenhas or “Masci” as he was known, was a renowned Chef who died 25 years ago. Recently a book has been published about him and a restaurant at the Taj Exotica in Goa has been named after him. 541 words. Click here.

Canadian Election Result: Esquimalt-Juan de Fuca
24 Jan: Keith Martin LIB 20761. Randall Garrison NDP 18600. Troy DeSouza CON 16326

India to adopt US model of health care, eyes Medical tourism
24 Jan PTI. Eyeing the 40 million American citizens who are without medical insurance and are on the look out for cheaper treatment, India has cleared the proposal to adopt the US model of health care in mega cities. "Some US medical experts will travel to India to help develop an Indian model based on the US model with required modifications," a renowned NRI doctor and founder President of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, Navin Shah told PTI. Click here.

Invest in a restaurant. Lately, everyone's doing it.
25 Jan: LA Times. Adolfo Suaya is an Argentinean impresario who is changing the landscape of the Los Angeles restaurant scene since 1986. He is planning on opening Goa, an Indian/Middle Eastern/Moroccan fantasy he plans to create on Cahuenga Boulevard. Click here.

Mon. 30/1: UKTV History: 7.30pm (30mins) Sex Race and Empire:
Ruling Passions: The sexual history of British imperial rule.

Tues.31/1: UKTV History: 7.30pm (30mins) Sex Race and Empire:
How leaders reacted to the rapid spread of prostitution and disease.

Wed. 1/2: UKTV History: 7.30pm (30mins) Sex Race and Empire:
Were British women safe across the Empire?

Thurs. 2/2: UKTV History: 7.30pm (30mins) Sex Race and Empire:
How some officials failed to show sexual restraint.

Fri. 3/2: UKTV History: 7.30pm (30mins) Sex Race and Empire:
Clashes between Christian morality and native ritual.

Mon. 30/1: BBC Radio 4: 11.00am (30mins) Asian Single Parents
In a culture that holds marriage and family in high esteem, the minority who find themselves as single parents face a hard struggle. By following the story of two single Asian mothers, Indian poet, broadcaster and single parent, Rohsan Doug unlocks the cultural views surrounding this major taboo.

Sat. 25 Feb. 4 pm to 10:30 pm at Archbishop Lanfranc School, Croydon. Traditional Red & Black evening to celebrate Goan carnival, partly in aid of PEACE HAVEN. Enliven yourself with live bands - Level 4 and Chicco. Dress - Red & Black combination. Tickets (inc. Buffet & snacks) adults £15.00, children 4-12 years £5.00. contact- 0208 932 9375, 0208 640 6589, 0208 681 8716 or email: normancortez@hotmail.com, chicokey72@hotmail.com or cornmonty@tiscali.co.uk