Goa: Into the Mainstream

With the liberation of Goa, Daman and Diu from the Portuguese, the people of these territories entered once again into the mainstream of Indian society. Goa now has the dual task of breaking from the bleak past and of participating in the process of nation-building and economic development. Professor R.N. Saksena attempts in this book some aspects of the problem of emotional and national integration of the Goans. The study was sponsored by RPC, Planning Commission. It is based on the analysis of considerable secondary data and of the responses obtained from a sample of 1200 persons drawn from Old Goa and New Conquests. Professor Saksena examines the questions related to language, economic reforms, political participation, and merger. In doing so he makes use of history, aggregate data, and peoples responses to a battery of attitude questions. It emerges from his analysis that while Konkani was recommended as the state language in preference to Portuguese, a majority favoured Hindi as the national language. As medium of instruction, both Marathi and Konkani have received greater support than English. A favourable response to governmental programmes of economic reform, high rate of political participation, and a majority support for Hindi as national language are indicative of Goa’s commitment to secular and democratic ideals of Indian polity. While accepting the new status within the Indian Union, Goans are keen to retain their identity as a separate state and forge ahead on the path of development. The book affirms that Goans have entered into the mainstream.