“The long pending redevelopment of the Panjim bus stand is another example of drift. The existing facility is cramped, chaotic and unbefitting of a capital city. Announcements have been made before. Plans have been floated. Yet the ground reality remains unchanged. A modern, efficient transport hub would ease congestion and improve commuter experience. The next council must push beyond rhetoric and demand timelines.
Then there are the unfinished Smart City works. Roads dug up and relaid. Pavements half completed. Utility lines exposed. The promise of a smarter Panaji has often translated into prolonged inconvenience. Residents have endured dust, diversions and delays. If Smart City interventions are to transform urban life, they must be coordinated, transparent and accountable. Councillors cannot shrug and say it is someone else’s project. They represent the people who are living through the disruption.”
So finally, the elections to the Corporation of the City of Panaji have been announced. On March 11, voters in the capital will choose 30 councillors who will be entrusted with shaping the city’s future for the next five years. The formalities are in place. The wards have been delimited, electoral rolls updated, the Model Code enforced. What now remains is the harder part. Will this election be about Panaji’s real problems, or will it once again descend into personality contests and neighbourhood rivalries?
Panaji is not a sprawling metropolis. It is compact, walkable, historically layered and symbolically important. What happens here sends a message to the rest of Goa. Yet, over the last decade, the city has struggled to balance its dual identity as a capital and a tourism magnet. The next council cannot afford to ignore that tension.
Offshore casinos will inevitably dominate the debate. The vessels anchored on the Mandovi are more than a moral question. They are a civic issue. Traffic snarls during peak tourist season are directly linked to casino visitors. So are parking chaos, pedestrian safety concerns and late night congestion. Successive governments have promised relocation. Successive councils have largely watched from the sidelines. Candidates this time must clearly spell out what role they believe the Corporation should play. Silence will only confirm complicity.
Traffic congestion more broadly has become a daily frustration. From the bottlenecks near the Mandovi bridges to the gridlock along 18th June Road and the Campal stretch, commuting through Panaji is no longer the easy affair it once was. The introduction of pay parking zones was meant to regulate vehicle flow. Instead, it has triggered resentment among residents who feel they are paying for poor planning. The policy needs review, transparency and better communication. Is it about revenue or regulation? Citizens deserve clarity.
The long pending redevelopment of the Panjim bus stand is another example of drift. The existing facility is cramped, chaotic and unbefitting of a capital city. Announcements have been made before. Plans have been floated. Yet the ground reality remains unchanged. A modern, efficient transport hub would ease congestion and improve commuter experience. The next council must push beyond rhetoric and demand timelines.
Then there are the unfinished Smart City works. Roads dug up and relaid. Pavements half completed. Utility lines exposed. The promise of a smarter Panaji has often translated into prolonged inconvenience. Residents have endured dust, diversions and delays. If Smart City interventions are to transform urban life, they must be coordinated, transparent and accountable. Councillors cannot shrug and say it is someone else’s project. They represent the people who are living through the disruption.
In neighbourhoods like Fontainhas, the pressure of tourism has reached a tipping point. What was once a quiet Latin quarter has become a backdrop for photo shoots, loud gatherings and unregulated commercial activity. Residents complain of privacy invasion, noise and littering. Tourism is vital to Goa’s economy. But unmanaged tourism erodes the very heritage it seeks to showcase. The Corporation must evolve clear guidelines that protect residential character while allowing responsible tourism.
The issue of beggars in commercial areas is also frequently raised, especially along church squares and market roads. It is easy to reduce this to an aesthetic concern. It is harder to confront the social realities behind it. A humane, coordinated response involving social welfare authorities is needed, not periodic eviction drives that merely shift the problem from one ward to another.
Importantly, these elections are being held on non party lines. In theory, that should encourage a focus on local governance rather than ideological battles. In practice, political affiliations often operate just below the surface. Voters must look beyond symbols and surnames. They should ask candidates specific questions. What is your stand on casino relocation? How will you address parking policy? What is your plan for ward level waste management? How will you ensure Smart City works are completed on time?
Panaji deserves councillors who see themselves not as power brokers but as custodians of a fragile urban ecosystem. The next five years will determine whether the capital regains coherence or slides further into ad hoc decision making. March 11 is not just about filling 30 seats. It is about choosing whether Panaji will be planned or improvised, preserved or exploited.
The announcement of the elections is merely the beginning. The real test lies in whether candidates and voters alike are prepared to confront uncomfortable questions about the city they call home.
