Goa's Old Secretariat to be centre for art museum

The Adil Shah Palace which has traditionally housed the old secretariat has been identified by the directorate of art and culture as a centre for art and culture in Goa, by converting it into a museum for the purpose. The Adil shah palace is presently undergoing a massive renovation exercise and a committee has already been set up to organise various painting exhibitions and shows in order to launch its new avatar.

In its order the directorate of art and culture states that the government has decided to commence various art galleries on the first floor of the building. A curatorial committee cosnsiting of members, Mr Abahay Sardessai from Mumbai, Mr Apurva Kulkarni, Mr Damodar Mauzo and Mr Viraj Naik has been constituted to organise a variety of events an exhibitions in the old secretariat building with Mr Vivek Menezes presiding as a co-cordiantor of the panel.

The committee is expected to organise exhibitions of various paintings of over 50 Goan contemporary artists on December 19 this year and will also organise an exhibition of the works of Agnelo Fonseca, an eminent Goan artist of yesteryears . The committee will remain operational for a period of six months from the date of inauguration of the first exhibition or event and hold many such exhibitions which are deemed essential during its six month term.

The Curatorial committee has been given the powers to co-opt any suitable member on its panel if so desired by it. The Mumbai based member of the committee MR Abhay Sardessai has been entitled to avail of economy class fare for his travel from Mumbai to Goi and back and avail of local transport at actuals for attending the meetings , programmes and events of the committee as per requirements.

The Curatorial committee is also entrusted with the task of recommending to the government the setting up of various art galleries and proposing purchase of any paintings for the museum as well as the art galleries which shall be, if purchased in the permanent collection of the government of Goa and will be decided with the concurrence of the department of finance Goa.

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Goa Tourism launches sms service for tourists

Information on tourist and cultural hotspots – forts, beaches, heritage sites, religious sites, waterfalls and other places of interest will now be available at the tips of your fingers. In an effort to be more tourist-friendly, Goa tourism has embarked on a tech-savvy project which will make it possible for tourists to receive information on popular sightseeing spots on their cell phones. The Government of Goa along with the Infotech Corporation of Goa Ltd (ITGL) recently launched the Mobile Governance (m-governance) programme in the state. As part of the government to citizen (G2C) initiative, Goa Tourism is working with ITGL on this unique project.

In an effort to make the state more accessible to tourists, every place in the state which is of significant tourist interest will undergo a coding process. Explained Swapnil Naik, Director Tourism, Government of Goa “Locations which are of significance to tourists in Goa will be allocated with a specific unique code number.

Texting the code number in the format MGoa_(code of place) to the number 56070, will give tourists information about that particular place. Messages can be delivered in text as well as audio format.” Places of tourist importance - forts, beaches, cultural hot spots, heritage sites, religious sites, waterfalls, adventure tourism sites and other places of interest will be included in the project said Naik.

Sign boards listing the codes for each place will be placed at strategic spots across the state. The tourism department will also increase awareness through the department’s official website and through publicity material including brochures and other travel literature. Speaking about the innovative use of technology to promote tourism, Swapnil Naik said, “Goa Tourism is constantly innovating and improving in keeping up with the expectations of our guests. Getting tech-savvy was the need of the hour. We believe that this tourist-friendly project will be of immense help to the millions of travelers who visit our state year after year.”

He added, “We have been working closely with the ITGL on developing this mobile application which will aid tourists in providing information on the touristic attractions of the state within a matter of seconds, be it in the text or audio formats.”

Courtesy: indiainfoline

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