Goa Forward Party promises compulsory siesta hour if it wins in 2022 elections

Even as Goa elections are scheduled for 2022 and campaigning is yet to begin, the first election promise has already been made, and it is about enforcing a compulsory nap, according to an Indian Express report.

Goa Forward Party (GFP) leader Vijai Sardesai said at a press conference that if he becomes the chief minister, he would enforce a “compulsory siesta hour” between 2 pm and 4 pm.

Siesta is a Spanish word, which means a short nap in the afternoon after a midday meal.

Calling on the relaxed and laidback image of the state of Goa in the country, Sardesai is quoted in an Indian Express report as saying that the compulsory siesta is a significant part of Goa and its ‘sussegad’.

“Sussegad is derived from the Portuguese word 'sossegado', which means a relaxed, carefree, chilled-out attitude that is associated with Goa. The word means peace and mind you, an afternoon nap is an integral part of sussegad. It is clinically proven that a short nap or siesta boosts your memory, improves job performance, lifts your mood and makes you more alert,” Sardesai told IE.

This is a way for the GFP to promote the ‘Goan identity’ which it will be pushing during its campaign for the 2022 elections.

It is not uncommon for Goan shops and businesses to be shut during the afternoon to have a siesta hour. It is a general belief that lunch should be followed by this relaxing time, and people return to work only by 4 pm.

“My father, I recall, would take this siesta very seriously and so did the older generations. You see the difference in how Goan establishments remain shut between 1.30 and 4.30 pm, while their counterparts from Gujarat and Rajasthan remain open all day,” he said.

Sardesai clarified that the sussegad concept has nothing to do with inactivity or laziness. On the contrary, he said that the state is not unresponsive to social and environmental issues.

But Sardesai has warned against overloading a small state like Goa with the massive infrastructure it cannot handle.

Throughout the state, big railway and road projects are underway at present. “All this is basically to turn Goa into a corridor. This doesn’t suit our way of living,” Sardesai said, commenting on the train routes to Goa.

Sardesai is a former Bharatiya Janata Party ally, who was part of the NDA government when late Manohar Parrikar was chief minister.