These days it can only rain gold in 'Amchem Goa'. Anything touched by the CM Mr. Parrikar will be declared gold. With his success in the minority experiment he is already being portrayed in some circles as a competitor to Narendra Modi for the central spot. After all, this seems to stem from a cleverly marketed belief that the tribe of IIT-ians are the only hope for this country's politics. This is all about Parivar and Parivartan. This belief sticks on because Goa is starved of selfless intellectuals that could present a critical and objective analysis of current politics and economics. Goans are content with emotions ruling over reason. To criticise the Government in Goa at least for the moment is a cardinal sin and makes one a laughable stock. The 'mindful reasoning' of Goans seems to be entangled in tackling 'crony capitalism' and prefers to lose sight of 'Elite Capture'. The minds in Goa seem to be intoxicated with systematically administered doses of opium, clean and able governance. As the saying goes, "in the world of the blind, the one eyed man is a king." That is what sums up the present state of politics in Goa and the just released budget 2012-13.
Goa's problems of environmental and cultural degradation that was so passionately debated prior to the just concluded elections do not find any place in what is hailed as a Goan people's budget. This is a budget of doles and concessions that only pampers the parasitic mindset of a segment of Goans. Goa is presently at number one when it comes to national per capita income and third as far as the national per capita bank deposits. But yet freebies and subsidies adorn the budget without any rational explanation. The monthly allowance of Rs. 1000 to wives in households having an annual income of less than Rs. 3 lakhs is nothing but equivalent of politicians bribing the voter during elections. Now with the tough implementation of the Code of Conduct during elections, bribing will get done legitimately and at public cost. The beneficiaries entitled to this dole have to be seen in light of the income tax ceiling being presently pegged at Rs.2 lakhs per annum. How will the income of those in the unorganised sector be determined by government agencies? Even the migrant labour in Goa can afford to relax in the evenings with a pint of beer costing around Rs. 40, at times even 2, while their wives will stand in queue to avail free rations and subsidised vegetables. In several villages, a significant section of the youth in the age group of 20-30 are hooked on alcohol and the number of young widows is mounting. But while increasing taxes on liqour the government slashes entry fee to casinos by 75%. In its bid to raise money and appease vote banks at public cost, the government does not mind promoting vices and probably setting up a world class 'Sin City'. After all there is always more money in a criminal economy. Is this in tune with Bharatiya Sankruti?
This tiny State of Goa is reeling under the burden of the politician's greed to construct world class infrastructure and replicate a Singapore or a Bangkok. Goa is said to have the fourth highest road density in the country among states with a road network stretching 2,854.94 km per 1,000 sq km of area. Yet budget after budget talks of road infrastructure. On one hand tears are being shed about the pathetic state of Goa's water bodies like the ponds, lakes, rivers and springs but next moment the budget speaks about flyovers, 6-laning, by-passes, bridges, IT Parks, convention centres and the rest. The government boasts about giving incentives to farmers and is concerned about crop loss resulting from natural disasters. But what about the on-going man made paths to disasters like floods, air pollution and radiation caused from infrastructure development that decreases agricultural productivity and increases losses? The government talks about boosting animal husbandry, increasing milk generation while the local economy of village after village is being flattened by high rise buildings with swimming pools and recreation parks attracting urban migrants who cannot stand the stench of cow dung and the clucking of chickens. The goan villages are infested with human beings who cannot bear the scent of their own sweat. The grazing lands for cattle are being grabbed for industrial estates and the ground water contaminated with sewerage and industrial effluents. Excessive mining has resulted in depletion of the water table in water catchment areas and the very same Government is talking about boosting agriculture through subsidies. At the end of the day it is well established that pouring concrete and mortar ias about huge kick backs that fill party coffers, if not the individual's.
The education system in the state is gasping for a breath of fresh air. The atmosphere in educational institutions has been politicised and communalised beyond sustainability. Cronism gets prefered over aptitude. But the government is happy distributing free laptops and WiFi connectivity. The Goa University is a monument of shame for Goans but the government is dreaming of investing in yet another sanskrit university probably not satisfied with the colonisation of the existing university by migrant professors. From where has this love for sanskrit surfaced all of a sudden? The Government can find money to subsidise petrol and give dole to housewives but is hassling diocesan schools for providing grants to English medium primary educations. It dreams about making Goa a world class destination and attracting international investments but claims that education in the English language is anti-national. The cruel joke is that schools do not have clean toilets and clean drinking water. By decorating the budget speech with quotes from world leaders and gurus what are we trying to project? For those with a mind to reason it just takes one glance to understand that this is all conventional jargon put together by babus and opportunists. An old proverb reminds us that t 'the proof of the pudding is in the eating'.
The budget is devoid of any participatory role for the citizens in the policy decision making. On one hand the government talks about giving powers and finances to local bodies but declares the scrapping of house tax in Panchayats. It blabbers about reworking at the Regional Plan 2021 but goes ahead in declaring development projects without consulting the people. There is hardly any talk of reforms in the laws for bringing transparency and accountability in the grass root bodies but the constant refrain about zero tolerance to corruption is not missed in this budget. When the forthcoming elections to the Panchayats has already been rigged by altering the boundaries of wards without consulting the Gram Sabhas of the Village, where is the seriousness to stem the cancer of corruption? When will transparency in governance be a reality? We should not forget that it was the then Parrikar government (not BJP government) that dealt a financial blow to the Village Panchayats by removing the industrial estates from their jurisdiction. Fiscal weakening of the grass root bodies and industrial colonisation ensures the vulnerability of people to being arm twisted by MLAs and Ministers. Call it Fascism or Capitalism, this is how it all works.
The concern shown for the women and girl child in this budget is cosmetic. Goa is inviting a problem of girls being pressurised into marriage no sooner they complete 18 years of age just to avail of Rs. 1 lakh under Laadli Lakshimi scheme. This scheme will inherit a huge tribe of deserted wives no sooner the money has been exhausted. This scheme is an insult to womanhood. State budgets are not only about cities and about attracting cheers from the elite citizenry. This budget has not bothered to understand the hidden realities in the villages of Goa. The libraries and research centres are over flowing with stories about Goa shinning and the glories of Corporate Social Responsibility. Do the health statistics provide genuine and up-date data about patients suffering from chronic anaemia and T.B. in Goa. To provide scietific data would burst the bubble of progress and prosperity. Will the Goa budget invest in ascertaining the quality of health of its rural citizens in particular?
The chain of contradictions in what is proclaimed as a common man's budget can go on and on. How can a progressive economy be expected to stand on a crooked foundation? The budget of Goa is as disconnected as the minds and hearts of Goans. It may provide opium to an already intoxicated Goan society, but the feel good effects will definitely not be long lasting. Sweet talk and manipulations of fiscal figures cannot contirbute to long term growth. Ultimately there is a poor or a distorted vision that is passed on from one government to another. The CM is trying to cover up his casino mess by playing on figures. He forgets that the letter in the budget is not in consonance with the so proclaimed spirit of this budget. He may try to take cover that the speech document is not the fine print of what is contained in the budget. Probably, going into the fine print will only increase the agony of the Goan whose aspirations were boosted by tall promises of an IIT-ian just a few days ago.
We understand the political compulsions of a CM and would have appreciated if he was humble enough to admit the constraints instead of claiming to have a magic wand to fix Goa's problems. It is this boasting by him and his cronies about a 'magic budget' that has attracted undue curiosity of many critics not only in Goa but across the country. The experience has been disappointing on the whole. The celebrations have now turned to silence and defensiveness. In the hope of impressing everyone and building its brand image at public expense, the government has landed up disappointing those who are not in the least interested about sops but are solely concerned about reversing the degradation of Goa. Was it really a BJP manifesto prepared by the Late Mathany Saldanha as is being rumoured? Does this budget reflect even one fouth of the vision of Late Mathany Saldanha that is put in circulation these days to gain sympathy from the electorate?
No matter what the corporate controlled media in Goa may profess, there is an Arundhati Roy's latest 'Ghost Story' in the Goa budget. Goa's budget lacks that committment towards a self-sustainable and self-reliant State.
Soter D'souza
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