Want to see Goa Prosperous? Have SEZs, SHZs, STZs NT Panorama - Sunday January 27, 2008 By M Pinheiro [Principal of V M Salgaonkar Law College, Panjim]
For development or against development, for preservation or against preservation seems to be the battle cry resounding throughout the length and breadth of Goa. There also seems to be a competitive cry of 'I Love Goa more than they', the fact remaining that no one loves Goa more than themselves and definitely not more than their immediate need or greed. Everyone and every state has to be prepared for progress and growth. Nothing is static, everything has to move. If there is no movement towards progress the movement has to be towards degeneration and that seems to be Goa's crisis now. The pertinent question being, what kind of progress and what kind of growth? Is progress only limited to some people getting the opportunity to amass huge wealth, or is it limited to big buildings and industries or is progress merely industrialization. Growth and prosperity have a much wider scope and meaning than setting up of few industries and so on. Any progress would necessarily be counter productive if it is undesirable in the larger context of the state. Hence Goa's progress necessarily has to be contextualized geographically, culturally and socio-economically to the needs of the state. Thinking that Goa will progress if if it has industries or IT parks and so on, it is just being myopic and certainly tends to have more adverse repercussions than beneficial outcomes. It is an accepted fact that Goans outside Goa ( in other states in India and abroad) have excelled in almost all fields of human endeavour be it business, education, science or technology. It is a fact no one would dispute. Dd to this the fact that Goans as a community are well accepted and well received anywhere on this earth and it speaks about their personal and cultural capabilities. Goans are thus intellectually inferior to none. If so, for the progress of Goa and Goans the first natural choice should be education. Goa and the Goan youth deserve the world's best education and Goa becoming the world's Special Education Zone (SEZ) should be the choice option. The state government and the central government could invite the world's best educational centers and universities to set up their centers/branches in Goa. For world-class infrastructure some of these five star hotels ( there are too many of them in Goa) could be converted into universities and the facilities therein could be used for lecture halls, research and conference centers, guest accommodation, faculty accommodation and international student accommodation. The best academic talents would visit Goa to teach the best of international students. Yes, the only condition for such renowned centers of education to set up their establishment in Goa should be that 10 per cent of the seats should be open to Goan students. If there are ten such best centers of education in Goa, with each of them catering to 1000 students ( a modest estimate) then a 100 Goan students will get the best of world-class education every year. In five years it will be 500 students and in 10 years it will be 1000. Inviting the best educational institutions in India to set-up their centers in Goa apart. On a modest estimate 10 per cent of the total Goan students would get the best of education. Needless to say in ten years they will man these institutions. The visitor who come to Goa will not be drug peddlers, black marketers, and land grabbers but intellectuals, academicians and youth who are seeking knowledge. Tourism of a new kind. Providing this population, which will always be transitory and temporary, with necessary facilities like accommodation and their day to day needs during their sojourn in Goa will provide employment to the local community, which will be an added benefit to the youth getting world class education. When such world -class education is available in the vicinity it will be but natural that the existing educational institutions improve and enhance their quality for they would become redundant otherwise. So a healthy competition would certainly improve the quality of education in Goa and ultimately the state. The youth especially will greatly benefit from the competitive high quality education. There will be an overall movement towards quality education in all areas and at all stages because comparisons will draw stark reality and when reality strikes one cannot deny with wordily camouflage the need for quality and excellence. Goa should therefore invite as many universities and as many educational centers as possible ( the more the better) to set up their organization in Goa. The present thinking in the higher academic circles is to treat the possibility of a central university as a threat to the present establishment. Goans should realize that the greatest threat to its future is the non-availability of quality education and lack of competition. Goa being in the worm temperate region, blessed with scenic beauty, plenty of sea breeze and sufficient forest cover providing for a pollution free environment should take healthcare as a tourism alternative. Goa could invite the best hospitals and the best specialty and super specialty hospitals to set up their healing centers in Goa. Not only will Goans get the best possible medical treatment within the state but health care would also become a major tourist attraction. Goa of course needs to set up hospitals in every village. The religious organizations especially the Catholic Church should come forward and provide such facilities in every village. Goa should thus become a Special Healthcare Zone (SHZ). Goa having being known world over as an ultimate or must see tourist destination needs to continue to cater to tourist, plain and simple. Certainly not to drug addicts, sex tourists or other eccentrics but to good healthy, spending tourists. Such tourists wouldn't come to Goa to enjoy five-star hospitality, but would come to enjoy the scenic beauty and imbibe the culture and bathe in the worm beaches of Goa for their own health and well-being. Tourism should be a village-based, household industry in Goa. In every village the individual householders should be encouraged to build 2/3 rooms with all the necessary facilities to accommodate visiting tourists. Every tourist who comes to Goa should be allotted to a village and the village panchayat should register their names and other details and then allot the tourist to a particular household depending upon preferences, needs, likes, dislikes, etc. Such households could provide minimum refreshment facility but the village could have a central kitchen and dining facilities where the tourists could obtain food items or the household could arrange to procure food. Such tourist would become a part of the village. They would mingle with the villagers or local community. Chances of illegal and unlawful activities would be greatly reduced. Tourists would get authentic Goan food, instead of Chinese, Thai, North Indian, Junk food, etc. Every village and villager would become prosperous and the local facilities would also improve, as everyone would feel the need for such development. The whole of Goa should become Special Tourist Zones (STZ). Goa and Goans shouldn't be happy with Goa being titled as a 365-day holiday destination or the best drug trading center or center for sex tourism. Instead Goa should become God's own abode. Comments Wittingly or unwittingly, you have read the Goa Su-Raj Party's Road Map for Goa out loud, professor Pinheiro. Since its publication in 2005, we at Goasuraj have been feeling a little discouraged, having put a lot of thought, time, resources and energy in the compilation of the document to see that Goans had no imagination but are running in circles chasing their own tails (read politicians, thinkers and planners). We have not called this document the Party's manifesto as much as we have called it a document of a life time. With your outburst above, and rightly so, we are now able to breathe easy in the understanding that someone, somewhere has the same imagination and vision for Goa. We, in our own way, have talked about in more details what you have briefly touched upon. Nevertheless, we thank you ever so much for taking time to write-out your thoughts. When Goa Su-Raj is ready to man Goa's helm to steer it in the direction that you have hinted, we shall be looking for you and Goans like you to give us your expert hands for safe-landing. goasuraj PS: The Road Map for Goa is available for download at www.goasu-raj.org ---------------------------------------------------------- GOA needs a 'REVOLUTION' if it is to see better days. Goasuraj is that revolution. Support it. email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Website: www.goasu-raj.org
