I think it’s a great opportunity for citizens of Goa – they get a stable Government; a great opportunity for poll-winners, about half in numbers, first timers, professionals fresh from the ‘house-next-door’. Although it’s the Chief Minister’s prerogative, I was honestly expecting a few bright baggage-less freshers and professionals, as Ministers to bring in non-conventional ideas. If it wasn’t to be, the next step is “Re-Learning”! The second important point to note at-start is that, we may now expect a REAL STRONG (40%), Opposition, built mostly of fire-brand youngsters raring to go at it! Good to see days of fiercely-constructive debates back, in the Assembly.
My take: I thought for this starter, I shall confine myself to seven issues and promises, read with the yesterday’s State-Budget and try and study their relevance and impacts. I shall not much dwell on unfulfilled promises from the last two State Elections, like Master Plan for Heritage Sites, garbage Issues to be solved in 18 months; or say Rs 25,000 crore of investments and 50,000 jobs in five years, or a Rehabilitation Plan for slum dwellers, a new Tourism Policy or say 24×7 power and water etc.
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The Seven Issues: I felt the first and foremost issue should be that of providing credible and transparent governance, which the voting pattern (of a whopping 67% in affirmative), strongly corroborates. For example; instead of “recruitments” (seen as rewards for votes), 10,000 jobs being “advertised” just before poll season, I would rather suggest an Industrial Engineering exercise first, for a scientific, zero-based Resource-Planning, post all-round digitalisations in Government service deliveries. I’m glad a VRS Scheme has been proposed in the Budget yesterday. Nagging legacies like the Mhadei Waters Issue, environmental impacts of the Linear Projects and the Off-Shore Casinos-Relocation cry for convincing closures.
Second: Restoration of Financial Health. Our “earnings” comprising only of our own Tax, Non-Tax and our Share in Central Tax Revenues are about Rs 11,000 crore a year, of which we spend Rs 6,000 crore only on salaries, establishments and debt servicing. With a debt burden of around Rs 23,000 crore, we are nearly 30% Debt: GSDP Ratio (at upswing), against an FRBM norm for States at 20%. So, the second priority has to be, to visibly cut all non-value additive expenditure. In this light, the three-free-cylinders-a-year will aggravate the State Economy, I would rather spend that same money (around Rs 120 crore a year) on a new Smart-City Program for say, Vasco! The promise for not increasing taxes on petroleum-products for three years is fair, given that crude prices on upswing, taxes on that score shall stay buoyant in any case. The next task in the Manifesto reads “Rs 3 crore to Rs 5 crore for each Panchayat/ Municipality for Development, (approximately Rs 700 crore a year), I only hope unproductive staff-costs and wasteful building-construction costs, are ruthlessly cut! I don’t think the doles for EPF, add to real values, its more Ease of Business which start-ups look for.
Third: Economic Activity: Sustainable Mining (promised for the umpteenth time will resume in 6 months), undoubtedly an important priority, yes, but ultimately Goa has to look beyond low-hanging fruits which have potentials to create adverse footfalls on climate-change. We already have sinister threats of submergence of low-level-stretches of our coast-line.
Recovery of mining dues will surely, be a priority but was disappointed seeing just Rs 650 crore budgeted revenue from mining! Development of a “New-Age Tourism” completely different from the current Calangute-Vagator-is-Goa-Tourism stance! The elaborate Master-Plan developed by International Pundits (at considerable costs), and allocation of just Rs 247 crore is another damper! and I think ownership and time table for its implementation is essential. I think we are found perennially wanting, in looking at newer ideas, like Coastal Transport, Non-Conventional Energy, Agri-Industries, River Transport and Logistics as Value Generating propositions. The Manifesto promises Interest-Free Home-Stay Units’ development assistance of 5 lakhs, it’s an excellent step!
Fourth: IT and Start-Ups: The best program here would be a hands-off program – Ease of Business and Ease of Living and we can’t have that with a thousand concessions and doles with files moving on endless tables! Do away with “21 Compliances” (a former Chief Minister would often grin with sarcasm), keep only say, 3, one for Fiscal, one for HR and the last one for compliance with Public Policies – that’s it!
Fifth: Education and Public Health: Concrete ownership with milestones of the NEP’ 21 has to be the next priority. Public Health and Regulation of Quality and Costs charged by the Private Sector in these fields, I think will be a big priority for improvements. I’m glad there appears to be a good deal of stress on both Education and Public Health in the Budget Allocations as a starter. It’s implementation which is the key!
Six: Though we are “Front Runners” already, in Sustainable Development Goals, we still need to do much more in areas like Garbage Management. Rather than speak of “Carbon Neutrality with 100 charging stations”, let’s have a time-bound plan, for ownership of Garbage Management and Recycling.
The Seventh Promise is the sum-up: “We will, through our constant efforts, propel Goa to a growth trajectory that will enable the State to become a $50 billion economy in the next 10 years”, this means a 6-fold growth in economy in ten years, a CAGR of 14.36% pa as against the budget of 7%! An excellent task – but the Vision? The Mission, Milestones and Progress Reportings?
And One Last Point: I would expect complete rehash of portfolios in the cabinet, holding the same portfolio too long (monotonous, eh?), some cases even in different regimes, does not smell good governance practices and yes, put in freshers more of them!
(Binayak Datta is a
Finance professional)
