At least the industries minister has been honest, and he is also hopeful. Honest to say that creating 50,000 jobs in Goa was not possible before the year 2017, hopeful that his party, the BJP, will win the State Assembly elections due in that year and return to govern Goa, when they will be in able to deliver on the promises made in the current term.
The industries minister also sounded doubtful of being able to achieve the target of Rs 5,000 crore investment in Goa by the year 2018. He mentioned that nearly 36 lakh square metres of land remains locked with the Special Economic Zone promoters but that the government is still making available land to industries.
Many may call it a ‘U-turn’, which it is, but industries minister Mahdev Naik also needs to be commended for his honesty. It is because of him that the State now knows that the target of 50,000 jobs in the next five years is not going to be met. Creating 50,000 jobs would always be a difficult task, but didn’t Naik, who was industries minister in the Manohar Parrikar cabinet know this at that time? He said that the promise made by Parrikar of 50,000 jobs by 2017 is not possible in reality. Did he have to wait until Parrikar had gone to Delhi to announce that this promise made by the former chief minister was not achievable? Perhaps he knew this earlier, but he wasn’t prepared to challenge the former chief minister or even question him on his promises.
That he is now bold enough to make this statement confirms that the shadow of Parrikar that loomed large over the cabinet during his stint as chief minister has now disappeared and the ministers are coming out of their shell. But, this should not mean that the promises that Parrikar made are broken or the deadlines for delivery extended. This will reflect on the government’s performance, leading to many feeling let down.
In this case, there were a large number of youth waiting, with their CVs in hand for the new job offers based on the announcements. They will now have to look at other options and career prospects, or they can wait till 2017 and hope that the BJP will return to power and be able to give the State what it had promised but was unable to deliver in its previous term.
But if the government cannot fulfill its target of 50,000 jobs and Rs 5000 crore investment, will the people still be willing to give the party another term? That is something for the minister and the government to mull over.
A government is elected based on its promises. There is a manifesto that is taken to the people which is the roadmap of the party. A government is re-elected based on its performance. Here is a government that is midway through its term and is already planning to push forward its promises to its next term. That is not merely a ‘U-turn’ but a clear sign of failure. The concept of anti-incumbency that hits every government is nothing but a reflection of its performance and the answer given by the people. The BJP has to fear anti-incumbency, especially after seeing how the Goan electorate wiped out the Congress in Goa in 2012 for its failure to perform.
The State needs to inject a lot more dynamism in its working, especially where industry and employment are concerned. With mining yet to resume operations and tourism seeing a dip in arrivals, there can be no complacency on the part of the government in shoring up industry and promoting the State as a viable investment destination.
Jobs are not created by increasing vacancies in government departments. What the government has to concentrate its energies on is attracting investment in the State. This will in turn provide gainful employment to the thousands of youth who will be earning their degrees in their respective fields in the coming years. There is no reason to wait till 2017 to begin the process of attracting investment. The process must start now so that by 2017, Goa sees the results of the efforts put in 2015.
