The Chief Minister of Goa keeps making a telling comment in the Assembly. According to him, it appears most Goans if at all they upgrade from a two-wheeler to a luxury car, than that particular Goan has either sold his ancestral house or property in order to make the purchase. Keen observer that he is, there is a possibility that the statement might be true to an extent. But it also means two things; the Chief Minister has absolutely no confidence in the abilities of Goans eking out a lucrative career in Goa, so as to afford a luxury car on their own merit. Secondly because Goa over the years has systematically obstructed personal growth opportunities; it becomes highly improbable to some, that its citizens can actually purchase a luxury car by earning in Goa through proper means. Hence the negative assumption that a car purchased by a Goan is almost always financed by selling inherited assets if not through corrupt means.
If the above notion is an uncomfortable reality of Goa, than how is it that there are so many luxury cars on Goan roads, purchased and driven by Goans? A survey by luxury car dealers of Goa could provide more scientific answers, but why should car dealers share that kind of information which is mostly gathered and analyzed internally for their own marketing exercise. Till then everybody and anybody can run their imagination wild, the bottom line being, the society doubts big ticket purchases of its own population. It means it is unable to accept the fact that there is a possibility somebody smart can defy odds, create wealth even if it means working against the tide, in a controlled environment that is in place, which allows Goans to thrive alright, but only to a limited extent. Anybody pushing the limit will be looked upon with suspicion and their source of income subject to gossip. One of the reason such speculation exist is because over the years the Goan system has created several checks and balances hoping to check corruption but have only managed to create road blocks that check the financial growth of its population. Therefore Goans buying a simple luxury car even if it is through fair means always creates a buzz within their social circle on the possible sources of income.
This is the precisely the problem a state or a country and their citizens face when corruption becomes rampant. Even genuine wealth however small or big it might be, appear tainted. While there are many success stories present in Goa, the environment has somehow not allowed most of them to be suitably monetized. One example immediately that comes to mind is Goans in the creative field of arts and theater. Somehow an atmosphere has been created where they can flourish but only to a certain level, anybody above that will be systematically weighed down and brought to the lower level. Compare the wealth of Bombay film actors and our Goan Konkani stage actors, fine films are not comparable with stage, the Goan market is also smaller than Bollywood, even then their prosperity is not in proportion. Amitabh Bachchan owning a Rolls Royce will hardly matter to its busy society as it will be regarded as his personal choice. On the other hand one stage actor in Goa buys a small luxury sedan and it will become a hot topic of discussion at least among his patrons, as if providing subsidized entertainment is their divine duty and making it a commercial success a misdemeanor.
Our society’s abhorrence to wealth creation is understandable, over the years Goa has encouraged wrong examples of wealth creators figuring on the top of the list. A small coterie of people being consistently granted the rights to dig in to the State’s wealth, by pulling the rug under the feet of the entire population, have given the notion to most Goans that only deceitful people become wealthy by circumventing the rules through their friends who make policy by pulling wool over their eyes. There are honest and hardworking Goans who have created wealth on their own merit, but they are never going to figure as the top wealth creators worth emulating for the Generation Next. Those who are at the top of the wealth creation chain are not worth emulating, and those who are talented and creative have never realized their worth, always allowing themselves to get manipulated.
Not very far from Goa, in the city of Bangalore, Narayan Murthy and his Infosys team, were one of the smart and honest wealth creators of the not so Generation Past that left an indelible impression on the Generation Next. No wonder the city continuously churns out honest wealth creators, the new kids on the block being the Bansals, founders of the successful ecommerce venture Flipkart, who after the recent funding have become as rich as some of Infosys co-founders. Bansals with just 4 lakh capital in 2007 would not take that course if they did not believe they could do it. That type of belief comes from pursuing positive stories such as Infosys that inspires confidence for the generations to follow.
However, just because the environment is against the Goan Generation Next does not mean you throw in the towel. Opportunities are plenty if one has the foresight and willingness to overcome our drawbacks faster than the competition. For example a Goan business plan’s excessive reliance on the word ‘subsidy’ is the first chink in the armor. Once you depend on government subsidy to manage your bottom line it means you have ventured into a business which is not self sustaining. It also burdens the government and society at large because subsidized uncompetitive businesses become parasites, burdening the exchequer.
Success should come if Generation Next Goans ensure they utilize their time judiciously because Goa has a reputation of involving the Generation Next into unproductive events by choice or force, where their personal growth is almost zero. Helping the society is good but strictly with an upward limit on the time devoted. It should not be the case where you help the society and in the bargain forget to help yourself, and in turn burden the society. Once these small things are taken care, chances of success increase vastly. Then the Chief Minister will really not bother how you purchase that luxury car because at the moment the feeling is that most Goans’ source of income has some element of government assistance in it and maybe rightly so.
(Plastino D’Costa is a business consultant)
