Goa has been and is a world renowned tourist place for decades. As a tourist destination Goa has been in the lime light for many wrong reasons, as the incubator of the hippy culture in India, and now for easy availability of drugs and organized prostitution. Many of us had to look down when people in other states talk of Goans, as people with loose moral values, who are compulsive alcoholics etc. The governments over a period had done nothing to change this image even the attempts like IFFI seems to be not promoting the true Goan culture and values, the fact that Goan films and Goan film-makers are sidelined rather, explains the priority and concern of the organizers.
Mining and tourism have been the backbone of Goa’s economy, apparently the greed of many miners have resulted in environmental degradation, exploitation and rampant corruption resulting in the breakdown of the mining industry. No one asks why miners and the successive governments knowing very well that mining, in addition to environmentally harmful is a depleting source and did not take steps to set up alternative industries, infrastructural development for promoting non polluting industries, so that one day when the mining resources ends (& it is bound to end) the transition in economic activity is smooth and less painful. All those, pain and suffering of “mining ban affected people” would have been much less bearable.
A similar Goa’s economy’s painful backbone breaking process is also likely to happen in the tourism industry, that with the drug mafia, easy availability of party drugs, taking over by foreign tourist (settlers) of some of the pristine beaches, plenty of cheap (mean) and non spending tourists invading Goa through the charter tourist operators, bad roads, poor infrastructure, uncontrolled entry of foreign and Indian tourists, organized prostitution rackets, unruly behavior of local tourists, far too many vehicle on the roads, uncontrolled degradation of environment, one will not be surprised that the tourist industry would shut down under its own weight.
The only non polluting industry one could think of is, education, unfortunately the only University of Goa, the Goa University, has been a total disappointment and its endeavors are far from providing quality education and promoting higher education among Goans. Education in Goa has to now undergo a paradigm shift and such shift should result in establishment of world class educational institutions, with student intake from across the National and continents. Goa should become a world destination for education, by this Goan youths will also get world class education and worldwide opportunities.
The logical answer in the light of Goa University’s apparent disabilities would be to have more Universities in Goa. Will not Government sponsored Universities suffer from the same fate as Goa University? However noble the intention of the government may be, the political pulls and pressures to which every ruling class is subject to, would make it yet another Goa University.
The modern trends in education elsewhere in India and all over the world, would be an eye opener in this context, where private Universities in specialized areas and general areas are being set up by philanthropic minded citizens and private business men and corporate houses, with excellent infrastructure best of faculty and facilities. The fees of course are on the higher range but there could be concessions, free ships and scholarships for residents of Goa. One could follow the Haryana model where there is an omnibus legislation, called the Haryana Private Universities Act and as per this Act any organization i.e. a trust or registered society fulfilling the requirements of land and fund resources etc could easily become a private University. States like UP, Bihar, and Rajasthan are also experimenting with private Universities, though the fees may be at a higher level, with easy availability of educational loans with long term, delayed and less severe repayment terms most of those who enroll for University education, all over the world do opt for educational loans now a days. The Haryana Private Universities Act ensures that certain percentage of students must be from the State and their fees are much less than other students. Unless there is proactive and futuristic planning for higher education future of higher education in Goa is bleak.
Goa now needs innovative thinking and public debate on the quality of higher education and there is an urgent need to create situations and legal instruments so that best institutions in the world would set up centers in Goa which would benefit Goan youths.
The question often raised is where is the land and facility. Of course one should not think of establishing Institutions in the present city or urban areas, the remoter the area the better it is, then the development will begin from the remote area and the rural poor would be the first beneficiaries. It is very much likely that in the near future many of the starred hotels will have more and more vacant rooms and less and less customers, instead of adopting all these package schemes, at lower rates just to fill their rooms and meet their expenses, and get in to Goa unruly tourists, who cause more nuisances and discomfort, some of these facilities could be leased out to some good foreign Universities to set up their centers or universities or the hotel owners themselves could convert these facilities into educational centers so that they will get long term profits.
The outcomes will greatly benefit the Goan population, one thing, they will get the best quality education they could never dream of, thus providing them better opportunities for employment within the state and elsewhere secondly the tourists who roam Goa’s streets will not be drunken domestic tourists or scantily clad foreign drug addicts and peddlers but youth and wise men who come to Goa’s shores to seek knowledge and wisdom.
(The writer is Principal Director of Vivekananda Institute of professional studies Delhi & President of Center for Advocacy Research & Training, Goa).
