As Goa steps into the 60th year since its liberation from Portuguese yoke in December 1961, people have witnessed a sea change in its economic landscape.
Once a feudal economy, largely dealing with agricultural produce and commodities, and later iron ore and manganese mining, the State has transformed itself into a tourism hub. The services sector – travel, hospitality, events, technology – is the wave that will catapult Goa to the next level.
With big brands like Marriott, Hilton, Taj, Leela, Radisson present in Goa, sharing their international best practices, Goa’s performance is sure to be elevated to a global level.
We also have a buzzing restaurant culture, with hundreds of shacks and fine dining options, along the coastline and in towns across the State.
The manufacturing sector led by national giants like Zuari Agro Chemicals, MRF, Ciba Giegy and local companies like CMM and ACGL brought in industrial change. The pharma sector was buttressed by Goan industries like Wallace Pharmaceuticals, Geno Pharma, Indoco and Glenmark. International names like Sanofi Aventis and Wyatt Pharma also helped to bring in global benchmarks to the State.
Trade grew along with revenues. From being small pasarkars (shopkeepers), Goans now have multi-brand malls and multi-location superstores. We also have a robust automobile dealership network with the best, and most-aspired-for, brands available across the State.
The banking sector will tell you that the State has first-world indicators and lifestyle. Despite the 8-year financial drought brought in by mining closure, many local banks have stood their ground.
In all this, Goan youngsters upgraded themselves with education – especially higher education and professional training – and gave life to the vision spelled out by Goa’s first Chief Minister, late Dayanand Bandodkar.
Now, 60 years later, Goa is on the cusp of change.
A large part of the State is a safe haven for digital nomads and creative professionals. The pandemic has made geography irrelevant. Top professionals and C-suite occupants are making Goa their home and would prefer to work from here. This will be a challenge to the demography because, let us admit, Goans, more often than not, are possessive of their land and view neo-settlers with a sense of suspicion and aloofness.
We are left with little choice but to change with changing times.
I have said this in the past, and I reiterate, that Goa needs to bank on its home-grown startups to take it to the next level. Apart from a few events to show that there is something transpiring on the startup scene, nothing of real value seems to happen on the ground.
Many techpreneurs are struggling for want of funds, mentoring and government support. In these times, when every State in the country is looking at its startup ecosystem as a harbinger of change and employment generation, our government seems oblivious to the crying needs of startups and is moving far away from its stated goal to make Goa one of the preferred destinations in Asia to house startups.
While we may provide a cocoon to startups from across India to make their home in Goa, it would be dangerous to ignore the needs of our local startup founders.
Associations like GCCI, GSIA, CII and others have been crying hoarse to look at the ‘ease of doing business’ ranking in the proper spirit of the term and not just the point system that would inch the State up or down in the rankings.
These are precarious times for industry and startups to fend for themselves, and we have to ask our government to pull out all stops to support businesses, like it has never before. This would be a great thing to do with the funds the Centre will send Goa’s way to celebrate 60 years of liberation
