THE SUSTAINABLE INDUSTRIAL GROWTH-GOAN SCENARIO

This article was published in Pragati Magazine, May June 2014.

The Indian industrial growth has been on the back foot for few years owing to various reasons of global and domestic issues. The unhindered growth of the economy is essential in order to provide a livelihood for the people; more so for the poor. With the young generation getting ready for the new life of salaried or entrepreneurial profession, the challenges are increasing multi fold for the managers of the economy to increase the capacity of the employment. We are a country which has the highest youth population which is a boon if employed effectively or else a bane to the society. It is inevitability for India to improve the growth by encouraging the industries.

Goa being a self-sustained state, there was not much demand from the people in the post-independence days. With the increase in population, resulting in more qualified youngsters ready for the jobs; the demand has increased for creation of the opportunities. The state of Goa has been mainly relying on tourism, fishing, and mining. The other industry which has been complimenting the tourism was the liquor industry. All these industries have together contributed for the sustainable growth of the Goan economy. Goa’s per capita income was the highest in the country with a GSDP of US$ 7.5 billion during 2011 and 2012. The drivers for this push was the strong performance of the industrial sectors such as mining, tourism, and pharmaceuticals. Goa accounts for around 12% of total medicines produced in India. The States’ pharmaceutical industry generated revenue of US$ 2.1 billion over 2011-12.

Few other industries which make some contributions to the economy are animal husbandry, pesticide, fertilisers, tyres and tubes, iron ore pellets, footwear, chemicals, steel rolling, fruits, cashew-nuts, and woodcrafts. Other than these one more area which has contributed to the Goan economy is the Middle East employment which has not been identified much. This sector also needs more focus in the way to prepare the human resources for the job market in other countries. Education industry has not yet been able to establish a foothold in the state till date to ensure high quality manpower for the modern business enterprises.

Somewhere in the conflict of the environment against the industrialization, the state of Goa has lost its economic equilibrium after the illegal mining issue leading to the ban of all mining operation including the legal mining. It is during this challenging times the people and the government should be cautious in taking extreme steps so that the common man on the streets is not affected. Minor policy decisions affect the life of the common man irreversibly. Any growth measures initiated or suppressed will impact the economy after few years. Before the impact of the mining industries closure, the government should immediately take steps to revive complying industries. For a sustainable growth, it is necessary to have a good mix of the manufacturing and service industry.

It is now the ideal time for the state of Goa to bounce back with technocratic leadership of the dynamic chief minister and the favorable government at the centre. All these sectors of the local industry need a push to take the economy of the state to the next level. The service sector needs a boost with a new airport and better railway connectivity to Mumbai, Bangalore, Belgaum and Mangalore. One sector, Goa has not taken enough steps is the IT and the ITES sector. With the majority of the youngsters being fluent in English, Goa is the ideal place for these sectors, but unfortunately, there are no visible signs of any future IT and ITES investments in the state.

It is a point to note that a sustainable industrial development is possible only with the sustainable mix of the industries ranging from the MSME, Services, infrastructure and Heavy Industries complementing each other in their growth without leading to unsustainable impact on the environment. The progress depends mainly on the production economies which are manufacturing and agriculture. The agriculture has its limitations because of its limited resources. More the interference with the nature; there will be an impact on the environment as in the case of the state of Punjab. The manufacturing also has an impact as it was in Tirupur, but the same can be controlled within the limits with the use of the effective technology. The balance of the equity can be maintained only if the manufacturing industrial production is higher; since it has not yet reached the optimum capacity of the sustainable parameters.

The write is Ex-Deputy Commandant (Indian Coast Guard) and the author of “Sale of Souls”, a novel on the story of poverty, land acquisition, development and environment.