GOA: sold for a song

an article by Br. Orville de Silva

The demographic, social, cultural and environmental patterns in Goahave undergone rapid changes in recent times. Such changes call for acollective concern and participation by the people the Goa and itsruling government. However, amidst such changes, Goa's politicians have found enough time and opportunity in promoting Special EconomicZones (SEZ) in Goa.

Our politicians argue that SEZs will create employment opportunities for Goan youth and will also attract Foreign Direct Investment. Quite contrary to the thinking of the present government, the Goa SEZ Policy2006 makes no commitment or reservation in terms of jobs to Goans. The determination of the present government to promote SEZs in Goa hasraised several eyebrows among different sections of people. While the government seems hell bent in promoting SEZs in Goa, it fails to showthe same political will in providing adequate basic facilities and efficient administrative services to Goans. Issues of garbage, waterscarcity, environmental degradation, corruption and improper appropriation of land with inadequate compensation continue to ruin the state of Goa.

The GIDC managing director, Mr A V Palekar, stated that the plots in Phase IV were sold at Rs. 600 per sq. mt. The same land was acquiredby the GIDC in 2003 for Rs. 10 per sq. mt. from the Communidade which was later enhanced to Rs. 20 per sq. mt. when the Communidade appealed the court. How can the government of Goa justify the paltry amount paid to the people and the Communidade while the same land was sold out to industries at an exorbitant price? The Chairman of GIDC boasts of making profit. But amassing wealth at the cost of the people and dispossessing them of their land doesn't justify the revenue earned bythe state treasury. In most cases the land for SEZ has been acquired by the government by invoking the Urgency Clause as per the Land Acquisition Act 1894. One may wonder what urgency the government faces in acquiring the land forSEZ. Isn't this a ploy of the government to disposes the people oftheir land? Does the government wish to take advantage over the poor who do not have recourse to the legal system due to financial constraints? Instead the government could try invoking the 'Urgency Clause' in discussing issues of garbage, corruption and the changing Goan identity in the Legislative Assembly and draw a concrete plan and implement it immediately. Some months back, the Prime Minister, MrManmohan Singh, had categorically stated that the government would not acquire the land for the SEZs. It was stated that interested parties would have to directly negotiate with the people and offer them adequate compensation for the acquired land. However the Goagovernment doesn't seem interested in such directives. Instead of addressing the needs of the people, the Goa government is gradually turning itself into a landlord by selling Goa's land to vested interests.

A similar situation is also reflected in Quepem. While the MLA of Quepem is trying to promote a SEZ in his constituency at Quitol, people in Betul living in the hills face severe water and power problems. The families living in this area have remarked that in the evenings after 7 PM the bulbs in their houses burn like candle lights and their children find it difficult to study in this dim light. Mind you, the land that has been acquired by the government for theauxiliary services for the proposed Food Park is barely 3 kilometresaway from Betul. How would the government meet the power needs of the industries when the present situation is already grim? Conversely,would the government be interested in supplying power to the proposed food park and let the people in Betul suffer in dim light?

In order to mellow the people and disperse their fears against SEZ, the Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat, observed that the industries in the SEZ zone would have to generate their own electricity. The statement of the CM contradicts the Goa SEZ Policy 2006 which states that "The SEZ authority will ensure continuous and quality power supply to SEZs..." Are we to be carried away by the statements of the CM and other Ministers who normally follow rules prescribed in their ownbooks when implementing the policies? If the CM is serious of what he is saying let the Goa SEZ Policy be amended immediately and made known to the people.

It is beyond doubt that the SEZ Policy of the state, which is meant to accelerate exports, calls for a public debate. We also need a comprehensive study on the job opportunities that all the industrial estates in Goa have created for Goan youth. Let not Goa be ruined because of the self-interests of our politicians who display verylittle commitment to the people of Goa. We need to preserve Goa andseek a pattern of sustainable development for its growth. The local people have the ability to think and decide for themselves theparadigm of its future development. The government should seriouslyconsider giving the people a chance to decide their future instead ofblindly selling off Goa for a song.