Goan Gift to India

By Mr. Plastino D'Costa

India is on a roll, Stock market index touching five digits, GDP numbers pegged at 7% - 8%, and if the government manages more investment in infrastructure, India might be targeting double digit growth. After China, India seem to be the happening place with all investors lined up to invest in India, how much of this foreign investment is long term or merely a hedge against the US dollar and low interest rates, we might only know when the US economy and dollar starts looking up. The Government, headed by the best financial brains in the country, seems to be sincerely working to get the numbers right this time, as previous election experience was a lesson to all political parties that merely shining slogans would not do. The feeling this time is that India is trying hard to arrive on the world scene.

What can a small state like Goa contribute to help India arrive the world scene, let’s focus on how Goans can make a positive impact on Indians so that the country can better integrate with the world.

The fact that Goans have made such a big issue on garbage means Goans are not prepared to make garbage part of their life, with this kind of resolve it’s a matter of time a solution will be found. It shows our desire to stay in a neat environment. Unfortunately the rest of India does not consider this as top priority, staying in garbage has become a part of their life. Once we get our house in order, Goans will have to teach rest of Indians that it is not enough to just grow economically if the citizens are not thought the importance of cleanliness, surely we don’t want India to be a super power of garbage. The best way would be to target all Indians and foreign tourists visiting Goa, as well as Goans, by introducing a Singapore style stiff fining system at airport, bus stands, railway stations and other public places. Paying a fine will help Indians to curb their natural instinct of throwing trash everywhere and anywhere. If the police are busy with law and order, the government could sub-contract the whole operation to a private company with minimum supervision of the police, and penalize the company incharge for negligence. When fellow Indians notice this, not only will they carry this good habit, but will force them to take similar actions back home. Goa might eventually be responsible to make India a clean and beautiful country.

Our great Konkani intellectuals might try very hard to manipulate Goans into learning Konkani, but everybody has to agree that Goans have succeeded in their respective fields because of their fluency and command over English. Our Konkani intellectuals should realize that most Goans are pushed out Goa to make a career, and it makes better sense to learn an international language with a proper ascent. Goans who have succeeded outside of Goa should make it a point to tell their side of the story to Indians, how English had helped them, especially to South Indians, where literacy means reading and writing their mother tongue. Open minded South Indians will tell you that lack of the English language had come in their way of progress.

Even after the bad publicity Goa might have got due to our politicians, there is no denying the fact that Goans are comparatively better as far as ethics, honesty, integrity, loyalty and decency is concerned. Most Goans might want to share this with fellow Indians, to convince them that making money, progress, fame are important but most important is to achieve all this without compromising these good virtues.

Most Indians feel that western type of clothing is anti-Indian, and yet the unwritten rule in private and public workplaces is that western attire is the only dress code acceptable. Our Parliament is the only place where its members have no proper dress code, it has Harvard educated minister wearing a night dress and attending office, if this night dress was not accepted in Harvard or recently in Davos, why is it acceptable in India’s highest office. The current USA President would love to come to office in Jeans, cowboy hat and probably on horseback, but he is the President of USA and not Texas. Asking Goan politicians to take up the issue of dress code in the parliament might be too much of an asking. However, ordinary Goans can make a difference to Indians by explaining to them the advantages of wearing clothes acceptable to the world, especially if India wants to do business with the world.

If the Central government is thinking of rewarding states for good governance, then along with economic benchmarks, cleanliness of the state should be a factor. Nobody wants Indians to give up their mother tongue, but to give it more importance than the International and national language should be considered as a negative factor on performance. Measuring public ethics, honesty, integrity, loyalty and decency might be difficult, but some system surely will evolve. Even a proper dress code has to be maintained, we can’t have people wearing their state dresses, when they represent India. All this should be incorporated as part of the formula. If we want states to vie for better share of central funds, let all factors come into play such as economics, cleanliness, national integration, better ethical standards. We don’t want Indians to remember the central government only when they want to get an Indian passport or when they want protection from outside aggression. Goa might score better on some of the above factors and it becomes our duty to educate fellow Indians of these virtues. Of course we Goans have a lot to learn from India, but that’s another story.

Above article first appeared on Herald - Goa on 23rd February 2006