As Goa gears up for the 2022 polls, we will be seeing many party functionaries visiting the State. The TMC made landfall last week, and their supreme leader could be here soon. But how will the TMC which seeks to solve all of Goa’s problems actually achieve this as they have no real grassroots foundation. A victory in its home state doesn’t mean victory is guaranteed here. Ditto for AAP which has made promises (ala Delhi) and got blessings from Goa’s patron saint.
No new entrant can hope to understand the state’s unique challenges. Few parties have tried to understand the real ethos of the state, among India’s most westernized but also facing issues connected with rapid and unplanned growth and development. This is an urbanized state, with a better educated population, and people who have preserved a relatively well off style of living.
Yet unplanned development and opportunistic politics have created several problems: the issues around migrants, settlers, garbage, rising crime and industry-jobs scene. The state depends overwhelmingly on tourism for revenues but is losing business to other states or countries. For a population that has seen a certain lifestyle (and which has a high GDP), those who come in the eleventh hour to provide solutions cannot hope to succeed. Above all, we see no party keen on assuaging the impact of climate change on the state. This is no less important than the above-mentioned issues.
The BJP has shown the electorate that it has no sustainable model to deliver the goods. It has been opportunistic, and as is well known, bungled the Covid response. The Congress has old satraps and is hugely divided. How will the Goan choose then?
