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Infrastructure Development: The Way Forward For a Better Goa
Bryce D’souza
In this article, I would like to talk about an important subject that is often neglected or made a mention of in the news and forgotten from time to time. It is a subject that often arouses a lot of attention when political candidates contest elections at the local and state-level as part of their ‘vote bank strategies’. It is definitely something we need to be worried about given how much impact it has had so far in our day-to-day lives as commuters and the lives of the tourists visiting our state. There is no other better word to refer to one of the most critical components to the success of any nation or economy – infrastructure.
Infrastructure as we all are aware of are the basic systems and facilities, without which a business or an economy cannot run let alone function. These include roads, transportation, highways, electricity, water and good connectivity in recent times. All of these together form what we can also refer to as the ‘life-lines of the economy’, hence the emphasis.
In as recent as the last several months, a lot of events have been occupying the news as part of broad efforts by the Government of Goa to improve the ‘infrastructure of the state’. From widening and building of new bridges, to inaugurating the new MOPA airport, a lot has been done by the present administration to ensure the smooth flow of traffic as commuters travel across the state from both ends of North and South Goa. While this is a positive development that will benefit the state as a whole as it seeks to position itself as a favourable destination for quality tourists, there is a lot to be said about the quality of roads and more importantly the level of connectivity in the towns and villages of Goa.
Year after year, the quality of the roads in Goa are deteriorating and in a bad state of affairs. It has gotten terribly worse that a lot of our quality tourists have moved to explore other states in India. This is something very serious to take note of as we were several years back, one of the best go-to tourist destinations to visit in India. Now that title has gone to other states in India that deserve it as we have lost all bounds to improve our roads.
The next and final issue to examine is the issue of connectivity. In many villages in and around Goa, there is less to no mobile and internet connectivity. Businesses have been encouraged to have a digital presence, given the boom of e-commerce and fintech in recent times since the pandemic. But without this viable component, all effort is lost and in vain. Given that all banking services in state are now digital, it is natural that connectivity has to be strong. Efforts need to be taken to ensure that cell towers are installed in appropriate areas so that people can live a normal life and be able to keep pace with new technological advances of the world. Or else, we will continue to be one of the most backward states in the country.
To sum up, there is really a lot that needs to be done to ensure that the roads are well maintained and that good connectivity is ensured in and around the villages and towns in Goa. It is imperative that the Government of Goa together with citizens and the private sector work together as key stakeholders to ensure that Goa is equipped with the best infrastructure to cater to the increasing demand of tourists throughout the year as that is the only way forward for a ‘Better Future and a Better Goa’.
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