GOA, India — India’s undisputed tourist hotspot and the smallest state in the largest democracy in the world is voting Monday to elect a new administration with an eye toward restoring an economic system that was devastated by the pandemic as well as saving the environment from an uncontrolled real estate boom.
More than 1.1 Million voters will vote in western Goa to decide which of the 301 contestants can save their fragile coast land, which is struggling with uncontrolled tourism.
It is one of five Indian States that will vote in phases in February or March. This is seen as a test of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bhartiya Janata Party, ahead of general elections set for 2024. March 10 will see the announcement of the results.
Atish Fernandes of the Joseph Bar in Panjim said that locals can’t afford an apartment, a home, or a plot or land in Goa as the real estate prices have soared.
The state has a population below 2 million, but it hosted more tourists than 8 million in 2019, before the pandemic closed down restaurants and made thousands unemployed. Numerous oxygen supply disruptions at the Goa Medical College COVID-19 facility led to the deaths of hundreds.
The tourism and travel industry, which is the lifeline for Goa’s economy is slowly recovering, but not all jobs have returned.
Goa has also become a popular second-home destination for India’s wealthy middle class, which is fueling frenetic building activity. Fernandes explained that land rights are a major issue in Goa because the new wealth is mostly generated from the sale or development of ancestral lands and brokerage to meet growing demand.
Modi shared his vision for a Golden Goa that would be fueled by infrastructure and tourism at a campaign rally held in Goa’s central area on Thursday. The Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi and the opposition Congress promise sustainable development, jobs, and a free government. While the Trinamool Congress is from West Bengal, it has plans for generous welfare programs.
Two prominent regional parties joined forces to explore their national ambitions.
What is at stake for Goa’s indigenous communities, such as fishermen and farmers, is a unique way of living that has been in harmony with its coastal biodiversity and lush green environment for centuries.
The state has seen intense political turmoil in the last few months. Popular candidates such as former chief ministers switched sides to secure nominations. Sometimes, loyalties were shifted between parties with opposing ideologies.
According to the Association of Democratic Reforms (a non-governmental organization working for electoral reforms), Goa has set a new record. 24 members of the 40-member state assembly switched parties in the past five years.
To make sure its nominees don’t go party-hopping after the polls, Congress party required them to take a pledge for loyalty.
In just a few short weeks, each party has disgraced themselves by making a mockery their own stated platforms, Vivek Menezes, writer, wrote in Outlook weekly magazine.
Goa’s turbulent politics is a microcosm India’s chaotic political landscape. A diverse mix of religious, caste and ethnic identities shapes the elections.
Modi’s Hindu-first political philosophy has alienated Muslims and other minorities, while the BJP has won twice on national stage. However, Modi’s rise in unemployment and a long-running farmers’ protest outside New Delhi have eroded its power.
Christians make up only 25% of Goa, a place that is often portrayed in Bollywood as a westernized enclave where foreign tourists party on sandy beaches and are dominated by historic Catholic churches. More than 66% are Hindus in Goa.
Despite controversial statements about rebuilding Hindu temples that were destroyed by the Portuguese, BJP’s Hindu majoritarian agenda has had to accommodate the Christian minority in its quest for elections.
In Goa, the BJP has nominated 12 Catholic candidates for Monday’s election. The Congress party has nominated 17.
The narrow streets of Panjim’s Fontainhas are lined with Portuguese-style homes, bars, and other buildings. Fontainhas, a UNESCO World Heritage site is steeped into the colonial history Goa, a Portuguese-controlled territory, from 1961 to 1961.
The Joseph Bar, nestled between Fontainhass old buildings, is where many regret the inevitable changes that a free market brings, especially in an economic system where every third person is involved in tourism.
Fernandes stated that the local stakeholders and voters are always looking back at their past and what they have gained. If you ask the average Goan what they want, he will tell you that he wants to live the same life he had 15-20 years ago.
