KERALA Vs AUSTRALIA
Geographical area of Australia is 7.692 million km² whereas the area of Kerala is 38863 km². This makes Kerala mere 0.5% area of that mighty continent and the comparison between the two looks like a rabbit with an elephant. The population of Australia is 2.57 crores (2020) whereas the population of Kerala is 3.58 crores (as estimated for 2021). In other words, Australia has only 71% of our work force. Therefore, the comparison is not between a rabbit and and an elephant but a Lion and a Tiger. Kerala is the Lion. But unfortunately this Lion is a severely handicapped one, rather made to be one.
The Gross State Product of Kerala (GSP) is USD 131.98 million. That makes the GDP per capita of the state for 2020-21, Rs 281,872. Whereas the GDP per capita of Australia is USD 51,812.15 (2020), which comes to Indian Rupees
39,06,377.05. Surprisingly, here we becomes rabbit and Australia the elephant. Our GDP pc is only 7% that of Australia.
If we show this to our politicians, they will have hundred and one reasons to make this comparison wrong. The prime one would be land. They have more land and we have very less. Land is only a playground, it is the human to play.
4.0268% of total area of Australia can be said as arable land according to World Bank reports. So no land supremacy can be given to that country. In 2018-19 Australia has generated $60.8 billion from direct tourism Gross Domestic Product which is 3.5 % more than the previous year. During the same period Kerala had Rs 45,010.69 crores, which was a record earning. Here comes the comparison when we could earn rupees 45 thousand crores Australia could earn about 4.6 lakhs crores in rupees. While Australia is placed 43rd in the world tourism ranking, Kerala is at 9th. Out of the 12 must see tourism destinations in the world Kerala was placed 8th in 2017. Unfortunately we failed to market our tourism potential to the world.
In fact we do not have time to spend for the economic development of our state, despite having bestowed with huge resources. All our time are spent on political developments. If anyone can precisely analyse the time spent everyday during the Assembly session, it will have more clarity. Until we leave politics irrespective of any party and concentrate on the economic development of the state we will have to depend on loans for our food and other spending.
According to the New Indian Express dated 19th January 2021, debt burden of the state has seen an increase of 70.21 per cent during the past five years 2014-15 to 2018-19. As per the budget for 2021-22, outstanding debt of the state is Rs 3.27 lakh crores. GSDP for the year is projected to Rs 8.76 lakh crores. That means outstanding debt of the state is 37.3 per cent of GSDP. It is really a serious situation. If the government fails to rerail the wagons, let the people with knowledge and experience come forward to help the government.
(Indebted to the New Indian Express, Kerala State budget 2021-22 and other related web sources. Readers are requested to reconfirm all the figures before using for any official purposes)
K V George
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