Uproar Over Goa Move To Plug Floating Casinos

The Congress government, led by Chief Minister Pratapsingh Rane, says the money thus earned can be used to turn Goa into a model welfare state. The opposition Maharashtrawadi Gomantak party (MGP) is bitterly opposed to the move. Various organisations like Bailancho Saad, Bailancho Manch, Jagrut Goenkaranchi Fouz and the Goa Foundation have termed tourism-related gambling as an invitation to vice for Goans.

The government has argued that since the casinos will be located offshore, the local population will not be affected.

The tourism industry is bullish on the idea and says the income from the casinos will perk up the finances of the perennially insolvent state.

 

The widespread view is that something needs to be done urgently to give a boost to the travel and tourism sector in Goa, which has been hit by a cut in chartered flights from Britain this season, as it is important to sustain a healthy flow of foreign exchange into the local economy.

If managed well, this entry of international casino norms into India through Goa can really boost the tourism-based economy (of the state), a senior government official told Business Standard.

The promoters will have to pay Rs 1 crore for licences to run offshore floating casinos, which are set to become a major tourist attraction by the end of this season or the beginning of the next.

Successive governments in the state have been stressing ad infinitum on the need to attract high-spending tourists to the state. They have however failed to provide funds and facilities and dithered on allowing private investment into the sector.

Chronic political inefficiency is strangling the industry, says Joaquim Menezes, proprietor of a 15-room beach resort in south Goa. The tourists had started preferring Sri Lanka, Maldives, Thailand, Indonesia and even Kerala and Tamil Nadu, he said, adding that the government was not doing anything.

The Public Gambling Act (Prevention) Amendment Act, passed by the Assembly in the monsoon session, has led to the closure of beach shacks, which were a big attraction for tourists.