Staff Reporter
Panaji
Of the 209 beach shacks permitted by the government in North Goa, the tourism department has found that 109 of them have been sublet, Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte said.
Stating that action has been initiated in the matter, he said Director of Tourism Kedar Naik has issued show-cause notices to 38 of them as to why action should not be taken against them.
Shack licences are issued on the condition that they cannot be sublet and if found doing so, necessary action would be taken against them, he said.
Enquiries about subletting began after the Arambol death case. The beach shack where a youth was stabbed, leading to his death, has been ordered to be demolished and a fine of Rs 25 lakh has been imposed on the owner after it was found to have
been sub-let.
Khaunte refuted the charge that Goa has received less number of tourists. He said while charter numbers have come down in view of the international situation, domestic tourists have increased and the figures are speaking
for themselves.
He also said that Goa is also getting ‘spending tourists’ and not just low-budget ones.
Elaborating further he said the star hotels have high occupancy rate. Khaunte reiterated that the crackdown by the department on touts will continue.
Director of Tourism Kedar Naik said there is an increase of 20% in the footfall compared to the previous year. This, he said, is also evident from the increased number of flights operating from Goa, which, he said, are coming full.
Making a presentation on Goa Tourism, Naik said several steps have been taken by the tourism department towards ease of doing business, making it easy for any small entrepreneur in the tourism business. He said the focus of Goa tourism is on ‘Regenerative tourism’ which also includes ‘Beyond Beaches’ campaign.
Among the new projects lined up by the department include Rs 100 crore Town Square in Porvorim, which will be a Goan cultural experience zone and Shivaji Maharaj museum in Farmagudi.
