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WILL GOA CONTINUE TO BE IFFI VENUE? PRIMA FACIE (ALMOST A) YES... >From Pamela D'Mello asianage at sancharnet.in Panaji, Dec 1: Will Goa continue to be the permanent venue for the International Film Festival of India? India's Information & Broadcasting Minister Mr Jaipal Reddy said "prima facie, Goa is a wonderful locale. Goa makes for a great venue". The memorandum of understanding signed between the Directorate of Film Festivals and the government of Goa was for the year 2004 only. However opposition Congress leaders are also backing the declaration of Goa as IFFI's permanent venue. Local Congressmen met Mr Reddy last evening to press for an endorsement of the decision announced in 2003 by former I&B minister Ravi Prasad Sharma. Acting on the announcement and the MoU, the state has rushed through investing Rs 60 crore (Rs 600 million) in IFFI related infrastructure and an additional Rs 60 crore (Rs 600 million) in other infrastructure, besides Rs 7 crore (Rs 70 million) to host the event. "We will have to pursue discussions for another MOU, after evaluating the situation", Mr Reddy said, refusing to be pinned down to a conclusive reply, despite persistent media questions. He however indicated that some minor organisational problems had understandably cropped up. "There are no rival claimants (to hosting the festival)", Mr Reddy said. Meanwhile fringe events around the festival, including the beach cinema, fire works, laser shows and street animation are huge draws among the local population, creating a festive atmosphere to the city. The state government has announced early closure of government offices to avoid traffic chaos in the festivally-lit city, which comes alive after sunset. However despite hosting several Bollywood stars at the Taj seaside resorts across the Mandovi bay, Bollywood stars have given many of the film screenings a miss.(ends)
