CASINO INCOME IRREVALENT TO PUBLIC
Casino Tax nets Rs 90 crores says Mr. Parrikar who gives a reply to the House yesterday and these news report appeared nearly all the local newspapers. This amount was revenue to the Government, as aggregate sum in terms of entertainment and entry tax from 5 offshore casinos anchored at River Mandovi. This statement of Parrikar have puzzled the assembly members at the Secretariat, which everybody feels that it is not the index of property of the State or his reflection of CM’s efficiency and ability. There are various socials and anti- socials ways of generating income. Matka gambling also generate income and gives employment. Prostitution has helped the livelihoods of many women but these activities have also generated destruction of social values of the society. If gambling has given money to Parrikar to boost about the same in the Goa Assembly, he should also know that these casinos have polluted our rivers and caused damaged to the environment and affecting the fisheries of free flow of traffic and general health of the community. Casinos’s income seems to make Parrikar very happy but there are so many youngsters in Goa who have sold family properties. Involved themselves in crime which includes thefts, murders. Recently at St Cruz murder incident is ample proof in this regard. Time will soon show as how many rapes, suicides, murders, burglary, are taking place in Goa due to the presence of casinos in Goa. Goan youth who were hard workers in the past and were enjoying fruits of hard labour are today only interested of surfing cards and acting as escorts guides or gullible tourists who also loose their money and make their families unhappy due to the casino menace. The U-turn which Parrikar did is meaningless because the entire Goa knows that by 2015 he could be giving contradictory statement to the one cited above, which the Press in Goa faithfully report. Stephen Dias D.Paula
