---------------------------------------------------- Do GOACAN a favour, circulate this email to your family members, relatives, neighbours and friends. Help other CONSUMERS to be better informed. ---------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------- GOACAN calls upon Tourism Department to involve coastal people in the management of Beach Tourism in Goa ------------------------------------------------------------- On the occasion of World Tourism Day 27th September, GOACAN has called upon the Department of Tourism to ensure the participation of the local people of the coastal villages in the Management of Tourism and the Safety of the Beaches of Goa. In a letter to the Department of Tourism, GOACAN has reminded the Director, Mr. Swapnil Naik that the Department needs to take urgent steps to involve all stakeholders in this important exercise so as to protect the beaches of Goa.
GOACAN in its letter to Department has emphasized that the beaches of Goa have become the backbone of the Tourism Trade in the State and therefore Goa is known the world over as a beach tourism destination that undoubtedly has resulted in a huge number of tourists (both domestic & foreign) arriving on the beaches all year round. This indeed has impacted the beach situation in terms of the ecology, garbage, traffic congestion as well as the service providers like shack owners, restaurant owners, water sports operators, guesthouse owners and the residents of the village. The tourist arrivals on the beaches of Goa have also impacted their behavioural patterns such as the growth of sex tourism, drug & alcohol abuse, nudism, rape & molestation of women, child abuse & paedophilia, theft, murder and drowning deaths to name a few. This behaviour has resulted in the increase of crime, breakdown of the law & order situation and even a threat to security. This situation has created a great sense of helplessness on the part of the residents on the one hand as well as a determination to work for solutions along with the Village Panchayats & concerned Govt. agencies on the other. The letter further states that there are various types of legislations & notifications that affect the coastal population of Goa which are issued by various authorities like Govt. of India, Govt. of Goa, Chief Secretary, District Collectors, Village Panchayats & Municipal Councils while there are also various agencies like the Tourism Dept., Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) who have a responsibility of licencing & monitoring the activities on the beaches. GOACAN is convinced that for the Safety & Management of Goan beaches, there is an urgent need for the Tourism Department to set up functional Information Offices in the coastal villages of Calangute in North Goa and Colva in South Goa which must be managed by District Nodal Information Officers. These officers would have the specific responsibility of co-coordinating data collection from amongst the various stake holders in Beach Tourism (Travel Agencies, Tour Operators, Hotel and Restaurants, Shack owners, Water Sports operators, Taxi owners & drivers among others) and other agencies like the Tourist Police, Coastal Security Police Stations, Life Guards, Fire & Emergency Services, Coast Guard, District Disaster Management Authority and the local Village Panchayats & Municipalities. The Tourism Dept. needs to support the Tourism & Beach Management Committee’s being proposed to be set up in the coastal villages by the respective Village Panchayats so as to involve the local residents as well as all the stakeholders in Beach Tourism. Such an interface between the Tourism Department and the local area Management Committee will provide for a platform for all stakeholders to maintain the cleanliness, safety and security of the beaches. The Tourism Department needs to maintain close co-ordination with the local coastal village Panchayats on important matters like Licencing of Shacks, Garbage Management and Beach Safety. With regards to these three issues the Department is generating revenue as well as spending large amounts of Govt. funds by way of issuing tenders for works to be undertaken. The Department needs to prepare a Status Report on Beach Tourism to be presented at the Village Gram Sabhas of the coastal villages which will ensure greater transparency & accountability and avoid conflicts that occur from time to time due to the huge tourism activity on the beaches. The Tourism Department must have a special fund allocation & expenditure for infrastructure related to public amenities at the beaches such as drinking water facility, toilets, changing rooms, bathing facility, emergency medical & first aid facility, beach lighting and parking facilities. This expenditure is important keeping in mind the huge influx of domestic and foreign tourists to the beaches. The Tourism Department must have an Environment & Beach Ecology Protection Plan & Program in place as the damage to the beaches is caused annually due to the natural climate changes as well as those changes which are man made. The changes in the beach due to seawater ingression, the illegal sand extraction, damage to the sand dunes and deposit of oil & tar balls are some of real problems that need urgent attention. Such a protection plan & program must be prepared with the involvement of various agencies such as the Forest Department, Department of Science, Technology & Environment, Coastal Zone Management Authority, National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) and NGO’s working in the field of environmental protection. The Tourism Department must evaluate the present public transport facilities that exist in the coastal villages as the same are also being used by the tourists visiting the beaches. Such an exercise with a focus on Road Safety & Traffic Management could involve the Traffic Police and Directorate of Transport so that public transport can be Comfortable, Affordable and Safe. The identifying of Stands for Taxis, Auto rickshaw and Motorcycle Taxis, the installation of proper signages, demarcation of parking areas and the availability of Traffic Policemen, Home Guards & Traffic Wardens to direct the traffic flow especially in months of December and January, the peak tourism season. The Tourism Department also needs to develop a Grievance Redressal System to cater to the thousands of tourists benefiting from Beach Tourism in Goa. Early recording of grievances will ensure that a proper solution is found and the system is set right for the future. Copies of the GOACAN representation have been submitted to the Minister for Tourism, Chief Secretary, Tourism Secretary, SP North, SP South, SP Traffic, Tourist Police, Anti-Narcotic Cell, District Disaster Management Authority, Dept. of Science, Technology & Environment, Transport, Fire and Emergency Services, Directorate of Panchayats, Municipal Administration, Public Grievances, Govt. of India Goa Tourism Office, GTDC, National Institute of Oceanography and the Coast Guard. ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ GOA CIVIC AND CONSUMER ACTION NETWORK ----------------------------------------------------------- promoting civic and consumer rights in Goa ---------------------------------------------------------- GOACAN Post Box 187 Margao, Goa 403 601 GOACAN Post Box 78 Mapusa, Goa 403 507 mail: [email protected] ---------------------------------------------------------- --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ This message comes via the Google Groups "Saligao-Net" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/saligao-net?hl=en Please post regularly to keep the e-village active! -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
