Goa BJP MLA Michael Lobo has blamed the sale of idli-sambhar in beach shacks for causing a “decline” in the number of international tourists visiting the coastal state.
Addressing a press conference on Thursday at Calangute in North Goa, Lobo said the government alone can’t be blamed if fewer foreigners visit the coastal state as all stakeholders are equally responsible.
He said that Goans have rented their beach shacks to businessmen from other places, reported PTI. “Some people from Bengaluru are serving ‘vada pav’ in the shacks, some are selling idli-sambar. (That’s why) International tourism has been declining in the state for the past two years,” he said.
The MLA, however, did not detail how the popular South Indian breakfast dish is affecting tourism in the state. “There is a hue and cry because of the drop in tourist numbers. In the coastal belt, be it North or South, there has been a sharp fall in the arrival of foreign visitors. A lot of factors are responsible for this,” Lobo said.
He asked everyone, as stakeholders, to bear the responsibility for it. The legislator said that while some foreigners visit Goa every year, younger tourists from abroad are going away from the state.
ALSO READ | Goa Vs Influencers? CM Pramod Sawant At Ideas Of India Warns Against ‘Negative Influencer Tourism’
He called on the tourism department and other stakeholders to hold a joint meeting and study the reasons “why foreign tourists are not ready to come to Goa.”
Lobo also said the war has stopped Russian and Ukrainian tourists from coming to Goa. “The tourists from former USSR countries have stopped visiting Goa,” he said.
Lobo urged the state should sort out the crucial issues concerning tourism, including differences between the cab aggregators and local tourist taxi operators.
“If we don’t put a system in place, we will see dark days in the tourism sector,” he cautioned.
Tourism Department Issues Notice To 99 Beach Shacks
The state tourism department has issued 99 beach shacks with a show-cause notice for allegedly violating the state’s policy concerning such joints, an official said on Thursday, reported PTI.
Under the Goa Shack Policy, the department has been allotting shacks to the locals on beaches.
During a surprise inspection, 80 shacks in North Goa and 19 in South Goa were found to have violated the policy, said the department in a release.
Doonited Affiliated: Syndicate News Hunt
This report has been published as part of an auto-generated syndicated wire feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been modified or edited by Doonited
