The statement has shocked one and all as the Goans have always opposed the casinos and demanded their removal from the River Mandovi for over a decade now.
The BJP, on the other hand, has been conveniently extending the licences of the casinos in Mandovi every six months, thus trying to suggest the State government is looking out for another place to relocate the casinos.
If the BJP and Dr Pramod Sawant forgot, we wish to inform him that the former Chief Minister, late Manohar Parrikar, had led a huge protest against the same casinos in 2011 and blamed the previous Congress government of promoting the casino culture.
SURAJ NANDREKAR
Editor, Goemkarponn
The BJP Union Ministre for Tourism G Krishna Reddy made a shocking revelation couple of days ago.
Just when the State is about to go to the polls, the Minister stated that the Centre will allow Goa to become the Casino Capital of India if the State benefits from it.
The statement has shocked one and all as the Goans have always opposed the casinos and demanded their removal from the River Mandovi for over a decade now.
The BJP, on the other hand, has been conveniently extending the licences of the casinos in Mandovi every six months, thus trying to suggest the State government is looking out for another place to relocate the casinos.
If the BJP and Dr Pramod Sawant forgot, we wish to inform him that the former Chief Minister, late Manohar Parrikar, had led a huge protest against the same casinos in 2011 and blamed the previous Congress government of promoting the casino culture.
He had also promised that once BJP is voted to power, the casinos would be removed entirely.
But sadly, the casinos are at the same place, but Parrikar has left this world.
Not just Parrikar, Babush Monseratte, who replaced Manohar Parrikar as Panaji MLA, too had promised that once he is elected within 100 days, the casinos would be removed from River Mandovi.
Now Babush has moved from Congress to BJP, but the casinos remain unmoved. Such is the power and the authority of the casino lobby.
Now, when the BJP Minister G. Krishna Reddy mentioned that Goa would be made Casino capital, the Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant and the Bharatiya Janata Party State unit were entirely silent on the issue.
Does the BJP really want to call the tiny, beautiful State of Goa a Casino capital? Yes, the casinos bring in money, but at what cost?
Agreed, Goa is a tourism State, but the tourism has brought us enough headaches for the locals. Because of tourism, we see all kinds of vices in Goa, be it drugs, crimes or prostitution. The cheap tourist who come to Goa just for booze and girls.
The tourist today looks at every girl as if she is available to satisfy their urge. Do we need such kinds of tourists?
By making Goa the capital of casinos, there is every possibility that the number of casinos in Goa to be doubled. So we can expect more and more such tourists arrive in the State only for gambling purposes.
As it is, the casino operators have presented Goa as a casino destination. The books in the airline or the entry point at the Goa airport have displays of just casino advertisements.
There is no attempt by the Department of Tourism, which splurges crores of rupees on advertisements, to change this. They can easily take over the entry points at airports to market Goa’s beaches, temples and churches.
Now ahead of the election, the BJP knows the issue could boomerang, and they should have issued a rejoinder and clarified, but none of the party leaders has spoken on the issue yet.
Maybe, the Govt of Goa too is happy Goa being named the Casino Capital of India.
