Planning a trip to Goa where you can have a leisurely time, cook a delicious meal on a bonfire and have a few drinks with your squad at the beach?
Sorry to kill your vibe but with the new Goa Tourist Places (Maintenance and Protection) (Ammendment) bill- 2019, you won’t be able to do that.
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This newly passed bill was a unanimous decision of the Goan legislative assembly, which has decided that the best way to avoid destruction of the already dying culture is to ban tourists from cooking and drinking at public places. Moreover, the bill ensures that any tourist found drinking liquor, cooking or breaking bottles in the public area can be fined ₹10,000 in groups and ₹2000 if alone.
This bill aims to put a leash on the increasing cases of nuisance creation along public areas. It is often found that people come to the pristine beaches, they drink and cook there, they litter in the area and destroy the natural landscape. Tourists often leave their empty liquor bottles in sand and people who walk barefoot along the beaches get seriously injured. Often tourists get extremely drunk and then impulsively take a dive in the ocean and drown. The cases are never ending.
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The bill also states that anyone who refuses to pay the fine shall be held liable to punishment. Section 9A inserted in the Goa Tourist Places (Protection and Maintenance) Act of 2001, states that “consumption of liquor in open, cooking food in open, littering waste, including used materials, waste, empty bottles, breaking of glass bottle and such other activity as may be specified by the government” is prohibited.
The littering and discarding waste in the open, not only creates pollution but also destroys the natural charm and beauty of these “tour worthy” places and this bill aims to protect beaches from the aftermath of parties, bonfires, and cook-outs.
