In light of recent protests and over tourism, Goa is planning a tourism safety force with powers to arrest and impose fines for touting, a sustainability fee for tourism enterprises and incentives for sustainable tourism. These are among some of the proposals in a draft tourism bill that the state government plans to introduce in the monsoon session of the state legislative assembly in July.
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The Bill
Called ‘The Goa Tourism Promotion, Management and Regulation Bill, 2024’, the stated aim of the proposed law is to consolidate and amend the laws applicable to tourism and to “protect, preserve and retain the natural and cultural heritage of the state to ensure that it remains a destination of choice for tourists”.
The proposed draft Bill seeks to repeal two existing legislations that govern state tourism — The Goa, Daman and Diu Registration of Tourist Trade Act, 1982 and The Goa Tourist Places (Protection and Maintenance) Act, 2001.
According to the proposed law, a tourism safety force consisting of police personnel and tourist guards will be constituted for the safety of tourists and will be deployed in tourism clusters.
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“The tourism safety force shall have the power to arrest in case of a non-bailable and cognizable offence; to conduct search of any person and seize any items in their belonging for violations; to secure evidence and to impose and collect fines for offences of nuisance and touting,” the draft states, adding that the force will coordinate with “all the departments and instrumentalities of the state for ensuring the safety and security of tourists in the tourism cluster”.
The draft Bill says that the state’s director of tourism will be responsible for the deployment of the tourism safety force.
Under the proposal, tourist guards will assist officers in prevention of crimes against tourists and ensure their safety; assist the local administration and police in preventing drug trafficking, illegal liquor sale or illegal liquor consumption; detain anyone found violating provisions of the Act, alert tourists about touts and assist the local administration and the police in taking the necessary action.
