BENAULIM: Empty restaurants and a deserted look at the beach at Benaulim,
Colva and Varca and even worse, the trickle of the tourist from the west
walking along the shores, is something that has been worrying the tourism
pundits. Will it be another bad season or is it just a delay?
“Sometimes, I feel it’s a delay. Lots of
factors owe to the delay. But knowing the delay, I fear I will lose my labour
power that have returned from their native areas but find no work since the
tourism season has not picked up. So, to keep them going, I have taken a
franchise of a well-known tea stall from Maharashtra and introduced it in
Margao to cash in on the daily city customers. Hopefully when the tourism
season picks up, I can bring my man power back to the coastline,” explains
Arvind Bugunde who runs Ye Chai Wale tea stall in Margao city.
Similarly, Bijdur Toppo, has been coming
to work in Goa as a waiter in the tourism season for the last 20 years from
Assam and he is familiar with Konkani and English. Toppo explains to us that
salary from his hotel is one aspect but the main aspect is getting good tips
from a steady business flow of customers.
“ I am worried that I may not make enough
for my family, since the number of tourist are quite low presently in Salcete.
The shacks are not up because of a delayed monsoon and so also other tourism
related infrastructure which reflects on social media and hence the entire
tourism season has not picked up,” explains Bijdur.
While Jonny Colaco who runs a leased shack
explains to us how the whole Goa Miles taxi violence by the other tourist
taxis, lack of proper sanitation and infrastructure at Goa’s beaches and the
garbage menace at the coast is another reason why the number of tourist have
declined.
“ If the government delays in issuing
shack licences and excise permission to sell and serve alcohol, then how you
expect us to contribute to tourism. Plus the negative publicity of the violence
against Goa Miles taxi drivers on social media is a reason that creates fear
psychosis amongst newer tourist. And to add to that we have cancellation of
charter flights by Thomas cook,” explains Orlim based hotelier James Paes.
From the formalin issue to the taxi driver problem and then the
fact that Goa has failed to manage it sewage and garbage issues is what
reflects in our dwindling tourism. Infact restauranteurs are depending on
locals Goans dining out and nothing else.
Phone calls made to industry players made for a very depressing
evening. Earnest Dias of Sita said the season was going to be very difficult
and the fact that seats were available even during the peak season on Russian
charter flights made for depressing news. There was a spot of good news with a
Polish charter scheduled to commence operations once a week from December 23.
That would mean around 250 tourists. The season, he concluded would be a tight
painful experience for everyone involved. If that is the analysis of a operator
than the viewpoint of a hotelier was not comforting either. Ralph Dsouza of D
souza Group of Hotels said the entire market had slowed down. In the south
especially this created problem because it was essentially now looking at a MICE
mkt. Last year he said “We had calls which converted into business but this
year the number of calls from corporates dropped dramatically. There is no
business. In the north there are international EDM shows which are very popular
and which create a buzz for a couple of days. It brings in good money but in
the south, there is nothing similar. I believe this slump will continue till
October next season”.
The
sudden polls in Britain are another reason that hoteliers believe is the reason
for delay in British guest visiting Goa. Firstly hotel and tourism staff are
mostly from North india and Nepal and they move according to the tourism season
from Gokarna to Manali and other parts of Himachal Pradesh to Andaman and
Nicobar Islands and then parts of Jaipur. But delays in the monsoon in Goa
meant delayed maintenance works and renovation works in the hotels and home
stays along the coastal belt and the again delayed monsoons in Jharkand and
Bihar meant delay in labour coming to service the masonary, fisheries and water
sports industry in Salcete which is factored as another reason for places being
up and ready late, which results in a delay of them updating their annual
visiting tourist across the world and hence the season looks reeling and
delayed. But for now, the hotels, shacks and coastal belt is still keeping its
fingers crossed for the Christmas season especially because Indian holiday
goers will join the tourist tribe from December 20 onwards to visit Goa.
