What the beaches of South Goa have got are tourist information centres, toilet blocks, illumination, signages, solid waste management, WiFi facilities. With the waiver of 50 per cent of fees for shacks and completion of works in the coastal area, is the State readying for the tourism season ahead? A lot of money has been spent on improving the infrastructure at the beaches. So, will the beaches of South Goa that draw to their sands travellers from around the globe, become more attractive to the tourist?
To be fair, the infrastructure on the beaches was required. But has the problem of jagged, sharp pieces of glass on the sands of Goa been addressed through any of facilities or of security for those who visit the beach? There are examples of attacks on women and the government had in recent weeks increased patrolling. Will the CCTV cameras help here? While women’s safety was dealt with in detail recently, what about the glass pieces on the beaches?
In December 2020 and January this year there were various incidents across beaches where children and adults were injured by glass pieces when walking or playing on the sand. Most of these occurred when thousands of people had descended upon the shores of Goa to ring in the New Year. These were not stray incidents, there have been such reported earlier too, and before the tourism season opens next month, this problem has to be sorted out.
Shards of glass on the beaches of Goa cutting into the feet of the people walking on the sands are a veritable threat. While it has been tourists who have been mainly affected by this, it is also the tourists themselves who are the cause of the broken glass pieces on the beach. Leaving sharp edges of broken glass on the sand should be made an offence. Goa spends crores of rupees annually on beach cleaning, to keep the sands clean for the tourists, not for them to leave behind glass. The tourists have a responsibility to the place they visit and littering from them is just not acceptable. Glass pieces on the beaches are a clear reflection on the attitude of the tourists who lack civic sense and social propriety.
Every time there is an incident of injuries due to broken glass on the beach, there is an outrage on social media, which is soon eclipsed by other issues. Required are solutions. Glass bottles sold are not accepted back by the companies, perhaps a law making it mandatory for companies to collect the bottles from the wholesaler or the retailer should be enacted. Or, the consumer, especially on the beachside should be made to keep a hefty deposit with the seller for every bottle picked up, that he will get when returning the bottle. It could reduce waste as well as avoid broken bottles on the beaches.
There is a ban on drinking in public places that has been in place since August 15, 2018, with hefty fines for those found breaking it. This ban essentially came about because of glass pieces on the beaches leading to injuries. It has, however, never been strictly implemented and more personnel on the beach to check on littering may reduce the glass pieces to a certain extent. Whatever the solutions, they have to be found and implemented as glass shards not only injure the person, but hurt the image of the tourist destination. It can have negative repercussions on tourism, and this Goa does not require.
