Nightlife in Goa has become a hotly discussed subject in recent times. As exciting and entertaining it is for the visitors, it causes great inconvenience to the locals.
Thanks to the social media influencers who through vlogs and reel videos exhibit how beautiful, entertaining and attractive being in Goa is, the nightlife in Goa has gained huge attraction amongst the tourists. This trend is rampant in the coastal part of the State and is rapidly catching up in the rural areas as well. These reels create a tempting illusion for the audience. They fall for the exaggerated version of Goa’s nightlife being shown on social media. After seeing that clubs and pubs on the beaches are promote aggressively on social media, youths venture out with their vehicles to experience the nightlife in Goa. Sometimes, they either end up taking someone else’s life or lose their own.
The tragic mishap that took place at Vagator on Saturday night was ramification of all the exaggerated and deceptive ideas of nightlife. Understandably, agitated locals marched to the police station and were of the opinion that this, in a way, was a murder. Around 11 pm, a 42-yr-old man recklessly drove his SUV inside the premises of a resort and crushed the owner to death. One cannot imagine how chilling and terrifying this must have been for the eye witnesses. The frequency at which such incidents are happening is what angers the locals the most, as anyone with an ounce of common sense can tell that if this is not resolved urgently, such horrifying accidents will continue to take the lives of the locals.
Locals not only demanded for the police to immediately take action against the accused, they also wanted a ban on the parties and loud music which go on throughout the night. The Anjuna locals openly pointed out to the usage of banned substances and alcohol abuse at such parties. The exasperation is valid and so is their resentment towards the visitors, since the locals are the ones at the receiving end. The woman who was the victim of this gruesome incident was the owner of the resort, which means she was bread earner for her family. The family lost its major support system in a flash due to someone else’s reckless behaviour.
The responsibility to prevent such situations rests with the government. The rise in peddling of drugs in the coastal area is at its peak, which has a ripple effect and leads to many crimes.
On Monday, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in a major operation busted an international drug syndicate in Mumbai and seized Goa-bound cocaine worth a whopping Rs 15 crore. The amount of drugs dispatched to Goa in general is huge. Although the government has frequently denied the peddling of drugs in the State, the data released by police from time to time proves otherwise. The police have busted many such operations, but the burning question is how to entirely uproot the drugs culture. Binge drinking is also a worrying matter and it is not limited only to the coastal area. Cases of drunken driving have become the new norm. The government’s resolution of using alcometers and penalising motorists is simply not enough. Ironically, the government does not even have sufficient alcometers, which means the police inspection is not stringent either. The use of alcometers is also not the only solution to the problem since after penalising, it is obvious that the drunk person will continue to drive the vehicle unless there is another person who can drive present in the vehicle. So what does the use of alcometers achieve?
If alcohol is easily available then it would be consumed easily too. The only solution is to have a complete ban on alcohol, which we all know is impossible. The root-cause is very well known. The question is, what step is the administration ready to take inorder to put a halt to deaths due to drunken driving?
