Team Herald
CALANGUTE: Panjim coastal police station staff on Monday conducted random checking of documents of watersports operators at Calangute-Baga beach for effective and smooth functioning.
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The action comes in the wake of the Christmas Day watersports tragedy when an overloaded boat overturned at the Calangute beach, causing the death of one tourist from Khed, Ratnagiri, Maharashtra.
Coastal PI Ajit Umarye said they have launched a drive to create awareness about the safety of tourists. The owners of watersports boats operating from the Bardez coastal belt including Coco Beach in Nerul, Sinquerim, Candolim and Calangute- Baga beach have been cautioned about the safety measures to be taken for tourist visitors, police said.
More than 20 tourists were rescued by lifesavers when the overloaded tourist boat capsized in the waters on Christmas Day.
The Captain of Ports has suspended the operating NOC of the boat involved in the accident, GOA-824-WS, registered in the name of Meena Coutinho with the police registering an offence against Coutinho. Two crew members of the watersports boat were also arrested by the coastal police.
It was the second incident of a boat capsizing in Calangute since the start of the new tourist season. On October 10, alert lifeguards averted a major tragedy when a boat carrying a group of 12 tourists from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh for a joyride at Baga beach, overturned throwing them into the sea. Two of the tourists were admitted in hospitals. However, there
were no deaths.
