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PANJIM: Corporators of the Corporation of the City of Panaji, on Friday unanimously resolved that the civic body should seal all casino offices within its jurisdiction, pushing for the removal of casinos from the River Mandovi where they are anchored. All 29 corporators said the casinos create traffic congestion and are supposed to be off-shore casinos and should therefore be anchored 12 nautical miles from the shore.
Mayor Surendra Furtado reacting to complaints from corporators that the floating casinos were supposed to be offshore casinos and their present location was aggravating the traffic problem in the city, said that he would send a notice to the commissioner to seal all the offices if there was support from all councillors. When 29 corporators stood up, the mayor resolved that the notice would be sent Saturday itself.
Earlier, corporator Kabir Pinto Makhija raised the casino parking topic pointing out that parking for residents was being blocked by vehicles belonging to casino staff and that sewage and garbage was being dumped into the river. He desired that the casinos be removed from the mouth of the river and sent 12 nautical miles into the sea.
However, his colleague from the ruling council, Rudresh Chodankar was of the opinion that casinos should be allowed as long they are properly monitored.
People at large as well as activists have been shouting hoarse over the nuisance, both physical and moral caused by casinos to Goa and its youth.
Speaking to the media after the meeting , the mayor said that the police were not cooperating with them and that he had spoken to one of the top officers a couple of days back and he had expressed his inability to do much and was waiting for the pay parking proposal to sort out the issue.
Meanwhile the CCP got an unlikely ally from right wing Hindu Janajagruti Samiti
Convenor Dr Manoj Solanki addressed a letter asking the chief minister if there has been any notice issued to casino owners to remove their casinos from Mandovi River.
They also wanted to know about the action plan to make Goa casino free and pointed out that one of the owners of a casino was Gopal Kanda, former Haryana minister who is accused in the suicide of one of his female employees and is presently in jail .
