TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: Goa would soon have a Gaming Commissioner to oversee the functioning of offshore and land casinos, with the Home Department drafting the rules for the recently amended Goa Public Gaming (Amendment) Act. The rules will be framed by month-end.
“We are holding regular meetings with Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar to finalize the rules. They will certainly be ready in the next 15 days,” a senior Home department official said. The casino operations will witness several changes with enforcement of the Rules.
The Goa Public Gambling (Amendment) Bill, 2012 was passed in the Goa Legislative Assembly, in August 2012.
The amendments to the Act will give powers to the State government to appoint even non government servant as a Gaming Commissioner, provided he has knowledge of the field.
The Commissioner will have the powers to regulate overall activities aboard the offshore casino vessels and ensure that all conditions are complied with.
According to section 13(D) under the new amendments which lays down powers, duties and functioning of the commissioner, he will keep a check and exercise overall control over the games conducted in the designated places; maintain register, records and documents including the tickets issued to the customers entering the vessel.
The gaming commissioner is even authorized to order closure, seal any place in a five star hotel or take custody of any vessel, and while exercising this power an inventory of all the seizures has to be maintained.
Similarly, he has been given powers to impose fines and initiate prosecution in case of non-compliance of any Rules made by the government. The new amendments will empower him to decide the place of location for the offshore casinos.
The rules will include all the notifications issued by the State government from time to time right from 1997, when casinos began operations in the State.
State cabinet’s decision to move the casinos out of Mandovi River by 2015 will also be now implemented after these rules are in force. The Gaming Commissioner will have the powers to pass required order quoting the cabinet decision.
“The Rules will limit the area on which off shore casino vessels will be parked. It will also include cabinet decision to move the vessels away from the River Mandovi basin,” the source disclosed.
