AUGUSTO RODRIGUES
ASKAWADA, MANDREM: After O Heraldo campaign forced the organisers to move the Karacus Marakus Festival, away from Dream Beach, a turtle nesting site at Ozrant, Pralayah Records on Sunday announced a Mahashivratri after-party at the site on February 26, leaving green activists fuming.
“Mark your calendars for the spectacular Mahashivaratri celebration in 2025! This official KM X after party will be held one week after the main festival concludes. Kindly make sure to keep your festival bands safe and sound so you have smooth access to this afterparty, next Mahashivaratri at the only and only Dream Beach Goa,” reads the social media post released by the organisers.
“It will be a disaster if they think of having any party on Dream Beach because the law not only protects the turtles, but it extends to save the turtle habitat. It prevents any sort of activity in the area,” said retired Capt Gerald J Fernandes, recipient of the first Wildlife Conservation Award.
The Karacus Marakus Festival, which was moved to Mozogao in Mandrem on Saturday, as the organisers got no permission to host it at Echo in Ozrant and was not allowed to start by the Mandrem police, “ in view of the Supreme Court ban of playing music after 10 pm.”
An astonished Capt Fernandes asked: “How could they have thought of starting their party after 10 pm when the Supreme Court of India bans music in the open after 10 pm?”
As the organisers failed to get permission to play in Mandrem, they released the following message through their social media handle: “Big shout out to @semaluna decorfor going above and beyond to set up that incredible stage three times! We truly appreciate all the hard work you put in every night, from the beach moving to different venues and working tirelessly for the all. Your dedication and passion shine through, despite the obstacles.”
The festival, read their social media post, stands “postponed” with enthusiasts asked to be ready for the new date and venue.
“Their posts on social media are clear indications that they care a damn for turtles and us Goans. When their festival was cancelled at Dream Beach they said that there was no evidence of turtle nesting thereby indicating that what we saw and what the Forest Department recorded was wrong, “ fumed herpetologist Aaron Fernandes.
The organisers could not get permission to host the festival at Dream Beach because it is an Olive Ridley turtle nesting site with records of turtles walking ashore to nest with the Forest Department since the last many years.
Last year, 17 turtles walked ashore and laid 1,515 eggs, prompting the locals to write to the Forest Department on March 23, 2024 to declare the beach as a turtle nesting site.
“This is terrible; I hope this is not allowed to go ahead. Our destruction of the small blue ball continues and it won’t end until we realise it’s too late. Such a decision to hold an event where these baby turtles hatch is so against the vibe, atmosphere and message that psychedelic culture stands for,” wrote timo _theus on social media.
“They first try to have the festival at a turtle nesting site and then try to move it to a place that has closure notice, which has been notified to the High Court of Bombay at Goa and then announce that they will have it in Mandrem after the time stipulated by the Supreme Court of India. It looks like these guys think they are above our judiciary,” said a shocked Agnes D’Souza from Anjuna.
“Music can be played after 10 pm only in places that are soundproof and none of the places selected by the organisers of this festival were soundproof. So, expecting to play after 10 pm is out of the box,” claimed crusader against noise pollution Dr Inacio Fernandes.