PANJIM: The Department of Tourism has imposed a penalty of Rs 10 lakh on an allottee, who was found to have sublet a shack allotted to him at Calangute to a third party.
In an order, Director of Tourism Suneel Anchipaka has asked Raymond Zeno Fernandes of Sautavaddo, Calangute to deposit the penalty within seven days of receipt of the order.
If he failed to deposit the penalty, it would be recovered as arrears of land revenue. The Director has also ordered that a security deposit be forfeited.
Fernandes was allotted the shack under the Tourism Shack Policy 2019-2022, which was later extended to 2022-2023. However, after an inquiry, the Department of Tourism found that Fernandes had sublet the shack to one John Lobo, Secretary of the Shack Owners’ Welfare Society (SOWS). Lobo was an unsuccessful shack allottee in the Tourism Shack Policy 2019-2022.
The matter came to light when the Department of Tourism conducted an inquiry into the allegation of Lobo that individuals working with the department extort money and visit beach areas on Fridays, Saturday and Sundays.
Lobo said in a video, uploaded on social media platforms, that his shack was sealed by the Bardez Mamlatdar despite having a valid permission from the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB). He claimed that due to the sealing, he suffered a loss of Rs 7-8 lakhs.
However, the inquiry revealed that no shack was allotted to Lobo under the tourism policy. The tourism department had appointed Assistant Director of Tourism Rodlin Mascarenhas as the inquiry officer.
Lobo, admitted in his statement recorded on July 7, 2023, that he was not the successful shack allottee as per the Beach Shack Policy 2019-22, while Raymond Zeno Fernandes was successful in getting the allotment.
Lobo was operating the shack along with Fernandes and they were sharing profits, Lobo told the inquiry officer.
The Department of Tourism issued a show cause notice to Fernandes asking him why action should not be taken against him for violating rules of the policy. Fernandes submitted his reply but the Department of Tourism found the reply unsatisfactory and not in consonance with the terms and conditions of the Tourism Shack Policy 2019-2022.
When contacted, Shack Owners’ Welfare Society president Cruz Cardozo said, “We are against subletting of beach shacks. Something went wrong in the shack allotted to Fernandes.”
