PORVORIM: Leader of the Opposition Yuri Alemao on Wednesday in the Legislative Assembly questioned the government for nominating the National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR) University of Law to draft the proposed Goa Tourism Promotion, Management and Regulation Bill 2024, even though the Goa Tourism Board had objected to outsourcing the drafting of laws to an external private agency.
Yuri stated that the Tourism Department was spending Rs 1.37 crore on a Hyderabad-based agency, which had no expertise on the subject. Replying to a starred question jointly tabled by MLAs Yuri Alemao, Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco, Adv Carlos Alvares Ferreira, Venzy Viegas, and Altone D’Costa, Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte said that it was the Law Department which had raised the objections and that only Rs 41 lakh had been paid in the first phase, to which Yuri claimed that Rs 91 lakh was to be paid in the second phase.
Yuri pointed out that NALSAR University of Law had drafted Bills related to merchant shipping, etc., but not on tourism. The Minister explained that NALSAR University of Law would only prepare the report, which would then be submitted to the Law Department for drafting the law. All the suggestions and feedback received on the draft Bill are being examined by the legal consultant.
Khaunte further clarified that the Bill for the second phase is still in drafts, and the rules and financial code have not yet been finalised.
He also informed Yuri that as many as 49 stakeholders/public had submitted their suggestions, comments, and objections to the draft Bill, which are currently under scrutiny for compiling replies and clarifications.
The draft Bill is a forward-thinking initiative designed to enhance the tourism experience in Goa while safeguarding the State’s natural and cultural assets, the Minister added.
The verbal spat between the Leader of the Opposition and the Tourism Minister, however, remained inconclusive as the question hour ended.