THOMAS FERNANDES
CALANGUTE
Nightlife along Calangute’s coast was once considered a minor, but tolerable, annoyance. Now, it has turned into an alarming problem threatening life and property in the area.
What has added to the general anger among residents is the indifferent attitude of the police in tackling the growing number of reckless driving incidents and road mishaps.
Hitting out at the “nonsense being permitted in the State”, Calangute MLA Michael Lobo has said the image of tourism has been tarnished by drunken driving and utter disregard for laws of the land.
Mishaps in the wee hours of the day, like the one near the Mother Mary Haven at Naikka Vaddo, Calangute, have been occurring almost every weekend either due to rash/negligent and drunken driving in the past few weeks, but luckily there has been no loss of life.
Vehicles have been badly damaged due to accidents, but the injuries have gone either unnoticed or unreported to avoid punishment from law enforcement authorities.
Local motorists live in constant fear as they travel along the main roads of Calangute and surrounding villages at night or early morning.
“There have been accidents at regular intervals along the CHOGM road from St Alex Church, Calangute, to Calangute Police Station late night or in the early hours of morning. On a few occasions, the vehicles have been damaged beyond repair. Roads of Calangute are no longer safe for us,” Fernandes said.
A local disclosed an incident last week that left passersby shocked in the area. “I had gone to collect my newspaper from the Calangute market at about 6 am, when a Tamil Nadu registered vehicle came zigzag on the road and fearing that driver was drunk, I ran to the side. The car stopped in the middle of the road and after sometime, the driver switched on the cabin light.”
“There were two topless girls, one near the driver and other at the back seat. They raised an alarm and tried to put their clothes. The driver quickly switched off the lights and sped towards Calangute beach. Those people who had come to collect newspapers or milk remained silent spectators, but nobody bothered to do anything. I too did not bother to approach the car as no one was willing to come forward and there was no point in alerting the police. Unfortunately, I missed noting the registration number of the vehicle,” the resident said. “Is this the type of tourism we want in Goa,” he asked.
When contacted, Calangute MLA Michael Lobo admitted there has been a lack of disciplined driving along roads in his constituency.
“The police should be very strict and should not permit drunken driving or rash and negligent driving. Tourists should not be allowed to drink beer or liquor bottles in their vehicles and drive their vehicles. Police officials should direct and guide the new recruits regarding their duties and responsibilities to enforce strict traffic discipline,” remarked Lobo. “Often, we find policemen merely standing along the roadside, unaware of their duties.”
Suggesting a set of “dos and don’ts”, Lobo said: “The Calangute police should punish those found drinking and driving. The police should also prohibit nudism and people indecently clad in vehicles.”
“Tourists cannot do similar things in their own States, so why do we permit such nonsense in our State and tarnish the image of tourism,” asked the MLA.
In a bid to defend his men, Calangute Police Inspector Rajesh Kumar claimed that drinking on the beach front “has been brought under control to a large extent with the presence of policemen at Calangute beach”.
“The police have been able to control drinking on Calangute beach despites three liquor outlets right on the beach. It is, however, not possible to have complete control on drunken driving in cars, etc.”
Responding to strict action on indecently clad people in cars, PI Kimar said: “Such type of incidents have not been reported to the Calangute Police Station.”
