TEAM HERALD
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PANJIM: The tourism industry in Goa is likely to hard hit with the National Green tribunal (NGT) order which has put around 75 percent of restaurants, bars and shacks, operating without the ‘Consent to Operate’ under the Air and Water Act.
On the industrial front too, a meeting of the sub committee headed by Industries Director, formed to identify the number of industries running without consent observed that there are around 2000 industries of the total 4000 which do not have the required consent.
Meanwhile, the tourism and hotel industry stakeholders said that while standard and starred hotels have necessary consent to operate, shacks, bars, and restaurants which form the backbone of the state’s hotel infrastructure and caters to the tourism industry could be hit by the order as they are running without any valid consent, said Gaurish Dhond, president Hotel and Restaurant association.
Dhond elaborated that there are around 2500 bars and restaurants of which only 700 are operating with valid consent to operate. In case of standard hotels, all 400 have obtained necessary permissions and consent from the authorities, he said.
Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) spokesman Ralph D’Souza said ‘the standard and starred hotels run with the required consent. Being big hotels, they are bound to take permissions under the Water and Air act’. “NGT order will not have any impact on them,” he added.
As per NGT order, Goa State Pollution Control Board has been asked to file an action taken report within three weeks on industries including small, medium and large industries found operating without consent.
The GSPCB will discuss the order passed by the NGT at its board meeting on Monday.
