An international open-water swimming com petition, Oceanman, came to an abrupt halt at Caranzalem beach on Sunday following a tense standoff between organisers and local fisher men who alleged that event organisers had not obtained the necessary permissions. The incident forced the emer gency evacuation of the partici pants, leading to chaos and inju ries among some participants. The situation turned tense when fishermen began cast ing nets in the sea, obstruct ing swimmers mid-race. Par ents and participants alleged that children got en tangled in the nets and suffered minor injuries. “There were about 400 to 500 kids in the sea, and suddenly the fishermen started pull ing their nets. Kids got tangled and sustained injuries. We were clue less about what to do,” said a parent from Mum bai whose child was par ticipating in the event. Another participant, Gaurav from Mumbai, said the organisers failed to communicate with the local fishing community. “The fishermen told us that the organiser neither took permission from them nor gave any notice. When our event started, they began their work. Many children got stuck in the net. The fishermen cooperated with us, but there was no support from the or ganisers,” he said. However, the local fishermen refuted the organisers’ claims. “The organiser has not taken a single per mission from the au thorities. They didn’t even approach us for an NOC. Despite our warn ings, they went ahead with the event. Once the children were out, we asked them to stop,” said a fisherman. The disruption of the event sparked an ger among locals after several vehicles were reportedly parked on the beach, which they claimed was illegal and environmentally damaging.
Locals alleged that the event obstructed their livelihood and violated coastal regulations. Police were contacted to control the situation. However, Kapil Arora, the main organiser of Oceanman Goa, dismissed the allegations, stating that all statutory permissions had been obtained well in advance. “We had permissions from the Captain of Ports, Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA), and the North Goa Collector. We also informed the police and the tourism department. We even paid Rs 1 lakh as a fee to the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA),” Arora said. The participants expressed disappointment over the lack of safety arrangements. “For no reason, the organisers endangered the lives of our children. There was no proper security or guidance. I paid Rs 10,300 for the 10 km swim, while others paid be tween Rs 5,000 and Rs 16,000 depending on the category,” said another parent. The authorities concerned have not issued an official statement on the incident. The abrupt halt of the event has highlighted growing tensions between Goa’s tourism-driv en sports activities and the concerns of local fishing com munities over access, livelihood, and environmental im pact. Francis Vaz, President, Caranzalem Ramponkar Associ ation, said, “Government knows that fishing is done here. The activities are taking place 24×7. I do not know why permissions are being given to the private parties. You are not allowing the people who are working for their families. How can you give permission to carry out activities without informing locals? What is the tourism department doing? Permissions are being given without having knowledge of the sea.” Meanwhile, the Goa Police registered a case against Mumbai-based organiser Kapil Arora for allegedly con ducting the event without obtaining the required permis sions. According to officials, a First Information Report (FIR) was filed at the Panjim Police station based on a com plaint from a participant from Maharashtra’s Thane dis trict. Citing the FIR, police stated that the event, which began around 7 am, lacked proper safety measures, in cluding the deployment of lifeguards or adequate security personnel. Police noted that Arora reportedly collected Rs 3.26 lakh towards registration fees from participants for the event. The preliminary investigation suggests the competition was held without permissions from several authorities, in cluding the police, the district administration, the village panchayat, and the fisheries department. The case has been registered under Section 125(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, a provision addressing an ‘act en dangering life or personal safety of others’.
