Team Herald
PANJIM: The demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes left foreign tourists in the coastal belt stranded as many hotels and restaurants refused to accept the old notes. Tourists said some of the larger hotels and restaurants accepted the notes, whereas others demanded Rs 100 notes for purchases.
It was a bad day for foreign tourists in Goa who landed on Tuesday night and even those who were already holidaying. A British tourist at Anjuna said he is staying at the hotel having meals at the mercy of the hotel owner as the currency notes he had got in exchange on arrival in India were not valid any longer.
Though Indians appreciated the government’s step to curb black money stored in the country, travel agents and foreign currency exchange agents said there is nothing defined in the policy for foreigners who are already in the country.
As such there was lot of inconvenience and some confusion as foreign and local tourists didn’t know how the new system was working.
Anthony Furguson, a British national, said, “We don’t know what to do as we do not have a bank account in India to exchange the currency which we have already purchased. The daily limit to exchange currency is Rs 2000 as per my knowledge.”
A leading travel agent in Panjim said some foreigners were taken advantage of. “They have been paid less than the value of the currency,” the travel agent said.
Foreign tourists leaving the State and seeking to exchange their Indian currency were also at the mercy of foreign exchange agents.
“Many foreign tourists have been stranded in hotels as they cannot move out for food and site seeing because most people are not accepting the notes,” Paatelainen, a Finland national, said.
A Calangute travel agent, however, said this would not impact foreign tourist arrivals who have already booked vacations in Goa. He said the charter season is bright but the ban has come as a slight shadow over it, but it won’t have much of an impact.
Tourist taxis at the airport and the beach belt went off the road on Wednesday morning but returned to the stands by 11 am. While there was no much inconvenience caused to tourists they were being charged round figures of 500 and 100 and no change was returned. Tourists too didn’t bother to ask for change happy to get dropped to their destinations.
“We have given service to tourists who were in Goa and who have arrived in Goa since Tuesday night without hesitating. All tourist taxi operators have accepted notes of 500 and 1000 which will be exchanged once banks accepts them,” Vinayak Nanoskar, General Secretary of North Goa Tourist Taxi Association.
“It’s a very good move to take India towards freedom from one of the biggest economic vice prevalent today. The black market is being disrupted. Short term practical problems apart…will lead to a better India in longer run,” said Yatish Vernekar, Panjim based chartered accountant.
Neither Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar, nor Tourism Director Sanjeev Gauns Dessai were available for their comments on the effect on tourism.
