Team Herald
PANJIM: The State government is contemplating reconsidering fees levied on Electronic Dance Music (EDM) festivals after failing to receive any proposal for hosting the entertainment events along the beach belt this year.
While the country’s first and biggest EDM Sunburn is holding its event in Pune for the third consecutive year, there is no word from other organizers like Supersonic or Time Out 72 as well.
Tourism Minister Manohar Azgaonkar is keen on having the EDMs back in the State but not by losing revenue for the government. He is nonetheless open to considering applications for fees modifications. “We haven’t received any application for EDMs or changing of fee structure. If there is any proposal for reduction in fees, we might consider it because the State needs music and dance. Such events attract more tourists to Goa,” Azgaonkar said speaking to Herald.
With EDMs turning their back towards Goa due to a hike in fees, Sunburn organizers have expressed disappointment over government’s laxity in resolving issues like tax on complimentary passes and charges for police bandobast in and around the festival venue.
“We have tried everything to resolve issues between us and the government. We have made ample number of representations to the Chief Minister, Tourism Minister and the Secretary but there is no reply from them,” one of the members of Percept Live was quoted as saying in Herald last week. Percept, that shifted to Pune in 2015 after differences with the Goa government, has refused to pay sudden fourfold increase of fees charged by Goa Police for providing bandobast, claiming it was without any notice.
Herald asked the minister if it contemplated to relax the fees, to which Azgaonkar declined stating, “We want EDMs but not by causing loss to the State exchequer. Let them pay the fees and come back to Goa.”
The tourism stakeholders have also criticized the government for the exorbitant hike in the fee structure besides imposing separate hike in fees for providing police security at the event venues. Travel and Tourism Association of Goa has raised apprehensions that arrivals in the State will further dip without EDMs and blamed that tedious policy of granting permission was also driving away such shows from Goa.
“Formed in 2012, the State Level Permission Committee is anything but single window. Then they levied something called the tourism fees, the first of its kind wherein the tourism board instead of providing benefits/sops actually charged a fee as high as Rs crore from these promoters. In addition, it demanded a security which never gets returned. The SLPC just became one more committee for permission in addition to all the permissions that were required,” said one of them adding, “It was sunburn first that shifted out of Goa after hosting the event on mega scale for 9 years, after which supersonic exited the State and finally Time Out in just one year.”
