Tourists visiting Goa in show of solidarity

NT NETWORK
Posted on 2008-12-14
PANAJI — Contrary to reports of foreigners leaving Goa or cancelling their scheduled arrival in the state for holidays, the state authorities on Saturday said that a substantial number of tourists have been ‘intentionally’ coming here to show their solidarity towards the country and Goa and to fight terror.
The Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat and the Chief Secretary, Mr J P Singh outright denied that the state has received any letter from the Russian Consul General about the safety of the Russian nationals holidaying in Goa. The Chief Secretary said that the letter received from Russian Consul General had nothing to do with terror threat perception.
The Chief Secretary however said that the Russian officials have in a letter to the state authorities urged the state officials to look into the matter relating to the harassment meted out to the tourists by the taxi drivers, a issue that the state authorities have already taken up on priority and the solution would be found to it in near future by the director of Tourism, Mr Elvis Gomes.
Mr Gomes on the other hand said that there were no reports of Israelis leaving the state in view of threat perception adding further a number of tourists have landed in the state ignoring the reports of terror threats here. He also denied knowledge of any advisory having been issued by the Russian government to its citizens in Goa asking them “to reconsider their travel plans” to the state, as nothing of that sort has been brought to his knowledge by any state official so far.
The Superintendent of Police (North Goa), Mr Bosco George informed that he has no data available with him as regards to arrival of foreign nationals on hand, even as he said that he had no information of the foreigners (including Israelis) leaving Goa in view of threat perception or advisory from the Israeli government. The former president of Travel and Tourism Association of Goa, Mr Charles Bonifacio said that though there has been a fall in the number of tourists coming from some countries like the United Kingdom, the fall to a large extent has been made up by the increased inflow of tourists from Russia.