The chewing of Gutka and Pan masala has already been banned in Goa. The smoking ban was also implemented some time back in the state and now the government has decided to put the ban on consumption of liquor in the public.
The ban on the products that are causing the public nuisance is very much necessary, especially in the place like Goa. According to the news published by the PTI news agency, the government of Goa is in the process of banning the consumption of liquor in public places to avoid the nuisance.
According to the sources, these measures are taken to avoid the public rage. “There are multiple complaints from the residents of Goa who faced the nuisance of liquor consumption in public places. That also leads to the littering and other nuisance. To implement the new regulation the existing excise law needs an amendment,” said the excise commissioner of Goa Menino D’souza.
According to him, the state excise department will be taking the steps to amend the Goa, Daman and Diu Excise Act, 1964 which would give the powers to the department officials to punish the offenders. He also informed that the committee has been already formed to review the existing excise law.
Based on the information provided by the sources, there are around 332 wholesale liquor shops in Goa. The department of tourism has already amended the Goa Tourist Places (Protection and Maintenance) Act to keep the check on the nuisance created by drunken people at the tourist places in Goa.
According to the guidelines set by the department, the tourist places are defined as Beaches and other places of importance. They have deployed the IRB (Indian Reserve Battalion) of Goa police to keep watch on the activities and to take an appropriate action against those found drinking in the public places. The tourism department was forced to take the steps since they discovered the errant tourists drinking and breaking the bottles on the beaches which amounted to several injuries.
According to Mr. D’souza, the ban needs to be implemented in the balanced manner whereby the families who go out on picnic and drink in open spaces should be kept out of the purview of this amendment; according to him, they do not create any nuisance.
The ban on the liquor consumption will also have the duration of time mentioned and during that time, the consumption of liquor will be considered as illegal. “We can even restrict the timings so that there is a control (on the problem),” he said. According to Mr. D’souza the shops selling the cheap liquor on wholesale basis have mushroomed in the state and this has resulted in to increase the problems of nuisance by drunkards.
There is no doubt that the Goa needs this ban but keeping the door open for the purpose of picnic and other family activities where the drinking in public places is involved will only lead to the confusion at the end. Only the time will decide the effectiveness of the implementation of the new Act. Meanwhile you please leave your valuable comments and suggestions on this issue.
Source: PTI
