Goa Government Forms Special Team to Inspect Casinos

The state government of Goa has formed a special team to inspect the carrying capacity of offshore casinos in the state. The mandate of the special team also allows them to inspect onshore Star hotel casinos in Goa.

The team has been constituted after the government suffered losses in revenue due to some offshore casino operators allegedly reporting false capacities of their vessels. The special team will inspect Goa casinos for compliance to the conditions set under issuance of their licenses from the Home Department.

The inspection team will be led by Under Secretary of the Home Department. Its other members will include officers from Commercial Taxes and Goa State Pollution Control Board, an Assistant Engineer from the Public Works Department and a police inspector of the concerned area.

The casino industry in Goa has been around for over two decades. The state’s government has made several promises to shift offshore casinos to an alternative location and to enact a comprehensive policy for regulating casinos in the state. In September 2019, offshore casinos were granted an extension of six months to operate in the River Mandovi till March 31, 2020.