Ouster of offshore casinos tops Goa Shiv Sena’s poll agenda

July 30th, 2009 PANAJI - In a collective response to the "tough" measures proposed in Goa's additional budget 2009-10, the offshore casino industry has objected to the proposed 10-fold increase in the entry fee to casino vessels from Rs.200 to Rs.2,000. In a memorandum submitted to Chief Minister Digambar Kamat and leader of opposition Manohar Parrikar Monday, the Association of Offshore Casinos (AOC) has asked the government to whittle down the proposed enhanced entry fee from Rs.2,000 to Rs.500.

July 21st, 2009 PANAJI - Once known as a hot-spot for hippies, Goa's new found reputation as a gambling destination appears to be catching on fast. In financial year 2008-09, nearly 121,000 gamblers visited the state's five offshore casinos.

July 4th, 2009 PANAJI - Activists in Goa have urged the government to ban offshore and onshore casinos in the state - like Russia which outlawed gambling houses Wednesday. Offshore and onshore casinos have been the subject of controversy over the past year after the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and civil society groups vehemently opposed them on grounds of moral and socio-economic degradation.

June 23rd, 2009 PANAJI - The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Goa Tuesday watered down its aggressive 'no-casino' policy, saying it opposes offshore casinos but onshore casinos were a "necessary evil" for the sake of tourism in the state. "We are completely opposed to offshore casinos.

June 22nd, 2009 PANAJI - After training its guns on the Congress-led coalition in Goa for allowing both offshore and onshore casinos to run amok, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) now finds itself in the crosshair of an onshore casino operator. Update Recreation and Gaming Private Ltd (URGPL), a firm which operates mechanised casinos in several five-star resorts in Goa, has accused leader of opposition Manohar Parrikar of pandering to the offshore casino lobby during his tenure as chief minister.

June 3rd, 2009 PANAJI - The standoff between the offshore casino operators and the Goa administration continues with the former refusing to budge from the river Mandovi, off Panaji. While the captain of ports department, which oversees all minor ports in the state, has asked the offshore casino operators to move out of the river by June 8, Narendra Punj spokesperson for the Association of Offshore Casino (AOC) said that the vessels would stay put.

May 11th, 2009 PANAJI - The Goa government is forcing offshore casinos to move their vessels out of the Mandovi river and park them into a bay 'known for choppy seas and unstable navigation conditions', casino operators said Monday. The 'ill-conceived' cabinet decision to move the casino vessels into the Aguada bay was enforced on the Captain of Ports (CoP) department, which overlooks Goa's minor ports along the various water bodies, Srinivas Nair of the Association of Offshor Casinos (AOC) told reporters.

May 6th, 2009 PANAJI - Casino operators in Goa have decided to collectively stave off the sustained pressure heaped on them by civil society groups and political parties, who want offshore casino vessels to sail away from the state. John Snowball, spokesperson for the newly formed Association of Offshore Casino Operators (AOCO), said the recent protests against the casinos were only 'political noises' made before the elections.

March 25th, 2009 PANAJI - The Goa government Tuesday sealed three offshore casinos, which were under the scanner for violating pollution norms. The casinos - Rio, Caravela and Maharaja - had failed to obtain the necessary licence from the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB).

March 20th, 2009 PANAJI - The Goa government, which has for many weeks been plagued by a controversy over the granting of licences to offshore casinos, announced Thursday that it will appoint a 'gaming commission' to regulate gambling in the casinos. 'We will issue an ordinance to appoint a gaming commission soon,' Home Minister Ravi Naik told reporters here.

March 20th, 2009 PANAJI - The Congress' Goa unit does not have a problem in opening up the state's coast to several more offshore casinos, as long as the vessels are berthed in the Arabian Sea, a party spokesperson Thursday said. Addressing a press conference, party spokesman Vishnu Wagh said that the Congress was for the offshore casino industry, as long as the common man was not affected.

March 18th, 2009 PANAJI - Goa Chief Minister Digambar Kamat Tuesday denied the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) charge that senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel had asked him to raise the ceiling on the number of offshore casinos in the state. 'Neither Ahmed Patel, nor any other Congressman from Delhi called me in connection with any casino related matter,' Kamat told a press conference here.

March 7th, 2009 PANAJI - Offshore casinos in Goa do not conform to the definition of the term 'offshore' accepted by the global shipping community, which is 12 nautical miles from the shore, a shipping expert said Friday. Speaking on the sidelines of an event here to mark the launch of an international shipping company, former director of the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) Captain Taru Hazari said the word offshore automatically meant that the casino ships should be anchored at least 12 nautical miles from the shore.

February 25th, 2009 PANAJI - The six offshore casino-ships docked in the Mandovi river have been ordered off city limits within 15 days, Goa Chief Minister Digambar Kamat Tuesday said. Speaking to reporters during a post cabinet briefing, Kamat said the government will also set up a gaming commission within three months to regulate gambling in both off shore and onshore casinos operating in Goa.

February 4th, 2009 PANAJI - After alleging fraud and corruption in the licensing for offshore casinos, the opposition has accused the controversial offshore gambling vessel managements of dumping untreated sewage in the Mandovi river. Speaking during question hour, Leader of Opposition Manohar Parrikar said the half a dozen casino vessels parked in the Mandovi river have no sewage disposal systems in place.