Goa BJP MLA Atanasio Monserratte has demanded that all offshore vessels located at the Mandovi river in Panaji be relocated to the Calangute area
Panaji: Speaking at the Goa legislative Assembly on Friday, BJP MLA Atanasio Monserratte demanded that offshore casinos located at the Mandovi river in Panaji be shifted.
The BJP MLA suggested that the casinos could be moved to Calangute area.
The Panaji MLA, who joined the BJP recently, was speaking after ports minister Michael Lobo tabled `demands for grants' of his department.
"I had promised to the people of Panaji to shift the casinos out of River Mandovi, and I stand by my promise. I will not rest till then," Monserratte said.
The offshore casino lobby seemed to have privatised the jetties, which come under the Ports and Fisheries Department, to transport casino visitors to the vessels, he said.
"Today, you say casinos generate income for the state, you can take them to your constituency (Calangute) as it is in the tourism belt," he said to Lobo.
The casinos have created a "mess" in the state capital, he added, asking why the captain of ports allowed them to take over the jetties.
"It is the bureaucracy who are patronizing the casinos," the BJP MLA alleged.
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