Panaji, Mar 19: The image of Goa seems to be changing to a 'monsoon destination', from being a popular summer hot-spot till now for vacationers.
This is so because there has been a 60 percent rise in the number of visitors to the coastal state during the rainy season last year, a Goa tourism official said.
Till sometime back, the state, known for its scenic beaches, used to receive foreign tourists mostly in the summer months while the monsoon time was traditionally a lean period.
However, as by data released by the state tourism department last week, there was a 60 percent rise in the number of tourists during the last year's monsoon season - between June and September.
This is a phenomenal rise as compared to 22 percent growth in the number of visitors in the same period in 2016, state tourism director Menino D'Souza said.
A total of 19.15 lakh tourists arrived in Goa last year between June and September, as against 11.93 lakh in 2016 during the same period.
"A total of 18.55 lakh domestic tourists visited the state during the monsoon season last year as compared to 11.48 lakh in 2016. Besides, there were 60,161 foreign tourist footfalls in that period last year as against 45,437 in 2016," D'Souza said.
As per the official data, the state recorded a 30.75 percent growth in tourist arrivals in June last year, 61.44 percent in July, 71.39 percent in August and 94.55 percent in September.
There has been a rise in footfalls because the Goa government is aggressively marketing and promoting the state as a "365-day tourism destination" with a focus on the monsoon months, D'Souza said.
"The monsoon time is now a preferred season for travel by both domestic and foreign tourists. This increasing attraction to the state can be attributed to the pleasant weather conditions during those months, scenic landscapes and adventure activities like white water rafting and trekking," he said.
During the last two to three years, the Goa tourism department has tried to turn the off-season (June to September period) into a bustling time for tourism stakeholders, and the hotel and hospitality industry, he said.
There has been an overwhelming response to activities like monsoon festivals and special packages offered for visits to waterfalls and springs during the rainy season, he added.
The kidnapped schoolboy was rescued by the police and reunited with his parents. Son of a gift shop owner from Basavanagudi area in Bengaluru, Chirag has reportedly told police that decided to make some quick money to spend on cricket betting and gambling after learning kidnap tricks from the ‘Crime Patrol’. According to police, Chirag reached a private school around 3pm on Tuesday on a Bounce rental bike and zeroed in on a fourth standard student who was walking out of school. He told the boy he was his father's friend and that he required help to search for a relative who had gone missing. The boy believed Chirag and rode pillion on the bike. Chirag then engaged the boy in conversation and learnt about his father's business and got his mobile phone number. He then made a call to the boy's father, demanded Rs 5 lakh and warned him against approaching cops. However, the boy's father alerted Cottonpet police and special teams were formed to crack the case. While Cottonpet inspector Venkatesh TC's squad verified CCTV footage in and around the school, Chamarajpet inspector BG Kumaraswamy's team started tracking the suspect's mobile phone movements. An hour later, the suspect's location was traced to a hotel on the Lavelle Road-St Mark's Road stretch. Police rushed there, rescued the boy and arrested Chirag.
Comments
Previous week I saw some news that governor ask govt to shut escort services in Goa.
In summer season Goa will be more HOT..!
Goa popular in all season. There is no offseason.. There they will get escort services and drugs. So tourists liked to go there even in summer season
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