‘Happy with relaxations, but awaiting single-window nod’

Times of India | 6 days ago | 05-08-2022 | 02:40 am

‘Happy with relaxations, but awaiting single-window nod’

Panaji: While the Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) on Wednesday expressed satisfaction that the tourism department has reduced the number of documents needed to be submitted by any tourist-related business at the time of fresh registration or renewal, it awaits a single-window clearance system and not “windows within the window”.“We are very happy that our long-pending demand to remove hurdles in registering or renewing tourist services has been granted,” said TTAG president Nilesh Shah, but pointed out that a single-window clearance for all tourist trades would herald a relief in the real sense. He also suggested that the efficiency of such a system could be monitored by the tourism department every three months. Shah nevertheless said the latest relaxations by the tourism department are indeed a big relief that will save new and young business people from having to run from pillar to post to obtain certification or clearances from other government departments before they approach the tourism department for registrations or licence renewals. “With businesses now required to submit fewer documents, illegal operations will also reduce. Earlier, some operators, after realising that they had to follow a long process to get registrations done, would bypass the system and operate illegally,” Shah said.The order, issued by tourism director Nikhil Desai on Tuesday, stated that tourism trades will have to obtain a registration or renewal certificate, as the case may be, within 15 days, and if found operating illegally, the premises will be sealed, and penalty imposed as provided under the provision of the Goa Registration of Tourist Trade Act, 1982.A South Goa hotelier, said that once a single-window clearance for events is introduced, the police and village panchayats concerned should refrain from barging into venues and harassing the organisers unless there are complaints of major violations. This issue crops up frequently at beach weddings, the hotelier said, despite a single clearance from the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority sufficing for such events. “Even after permission from the GCZMA is obtained, there is no guarantee that the panchayat will not come claiming its pound of flesh. If not the panchayat, the police pay a visit seeking to know if the hotel has permission for sound,” the hotelier said.

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