PANAJI: While the state government is yet to decide on when to permit the hospitality industry to reopen, tourism minister Manohar Ajgaonkar called for resumption of the sector only after people are fully vaccinated.
He, however, said that if operations were to restart in the near future, they would be permitted only if protocols introduced by the government are properly followed.
“It is my suggestion that tourists who have taken both vaccine doses be allowed entry.
The people of the state also need to be fully vaccinated for the industry to open.
We don’t know how long this will take, but if the government opens the sector shortly with SOPs in place, I will support the move,” Ajgaonkar told TOI on Thursday, even as he confirmed that no discussions have taken place so far to decide when Goa should throw open its tourism sector.
The minister also said there is a fear that delays in resuming tourism may deprive Goa of its share of visitors as rival destination Kerala has slowly begun reopening for business.
“Tourists looking to come to Goa may visit Kerala instead if we continue to keep our tourism sector closed,” he said.
Goa receives domestic tourists mainly from the metros, with the majority arriving from neighbouring Maharashtra.
While the state usually sees increased footfalls during weekends and extended weekends, the trend weakened after March as the lethal second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic engulfed the country.
Fresh infections began reducing only after mid-May, the month in which the Goa government belatedly imposed entry restrictions following the intervention of the high court of Bombay at Goa.
The Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG), said trades will have to find a way to function while adhering to the restrictions imposed.
Its president Nilesh Shah, suggested the setting up of kiosks at entry points to allow travellers to get themselves tested speedily in case they do not carry Covid-19 negative certificates.