Responsible tourism, regenerative tourism, environmental restoration, community empowerment, cultural preservation. These were some of the terms that were bandied about during the various events that were held to commemorate World Tourism Day the past week. And for good reason. Goa -- quite like many other parts of the world like destinations in Spain, Portugal and many others -- has been pushing back against overrun by tourists.
Be it the opposition to Sunburn ranging from villages of south Goa to now Camurlim in the north, to the fight against loud, late night parties in Anjuna, Vagator and Ozrant, the season so far has been marked by villages in Goa rising up against ‘overtourism’.
Not too long ago, the villagers of Parra had voiced their angst over the capture of the ‘maddani’ coconut tree road by Instagram influencers and the village panchayat of Calangute proposed a ‘tourist fee’ to those bringing in outside vehicles to the state. The residents of Fontainhas and their constant battles with the tourists is also well documented.
With this scenario then, what if anything, do the Goa government’s words mean when they talk of regenerative tourism and associated principles. It is well known that tourism is the backbone of Goa’s economy. It’s the only industry we have, and has over the years helped locals build their own businesses, and brought employment to hundreds of families from shack owners, guest house owners, taxi owners and the like. However, if one kills the golden goose via overtourism, the consequences for Goa would be catastrophic.
Terms like regenerative tourism, then, are used not so much as a means to save Goa, but rather to save the state’s tourism industry in an effort to keep the industry alive in a world where exploitation is the name of the game. What exactly does the government mean when it says ‘regenerative tourism’. It isn’t really clear, less so for other terms like community empowerment, environmental restoration, etc.
No doubt there are several niche tourism providers who focus on giving the tourist the right experience beyond the regular beach and party circuit that most tourists take. However, this is in addition to, not instead of, the existing mainstream tourism that continues to populate the coastal belt.
In effect, what this means is that rather than becoming sustainable, tourism is expanding into hinterland areas and in the process occupying more and more area. Just as the beaches of Goa were once, several decades ago, considered idyllic, off the beaten path and allowed visitors to participate in community empowerment and cultural preservation. Does this mean that the fate the coastal villages face today, the hinterlands will face tomorrow?
It is imperative that the government makes its intentions clear what it means when it uses terms like regenerative tourism. If it only means getting some people to move to the hinterlands so that even more people can visit the beaches, it hardly does justice to the term or to the cause of Goa’s tourism industry’s survival.
Instead, it would be most helpful if the government releases a sustainable tourism policy with a clear roadmap on how to implement it -- be it through restrictions on use of personal vehicles, a tourist tax or follow the example of some European destinations which have put in place a limit as to the number of tourists that can visit a place on a given day. Everything else will just be empty words.
