PANAJI
A clutch of tourism-oriented commercial establishments across Goa, right from beach shacks to hotels, resorts, restaurants, and homestays, have been operating without mandatory fire safety compliance.
Official figures placed before the Goa Legislative Assembly show that, despite repeated claims about safe tourism infrastructure, several establishments function each year without a Fire Safety No Objection Certificate (NOC), a compulsory requirement under law.
Beach shacks -- termed as prime ambassadors of Goa tourism -- present the sharpest red flag. In 2023, the Fire Department issued only 222 fire safety NOCs to shacks, even as the Tourism Department, in 2023, increased its number from 254 to 259 in North Goa alone, citing the beach carrying capacity report of the GCZMA.
Across both districts, the number of shacks approved for the 2023–26 tourist seasons stands at 364 (259 in North Goa, 105 in South Goa). The NOC figures do not match this scale of operations with one each in 2021 and 2022, 222 NOCs in 2023, a drop to 194 in 2024 and 232 fire NOCs last calendar year.
Hotels and guest houses, which together host the bulk of Goa’s visitors, also lagged significantly in compliance, as per the figures tabled in the assembly.
In 2023, only 168 hotels and 2,012 guest houses obtained fire safety clearance. The numbers in 2024 saw NOCs issued to 300 hotels but for guest houses it dipped to 1,624, before falling further in 2025 to 291 hotels and 1,479 guest houses.
Several restaurants saw NOCs rising from 159 in 2021 to 905 in 2024, even as the total number of restaurants and eateries across Goa is not revealed.
Only seven home stays secured NOCs in 2023, followed by two in 2024 and none in 2025, according to the tabled reply.
Resorts, too, showed poor compliance with zero NOCs in 2024 and 2025.
The revelation comes barely days after the State announced that Goa had welcomed 1.08 crore tourists in 2025, and December 2025 witnessed a horrific fire at Birch by Romeo Lane that claimed 25 lives. The establishment did not have any fire safety measures in place.
Statutory compliance, tabled in the House, stated that all occupancies shall obtain and maintain a Fire No Objection Certificate as required under the Goa Fire Force Act 1986 & Rules 1997.
"Compliance with fire safety is mandatory, including provisions related to fire prevention, building services, egress design, active fire protection systems, and life-safety features. Any modifications to building layouts, structural elements, and interior works, fire systems or means of escape must be intimated to DFES for approval prior to execution," the note reads adding, "Establishments must maintain updated records such as maintenance of logs, fire drill registers, electrical audit certificates, and equipment service reports for inspection. Trade licenses and occupancy certificates shall remain valid only when supported by current fire clearance."
