PANAJI
For months, Goa has been spending a whopping Rs 15 lakh every month to house foreign criminals -- awaiting deportation -- at the government-run detention centre in Mapusa. Despite authorities acknowledging the financial burden, the process of deportation has reportedly been sluggish.
Official records, available with The Goan, confirmed that while 17 foreign nationals are currently detained, only eight were deported in the past four months. Some of those sent back to their home countries, at the cost of the Indian government, were lodged at the facility prior to November 2024.
Among the 17 nationals -- lodged between November 2024 and February 2025, 12 are women inmates -- nine Ugandans, two Tanzanians and one Russian, while the five men include two Nigerians, two Russians and one Lebanese national.
The most recent detainee was Nigerian national Sopuruchi Nlewedim Moses, a drug convict in a 2020 case. As he completed his four-year and six-month sentence period owing to the pendency of the trial, the court directed that he be lodged at the detention center until the appeal period after which the investigating officer and the FRRO must take the necessary steps to deport him.
It is further learnt that deportation formalities for a few are complete but they are stranded for reasons unknown.
Sources revealed that the detention center’s monthly cost breakdown depicts worrying escalating expenses. Salaries for police personnel alone account for Rs 8 lakh and social welfare staff salaries stand at Rs 2 lakh. Additional costs for food, transport and other necessities push the expenditure to Rs 15 lakh approx per month.
Among the total 16 police personnel posted at the facility include police inspectors, sub-inspectors, assistant sub-inspectors, head constables, police constables and guards.
Meanwhile, the facility itself, originally a prison, is reportedly struggling with poor infrastructure and overcrowding.
The Social Welfare Department, which oversees the facility, has been pushing for swift deportations to reduce the burden on taxpayers.
