PANAJI
PWD Minister Sudin Dhavalikar who is holding fort as leader of the House in the absence of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has announced that the state government is drafting a policy to move casinos to locations surrounding the new airport where an entertainment zone is expected to be set up.
While Dhavalikar didn’t specify Mopa, he confirmed the government’s plans to have an entertainment zone at Mopa. “On casinos, we have formulated a policy. Some locations have been allotted at the new airport for an entertainment zone. This was done before, not now. How this will be implemented will have to be seen,” Dhavalikar said.
In July last year, while speaking at the budget session of the assembly, Chief Minister informed the house that the mind of the government was to move the casinos to an entertainment zone on land. He did not specify where the zone would be.
Parrikar had said, “In three years time, the casinos in the river will cease to exist. There will be an amendment to the act where the vessel portion will be extinguished at a particular (designated) date. If the person wants, he can shift to the land at an entertainment zone identified for the purpose.”
“I will amend the law not to permit operation of a casino on a vessel. It will be shifted to a special zone. That clause of allowing casinos and live gaming on board vessels will cease to exist from a particular date. Casinos will have to shift to a gaming zone,” Parrikar had assured.
While it was long suspected that the zone would be set up around the Mopa airport, this is the first time the the government has officially admitted that it was thinking of Mopa.
