Two people who had gone to enjoy a picnic recently lost their lives in the swirling waters of the Mainapi waterfall in Netravali. It is observed that at many tourist spots and beaches, despite signboards and lifeguards warning tourists not to venture into deep waters / rough seas many foolhardy visitors do so for plain showboating.
It is learnt that the GTDC ic planning for purportedly sustainable 'monsoon tourism' woven around waterfalls in the forest areas of the Western Ghats. In the 6 wildlife sanctuaries and the sole national park, nature camping sites, night trekking and animal safaris are being envisaged besides a host of other activities. Our Forest Minister Vishwajit Rane is pretty gung ho about such schemes citing the Gujarat model often to justify hinterland tourism activities. Gujarat at 196,000 sq km has 53 times the land area of Goa (which is a measly 3,700 sq km ), the former can sustain large tourism operations unlike our small state. Goa as it is, is already overrun with visitors throughout the year, why add more numbers which would destroy the fragile ecosystem and biodiversity in our forests.
