With Quitol as a proposed venue for the EDM festival Sunburn, the state government faced criticism for promoting the event often associated with drug culture and contradicting Goa’s cultural and traditional values. Goa’s traditional festivals like Carnival and Shigmo, which have been celebrated for several decades, can in no way be compared to the controversy-ridden Sunburn festival. Subsequently the Goa Industrial development Corporation (GIDC) rejected Quitol as the venue for the music festival. This is a victory of the people of Goa and of South Goa in particular. No single political party can claim credit for preventing the festival from being held at Quitol. Be that as it may, it must be said that the battle has been won but the war is far from over. However, it is pertinent to note that several leaders, social activists and the general public have protested against holding the festival anywhere in Goa, be it in North or South Goa. Last year, the organizers of the music festival had publicly stated that it would never again return to Goa. They should stick to this stand.
