Goa to allow 5 off-shore casinos to promote tourism: CM

Panaji, Aug 25 (UNI) Justifying his government's decision to issue licences to run off-shore casinos to promote high-end tourism, Goa Chief Minister Digambar Kamat said the state will have five such casinos.

''While one is operating now, five more applications have been received. Whoever comes first, would be given permission to operate -- but a total of only five,'' Mr Kamat told mediapersons here today.

The government, he said, was keen to issue licences for running the casinos as it gets Rs five crore as revenue from each as licence fee. The procedure for issuing licences is totally transparent, he added.

The casinos, where customers gamble across the deck amid entertainment, are in demand mostly by high-spend foreign tourists and rich people visiting the state.

UNI