Goa should have a special protection force for tourists, says Vyas

New Delhi, Feb.1 (ANI): Chairperson of National Commission for Women (NCW) Girija Vyas on Monday demanded deployment of special security force on major tourist destinations for the security of tourist women in particular.

Vyas's comments came days after a nine-year-old Russian girl rape case in the beach resort of Goa.

"Women tourists should be ensured more security. Just declaring tourism as an industry will not help. Like railways, tourism is a big network in India. Just as Railways have their own police force-- the railway police, states like Goa, which have heavy influx of tourists, should have a special protection force," said NCW commissioner Girija Vyas, on the sidelines of an event in national capital New Delhi.

Vyas said the commission has taken the rape case very seriously and has asked Goa government to send a detailed report on the action being taken.

Aman Bharadwaj, the main accuse in the case has already been arrested.

The girl and her mother were on holiday.

There has been a spate of attacks on women in Goa, a tourist hotspot on the Arabian Sea coast.

On December 25, 2009, two Russian girls alleged that a taxi driver tried to rape them at Anjuna Beach while they were returning from a Christmas party.

Earlier, a 25-year-old Russian girl alleged that a Goan politician raped her in his car near Colva Beach. 24-year-old Russian Elena Sukhnova's mutilated body was found on railway tracks near Mapusa town on May 8, 2009.

Around 500,000 tourists visit Goa every year. (ANI)