Another avenue being thrown open without much though from Arlekar. There is absolutely no planning that goes on with this government. Someone thinks of making a fast buck and the government buys it thoughtlessly
Preparations are on to hold the ‘first-of-its-kind’ bird festival in Goa.
“We are consulting experts to be able to host the bird festival in Goa by October or November 2016,” minister for forest and environment, Rajendra Arlekar said. Deliberations are on and the plans will be out tentatively in a week’s time, he said.
The minister told TOI that as per the tentative plan, the festival will be held over three days. While stating that no final decision on the venues has been taken, Arlekar said that the festival base may be at Bondla and the other venues will be atSalim Ali bird sanctuary at Chorao and Carambolim lake.
“We are in talks with experts and those in the know who will guide the government on the venues and how to go about it”, he said. One venue could be in South Goa.
He said it’s a matter of pride that out of 1,000 bird species in the country, Goa has around 460.
“We not only get foreign tourists but also get birds from foreign countries,” Arlekar said adding that there is a huge potential for avian tourism as the number of birders is growing steadily.
He said that the government would do whatever is necessary to promote Goa as a birding destination.
“Even among locals, there is huge enthusiasm as the young and old are go on bird-watching trips with binoculars and cameras,” he said.