ABP Ideas of India: Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Friday spoke about the negative tourism in the state by some influencers as he claimed that they are doing so in an attempt to shift the tourism to other places.
Speaking at ABP Network's Ideas of India Summit 2025, Sawant said that being the Chief Minister he is himself monitoring tourism numbers in the state. Earlier Goa was dependent on mining but now it is largely dependent on tourism, he said.
On being asked about some influencers spreading negative news about Goa, Sawant said they are doing so "to shift tourism" from the coastal state, adding that the matter is under investigation.
Moderating the session, ABP News anchor Pratima Mishra asked Sawant about reports of lower footfall in Goa during the New Year's celebration. The CM refuted the report saying "we gave them good infrastructre" that shifted the usual crowded places.
"People did not see the crowd so they assumed" not many people visited Goa, he said.
On safety of tourists, Sawant assured that there is "no other state safe and secure than Goa." Police is working on social security, he said, adding that pink force for ladies have been deployed. The CM also spoke about crackdown on 35 fake hotel booking websites and urged people to use the government approved sites for booking hotels.
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On the alleged 'taxi nexus' in the state, the Chief Minister said its not true. There are app based taxis in Goa too and preference is being given to app-based and meter-based taxis.
ABP Network is back with the fourth edition of Ideas of India this year bringing together powerful minds from different walks of life including politics, business, science, art and culture, and sports.