Panaji, June 24: If you are wondering that traveling is a thing of the past due to the outbreak of Covid-19 outbreak, then here is some good news to cheer about as one of the key travel destinations Goa may open up the tourism sector.  The state government is likely to decide on the resumption of tourism activity in the state with the next eight days, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said on Wednesday, according to the news agency IANS.

The chief minister added that small and big hoteliers are all demanding that the tourism industry should restart. The government is thinking positively about it and a decision will be taken in eight days in order to give relief to the tourism business.

What is the current status of Covid-19 in Goa?

Commenting on a steep increase in coronavirus cases in numerous containment and micro-containment zones in Goa, Sawant said that the trend was expected to continue.

After remaining a zero-Covid state for more than a month, Goa has seen a steep increase in active cases since late May. The state is one of the top tourism destinations in the country.

In fact two days back, the state has witnessed an 85-year-old man from north Goa’s Morlem, who had been bedridden for four years, succumbing to the deadly coronavirus. He has become the first victim in the state, as per the Indian Express report. Although the state’s daily health bulletin has listed it as the “death of a person with co-morbid conditions”.

How is the state prepping up for tourism?

Hoteliers would have to ensure that each room was sanitised after the departure of guests, as part of a new SOP for the hotel sector. Only those hotels which are ready to follow such conditions would be permitted to resume operations, said the minister speaking to reporters at the state Secretariat.

The Chief Minister also said that the existing norm of mandatory testing for those visiting Goa would also be continued with, once tourism activities resume.

Asked if resumed tourism activities won't cause crowding at public places, he said: "Tourists do not go to public places. They do not go to the bus stands and marketplaces."

He also mentioned the need to inculcate a civic sense and hygiene-related discipline in public places.

The Travel and Tourism Association of Goa had in a letter to Sawant last week warned of increased unemployment if the state government did not take adequate steps to restart the severely-hit Goa tourism sector.

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