Panaji: A group of BJP MLAs on Thursday met Director General of Police Alok Kumar complaining about harassment meted out to the tourists by traffic police in the coastal belt, resulting in the visitors taking back bad memories about their vacation.
BJP MLAs including Michael Lobo (Calangute), Kedar Naik (Saligao) and Delilah Lobo (Siolim) met Kumar demanding that the traffic police should be instructed not to harass the tourists visiting the state.
Lobo said that Traffic Police were stopping tourists on rent-a-bike without visible violations. He said that despite having all the documents, the tourists are stopped by traffic police under the pretext of checking their documents.
The Calangute MLA told reporters that the owners of rent-a-cab should be held responsible for not having proper documents for the bike, rather than harassing tourists, who take it on a rent.
Lobo said that sometimes, tourists are stopped and they have to wait for almost fifteen minutes, before the police officer arrives to see their valid documents like licence.
He said that tourists go back with bad memories due to such acts of the traffic police. Lobo said that there are instances wherein the tourists are stopped, nine times during the day by traffic police, asking them for the documents.
The BJP MLA said that DGP has agreed to instruct the traffic police not to harass the tourists.
Saligao MLA Kedar Naik said that DGP has said that the technology would be developed in the form of QR code wherein once tourist is checked, he would not be stopped again on the same day.
Siolim MLA Delilah Lobo said that the proposed QR code, as assured by the DGP, is a welcome step as tourism inflow is getting affected due to such behaviour.
She said that the international tourists are opting to drop Goa from their vacation list, while entire industry is dependent on the domestic tourists.
