Goa to ban plastic at Dudhsagar waterfalls

Panaji, May 22 (IANS) Goa may put a cap on the number of tourists visiting the popular Dudhsagar waterfalls, while also banning use of plastic at the popular tourist site, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar said on Monday.

"Goa is good for tourism, but I will assure you that we will not damage environment," Parrikar said, while speaking at a function organised to mark International Day for Biological Diversity.

The Chief Minister said he was the first to realise the potential of the waterfalls and cautioned the Forest Department to keep the area clean.

"I would advise Secretary, Forest, that a lot of plastic is accumulated there. We should keep it spotless. In fact, we should ban plastic. Stop the vehicle and ask everyone to deposit their plastic and take it back when they go back."

Dudhsagar is a scenic location located in Eastern Goa, along the South Central Railway track to Belgaum in Karnataka.

The perennial, round-the-year waterfalls is extremely popular with tourists, both domestic and foreign, but increasing plastic waste being dumped at the falls site has been a matter of concern for tourism authorities as well as environmentalists.

Parrikar said there was a need to cap the number of tourists visiting the falls and that around 200,000 to 250,000 visitors would be a sustainable number for the falls.

"The moment it (a tourist spot) is popular, we destroy the bio-diversity of the place... Tourism can grow with help of bio-diversity and environment," he added.