By IANS,
Panaji : Congress legislator Dayanand Narvekar Monday said the state government was not doing much to offset rising unemployment, which was driving youth to alcohol.
Speaking at the Monsoon session of the Goa legislative assembly Monday, Narvekar, a former finance minister, said taverns or bars in rural Goa have now become the haunts of unemployed youth.
“Taverns are the only places which are doing brisk business in rural areas, where the unemployed youth flock to,” Narvekar said.
There are nearly 7,000 bars spread throughout Goa catering to a population of 13.5 lakh.
“Where are the unemployed youth going to go? To prostitution, massage parlours, casinos? What are they going to do?” Narvekar asked.
Further in his criticism of his own government, the Congress legislator said the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) has failed to provide the youth with any jobs and the event held annually has been reduced to a ‘wining and dining’ event.
“The IFFI is just a waste of money. There is nothing coming back to the people of the state. We should have at least built a film city on the lines of the film city which has been built in Chennai,” he said, adding that the facility was providing the local youth with several employment avenues relating to the film industry.
“Here during these film festivals we have seen an audience of three persons sometimes in the auditorium,” Narvekar said.
Narvekar was also critical of the state government splurging on advertising campaigns for tourism at a time when it was facing financial crunch. The tourism department has spent Rs.15 crore to promote tourism in Goa.