‘Bar-and-restaurant licences misused for the purpose’
Abdul Wahab Khan
Panaji: Exposing a serious loophole in the state’s licensing and safety framework, government officials have said that none of the competent authorities grant permission to nightclubs as a distinct category, and that “establishments functioning as nightclubs are covered, if at all, under restaurant licences”.
This has exposed the government as crores of rupees are spent on tourism promotion but nightclubs which draw large number of tourists go unregulated.
Nightclubs have been in the news in the wake of the Arpora fire tragedy that claimed 25 lives last week.
The officials disclosed that no department maintains records on the number of nightclubs—legal or illegal—operating in the state.
The Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) has categorically stated that it has not issued any no-objection certificate or consent specifically for nightclubs or pubs.
According to the board, there is no exclusive consent category for nightclubs under its consent management system.
“Consent is mandatory for restaurants, but there is no separate classification for nightclubs. As a result, establishments functioning as nightclubs are effectively covered, if at all, under restaurant licences,” a senior GSPCB official said.
A similar gap exists as regards the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA). While the Authority is responsible for granting CRZ permissions, it admitted that it does not possess data on nightclubs operating in coastal areas.
“Applicants apply for CRZ approval for commercial structures such as shacks, restaurants, cottages or similar uses. There is no specific permission sought or granted for nightclubs,” an official said, suggesting that clubs in coastal belts function without specific CRZ clearance for nightlife activities.
The Fire and Emergency Services Department has also acknowledged that it has not received applications from nightclubs seeking fire safety NOCs. Officials explained that the department’s role is largely advisory, as the law does not vest it with penal powers to enforce fire prevention norms.
“We can issue notices or declare a structure unsafe, but enforcement powers lie elsewhere. Our statute is recommendatory in nature,” a fire official said.
The only department with traceable records is the Panchayat Department. Data shows that over the last three years, showcause notices were issued to four nightclubs in Anjuna for operating illegally along the Bardez coastal belt.
Officials said these actions highlighted that such establishments exist and function, despite the absence of formal permissions from competent authorities.
The government has constituted a five-member safety audit committee, headed by the revenue secretary Sandip Jacques, IAS, to draft standard operating procedures (SOPs) for comprehensive safety audits and for granting licences to nightclubs, pubs, bars, restaurants and event venues.
As the safety audit committee begins its work, the officials maintained that drafting effective SOPs without baseline data will be a challenge.
“You cannot regulate what you cannot count,” a senior bureaucrat remarked.
An activist said such loopholes are deliberately left to take advantage of the situation for the politician-panchayat-nightclub promoter nexus. When the Tourism Department says it is keeping a close watch for illegalities in the tourism trade, why are such illegal nightclubs excluded?, the activist asked.
