The floating casinos in the Indian state of Goa have been given more time in which to find a new permanent place to dock.
The five shipboard casinos currently plying their trade on the Mandovi river were under orders to vacate the waterway as of March 31, following a one-year extension granted to them by the Goan government in March 2016. The state cabinet announced this weekend that the deadline has now been extended until September 30, 2017.
Goa’s thriving casino industry is a nonstop source of controversy in the region. The state government took heat for renewing the license of a non-operative sixth shipboard casino this month after a court ruled that the government couldn’t delay its decision until after local election results were made public.
The floating casinos have explored various alternatives to their current situation, but announcements regarding deals in Chicalim Bay on the Zuari river have proven premature. Earlier this month, one floating casino was forced to relocate from its temporary berth in Chicalim to the Mormugao Port Trust area after local villagers complained to authorities about the potential impact on the environmentally sensitive fishing area.
The uncertainty over finding a permanent berth for Goa’s floating casinos hasn’t stopped the new state government from raising annual fees. On Friday, the new government introduced its annual state budget, which included increased levies on both floating casinos and the state’s 11 land-based gaming venues.
Gaming vessels with a 200-passenger capacity will now pay annual recurring fees of Rs 100m (US $1.5m), an increase of Rs 1.5m from last year, while vessels with capacity between 200-400 persons will pay Rs 110m and larger vessels will pay Rs 120m. The government also doubled floating casino license transfer fees to Rs 200m.
Land-based casinos face annual renewal fees of Rs 3m, while license transfer fees will cost Rs 100m. Annual recurring fees will be based on footprint, with small casinos under 100-square-meters paying Rs 40m, an increase of Rs 5m. The largest casinos occupying over 500-square-meters will pay Rs 70m.
