Panaji: Goa government has decided do away with the tourist security force deployed on the beaches for the security of tourists and instead rely on the police force for this purpose.
Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, in a written reply before the Legislative Assembly, has said that a separate tourist force will become ineffective in the absence any powers of policing.
"An effective force as part of police set-up and well-trained personnel is being considered as an alternative," Parrikar said in the reply tabled in the House.
"The tenure of the force is getting over on November 24, 2012," he said adding that the current government has dropped the idea of continuing with the force.
Parrikar was absent in the House, as he is in Mumbai with his ailing son.
The erstwhile Congress-led government had constituted the tourist security force in the wake of a spate of crimes against tourists in the coastal state.
The force comprises ex-servicemen on contract basis, who are deployed at the beaches. However, they do not have any policing powers.
PTI
