EASY DRUGS AT RAVES KEEP GOA HOT ON TOURIST CIRCUIT

PANAJI - The smell of drugs is in the Goan ambience now. Narcotic
substances like charas, ganja, estassy, LSD and cocaine are playing a key
role in building Goa as a hot tourist destination among a section of its
young visitors and also those who put this place on the world drugs map in
the first place.

The tiny emerald on the west coast of the country, with its natural scenic
beauty, attractive beaches, churches, temples, feasts and festivals, has
over the years built up a reputation of an easy-drugs paradise.

Right from the late sixties, the hippies have left an impression that Goa
is an easy place for drugs compared to even Indonesia, Singapore or Thailand.

Drug abuse has been rampant at hi-fi parties among visiting white tourists.
Big money, narcotics, and an ambivalent attitude by the government go into
making Goa a safe transit point for narcotics.

Drug seizures and major operations carried out by the Goa police in the
last 12 months fetched evidence about the well-knit drugs syndicate
operating from the cross borders of Nepal and Pakistan which also give an
indication of the manner in which Goa was being used as a transit and
consumption point.

D.C. Shrivastav, Superintendent of Police (CID), told The Times of India
the impact of drugs on the local youth seems to be increasing as compared
to earlier. The Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) of the Goa police registered
almost 42 cases in which 45 persons were arrested, including 34 Indians and
11 of foreign origin. The drugs seized by the police are worth over Rs
59.58 lakh.

Parties along the Goa beach belt like Anjuna, Baga, Calangute and Colva
have made it to the headlines over the last several years. Call it a beach
party, acid party or `rave' party, such events have led to horror and shock
in the minds of the average Goan population, admits Shrivastav. Much of Goa
has long been blissfully unaware of the so-called acid and full moon
parties, which points fingers at the strong underworld-political links in
organising the events.

Trance and rave parties that have spawned since 1990 have become a fashion
among young foreign tourists in pockets of the North Goa belt. Yuppies from
Delhi, Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Bihar and Mumbai are reportedly
joining the bee-line to these beach events.

Such parties, described as a hypnotic blend of hard electronic rhythms have
always been reported in Goa, but it has been difficult to establish a clear
statistical picture except for some stray seizures made by the ANC on
December 24, 2000, where a Nepali national identified as Man Singh was
arrested and 7.5 kg of charas worth over Rs 8 lakh recovered from his
possession.

Ironically, whenever the credibility of the law enforcing agencies is
challenged by the press or Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs), they
simply deny the fact that Goa slowly grew in prominence in the foreign
circuit largely because of the tolerant approach to narcotic abuse.

Asked about links and inlets of narcotics into the state, Shrivastav said
large hauls and small hints have kept coming in over the year from the
state and central intelligence agencies.

Investigations reveal that several drug lords, including a few from North
India, are reportedly setting up base in Goa for the lucrative trade. A
kilo of hashish is available for anything between Rs 4,000 and Rs 10,000 in
the villages in the north of the country like Himachal Pradesh and Bihar.
Once it lands on Goan soil, it fetches up to Rs 1 lakh. And when it crosses
the Indian border, the price multiplies.