Offering tables and EGMs
The government of the Indian state of Goa has created a proposal that would move offshore casinos ashore and create a land-based international entertainment cluster.
According to the plan, described by Asia Gaming Brief as a “tourism policy,” lawmakers would shift all gaming operations from their current location on the Mandovi River to a designated casino zone that has been compared in some reports to an Indian version of the famous Las Vegas Strip. A prime locale could be near the new Mopa International Airport.
According to a November report in the Business Standard, the proposed regulations would allow casinos to offer both table and electronic gaming and develop casinos outside five-star hotels. Casinos inside hotels would only able to offer electronic gaming with no tables, local media report.
India’s Herald newspaper said the new setup would ban locals gaming; Goans caught gambling in the state’s casinos could face imprisonment of up to one year and fines of up to Rs500. Goa’s current offshore casinos will be allowed to operate for four years after the bill is enacted and may get a further extension if they’ve applied for a license for a land-based casino.
AGB reports that the opposition Congress Party wants the government to auction casino licenses instead of automatically granting them to the river-based operators.
“The license should be auctioned, because that is the policy adopted across the country,” Goa Pradesh Congress Committee President Girish Chodankar told the Times of India last year. “Coal blocks, mining licenses and 2G spectrum are auctioned, so why not auction casino licenses too?”
The draft proposal will be reviewed by legislators on January 16.
