Goa Minister for Tourism Dilip Parulekar has sought support from the Central government to upgrade infrastructure at the Dabolim international airport here ahead of the tourist season.
Paruleker said on Wednesday that he has taken up the problems at the Dabolim airport with the Civil Aviation Minister, Ashok Gajapathi Raju. Poor work quality that resulted in the collapse of the false ceiling, below par housekeeping services, limited food outlets, and lack of bus bays were among the major problems, he added.
“The tourism industry of the State is alarmed and concerned at the lack of world-class facilities at the Goa airport which receives thousands of international travellers,” Parulekar said in his representation to the Union Government.
In a separate letter to the Union Minister for Home Rajnath Singh, Parulekar has drawn the former’s attention to several short-comings at the immigration counters at the Dabolim Airport and the need to review the functioning of the immigration office there, which is currently reeling under pressure due to insufficient counters.
He further pointed out that the current Immigration Bureau Office is under-staffed and that further compounds problems.
Last year, the coastal tourist state received over 5 million tourists, of which about 0.5 million were foreigners.