Goa casinos violating licence terms to be fined up to Rs 75 lakh

Panaji: State govt, for the first time on Friday, decided to impose fines of up to Rs 75 lakh on onshore and offshore casinos if they violate the terms and conditions of the licence.There are over a dozen onshore casinos and six offshore casinos operating in the state.“For any violation of the terms and conditions of the licence, the security deposit shall be forfeited, and the licence will be liable for cancellation, or the licensee will have to pay the fine, or both,” state govt said. State will impose Rs 25 lakh fine for the first violation of any licence condition, Rs 50 lakh for second violation, and Rs 75 lakh for the third or any further violation of the terms and conditions of the licence.A senior officer said that earlier there was no provision to impose fines in case casino operators were found to be in violation of any condition, but state govt had provision to suspend the licences and thereafter cancel them if the operators were found to be in violation of any licence conditions.During the monsoon session of the Goa assembly, MLAs raised the issue of live gambling at the casinos.After MLAs raised the issue, Goa police on Wednesday searched an onshore casino in Candolim for allegedly allowing live gaming on their premises. They seized cash and other items worth Rs 35 lakh and arrested 11 persons, including customers, a dealer, and a shift manager. They were subsequently released on bail.During the search, police seized a table for live card gambling, six small result display screens, 52 playing cards, one chip float containing different chips with various values, one medium-sized display screen, one shuffler shoe, and other gambling articles, all worth approximately Rs 35 lakh.