Rain cripples interstate travel, tourists affected in Goa

PANAJI: While the rain that lashed Goa on Tuesday threw normal life off-balance for residents, tourists hoping to visit or leave the sunshine state during the week had to rethink their travel plans.
“I usually visit Goa with my group of friends during this time, but I was told that the weather is so bad and there are floods everywhere. We will wait for a week until the orange alert issued to Goa is lifted and then fly down for a vacation,” said Aishwarya Ghule from Pune.
For Nasiruddin Qureshi from nearby Belagavi, it was the rain coupled with the ongoing taxi strike in Goa that played spoilsport with his travel itinerary.
“Due to this situation, we are not able to take a taxi back from Goa to Belagavi. My older brother is ill, and I’ve flown down with my family from Bahrain to see him. If the weather situation persists, we will have just have to fly back from here ,” he said.
On Monday, many interstate buses were held up due to waterlogged roads and had to return to Goa. The vehicles supposed to come into Goa from neighbouring states also had to turn back, sources said.
The Kadamba Transport Corporation (KTC) cancelled its buses from Goa to Pune, Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mumbai, Raichur, Solapur and Hyderabad on Tuesday. “This has led to a loss of revenue of about Rs 10-15 lakhs. We will observe the conditions of the roads and then decide whether to resume interstate services s on Wednesday.” a KTC official said.
TOI had earlier reported that the India meteorological department (IMD) has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall in the state up to August 9, warning people to “be prepared” for any situation.